Good problem, right?
So like many here, I have spent the last 30 years working my plan, starting with humble beginnings and fortunate enough to have prosperous career that allowed my DW to be a SAHM over the last 28 years and raise our 4 kids. My master plan always called for RE at age 55 for no reason other than that felt like a good ER age. Over the past 5 - 10 yrs, the goal posts in terms of my "number" which would generate my desired spend, moved up. Fast forward to today, age 53, while my desired launch date is still 2 yrs out (last kid graduated & hopefully employed/moved out), this last market run has basically got me to my "number" 2 years ahead of schedule. So while I have absorbed much of the knowledge of all of you and tweaked my strategy for now what I think works for me (much more conservative than I was 3 yrs ago), I am finding other unexpected mixed feelings...
- I have been self-employed for 30 yrs and the last 7 or so years have been very lucrative which is subject to change with the economy. I can say much of my motivation was driven by my monetary goals to hit FI, plus, I would be lying if I didn't admit to being competitive and wanting to stay on top. Now, however, it's as if someone just sucked my mojo right out of me and I just... can I say it... don't care about the drive to produce like was or even be a hard core competitor. This produces a little feeling of guilt in a way. That being said, I could make a 1/3rd less income than I have the last number of years and more than cover my current expenses. How did you type A's wind it down?
- I only have a couple of friends retired and they are 60+. So who do I play with Honestly, here comes the guilt again... should I just hang around and work until more of my brethren hang it up because "I'm supposed to". Crazy, right? I am still exploring "retiring too" stuff, volunteer, etc. Who did you play with??
- I work out of the house 40% of the time so my DW does see me more than probably most other husbands. However, when I told her I was "really" thinking about retiring at 55, she looked at me and said "what are you going to do?" in a way that said "are you sure about this?" "does that mean you will be in grill everyday?". Was your spouse ready for you to be around, particularly if your are a type A person?
- Last little nugget, I told my DW that once I retire, we will be going to somewhat of a "fixed income". I think this threw her off as she is more comfortable with me in the income producing mode, especially when it produces excess. Truth be told, despite my encouragement for her to get more involved in how our finances work, my DW has 0 interest. She gets the little picture (I.e. working within a basic budget), but frankly, is somewhat oblivious to our NW and my income for that matter. I am working on educating her on how the "withdrawal machine" will work, but I can tell she is a little glazed over when I bring it up. Did any of you have to really educate your spouse on how the world changes when you go from accumulation to living off your assets?
As the say in talk radio, "I will hang up and listen"
So like many here, I have spent the last 30 years working my plan, starting with humble beginnings and fortunate enough to have prosperous career that allowed my DW to be a SAHM over the last 28 years and raise our 4 kids. My master plan always called for RE at age 55 for no reason other than that felt like a good ER age. Over the past 5 - 10 yrs, the goal posts in terms of my "number" which would generate my desired spend, moved up. Fast forward to today, age 53, while my desired launch date is still 2 yrs out (last kid graduated & hopefully employed/moved out), this last market run has basically got me to my "number" 2 years ahead of schedule. So while I have absorbed much of the knowledge of all of you and tweaked my strategy for now what I think works for me (much more conservative than I was 3 yrs ago), I am finding other unexpected mixed feelings...
- I have been self-employed for 30 yrs and the last 7 or so years have been very lucrative which is subject to change with the economy. I can say much of my motivation was driven by my monetary goals to hit FI, plus, I would be lying if I didn't admit to being competitive and wanting to stay on top. Now, however, it's as if someone just sucked my mojo right out of me and I just... can I say it... don't care about the drive to produce like was or even be a hard core competitor. This produces a little feeling of guilt in a way. That being said, I could make a 1/3rd less income than I have the last number of years and more than cover my current expenses. How did you type A's wind it down?
- I only have a couple of friends retired and they are 60+. So who do I play with Honestly, here comes the guilt again... should I just hang around and work until more of my brethren hang it up because "I'm supposed to". Crazy, right? I am still exploring "retiring too" stuff, volunteer, etc. Who did you play with??
- I work out of the house 40% of the time so my DW does see me more than probably most other husbands. However, when I told her I was "really" thinking about retiring at 55, she looked at me and said "what are you going to do?" in a way that said "are you sure about this?" "does that mean you will be in grill everyday?". Was your spouse ready for you to be around, particularly if your are a type A person?
- Last little nugget, I told my DW that once I retire, we will be going to somewhat of a "fixed income". I think this threw her off as she is more comfortable with me in the income producing mode, especially when it produces excess. Truth be told, despite my encouragement for her to get more involved in how our finances work, my DW has 0 interest. She gets the little picture (I.e. working within a basic budget), but frankly, is somewhat oblivious to our NW and my income for that matter. I am working on educating her on how the "withdrawal machine" will work, but I can tell she is a little glazed over when I bring it up. Did any of you have to really educate your spouse on how the world changes when you go from accumulation to living off your assets?
As the say in talk radio, "I will hang up and listen"