You have reached FIRE. So what?

[NW-Bound]

... I am not suggesting I want to hang on to my “job” for significance, I’m just suggesting we all have certain talents that might be leveraged in our ER yrs to leave the world a better place. I’m not suggesting everyone should sell all their $hit and open an orphanage in S Africa, but...

I was good at doing a few things for which they paid me decent money, but don't know how I could use my skills to "leave the world a better place".

We have been sending money to real orphanage in some 3rd world countries. The above were run by Catholic sisters and Buddhist monks and nuns, and were vetted by people whom we trust. Other than that, I hope I don't leave the world a worse place.

 

[Scuba]

Man... I stepped away to my day job and you all went to town! Let me be clear... I am not suggesting I want to hang on to my “job” for significance, I’m just suggesting we all have certain talents that might be leveraged in our ER yrs to leave the world a better place. I’m not suggesting everyone should sell all their $hit and open an orphanage in S Africa, but I was just suggesting perhaps some of you felt an itch/pull to do some something “more” with your talents in RE. No judgement here if you want to just hang out on the beach all day and drink beer, but just thought many might feel the pull to mix some “give back” in between happy hour. I have 4 kids and anticipate some grandkids soon with my 2 married ones and plan on vesting myself there/in family, like many of you. I would suggest that most people on this site that are FIRE have allot of good knowledge to help others, especially the next generation. That’s the slant I was going for in my original post.



Now, what’s most important... I have a crazy positive feeling about my dawgs!

Yes, having a positive influence on young people whether through family, mentoring, or other volunteer work is a very fulfilling way to "give back" IMO. It also helps one keep learning (for me, Instagram, Snapchat) to have young people in your life.

 

[audreyh1]

I’m just suggesting we all have certain talents that might be leveraged in our ER yrs to leave the world a better place. I’m not suggesting everyone should sell all their $hit and open an orphanage in S Africa, but I was just suggesting perhaps some of you felt an itch/pull to do some something “more” with your talents in RE. No judgement here if you want to just hang out on the beach all day and drink beer, but just thought many might feel the pull to mix some “give back” in between happy hour. I have 4 kids and anticipate some grandkids soon with my 2 married ones and plan on vesting myself there/in family, like many of you. I would suggest that most people on this site that are FIRE have allot of good knowledge to help others, especially the next generation. That’s the slant I was going for in my original post.

As a retiree you get to contribute however you want.

but just thought many might feel the pull to mix some “give back” in between happy hour.

You seem to keep coming back to the idea that for folks here being retired is all about happy hour and that nobody here is using their “talents” or giving back in RE. Why is that?

Many skills developed at work may have little bearing once retired. I suspect many retirees here have developed whole sets of new ones once they retired.

I would suggest that most people on this site that are FIRE have allot of good knowledge to help others, especially the next generation.

You seem to feel the need to suggest to us that FIREd folks here are missing out on something big here. And that we aren’t helping others?

I think some people are reacting to your “motivational” posts as if we are no longer doing “important” things because we are retired. As if we can’t figure that out or make those judgement calls for ourselves.

Are you just looking for testimonials from retirees here about all the ways they make the world a better place? I guess I’m stumped on why you would assume that many aren’t.

You may never think other retired people here are doing “enough” to make the world a better place. Fortunately it’s our call what that means and at whatever level we do it.

 

[audreyh1]

For many folks who retire, their sphere of influence shrinks drastically. They can build a new one by becoming involved in a larger organization or by even starting their own charitable organization or non-GMO if they want.

Some of us are content contributing within a much smaller sphere of influence once we retire. They say charity begins at home. I find it hard to imagine something more important than spending time with family or close friends and my local (small) community. But there are tons of other options.

 

[fassmac]

I think most of us see FI as a necessity to RE. RE is my goal, FI is just the means to get there. However, I can see how FI alone could be the goal too, maybe in your case?


I agree with most others related to "significance". I passed 50% of my DNA to each of two kids, so my significance in life is completed. 50 years from now only a handful of humans will remember me and in a 100 years mankind didn't now I existed and I am fine with that.

 

[ElizabethT]

Man... I stepped away to my day job and you all went to town! Let me be clear... I am not suggesting I want to hang on to my “job” for significance, I’m just suggesting we all have certain talents that might be leveraged in our ER yrs to leave the world a better place. I’m not suggesting everyone should sell all their $hit and open an orphanage in S Africa, but I was just suggesting perhaps some of you felt an itch/pull to do some something “more” with your talents in RE. No judgement here if you want to just hang out on the beach all day and drink beer, but just thought many might feel the pull to mix some “give back” in between happy hour. I have 4 kids and anticipate some grandkids soon with my 2 married ones and plan on vesting myself there/in family, like many of you. I would suggest that most people on this site that are FIRE have allot of good knowledge to help others, especially the next generation. That’s the slant I was going for in my original post.

