Poll:How would you grade your ER experience?

[audreyh1]

I get plenty of mental stimulation because there are lots of things I'm interested in. Right now I'm furiously studying Dutch ahead of a long trip. That's been quite demanding on the old brain.

 

[audreyh1]

I can't claim absolutely every day is a blast, but I am never bored.

 

[Car-Guy]

C+ - Primarily because I just can't "physically" do everything today that I could before I retired 5+ years ago. Well, actually I can do just about anything I want, as long as I don't over do it. Energy level is noticeably down. The good side to that is, it has had a positive effect on my WR.

 

[Dash man]

I wish the iOS ERF app supported polls.

There are days in ER I don’t do much. I love those days.

It does. Go to the menu in the upper right and select Web View. It'll open a window where you can participate in the poll.

 

[Dash man]

What some people consider bored I consider time to chill, or pray, or do whatever I please. Life is great! I gave myself a "A"

 

[pablo]

I spent most of yesterday out in the beautiful summer weather. When I got back in I listened to music and downloaded and started reading. Then last night I stayed up late. On a Sunday! And I loved it. This would have been impossible for me prior to ER. This morning I woke up late, staying in bed until I was ready to get up - as I do nearly ever single ER morning. I have the feeling of total freedom every day. After I type this message I'll be going out to my local Dunkin Donuts and will sip my medium latte while watching the unwashed masses run to work outside. Then I'll be going on a 5-10 mile hike - how far depends on how I feel. I have one errand to run today - I am looking to buy some t-shirts. The plan is to do it after the hike. But if I don't buy them - or forget - no problem. I could do it any other day too.

I could go on and on. My point is, how is this not an 'A' grade?

Yes, there are days that I am bored. But there are zero days that I am stressed out of my mind at work. There are zero evenings where I am stressed out of my mind worrying about work. And there are zero weekends where I am stressed out of my mind consumed with work. I am healthier, happier and have better relationships with my friends and family. ER is everything I had hoped it would be.

 

[braumeister]

ER was fantastic; I loved just about every day.

I'm past the "early" part now, so I'm just R instead of ER, and the R part is still wonderful, although quieter.

 

[Ready]

It seems that most people on the forum are either an A or B, which means retirement is going well. That's great to see, and encouraging for me.

I continue to feel like my retirement is split between weekdays and weekends. I love the weekdays because I can go to any restaurant without a wait, shop without waiting in lines, or take long walks along the beach and experience some semblance of solitude. The occasional work related activity keeps my mind stimulated, and the work is very enjoyable.

Then come the weekends. Thousands of tourists flock to the beach. It can take several minutes just to walk across the street because there is so much traffic. Eating in restaurants is out of the question - there is no way we'd tolerate the noise and long waits. The beach is packed. Hundreds of people walk in front of my house morning to evening. It's just overwhelming. If we liked traveling more we would just go away for the weekends but we tend to be homebodies.

July 4 is the most intense weekend of the year for us. We will have more than 300,000 visitors to the beach. The street will be closed to traffic but will be packed with tourists who bring their fireworks, noisemakers, and trash. The parade will go past our house from morning to early afternoon. It's the largest 4th of July parade west of the Mississippi.

We have company coming to visit, which is always nice. But I just don't enjoy this holiday, which may have played into the motivation to start this poll.

 

[RunningBum]

"Never bored" is unattainable for me, as I was at times bored in my limited free time before retirement. So by your definitions I'd grade it a B, leaning more toward a C than A, but I personally rate my retirement an A. So I just didn't vote in the poll.

 

[Fedup]

I voted for B. I like the freedom from work and long commute, but I now take forever to do things. But I definitely like having time to garden and exercise more. I also like the fact that I can travel anytime, although lately I'm taking classes and I like to stick to my class schedule. But it's no biggie. I have plenty of activities to do to keep me happy.
However, I think I retired early enough, I wouldn't do it any earlier than 55.

 

[Midpack]

After 6+ years I'm generally happy, but I do enjoy Apr thru Dec way more than Jan thru Mar. The first snow is always welcome even beautiful, but it gets old after a couple of months. We may move to a more moderate climate one day and fix that issue...

 

[Choices]

I am a "C" but then I have to be busy. Things should speed up after our move to the country, at least I will have rooms to paint, walls to tear down, etc.

 

[pacergal]

I love having every minute of every day MINE, to do or not do whatever I want. I can't say that I get bored. I do miss the people from work, never the work itself. I keep in touch and have lunch with former co-workers. If I choose to have a part time job in the future, it won't be failure of ER for me, it will be choice in how I spend my day. And that really is what retirement is for me anyway.

