And keep in mind where all of those ads and commercials about retiring with that kind of lifestyle are coming from. The companies that are making money from us investing our retirement money with them.
I am not trying to make them out to be the bad guy, as far too many people have invested too little for their retirment. Just a little perspective.
Retirement is a psychological issue for a great number of folks and little is written. Everyone does worry about the money, do I have enough, what will I do, what if I'm wrong and pull the pin, what am I giving up.
Its a very personal decision that involves so much of each area of ones life.
Some can't stand their spouse so would rather keep working.
Some will have no choice but to work as long as possible due to lack of funds.
I've known many who in my opinion could have walked away five years before they did but fear kept them working.
There is a small percentage of people who have no desire to retire and see no point in it.
Having a plan early in life keeps the dream on the stove.
If I look at the changes both physical and emotional in the long road of work life just for me I'm happy that I had a plan and it worked out.
I can't imagine when I was 25 that so much would have changed. Health to me is more important than going to work later in life. Emotionally I was ready to leave work behind and have quality time for me.
Having to live by a schedule is fine to a point I did that for 40 years.
Having kids was fine after all they needed the schedule as well.
Today I don't need to plan a vacation, don't need to be anywhere, go to bed when I want, wake up when I want or when the body tells me.
No rush hour in my world, no office politics, no sitting in meetings, no going out on a cold morning, able to relax in the spring sun and smell the flowers.
Its all about having a choice.
The older i get the more i realize even in the best of laid out plans they have to crossover to reality,the nature of life.It like the ground can always shift on you or a set of circumstances(you didnt forsee or anticipate)is set infront of you.
It can be both positives or negitives.A health issues of yourself or someone in your family....Or if you actually did dream of sailing say in retirement and found out you disliked it more than you realized,a spouse passes away,maybe you get re-married and it changes the course of your life,fall into a depression,a child passes ect imagine doing everything right and you and your spouse were set to retire in 2007 and you watch your portfolio get sliced in half-That would be hard because whether you like it or not "the game" changed and there is nothing you can do.
I guess what im saying is "we"(type A people/goal oriented or planners)like to think we control the outcomes but we cant.Life can dictate not us....not trying to sound glommy but it really is like that....sort of chasing a carrot that we dont ever get....i dont know if im making any sense,a dream is better in a dream.
I don't know about you all but when I retire I don't want to spend my days puttering around the house. So far I've never been on a plane, I've never been on a cruise ship, out of the 200 countries in the world I've been in 2... When I retire I envision taking vacations several times a year to exotic places, seeing all the wonders of the world, driving around in an expensive sports car, fine dining, etc. Are these foolish dreams of a young guy? I don't think they are as long as I continue saving as aggressively as I've been doing.
Why not do these while you're young and can enjoy it more? At 80 you might give yourself a heart attack going 250 in a shiny ferrari... If you can even get into the car...
I would recommend traveling when young and the rest of your life. Don't wait till retirement. Even if only for 2 weeks at a time.
The comforting thing for my wife and I is that we naturally have very low living expenses. Right now, our year living expenses are about 36k per year. This is with a mortgage (albeit a small one in relation to the Vancouver average). Remove the mortgage (we will do this soon) we can live our current lifestyle at about 24k. And we don't live like paupers... we don't go without much. Our $400 montly food bill would be our biggest single expense.
In a perfect world, our portfolio would yield about 50-60k, and we would have no money concerns whatsoever in retirement - in fact, our nest egg would likely grow. Amazing what no mortgage, car payments, expensive habits, or kids can do.
Minimizing expenses before retirement (within reason) is every bit as important as saving for retirement.
The next 5 years are a going to be a sprint to early retirement. Assuming my wife and I remain in our current jobs and pay off our mortgage within the next year, we should be able to save about 80k anually. If a bull market should materialize during this 5 year period, all the better, but our plan doesn't depend on market returns, thankfully. And my wife isn't convinced that she wants to stop work at 45... she says she might want to work until 50 as she quite likes her job. She has no problem with me quitting work as she understands the toll it has taken on me. What a woman.
Don't delay enjoying life. You never know if you're going to kick the bucket early. At the same time, have a plan in case your life "runs long".
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the
intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well
preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
chocolate in one hand, champagne in the other, body
thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming
“WOO HOO what a ride!” - unnamed
Last edited by slacker; 2011-12-10 at 03:36 PM.
Good sentiment as long as this lifestyle doesn't hasten the arrival at "the end" One of the great advantages of having more personal time in retirement is the ability to keep much fitter-if you are so inclined.Originally Posted by slacker
Don't delay enjoying life. You never know if you're going to kick the bucket early. At the same time, have a plan in case your life "runs long".
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the
intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well
preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
chocolate in one hand, champagne in the other, body
thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming
“WOO HOO what a ride!” - unnamed
After reading this thread. A couple of old sayings spring to mind..."Cut your garment according to your Cloth" and "Health is Wealth"
So along with those $$ savings, invest in your health with some preventative maintenance to save on long term care facility fees later on.
I agree with the statements that we have great expections in our retirement. We have worked, scrimped, paid off our debts and saved...and now the pay off...no wonder we feel it's a let down. It is firmly planted in our imagination that we should be sitting pretty with a high standard of living and an unending worryfree income stream.
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