Now, what’s most important... I have a crazy positive feeling about my dawgs!

I admit I'm a bit perplexed by this thought process as well. In my prior life, pre-FI, I worked in advertising to convince people to buy a product they possibly didn't need. How exactly was what I did contributing to the world being a better place?

In FIRE, conversely, I have had the time to do what I think of as bloody amazing things - I trained, then rode 100 miles to raise money for the MS Foundation, I provided a year of childcare for my newborn grandchild, I joined the Sierra Club, supporting it's environmental causes with both my money and my time, I volunteer at working to raise awareness about the impact of humans on our fragile coastline, I work in a soup kitchen monthly, belong to a political action committee, am working to learn a second language so I can aid new arrivals in seeking citizenship.

Additionally, I have more personal goals and pursuits than I can count, and I assure you I feel pretty darn (damn?) good about how I spend the majority of my days. No way could I have said that about the last few years I was in the rat race.

Sometimes people project their fears outward to avoid the work of self-examination. Although I have no way of knowing this to be the case for you, I do think it's something worth considering.

 

[OHjosh]

Although nominally retired for 15 months, duties with my dying mom kept me from really starting retirement until August. It may be the bereavement process but in general,I find retirement disorienting and unsatisfying. A large part of my challenge is dealing with the organized, "get it done" driver so ingrained in me.

I was used to juggling ten tasks at a time, often in time and resource-challenged situations. (Non profit management my whole career). There was lots of people contact, with many who had totally different ways of seeing the organization and their jobs. Even in mom's care, many of these skills had to come to the fore.

So now it's like I am having withdrawal symptoms. Although my head knows all is fine and I am doing many projects and tasks I wanted to get done prior to retiring (also reading, movies, hikes, and kiting ), there are more days than I want to admit where I feel wasteful and useless. However, everything in me tells me I have had my run, I am tired, and I need and deserve a rest. So I am taking on the withdrawal pangs ODAT.

Perhaps someday I will go back to work. Today I would do that in desperation and I know that is the wrong motive.

 

[ElizabethT]

Although nominally retired for 15 months, duties with my dying mom kept me from really starting retirement until August. It may be the bereavement process but in general,I find retirement disorienting and unsatisfying. A large part of my challenge is dealing with the organized, "get it done" driver so ingrained in me.

I was used to juggling ten tasks at a time, often in time and resource-challenged situations. (Non profit management my whole career). There was lots of people contact, with many who had totally different ways of seeing the organization and their jobs. Even in mom's care, many of these skills had to come to the fore.

So now it's like I am having withdrawal symptoms. Although my head knows all is fine and I am doing many projects and tasks I wanted to get done prior to retiring (also reading, movies, hikes, and kiting ), there are more days than I want to admit where I feel wasteful and useless. However, everything in me tells me I have had my run, I am tired, and I need and deserve a rest. So I am taking on the withdrawal pangs ODAT.

Perhaps someday I will go back to work. Today I would do that in desperation and I know that is the wrong motive.

Understanding you may be still be grieving and therefore not at a point where you are ready to be proactive, when you are ready I think it's important to recognize that boredom is almost 100% the case of being passive in one's own life. It's a sign that something needs to change. What those changes are are up to you, and for many people I understand that can be really hard.

If you truly love being employed, and can't find happiness in any other capacity, than for goodness sake, go back to it. There is no law that says you have to stop working after obtaining FI. This is an ER board, so of course we are all oriented toward, well, ER, or we wouldn't be here. If it's not for you, then it's not for you, and that's perfectly OK. I would imagine seeking employement after reaching FI might be quite liberating - you can pick and choose based on your personal desire, not because you're worried about making rent or paying your mortgage.

 

[martyp]

I discovered this forum 3-4 months before I ER'd 7 years ago.

The first thing I tell people about retirement is that it is not the same as vacation. What you described sounded more like you were looking for a longish vacation. Nope. That is not retirement.

Second . . . you not only have to be retiring from something but retiring to something.

Third . . . FI is not the same as retirement. Being able to retire is both having the financial resources but also doing what you want rather than what someone else compels you to do through a "job". If you are FI and doing what you want then by all means, keep doing that. Your job has just become the thing you do in retirement. However, if you don't know what you want then you need to start thinking about that. Eventually you will have to stop working and you want to be ready for that.

