Was it worth it?

[John Galt]

Re. working an extra 5 years giving you the "willies",
I dated a teacher once who was in her early 50s.
I was retired and one time I asked her when she planned to retire (I should add here that it was just
a job to her. She did not love her work). She said,
in 8 years. I thought "Man if I had 8 years before I
could retire I might fall on my sword and end it all."
Even back then the mere thought scared the hell out of me. BTW, unlike many of you, I was never really miserable in my work. Enjoyed most of it in fact.
Nope, I got out simply because I wasn't going to live
(or even be healthy) forever and whatever I wanted to
do needed to get started pronto. The past 6 years have shown the wisdom of quitting when I did.

John Galt

 

[gayl]

I am an 'ESTJ', unusual type for this board it seems. The 'INTJ's may have an easier time than I did.

Where can I find out my 'type?' Just wondering ....

I have been so busy since retiring that I hardly have time to wonder about the timing yet. Hope I will be on a more regular schedule fairly soon. I don't really feel as if I have ER'd right now, especially since I was 52 at the time. Would I go back? Do I wish I had waited 5 more years? No to both. Perhaps I should have gone 5 years earlier but then I wasn't eligible for the healthcare until 50.

 

[sgeeeee]

Where can I find out my 'type?' Just wondering ....

Try this:
http://www.retireearlyhomepage.com/mbti.html

 

[parnass]

I retired 3 years ago at age 49 from a computer engineering position in research & development for a large company. The company offered employees 45 years or older a 5+5 early retirement package. I had worked there 23 years and was eligible.

I was still interested in engineering, but the company work environment had seriously deteriorated and I found it to be stressful, thankless, and somewhat oppressive.

> When you look back on it, was it worth it?

ER? Yes. Life is so much more fun now and virtually stress-free. My weight and blood pressure dropped after retirement.

> Are you glad you ER'd when you did?

Yes, though I would have continued working in the same company if the conditions had been better.

I am 52 years old and have been blessed with good health. I have walked or bicycled a few miles each day, 7 days/week for years, for excercise. My supportive, hard working wife still works and enjoys her job.

The financial situation looks adequate. I have a nice nest egg and a modest company pension, though the company fell on hard times and has taken away most of the retiree benefits they enticed us with (affordable health and vision care, life insurance, etc.).

I lived below my means all my life and had saved a good deal of money. Sure, I bought "toys" along the way, but never borrowed money except for a modest mortgage which I paid off in 7 years. I invested conservatively.

> Has it been what you thought it would be?

The company's offer gave employees only a month to decide and that didn't afford us time to imagine what retirement would be like.

Therefore, I felt more like an "unemployed engineer" than a retiree for the first few years. Though I enjoyed several hobbies during the course of my employment, I lost interest in most of them when I retired and was "lost" for a while.

Now, I've found new recreational interests, donated time and effort to a few new software projects, and am truly enjoying retirement.

The freedom is fabulous. I live in my own time zone -- RST (Retirement Standard Time).

> Do you wish you'd waited five more years?

No. I had run out of enthusiasm and was disillusioned with the job long before I retired. The company outsourced many jobs to India and China and had massive layoffs after I retired, which makes me so glad I retired when I did.

 

[Cut-Throat]

Therefore, I felt more like an "unemployed engineer" than a retiree for the first few years.

Parnass,

Your situation is very, very close to mine. The above statement is exactly how I felt the first year. I also left under similar circumstances as you. I was also a Software Engineer and worked in an evergrowing miserable environment.

I also left 3 years ago at age 50, Now I'm 53 and enjoying the Freedom and Retirement. When I left my plan was to work part time at home, but it was 10 days before 9/11/2001 and a lot of work dried up.
I too was 'lost' and actually thought about getting another job (very briefly, never took action )

I did some projects, but finally decided that it was more of an interruption than an enjoyable activity.

I too am enjoying the freedom, and could not go back to work if I had too.  8)

My wife also still works and will continue for a few years. She is very type 'A' and will have a hard time settling down after she retires.

 

[parnass]

Parnass,

Your situation is very, very close to mine. The above statement is exactly how I felt the first year. I also left under similar circumstances as you. I was also a Software Engineer and worked in an evergrowing miserable environment.

I'm glad to "meet" you and glad I learned about this forum. I have been reading the postings for several months before writing.

By the way, 8500 employees at my former company accepted the same early retirement package I did. All of us retired on the same day a month or so later. Several were not prepared financially and hunted for new jobs. I am indeed fortunate to be able to stay retired instead needing another job.