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Old 03-20-2013, 07:18 PM   #21
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Enjoyable article to read, but hard to relate to the negatives. DH and I enjoy the peace, quiet, freedom after many years of very hard work.

Little chance we will want to go back to paid work: wouldn't want to give up the volunteer work (or hobbies).
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Old 03-20-2013, 08:04 PM   #22
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LitGal
Enjoyable article to read, but hard to relate to the negatives. DH and I enjoy the peace, quiet, freedom after many years of very hard work.

Little chance we will want to go back to paid work: wouldn't want to give up the volunteer work (or hobbies).
I have to agree with you on not relating to the negatives. Although it is all on ones perspective I guess. I told my father I was quitting my PT job here in a few months. Not a minute passed and he was already suggesting new jobs I may enjoy trying. I know he is not senile and he knows I do not need the money. I think work is just ingrained in his self worth as he is 76 and still works one day a week and would full time if his body would let him, despite the fact he does not need the money.
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Old 03-20-2013, 10:44 PM   #23
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Enjoyable article to read, but hard to relate to the negatives.
Given the no-holds-barred attitude of many on this forum, I was expecting the standard response to be "there are no negatives to early retirement".

I am so looking forward to FIREing ....
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Old 03-23-2013, 10:49 AM   #24
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Wow, this was very timely for me because I have been confronted by some of the same issues the writer referenced in the article:

Quote:
Originally Posted by Article

Vacations aren’t as exciting anymore.
 
Just want to feel useful.

Retiring early is a blessing because our bodies still allow us to ... start the most daunting businesses when we are younger.

I think it has made me really think about some things and come to the realization that I'm probably really not suited to an early retirement lifestyle, at least not the lifestyle that I would consider to be a standard early retirement if there is such a thing.

I "retired" at 38 after cashing out a portfolio of commercial properties. I had intended to buy back in but put it off to do some RV travelling and spend some time with family. I have been recently feeling like I was done travelling for a while (still a retirement goal to RV travel full-time at a more "regular" retirement age) and that I was starting to feel like I didn't have purpose or the feeling of usefulness. I could even use the word bored.

Starting a business has always been a desire of mine and I'm starting to feel like I might just do that now. I would be proud to provide a quality product to customers, it would give me great satisfaction to employ and provide a decent living to employees (appreciative ones. They are out there, right? LOL), and I would very much like to "create" something entrepreneurial.

So it occurred to me early retirement can be anything I want it to be... even if that's just not reporting to a boss but being my own boss and busier than I've ever been at any job. And if I'm happy doing that, that's all that matters. The article and subsequent discussion here gave me a new way of looking at things and that made it well worth the read for me.
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Old 03-23-2013, 02:33 PM   #25
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So it occurred to me early retirement can be anything I want it to be... even if that's just not reporting to a boss but being my own boss and busier than I've ever been at any job. And if I'm happy doing that, that's all that matters. .
(emphasis mine)

Bravo - great post and I couldn't agree with you more. I have finally officially added my name to the Class of 2013, but I'm not sure this will mean I never work again. FI means we have the choice - and having a choice is always a great thing ! One of the things I will be doing in retirement is volunteering but I can see myself accepting a part time position with the place if the offer is made since by defintion it will be at a place that I feel has a meaningful purpose.

Its up to us and we have the choice !
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Old 03-23-2013, 06:59 PM   #26
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I have finally officially added my name to the Class of 2013, but I'm not sure this will mean I never work again. FI means we have the choice - and having a choice is always a great thing !

Its up to us and we have the choice !
You are exactly right about choices. With regards to work, there sure does seem to be a big difference in having to and wanting to.

Best of luck to you and your 2013 target!
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Old 03-23-2013, 07:30 PM   #27
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Early is relative.

I think "early" when defined as before age 40 is much different than an early retirement somewhere in the 50's.

My guess is at 50+, most don't need that extra push of stuff to feel like they have done everything. But retiring before 40 could leave you looking for more.

Retiring in the 40s? Could go either way.
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Old 03-23-2013, 07:48 PM   #28
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Early is relative.

I think "early" when defined as before age 40 is much different than an early retirement somewhere in the 50's.

My guess is at 50+, most don't need that extra push of stuff to feel like they have done everything. But retiring before 40 could leave you looking for more.

