How do you train yourself to endure your last few years before retirement

[thepalmersinking]

Early 50's and I am set to get out by 57, but I walk I the office and spend most of the day trying to stay engaged. Due to gov't regulations after the financial meltdown, the entire bank is filled with useless overhead disguised as risk management. I need to keep telling myself something not to walk out. I really need something inspiring to help me get through my last few years.


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[freedomatlast]

My strategy has been to try to put up with all of the craziness and absurdity by getting as much entertainment value as I can out of it all. Try to view it as paid entertainment. I also have removed the filter from much of what I say and it's fun to view the reaction of others after some very candid comments.

 

[spirit]

Everyone has a story

I don't think there is one way of doing this....I have listened to a lot of people talk about retirement and I believe it is different for every person.

Many of my colleagues were retiring at 56-57 and told me they could not wait to leave...the working world was changing so much..they had the number for their pension and they were checking out....not a moment extra were they going to stay

My story was a little different....my husband had to retire at 50 and although 1000 a month was pretty good in the 1990's 25 years of inflation had taken its course....I had gone back to work part time and had worked myself to full time but things were starting to go south at work....I felt overworked and underappreciated but was going to stick with it for a few more years.

Then my boss pushed my last button...I had a huge meltdown in his office....yelled bloody murder and walked out. It was a couple of days before my holidays and I felt so ashamed of my behavior.....I was always so proud of keeping calm under pressure...but I finally lost it.

I spent my summer waffling back and forth....should I leave or go back...Trouble was I really loved my job at one time...I did not want to leave it like that. Trouble was......my husband was urging me to retire...why put up with the ****,etc. I was 56...etc etc....

I really was torn....decided to go back....made peace with my boss...and had a really good year.... That was about 8 years ago. He retired...I am still there 1/2 time and I will be 65 this spring. I still love my job....really working for nothing but the satisfaction since I could retire on full pension.

Yesterday, my new boss offered me the same position that got me so angry 8 years ago.....and it was ok. I accepted...looked at the positive side and will probably stay another year or two....I am going year by year...if my health is good....if I still have no grandchildren (; I will work until 70 I
hope.

Deep inside I get a great deal of satisfaction from my job....I am a teacher....I still love being with my students....and I think I am very good at my job. Plus I don't golf so...what would I do with my time...

Keep talking and listening to people....one day you will hear something that will click with you and you will be putting your papers in. Good luck.

 

[Davis65]

Look for opportunities to teach or mentor younger coworkers. Share what you know before you go. You will be doing them a big favour, helping your country by training tyhe next generation, and will find it rewarding.

Or, are you sure you have to stay until 57? See if you can trim a year or two off, and then the time will star to fly.

 

[ejman]

I don't think there is one way of doing this....I have listened to a lot of people talk about retirement and I believe it is different for every person.

Many of my colleagues were retiring at 56-57 and told me they could not wait to leave...the working world was changing so much..they had the number for their pension and they were checking out....not a moment extra were they going to stay

My story was a little different....my husband had to retire at 50 and although 1000 a month was pretty good in the 1990's 25 years of inflation had taken its course....I had gone back to work part time and had worked myself to full time but things were starting to go south at work....I felt overworked and underappreciated but was going to stick with it for a few more years.

Then my boss pushed my last button...I had a huge meltdown in his office....yelled bloody murder and walked out. It was a couple of days before my holidays and I felt so ashamed of my behavior.....I was always so proud of keeping calm under pressure...but I finally lost it.

I spent my summer waffling back and forth....should I leave or go back...Trouble was I really loved my job at one time...I did not want to leave it like that. Trouble was......my husband was urging me to retire...why put up with the ****,etc. I was 56...etc etc....

I really was torn....decided to go back....made peace with my boss...and had a really good year.... That was about 8 years ago. He retired...I am still there 1/2 time and I will be 65 this spring. I still love my job....really working for nothing but the satisfaction since I could retire on full pension.

Yesterday, my new boss offered me the same position that got me so angry 8 years ago.....and it was ok. I accepted...looked at the positive side and will probably stay another year or two....I am going year by year...if my health is good....if I still have no grandchildren (; I will work until 70 I
hope.

