You don't want to retire too soon....

[superdave]

This will be my last year before FIRE, but I have had a couple retirees suggest that I not retire too early. I respected these guys, but , each of them had been retired 10-20 years. My view is that they selectively remember the good days at work ( going to coffee with the boys, being a player, etc ), but misremember the days in traffic, getting up and driving thru snow storms, etc. Anybody else heard these commnets?

 

[Amethyst]

Maybe they are simply running out of money.

Amethyst

This will be my last year before FIRE, but I have had a couple retirees suggest that I not retire too early. I respected these guys, but , each of them had been retired 10-20 years. My view is that they selectively remember the good days at work ( going to coffee with the boys, being a player, etc ), but misremember the days in traffic, getting up and driving thru snow storms, etc. Anybody else heard these commnets?

 

[omni550]

No, I never ever heard anyone say that.

omni

 

[Live And Learn]

I'm with Amethyst. Perhaps they wish they had worked a little longer so that they could afford a few more "wants ? Perhaps they are bored after all these years ? I'd be interested in what they say if you asked them about their concerns for you.

 

[superdave]

hmm, I don't think they were running out of money. One of these guys was my now deceased Father, and the other was a golf buddy of mine. Neither meant any disrespect, they just cautioned about retiring too early.

I kind of think they missed some of the 'good' things work brought them. Anyway, I have heard it enought to wonder what the community thought.

 

[DeborahB]

Retirement gives me the freedom to do what I want, and not be on someone else's schedule - none of my retired friends has ever regretted stopping w*rk. But we all had things we wanted to do that w*rk was interfering with...

 

[bbbamI]

No one has ever said that to me. They usually say, 'I'll never be able to retire'....

 

[superdave]

I'm with Amethyst. Perhaps they wish they had worked a little longer so that they could afford a few more "wants ? Perhaps they are bored after all these years ? I'd be interested in what they say if you asked them about their concerns for you.

As I mentioned, both of these guys had been retired more than a decade. My gut feel is that they may miss some of the social interaction, and the feeling of being a 'player'.

From my perspective, I am an aging IT guy working in a young guys field. Bragging rights after working 70 hour work weeks dont do it for me anymore I can't imagine that I will miss the 2 AM support calls

 

[ERhoosier]

This will be my last year before FIRE, but I have had a couple retirees suggest that I not retire too early. I respected these guys, but , each of them had been retired 10-20 years. My view is that they selectively remember the good days at work ( going to coffee with the boys, being a player, etc ), but misremember the days in traffic, getting up and driving thru snow storms, etc. Anybody else heard these commnets?

Not ER (yet), but rarely hear those kinds of comments from retirees- whether ER or "normal" age. Much more common are stories about folks who carefully planned a wonderful retirement only to die too soon to enjoy their new lifes. I suspect you are right in hearing some "selective" memories, but I also know there are some who really did enjoy their w#rk lives. And in other cases they simply had nothing to retire to, so w#rk seemed better by default.

 

[haha]

This will be my last year before FIRE, but I have had a couple retirees suggest that I not retire too early. I respected these guys, but , each of them had been retired 10-20 years. My view is that they selectively remember the good days at work ( going to coffee with the boys, being a player, etc ), but misremember the days in traffic, getting up and driving thru snow storms, etc. Anybody else heard these commnets?

One thing to consider if you have any doubts is move to an apartment very near to your work. The commute is for many people a big part of the hassle of work. But if it is just a walk or short bus ride or drive a few miles away from the freeway, it might feel much different.

Your family doesn't even have to move with you.

Ha

 

[Meadbh]

If their concern is not based on finances, perhaps they remember w*rk with rose tinted glasses. Or perhaps they feel that happiness should be rationed somehow.

 

[haha]

If their concern is not based on finances, perhaps they remember w*rk with rose tinted glasses. Or perhaps they feel that happiness should be rationed somehow.

Or perhaps they find hanging around the house with the little woman less than scintillating?

Ha

 

[FIREd]

I don't know of any people in real life who regret retiring too early, mostly because most people I know retired in their 60s. I think that there are a few people on this board who retired very early (in their 30s and 40s) and who have expressed some concern that they may have retired too soon.

 

[superdave]

These guys both retired in their mid fifties, which I guess could be considered early. The comments were well meaning. When I mentioned to my golfing buddy that cancer ran in the family and I wanted to make sure I got to enjoy 'some' retirement time, he got the message immediately. He meant well with his comments, and I took no offense.

 

[W2R]

Maybe they don't think you are financially prepared, for some reason? That is the only reason I can think of that would inspire them to say something like that. Otherwise, I am stumped.

 

[ohyes]

Sharing that I planned to work another 7-10 years, a retired educator I barely knew said (and I may never forget this):

Just, don't do what I did and keep working "one more year".

When I asked him why he did that, he said his eye was on the bottom line (retirement savings/pension total). He said he wished he had cared less about that number because he and his wife were making it just fine. (I did know his wife well; she volunteered in the library). He wished he had retired three years earlier.

So, i heard don't wait too long, which i think may be better advice.

That was the night my brain started rolling toward the sunlight. I feel it was a very, very fortunate conversation.