Retiring in the 40s? Could go either way.
I retired mid 40s. My 30 year old self would be appalled at me know. I don't need "a purpose". I have become structured, routine orientated and resistant to change, like an 80 year old man. What is even worse, I enjoy it!
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Old 03-24-2013, 12:34 PM   #29
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I retired mid 40s. My 30 year old self would be appalled at me know. I don't need "a purpose". I have become structured, routine orientated and resistant to change, like an 80 year old man. What is even worse, I enjoy it!
I haven't quite pulled re ER trigger yet but hope to while still in my early/mid 40's. Even though I have made some strides at reducing stress in my current employment, I have also become structured, routine orientated and resistant to change; and, said current employment interferes with my preferred routine.

My 30 year old self would probably be appalled at me now as well since I am also much like an 80 year old man in some ways and am happy with it.

I do still push myself out of my routine occasionally figuring that is good for me similar to pushing myself occasionally at the gym. But, this is nothing like what I imagined enjoying while in my 20's and 30's.
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Old 03-24-2013, 06:37 PM   #30
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Maybe, but has not happened to me.
Me neither. And after 3+ years of enjoying retirement (without paid work), I'd say the chances of getting the urge to return to work are about zero
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Old 03-24-2013, 07:05 PM   #31
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(emphasis mine)

Bravo - great post and I couldn't agree with you more. I have finally officially added my name to the Class of 2013, but I'm not sure this will mean I never work again. FI means we have the choice
+1

It's all about being able to choose how one spends his/her time, and not having to set the alarm clock and get up.
Choice is very empowering.
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Old 03-24-2013, 07:33 PM   #32
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Me neither. And after 3+ years of enjoying retirement (without paid work), I'd say the chances of getting the urge to return to work are about zero
Same here. After 4+ years of ER I have no desire to work ever again.

I was recently reminded of how ill suited I am at getting up early in the morning (before 8 AM) and having to go somewhere. It was a school Scrabble tourney I direct (see my screen name?) so it was a fun, volunteer activity. But that did not stop my stomach from going into a mild uproar trying to get through the morning and out the door to my car. Just glad I don't have to get up that early very often, the next time in about 2 months for the last tourney.
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Old 03-24-2013, 07:48 PM   #33
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I can relate to the author's comments about vacations in FIRE. I have the funds to go on vacations, but no desire to go through the mechanics of planning one. I'm sure this phase will pass.

I've been to Europe, Crete, Hawaii 2x, 5 cruises (3 Caribbean, Alaska, and Grand Mediterranean) and many US cities for vacations as tag-alongs with my late husband's j*b related trips during my w*rking years.

Post FIRE, I went to FL 3x in 2010. I loved every minute of those trips.

These days, I'm choosing to go on short road trips to places in upstate NY that are within a few hours drive, in every season. I've lived in my house since 1984. There are so many fabulous places I can get to by car, stay for a few days, and be back. I never had time to do that while w*rking. Driving to w*rk in the winter was a daily hassle. Now I just have to watch the weather forecast and be flexible with the schedule. Piece of cake.

Lake Ontario and the Adirondack Park are my current destinations. Simple, accessible, and lots of fun. No crowds, no outrageous prices, and I feel good about stimulating the local economy.

Next year, who knows ?
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Old 03-25-2013, 12:43 PM   #34
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Interesting discussion/article.

I am (hopefully) 4-6 years away from ER. It has been my observation that there are 2 kinds of people. People who's job is (intentionally or otherwise) the center of their life, and those who's job is just a necessary part of it. And differentiating those kinds of people is pretty easy just by watching what they do with their time away from work.

I am a do'er. I have at least 10 projects going on at any point in time. Home improvement and in my hobby of restoring antique cars ( I currently have 3). Also, I started a web business 10 years ago making some parts for old cars. It is purely a hobby, it is all "fun" money, and I don't have to do it at all (but it has sent me to Europe every 2 years, business class, to take part in international vintage car caravans!).

I watch about 15 minutes of the nightly news each night and that is about all the TV I watch. My wife has to drag me to go see a movie (although I usually enjoy them once I am there). I LOVE to travel, both "resort" travel, and adventure travel. When I get home from work, I usually check e-mail, then spend the rest of the evening (except for dinner) tinkering in my shop. In the warmer months, I'll take one of my cars for a drive... to nowhere, just because.

My point? People like me can't wait to retire, because we KNOW what we will be doing. We will be doing what we do now, just lots more of it (except that working part). And it sometimes scares us, because some of this stuff costs MONEY. Money that we might not be spending now.

