Retirement might not be as enjoyable as you expect unless...

I recently appeared as a guest on The Australian newspaper’s Money Café podcast, where we discussed the FIRE moment. The acronym stands for Financially Independent, Retire Early, which involves living as frugally as possible, investing as much as possible so that you can afford to retire as soon as possible. 

A listener that works in the mental health sector wrote into the show to say that she would actively discourage people from retiring early. Instead, perhaps work less, she suggested. She believed that working was beneficial to a person’s wellbeing and mental health. 

A UK study from 2013 found that retirement increased the probability of suffering from clinic depression by circa 40% and a physical health conditions by 60%. 

Retirement might not be as enjoyable as you expect

Imagine having the whole day to do whatever you want. No deadlines. No emails. No meetings. No obligations. Sounds appealing, right? The problem is that for many people, the retirement honeymoon wears off quickly. It is not uncommon for people to deal with a variety of feelings: 

• §  Loss of self-worth. For many of us, our occupation contributes a lot towards how we define ourselves and our self-worth. Once we have retired, we no longer see ourselves as “a lawyer, a surgeon, a CEO…”, which can lead to a loss of identity which is often connected to ones self-worth.  
• §  Miss daily routine. The daily routine of travelling to work, meetings, deadlines and so on adds structure to our day. Without this structure, people can start to feel bored, aimless, and isolated.
• §  Hobbies and interests aren’t enough. Hobbies and interests can be great pastimes whilst we are working, as they allow us time to relax and socialise. However, once we stop working, we might find we need activities that offer more than just relaxation. 
• §  Expectations are different to your spouses. If your spouse wants completely different things from retirement this could create conflict. 

I think most people are underprepared for retirement.

There are two important needs that work satisfies  

Speaker and coach, Tony Robbins has adapted Maslow's hierarchy of needs to derive 6 human needs to be fulfilled/happy being (1) certainty, (2) variety, (3) significance, (4) connection/love, (5) growth and (6) contribution. 

The last two needs are often fulfilled by our occupation. 

Growth 

Growth refers to the desire to constantly improve and learn more. If you are constantly striving to learn more at work, expand your capability, do work you are proud of, strive for promotions and so on, then it’s likely growth is important to you. If so, you will need to consider how you will fulfil this need in retirement. That could include finding paid or unpaid employment you connect with, studying, taking up a new hobby, travelling the world and so on. 

Contribution 

Contribution refers to a sense of service and focus on helping, giving to and supporting others. As Tony Robbins says, living is giving. This need can be fulfilled by your occupation if you work for an organisation or business that pursues a cause that you identify with. If this describes you, you’ll need to consider how you will fill this need in retirement. Some solutions to this might include helping/looking after families and/or friends, volunteering or starting your own charity for a cau

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