Fourth . . . Time. Time is different in retirement. It actually means something different. My first 30 days was significant because I had never not worked for that long. Most people have a bucket list of things to do which generally takes about 6 months to complete. Some of the things on that list will not get done because they are no longer important to you by the time 6 months passes. It is the time after this 6 months you have to plan for.

As for providing meaning in your life I would say that there are more volunteer opportunities than you could possibly imagine. You don't stop doing things that look like "work". You just do them without an employment obligation. You do them because you WANT to. In my case I organized science classes for seniors (50+yrs and up). I recruited faculty from the local university and set up 6 week lecture series. It kept my hand in science. It was personally and intellectually satisfying. And I only did it 1-2x per year on a voluntary basis.

I had enough of that early this year. I moved to Thailand and now I'm exploring another culture.

You are only a couch potato if you let it happen. Time to find out who you are.

 

[Bigdawg]

I admit I'm a bit perplexed by this thought process as well. In my prior life, pre-FI, I worked in advertising to convince people to buy a product they possibly didn't need. How exactly was what I did contributing to the world being a better place?

In FIRE, conversely, I have had the time to do what I think of as bloody amazing things - I trained, then rode 100 miles to raise money for the MS Foundation, I provided a year of childcare for my newborn grandchild, I joined the Sierra Club, supporting it's environmental causes with both my money and my time, I volunteer at working to raise awareness about the impact of humans on our fragile coastline, I work in a soup kitchen monthly, belong to a political action committee, am working to learn a second language so I can aid new arrivals in seeking citizenship.

Additionally, I have more personal goals and pursuits than I can count, and I assure you I feel pretty darn (damn?) good about how I spend the majority of my days. No way could I have said that about the last few years I was in the rat race.

Sometimes people project their fears outward to avoid the work of self-examination. Although I have no way of knowing this to be the case for you, I do think it's something worth considering.

The majority of folks on this site "advertise" ER. I get it. Is is called ER.org. What I think Dawg Man(OP) is saying or what I am saying: I am FI. My commute is maybe 15 minutes. My hours are flexible, My boss is hands off, The subject is awesome, The pay is fabulous, I am a subject matter expert(there are others and I won't be missed), I tried ER and didn't like it. They pay me for my knowledge and results not strictly watching the clock(40 hours). DW is still in the same industry and when i was ER for 8 months many (at least 10) days I was where she worked helping out for free. If/when the job sucks in any of the categories mentioned(commute, office politics, etc...), I will quit. I have plenty of time to umpire baseball games, referee volleyball matches and enjoy travel and other hobbies.

Most people on this site have found reasons to quit their jobs. I can't find one yet. Sounds like Dawg Man(OP) can't either.

 

[RobbieB]

I quit because not working was more interesting than working.

By all means work as long as you like.

 

[ElizabethT]

The majority of folks on this site "advertise" ER. I get it. Is is called ER.org. What I think Dawg Man(OP) is saying or what I am saying: I am FI. My commute is maybe 15 minutes. My hours are flexible, My boss is hands off, The subject is awesome, The pay is fabulous, I am a subject matter expert(there are others and I won't be missed), I tried ER and didn't like it. They pay me for my knowledge and results not strictly watching the clock(40 hours). DW is still in the same industry and when i was ER for 8 months many (at least 10) days I was where she worked helping out for free. If/when the job sucks in any of the categories mentioned(commute, office politics, etc...), I will quit. I have plenty of time to umpire baseball games, referee volleyball matches and enjoy travel and other hobbies.

Most people on this site have found reasons to quit their jobs. I can't find one yet. Sounds like Dawg Man(OP) can't either.

Not quite correct. Here is the quote again:

Let me be clear... I am not suggesting I want to hang on to my “job” for significance, I’m just suggesting we all have certain talents that might be leveraged in our ER yrs to leave the world a better place. I’m not suggesting everyone should sell all their $hit and open an orphanage in S Africa, but I was just suggesting perhaps some of you felt an itch/pull to do some something “more” with your talents in RE.

 

[gayl]

Actually the first time I retired I got bored rather to rapidly (50 yrs old). Went back to work, 1st PT then it morphed into FT. Things got tense so I quit 1/30/17. This time I never seem to have enough hours in the day but I'm not 'productive' in the traditional sense.

For me: it was all about finding something after retiring so it became retiring to something rather than just from something and changing my self identity .... if that makes any sense

 

[marko]

The first thing I tell people about retirement is that it is not the same as vacation. What you described sounded more like you were looking for a longish vacation. Nope. That is not retirement.

