Can one ever retire too early? It may sound like a silly question, but the answer is yes on more than just the financial front.
Planning for a financially comfortable retirement may be the easy part. Planning for an emotionally rewarding retirement can be more difficult. The transition from being motivated by the chance to demonstrate competence to being motivated by the chance of finding the meaning of life is a shift from the “what” of life to the “why” of life.
For some, their purpose in daily living did not rely on what they did for a living but why they did it. That satisfaction of accomplishment may be hard to replace in retired life. You may have heard the adage “lookin the mirror and see who you are and not what you are or do”? ‘What’ may be more than just a title, it may mean what you derive emotionally by what you do for a living. So how do you become emotionally aware … or how do you help your soon to be retiring better half become aware?
Begin with thinking about what is satisfying in your day-to-day activities. Is it interaction with others? Is it staying engaged with your knowledge or expertise? Is it the routine? Is it simply getting out of the house? Understanding what is providing satisfaction can help develop the next phase.
Awareness of what makes you satisfied can improve the ability to replicate or replace activities. This moves the mindset to thinking about retiring to, or transitioning to, a new chapter or phase, rather than closing the binders of a really good story in a well written book and starting all over. A life coach can help you transition to this new chapter with grace.
I would be remiss if we didn’t discuss all the characters in your new chapter. Imagine your homemaker spouse deciding to retire. Aside from having to replace all the services, imagine that they no longer will be in their home office all day but will be coming to your space, your office. How would you cope with that? What thoughts come to mind? Will it require more work on your part? Are you supposed to keep them entertained all day? Are you to pick up after them?
That may be the same thing you or your significant other maybe thinking too. Relationships that have thrived on certain routines and expectations may find challenges as people shift into new realities. It means that awareness from all characters may be of importance.
As you coauthor your next chapter together consider your own emotional and financial well-being and your significant other. An experienced financial advisor will help you explore the variables as you tie the personal and technical side of your future into a cohesive plan.
Whether your retirement from traditional work is forced or selected, the emotions during transition may run from grief to relief. It is during these transition periods that we see people go through a ‘passage’ phase as they find their new normal. A married retiring person means two people are entering a passage phase and there may be different understandings of what the new normal will look like. Discovering this new life can at times be joyful, and at others be challenging and confusing. Being mindful seems obvious, yet it can be very difficult to balance the sometimes highly emotional needs of two people finding the right path.
We encourage financial planning so that people entering a new phase, particularly when forced to do so, have the comfort and confidence in their financial ability to weather the next chapter in whatever season it arrives. Removing the financial stress of the future can allow greater focus on the emotional health and well-being of the main characters in your next chapter.
Are you ready to get prepared for your retirement? Call 602.923.9800 today for your complimentary initial consultation. Live life brilliantly with our personalized financial planning.
Read more articles by Renee Hanson