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astromeria · 04-20-2006, 07:39 AM

I don't bring up ER out of the blue, but when people ask what I do, I tell them I'm retired. After they say, Wow, you don't look that old, I find that fear of/objection to retiring early takes different forms. With surprisingly many, it's fear of having to do without, of having to limit spending in any way. If people ask how I accompished (and stay) in ER, some stand a little taller and say, "WE don't budget! I'm never going to budget,"spitting it out like a dirty word. The funny thing is that I don't even use the word budget--I just say that since I got my first decent paying job at age 39, I save first and spend what's left. Since my mid-40s I distinguish between required expenses and nice-to-haves like eating out, concerts, travel, generous gifts for the kids. I mention that I might've retired earlier if I'd gotten a clue about investing earlier. I might mention my last cmpany and the stock options. Then it's "Ah, stock options!" People usually don't realize that their generous 401k match, large company bonuses, and/or higher income & deductions as a business owner (things I never had) add up to just as much money over the years. People want to hear that I was simply lucky, and they were simply not. A surprising number say that they plan to retire when they receive an inheritance(!). Bottom line is that most people don't relaize they can be in control--they assume that retirement is up to the gods or something.

When someone reacts with interest rather than defensiveness, they might ask if I worry about money. I respond that my only concern--along with the concerns we all share for Whirled Peas and the budget & trade deficits--is health insurance/health care expenses. But they're almost always worried about that, too. My husband is still working and our health care costs have gone up at least 10% a year for the past 5 years (up 16% this past year--just due to insurance cost, not use of medical care). IF we get this far in the conversation, people sometimes light up a little, relaizing we have more in common financially than first appeared.

04-20-2006, 07:39 AM	#15
astromeria Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 1,375	I don't bring up ER out of the blue, but when people ask what I do, I tell them I'm retired. After they say, Wow, you don't look that old, I find that fear of/objection to retiring early takes different forms. With surprisingly many, it's fear of having to do without, of having to limit spending in any way. If people ask how I accompished (and stay) in ER, some stand a little taller and say, "WE don't budget! I'm never going to budget,"spitting it out like a dirty word. The funny thing is that I don't even use the word budget--I just say that since I got my first decent paying job at age 39, I save first and spend what's left. Since my mid-40s I distinguish between required expenses and nice-to-haves like eating out, concerts, travel, generous gifts for the kids. I mention that I might've retired earlier if I'd gotten a clue about investing earlier. I might mention my last cmpany and the stock options. Then it's "Ah, stock options!" People usually don't realize that their generous 401k match, large company bonuses, and/or higher income & deductions as a business owner (things I never had) add up to just as much money over the years. People want to hear that I was simply lucky, and they were simply not. A surprising number say that they plan to retire when they receive an inheritance(!). Bottom line is that most people don't relaize they can be in control--they assume that retirement is up to the gods or something. When someone reacts with interest rather than defensiveness, they might ask if I worry about money. I respond that my only concern--along with the concerns we all share for Whirled Peas and the budget & trade deficits--is health insurance/health care expenses. But they're almost always worried about that, too. My husband is still working and our health care costs have gone up at least 10% a year for the past 5 years (up 16% this past year--just due to insurance cost, not use of medical care). IF we get this far in the conversation, people sometimes light up a little, relaizing we have more in common financially than first appeared. __________________ You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, you might find you get what you need.