I'm hoping for an early out offer next year when I turn 50 and have 20 years of service with the Federal Government but I realize that offer may never come. I have run the numbers and I will be able to retire without it. I may have no other choice but to resign but that scares the *ell out of me. Just wondering how others over came their "what if" fears and finally made that leap into retirement?
Hi Vera. Welcome to the site.
I think that no matter what you do, it's only normal to have some reservations and second thoughts on whether the choice is right or not.
All you can do is do your homework and know then that by doing so, you'd fair okay.
I left when I was 47. Had I stuck it out for 3 more years, I would have qualified for company health benefits (but I hear now that more and more of the costs got shifted to retirees anyhow, so that wasn't so great after all).
I think there is a point of leap of faith, or perhaps a moment of truth. For me, I had did my homework, but the day of telling my boss my plans, I had an inner talk with myself
, my heart of hearts and followed that--knowing that to call it a career was the right thing for me.
Looking back, the afternoon, when I walked out of the office for my final time was one of the happiest days of my life.