Deep inside I get a great deal of satisfaction from my job....I am a teacher....I still love being with my students....and I think I am very good at my job. Plus I don't golf so...what would I do with my time...

Keep talking and listening to people....one day you will hear something that will click with you and you will be putting your papers in. Good luck.

I enjoyed your story. But out of curiosity...why post this in an early retirement forum?

 

[Terryjm51]

Spirit,
I think it was a great post. I have been on the job for 30 yrs and turned 54 last month. I am by nature my whole career steady easy going, I am in a management role, an have felt undue pressure lately more lately and have been close too many times on losing my mind. I don't get it. I saw the same thing with old timers when I was younger.
Not sure if I feel disrespected or what.
That is was driving me out of the game, into early retirement. I have to count to 10 a lot. 55 is the earliest I can go ...... My numbers tell me 57 and never work again. But would like to leave early from mega corp and work in a business with my son until 60 or so......55 is first shot at getting medical


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[spirit]

I like this forum

Thanks to those who liked my story...one of the questions was why post here?

Well....I have been a member here since around 2007. Since I was thinking about retiring I wanted to explore the ideas found here.

Even though I chose to continue working....can I not early retire at age 70

So...to answer a question....just replying to a post

 

[ejman]

Thank you for the reply. Of course you can early retire at any age including 70 and beyond. My dad continued working until his early 90's and it certainly didn't seem to hurt him any as he just celebrated his 101 back in December

 

[Katiek]

Two possible strategies might work to help stay motivated and calm - First one, focus on the aspects of work that you like, and realize that you won't have to do the bad parts too much longer. If you know you're not fighting for the next promotion, it can help relieve some of the stress. If you can't find anything good about the work itself, try to find something tangible to motivate you. If you're thinking of moving on retirement, take some trips to explore possible locations. Try living on your "retirement budget" - proving that your plans are on track can help make retirement seem more real. if you're interested in pursuing new hobbies, try to get started on them now - anything that helps make FIRE more tangible in your current life.

 

[Meadbh]

Why keep trying to get engaged with a job you hate? It may be easier to think of the job in a utilitarian way, simply as a means to a financial end. Do what you need to do to get the work done and earn the paycheck, but do not let the job take over your life. Say no to "opportunities" for self development, meetings you don't really need to attend, and pointless social events where employees brown nose the boss. Leave when the day is over and don't bring work home. Don't check work email and don't agree to be on call. Fill your personal time with activities that you really want to do. The time will pass more quickly.

 

[RetireAge50]

What meadbh just said is exactly what I have done for 26 years.

 

[Calico]

What meadbh just said is exactly what I have done for 26 years.

+1

It is exactly what I am doing now, and will be doing for the next 5 years, until I reach the finish line.

 

[Marketwatcher]

My strategy has been to try to put up with all of the craziness and absurdity by getting as much entertainment value as I can out of it all. Try to view it as paid entertainment. I also have removed the filter from much of what I say and it's fun to view the reaction of others after some very candid comments.

+1

I'm glad to see I'm not the only I one who does this. Always fun to push a few harmless buttons as well....

I have only a few weeks to go. It's been hard to hide my subversion, but people don't seem to notice.

 

[travelover]

What meadbh just said is exactly what I have done for 26 years.

Me, too, also for 26 years. I'm sure it limited my promotability, but it saved my sanity.

 

[thepalmersinking]

I have coined the term ADULT DAYCARE. That sums up what it is like to run the gauntlet of busy work useless tasks.


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Sunset]

I planned to retire at 55, but I got so wrapped up in my work I totally forgot about retirement until some friends told me they were retiring.

It woke me up, I checked my numbers a couple of times, and realized I had past the finish line already, and only missed 55 by a little bit.

All jobs can be dreadful if you want them to be, focus on the (+) parts and take joy in perfection. It sure beats the bread lines..

 

[bssc]

Ah, risk management. I used to be in a bank's risk management department but we were credit risk so we only bothered the customers.

Unfortunately, at least at my old MegaCorp, it was adult daycare. There was a round of layoffs of the tenured people so I found myself trying to train a bunch of new hire developers to replace them.