Then there are the other people. I know of and see a lot of them. they get excited about retirement, talk about all the time that they will have, but a year or two in, they have no idea what to do with themselves. Before retirement, their non-work time was their retirement, and they used it being sedate, watching TV, reading, just doing not much of nothing (and nothing wrong with that). But in retirement, trying to do that 24/7 doesn't work. They often lack a sense of purpose, get bored, depressed, etc. Some go back to work just to have some structure in their lives.

My guess is that there are not many of these kinds of people here in the ER forums. People who retire early are generally driven, focused and are able to put their "careers" in one place in their lives, and not let it BE their lives.

In corporate America, you hear the term "Work-Life Balance" a lot. that annoys me. Since when is "work" not part of your life? It is. It is a PART of your life not all of it. Life= work + time not working.

I have been focused for a LONG time, personally, to try to retire in my 50s. Aside from surviving parenthood, it is the single biggest challenge of my life, but recently doing some math, it all looks very do-able. And posititive.

I may be my own worst enemy in retirement, as I tend to have high expectations of what I will accomplish... and I need to focus on accomplishing rest and relaxation as well.

/rant
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Old 03-25-2013, 04:35 PM   #35
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Good article.

We gave ER a try for 10 months in 2011...then we came back to LA for a year and got sucked back into the vortex; at least I did. Commute and work of 60+ hours / week. I quickly remembered why we did it the first time.

This time around (2 weeks away!) we're going to try it with w*rking 15-20 hrs / week from home (in Mexico, on the Caribbean) without the commute. This will allow us 40 hrs / week & the energy to volunteer and find fun things to do and build some good friendships. This time trying to balance our life a little seems like a good approach.

I will surely not miss the commute (bus & bike) and 1.5 hrs ea way...driving it is stupid stressful in LA.

Hope all works out with the new arrangement.
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Old 03-25-2013, 07:17 PM   #36
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Originally Posted by scrabbler1

Same here. After 4+ years of ER I have no desire to work ever again.

I was recently reminded of how ill suited I am at getting up early in the morning (before 8 AM) and having to go somewhere. It was a school Scrabble tourney I direct (see my screen name?) so it was a fun, volunteer activity. But that did not stop my stomach from going into a mild uproar trying to get through the morning and out the door to my car. Just glad I don't have to get up that early very often, the next time in about 2 months for the last tourney.
Scrabbler, that is a simple pleasure in life that I enjoy immensely. I hate waking up and immediately having to roll out of bed, or be woke up by an
alarm clock. I generally start to wake up between 6-7 but lay around semi awake for an extra hour or 2 before I actually get up.
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Old 03-26-2013, 02:17 PM   #37
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I am a do'er. I have at least 10 projects going on at any point in time. Home improvement and in my hobby of restoring antique cars ( I currently have 3). Also, I started a web business 10 years ago making some parts for old cars. It is purely a hobby, it is all "fun" money, and I don't have to do it at all (but it has sent me to Europe every 2 years, business class, to take part in international vintage car caravans!).
doneat58: I don't have an antique car, but I do have 65 Ford Ranchero that belonged to my Dad. One of my first projects after FIRE is going to be to learn how to restore it. Any suggestions for good resources to start learning? I'm not a mechanic, so I plan to learn as I go, and enjoy the experience. I'm not in a hurry.
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Old 03-26-2013, 05:39 PM   #38
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After 5 years of retirement I still have no desire to go back to any job. I think my older brothers find that hard to believe, because over this last weekend, one hinted I might be bored because some nights I can't sleep. He's 66 and I think projecting his own fears regarding retirement.
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Old 03-27-2013, 09:45 AM   #39
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Early is relative.

I think "early" when defined as before age 40 is much different than an early retirement somewhere in the 50's.

My guess is at 50+, most don't need that extra push of stuff to feel like they have done everything. But retiring before 40 could leave you looking for more.
I tend to agree with this. When I ER'd at 55 I felt comfortable being able to say that I worked very hard for 30 yrs, was good at what I did, and now I ready for something else (i.e ER). It's hard to argue with 30 yrs of work.

But less than 20 yrs? I don't know . . . it's hard for my mind to grasp that you've put your "time" in yet. It seems to me that you are going to be looking for something more that resembles w*rk. If you can turn volunteer work or a hobby into something the consumes that younger energy then more power to you . . .
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Old 03-28-2013, 10:47 AM   #40
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I generally start to wake up between 6-7 but lay around semi awake for an extra hour or 2 before I actually get up.
Wow - I thought I was the only person who "rests" in bed after sleeping all night. I love that sort of doozing off stage - great dreams during that period, and I get to "feel" how comfy I am.
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