 

[Nemo2]

I love having every minute of every day MINE, to do or not do whatever I want. I can't say that I get bored. I do miss the people from work, never the work itself. I keep in touch and have lunch with former co-workers. If I choose to have a part time job in the future, it won't be failure of ER for me, it will be choice in how I spend my day. And that really is what retirement is for me anyway.

+1 (Except for the part about missing people from work....or anyone else for that matter.)

 

[Souschef]

I have been retired for 8 years. When I first retired, we did a lot of traveling. However, as time went by, we stopped taking organized tours and traveled at our own pace. Since our travel budget is constant, we upgrade to Business or First Class when we fly for more than about 3 hours.
As far as being bored, I feel sitting on our porch, looking at the view, and reading is not boring. Relaxing, yes, but boring no.
I still fly and volunteer with a railroad historical society.

 

[Midpack]

Might be helpful to know this board is way overweighted with INTJ's - 48+% here vs 2% in the mainstream population. IOW, not "people persons" - they thrive on alone time? http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/poll.php?do=showresults&pollid=1563

Nothing at all wrong with this poll, but it may not be representative of the mainstream.

Few personality types are as mysterious and controversial as INTJs. Possessing intellect and strategic thinking that allow them to overcome many challenging obstacles, INTJs have the ability to both develop and implement a plan for everything, including their own personal growth.

Yet INTJs can be easily tripped up in areas where careful and rational thinking is more of a liability than an asset. Whether it is finding (or keeping) a partner, making friends, reaching dazzling heights on the career ladder or adapting to the unpredictable, INTJs need to put in a conscious effort to develop their weaker traits and additional skills.

https://www.16personalities.com/intj-personality

 

[Teacher Terry]

I chose C. I retired 5 years ago and went back to work p.t. teaching an online college class and doing a little consulting in my field. People ask me when I will completely retire since I am almost 63 and I say never I hope. I really did not enjoy the volunteer work that I tried. I have thought about signing up for some classes etc but then decide I don't want any type of schedule anymore.

 

[Louis2]

I voted C but I really wanted to vote C+ , as someone above said "I quite like ER but find that I get bored occasionally." And no, I have never considered the solution to be "go back to work". But I don't make new friends all that easily and my spouse is still working, so sometimes it gets a little slow.

 

[Nemo2]

Might be helpful to know this board is way overweighted with INTJ's - 48+% here vs 2% in the mainstream population. IOW, not "people persons" - they thrive on alone time? Early Retirement & Financial Independence Community - View Poll Results

Nothing at all wrong with this poll, but it may not be representative of the mainstream.

https://www.16personalities.com/intj-personality

I took the test and was declared an INTP (inverted toilet paper?)......whether the results are correct and/or whether I answered correctly is subject to interpretation:

https://www.16personalities.com/intp-personality

 

[RunningBum]

Relaxing may be more the word than bored for me. Sometimes I feel like I should be doing more, and a day may go by where I spend too much time online and between that and a little snoozing and reading out on the porch I find the day is gone. I'm trying to break away from the laptop more (and I definitely don't do this most days) but I'm not really bored with this kind of day.

 

[Hermit]

I answered B, because nobody has a life like A that I know of. If they do, then I want to know what they are smoking!

A little boredom is fine once in a while. It leads to reflection.....about how lucky (or prescient) I am.

I live in Colorado, so I guess I could smoke whatever I wanted now that I don't have to worry about security clearances and keeping my job. I can't say I am ever bored. I spend all my time working on my house which has kept me very busy. So although not ecstatic, I think the A fits closest.

 

[MRG]

A "B".

Better yet after 4 years of posting I finally found all the steps to actually respond to a poll!

 

[Nightcap]

Might be helpful to know this board is way overweighted with INTJ's - 48+% here vs 2% in the mainstream population. IOW, not "people persons" - they thrive on alone time? http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/poll.php?do=showresults&pollid=1563

Nothing at all wrong with this poll, but it may not be representative of the mainstream.

https://www.16personalities.com/intj-personality

As an INTJ, I will tell you that Myers-Briggs has no scientific basis. It's a fun parlor game, and that's about it.

I would have told you that before ER. (Indeed, I did. It was in one of those miserable team-development classes the VP made us attend.)

Typical INTJ.

 

[Alan]

I was a C for the first 6 years of retirement because we used to spend about 6 months away each year, and the time back at home was often a bit boring, and we found ourselves looking forward to the next big trip to break the routine. This last year we have been living on the edge of the N. Yorks National Park and also have loads of places, friends and family within a couple of hours drive.

Definitely an A these days, but life goes through different phases and this too will change I'm sure.

ETA
We are both ESTJ and love being around people.

 

[Cobra9777]

I answered B, but it's probably more like B+ or A-. Life is good.