.

+1
I've long maintained that "if everyday feels like being on vacation" you're still in a work mindset and using 'work' as the reference for 'not working'. You're still not yet mentally retired IMHO.

I believe you reach that point after X months (took me 2 years) and everyday becomes just the way you now live.

I'm sure some will disagree, but that's must my perspective.

 

[HFWR]

Was never particularly important, was good at my j*b but certainly not irreplaceable, and over the course of 43 years was rif’d, fired, outsized, rightsized, and exorcised enough to know that any proclamation of how valuable I was as part of the “team” was total and utter horse puckey.

So, no, don’t miss it, it doesn’t miss me, and I’m happy doing what I want, when I want. If I need to be reminded (I don’t), I can watch “Office Space”, or “The Meaning of Life”...

 

[Teacher Terry]

Since retiring we have done volunteer work and helped 3 disabled friends. 2 have now died. If we get tired of a volunteer activity we quit and wait for the right one to present itself. I think everyone will find what is right for them. Of my retired friends there is a big variety in the way they spend their days. I have some friends that Never volunteer or do anything meaningful but instead just travel and do leisure activities. This is what works for them and I am fine with that. Everyone has earned the right by this stage in life to do what they want.

 

[travelover]

......... I have some friends that Never volunteer or do anything meaningful but instead just travel and do leisure activities. ........

Who gets to define "meaningful"?

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

A guy I once worked with had a sign on his desk that I could relate to. It said, "Deadlines amuse me."

I feel fortunate in that I had a lot of fun at my job. I quit when the periods of annoyance exceeded the periods of amusement.

 

[Scuba]

Actually the first time I retired I got bored rather to rapidly (50 yrs old). Went back to work, 1st PT then it morphed into FT. Things got tense so I quit 1/30/17. This time I never seem to have enough hours in the day but I'm not 'productive' in the traditional sense.

For me: it was all about finding something after retiring so it became retiring to something rather than just from something and changing my self identity .... if that makes any sense

Makes perfect sense to me!

 

[street]

Ya so what if you are FIRE really isn't a big deal I do like my new job and my title better than I did when I was working. My new job is retirement and my title is FIRE. I have way to many things in to do in life then work for someone else each day. Even if the money was great had my own hours and even if I had the time to do the thing I wanted to do you still have a job and a responsibility for something. Life is way to short and so many great thoughts people have said on this thread that is so true. Work till you drop no problem and have fun. I know a guy that just retired at 89 year old. OMG I'm glad I knew how to retire and didn't let work keep me from retiring.

 

[jollystomper]

To the OP, I think I am in a similar situation as you. I love my job (mostly) and never thought about early retirement until Megacorp changed the retirement plan 20 years ago and made me realize I would have to do a lot more savings/investing on my own, particularly with college looming for my kids.

I achieve FI several years ago, but with a job that parallels a hobby perhaps 75% of the time and pays extraordinary well, I didn't feel a rush to choose to retire and have continued working. My commute mostly disappeared about 2 years ago so I gained back a couple of hours a day. My salary is way more than enough for us, I do not need any more raises or bonuses (but I have been getting them without asking or trying), and do not need to do the things I used to do to "compete" for a higher position.

However, time is becoming more important than money for me, so I want the time to do whatever I want. Both the "hobby" aspect of my work, and other non-related work hobbies. At the same time, I do not think it is fair to my co-workers to essentially "slack off" in a way that would impact their jobs. Right now my main work objective is to not impact their deadlines. I have farmed out a lot of projects to them (which helps them to compete for better jobs) so assisting them is not hard, but it is more driven by their schedules than mine. They are very reasonable about it, but more and more I my desire is to fully control my own schedule.

In addition, My DW and I enjoy spending time with each other. We have enough in common to share, but enough different interests to not drive each other crazy. We are still in very good physical shape, but we know that will not last, so we want to maximize this time together.

For those reasons is why I plan to RE. I already told my manager of my intent, and particularly my willingness to leave if layoffs occur again and if it will save someone else's job that does not have my flexibility. I will not rule out working part time for Megacorp, if it is a "hobby"-type project. But it that doesn't occur, I have enough other interests and personal relationships that will keep me happily occupied.

 

[Scuba]

If you feel you have enough money including a cushion to provide desired buffer, then the question really becomes whether you'd rather spend more time working for someone else or having complete control over your time to do whatever you want. If you feel you'd enjoy working more, go for it! Not everyone wants to RE, and that's OK.