 

[MRG]

Sharing that I planned to work another 7-10 years, a retired educator I barely knew said (and I may never forget this):

Just, don't do what I did and keep working "one more year".

When I asked him why he did that, he said his eye was on the bottom line (retirement savings/pension total). He said he wished he had cared less about that number because he and his wife were making it just fine. (I did know his wife well; she volunteered in the library). He wished he had retired three years earlier.

So, i heard don't wait too long, which i think may be better advice.

That was the night my brain started rolling toward the sunlight. I feel it was a very, very fortunate conversation.

I heard a very similar comment from a great co-worker that retired 6 years before me. She knows now that she could have enjoyed a few more "early" years.

 

[panacea]

Maybe they don't think you are financially prepared, for some reason? That is the only reason I can think of that would inspire them to say something like that. Otherwise, I am stumped.

+1
Do you live modestly? Maybe they think you can't swing it just because you don't advertise your wealth?

 

[martyp]

One thing about retiring early is that there are few other people your age who are also retired. So you are either out of sync with people your own age or you are hanging out with people 10 yrs older than you. No problem with that. I'm doing just fine with it. I also don't mind doing things on my own. I make sure I do something social a couple of time a week. But it is a factor to consider when ERing.

 

[novaman]

I actually had a patient comment that he regretted retiring at around 50. He said that he wasted his life on nothing after he retired. I guess work had given his life meaning and purpose, his retirement did not.

 

[clifp]

I don't know of any people in real life who regret retiring too early, mostly because most people I know retired in their 60s. I think that there are a few people on this board who retired very early (in their 30s and 40s) and who have expressed some concern that they may have retired too soon.

My advice to those who found themselves suddenly FIRE in their 30s like
I did is not to retire that early, unless they have a strong passion to do something else (sailing, mountain climbing, painting, writing ....) . I wish I had found (looked for harder) a second career. But anybody in their 50s has had plenty of experience with work, and probably will have zero regrets leaving.

 

[traineeinvestor]

Apart from the financial aspects, it could be that they are referring to some of the things that some people* give up or lose when they retire - the sense of purpose and relevancy that comes with a rewarding career, social interactions with co-workers and others, having some structure imposed on your day, intellectual stimulation etc.

Some people* will miss these things when they retire, struggle to replace them and end up feeling isolated and bored in retirement with consequental negative effects on mental, emotional and physical health.

As the clock ticks down towards my last day, I worry more about these issues and spend more time making sure that I am retiring to something better (rather than simply retireing from my j*b).

* obviously not many of of them are hanging out around here.

 

[Mulligan]

Apart from the financial aspects, it could be that they are referring to some of the things that some people* give up or lose when they retire - the sense of purpose and relevancy that comes with a rewarding career, social interactions with co-workers and others, having some structure imposed on your day, intellectual stimulation etc.

Some people* will miss these things when they retire, struggle to replace them and end up feeling isolated and bored in retirement with consequental negative effects on mental, emotional and physical health.

As the clock ticks down towards my last day, I worry more about these issues and spend more time making sure that I am retiring to something better (rather than simply retireing from my j*b).

* obviously not many of of them are hanging out around here.

Thanks to this forum I was aware of the "retire to" vs. "retire from" scenario. I was a "retire from" person. Oddly enough I solved this "dilemma" by changing one routine for another. I didn't realize how structured I was until I retired. Outside of when I am traveling, I have a daily routine I stick to and enjoy pretty much on a daily basis.

 

[gozer]

As I mentioned, both of these guys had been retired more than a decade. My gut feel is that they may miss some of the social interaction, and the feeling of being a 'player'.

From my perspective, I am an aging IT guy working in a young guys field. Bragging rights after working 70 hour work weeks dont do it for me anymore I can't imagine that I will miss the 2 AM support calls

I share your pain. Can't wait to lose my 24 hour electronic leash. Working 2-3 days with almost no sleep is not the rush it once was.

Unlike many here, I have heard and also participated in the "don't retire too early" line of thinking. I delayed retirement a few years to let the market recover and to get used to the idea of not working. I had to figure out what I was going to do after work. I would agree with the reasons you have identified.

My entire identity used to be tied up in what I did. It was why I mattered. It was like a game and every promotion was points on the board. I was winning at this game but losing at life. Almost all of my friends were work related. From that perspective retirement looked like a lonely descent. Just waiting to die.

Now I believe, I was a complete idiot. There are things I want to do and my time is finite. As long as you have enough money to do what ever it is you want to do, get out and go do it.

I would advise knowing what you are going to do before bailing out. Others may think you can use the free time to discover. I would be worried that I would discover I liked something prohibitively expensive. But I'm a flaming ISTJ so I like plans and contingency plans. Maybe you are comfortable being a little more free and spontaneous. I suspect not since you are also an IT guy and most of us have certain characteristics in common. But I'm guessing.

 

[marko]

My former HR VP once emailed me that he thought I was too young (53) and doubted that "...skiing the Alps all winter and sailing your boat all summer will keep you satisfied after a while...".

That was almost eight years ago. Still waiting for the dissatisfaction to set in...