You Can Retire from Work but Not from Life.

There are many people who count down the days until they are free from commutes, bosses, meetings, paperwork, obnoxious coworkers and difficult customers. They look forward to a life that does not involve an alarm clock and where leisurely mornings before going to the gym are the new normal.  Modern day retirement can also be a scary prospect for some.  For some work is a job, a pay cheque.  For others if provides meaning and purpose

It’s rare that even a 40-year career could support a 40-year retirement these days.  And from the many conversations I find myself in these days, one of the biggest retirement challenges that no one talks about is finding purpose.  Sure, money is definitely a concern, but surprisingly, financial concerns weren’t on the top of most individuals’ lists. 

One financial professional I was chatting with agreed that retirement “savings” and retirement “planning” are two very different concepts.  But if you google the subject of retirement planning, you’ll find pages and pages and pages of savings, investment, and pension related information.

There’s actually little on actual retirement planning.  The kind of planning that is more about your life, and less about your money.  What are you going to do once you leave the workforce?  You can retire from work, but you can’t retire from life. 

We’ve helped countless “retirees” unretire in one fashion or another.  These “Silver Seals” might not all have gone back to work in the traditional 9 to 5 way, but they have started new businesses, consulted, volunteered, mentored and coached others, or returned to school to find joy and satisfaction. 

The Japanese concept of Ikigai (the reason you get up in the morning) is one that is talked about a lot more these days.  And as our clients actively pursue what they enjoy doing in service to themselves, their families and their community, we ask them to think about four questions:

 1.       Is this activity something that you love?

2.       Are you good at this?

3.       Does the world need what you offer?

4.       Is this something you could get paid to do?

For many, now is the perfect time to create a new life and depending upon when you plan to retire (I still dislike this word), you may find yourself with another 30 or more years of life.  We could easily spend half of our adult lives in retirement.  That’s just too long to aimlessly drift along.

Join the movement today to “Revolutionize Retirement”!