I read Dilbert a lot. I had a group of fellow project managers who felt the same way. I retired when I turned 55 plus one day. My fellow friends left within two months. So management got rid of all the positions and the new developers were left to figure it out on their own.

So, my advice is to stay detached and maintain your sense of humor. I did take on some high risk of failure projects (at least one did) since they were different and I didn't care if they would hurt my career down the road. I also trying to do a lot of retirement planning outside of work hours so that I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

[tcaron20]

A community banker here. I feel your pain. I've gone 40 years in the biz will be 63 in March.
Probably true for most businesses today but there is no fun left. Younger people do not get it and are worried
Constantly about bills, daycare, time off.
I struggle with management decisions, horrible treatment of staff and young examiners and auditors who are disrespectful and
not properly trained in people skills.

Anyway, as an earlier poster said I make myself available to mentor younger employees and help them to become respectful leaders. There are not enough good leaders out there and it is getting worst. Think, "horrible bosses."

About a year to go.

Good luck!

Tom C


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Music Lover]

I'll be done in 11 weeks...

For the last 15 years I have not volunteered for anything, not taken on any additional tasks, and skip every meeting that I can get away with. I sit at my desk with headphones on and put out my required widgets per hour, and leave exactly at quitting time.

 

[jollystomper]

I'm fortunate to be working at home full time now, and that helps, since I can focus on the work I want to to (mostly) and avoid a lot of the office politics. I may post my full "OMY Glide Path" plans in a separate thread

 

[Fedup]

It was hard, honestly there many times I thought about quitting. The pension is tiny. Honestly I don't know how I did it.


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[whatnot]

"How do you train yourself to endure your last few years before retirement"
I feel your pain. I am 2 years and 3 months until FIRE date. I can't wait until April of this year, then I can say it is Only 1 year and # months until FIRE.
So basically, looking at small milestones to celebrate! Hope this helps.

 

[Al in Ohio]

What meadbh just said is exactly what I have done for 26 years.

It's what I've done for 32 years since day one. I have less than six months now, so I'm taking it to "invisibility cloak mode".

In all seriousness, you keep focusing on one milestone goal at a time that lay ahead. Next raise, next and last bonus, last time you have to review your staff, last project you start that you will probably actually see to completion, etc Etc.

Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Markola]

I have 5-7 years to go if I stay on my current high-stress track as a manager. The tank is getting empty though and my organization is looking at a very rough couple of years ahead due to some bone-headed financial decisions the CEO and board got us into that the rest of us are paying for. Instead, I am starting to interview for frontline positions at other orgs that would require no management and less travel toward a hope of learning new things and getting back in touch with enthusiasm I once felt for my nonprofit field. These other jobs would pay a third less so might postpone FIRE probably 3 years but the thought of it makes the next several years seem more enjoyable if I can find the right fit. Lately, the income reduction seems worth it rather than grinding years out less happily. Not sure if voluntary demotion is an option for the OP, but it is one strategy toward more happiness.


Sent from my iPad using Early Retirement Forum

 

[DrRoy]

Two possible strategies might work to help stay motivated and calm - First one, focus on the aspects of work that you like, and realize that you won't have to do the bad parts too much longer. If you know you're not fighting for the next promotion, it can help relieve some of the stress. If you can't find anything good about the work itself, try to find something tangible to motivate you. If you're thinking of moving on retirement, take some trips to explore possible locations. Try living on your "retirement budget" - proving that your plans are on track can help make retirement seem more real. if you're interested in pursuing new hobbies, try to get started on them now - anything that helps make FIRE more tangible in your current life.

Why keep trying to get engaged with a job you hate? It may be easier to think of the job in a utilitarian way, simply as a means to a financial end. Do what you need to do to get the work done and earn the paycheck, but do not let the job take over your life. Say no to "opportunities" for self development, meetings you don't really need to attend, and pointless social events where employees brown nose the boss. Leave when the day is over and don't bring work home. Don't check work email and don't agree to be on call. Fill your personal time with activities that you really want to do. The time will pass more quickly.

I am also in a similar situation as I wait out my last 1 1/2 years of w**k. I think both of the above posts are very good. I see this time as topping off the tank for the RE trip.