I understand the fear of ER

[Hopeful]

I finally can empathize with all the threads I have read over the years about people’s fears when it comes time to retire. My wife and I have been working part time these last couple years, with plans on retiring when she turns 55 at the beginning of next year, at which time I will be 48.

We made a one time appointment with a fee only financial advisor to look over things. After the initial meeting a couple weeks ago, he implied that he didn’t see an issue with retiring right away. We have the final meeting late next week. We were both really excited with the prospect of retiring now and having the whole summer with no work obligations. That excitement lasted a couple days, and then the fear hit.

All the things that started running through our minds:

-Are we crazy? Who in their right minds retires in their late 40’s?
-We don’t know anyone else who retired so early, except a few police officers in their 50’s
-Why would we give up good jobs and paychecks
-We are at the peak of the market now, this is a horrible time to retire
-What if runaway inflation hits
-If the whole plan fails, it would be highly unlikely to be able to go back to work in our fields at that point
-Maybe we should keep our jobs as casual positions, just to keep our foot in the door. But that would require commitment and keeping up to date with education etc.

I am pretty sure at the final meeting this week the advisor is going to confirm my calculations and planning. We are very excited to start this new journey, but that fear in the back of our minds is strong. This is something that I don’t want to be wrong on! I know that these thoughts are normal, but I wanted to share them here as this is the only place where anyone else would understand. I know our friends and family will not, as they will say we ARE crazy and stupid. To others that are having the same fears, you are not alone.

 

[Dash man]

Is your fear because you don’t think you have enough of a cushion? There’s a big difference between retirement on a shoestring or with a nice cushion. Do you need to adjust your asset allocation for your fear? Would you still be able to retire? Are your fixed expenses high or is there a lot of discretionary spending in your plan that you can cut if needed.
What specifically are your concerns? You didn’t give details.

 

[flintnational]

Hopeful, we had some of the same concerns. That was 7 years ago when we Fired at 53. Let me explain our views 7 years in. First, it is now apparent we could have retired sooner. (not really a regret but we definitely do not miss w*rk). For most folks, that is what the 4% rule will yield, excess funds. Second, even if unforeseen events warranted it, we enjoy retirement so much, we would make lifestyle changes before we would consider w*rk. We have the will and ability to be flexible if needed. W*rk is not in our future short of a societal collapse (Bernstein's max 80% retirement success rate). Finally, the last 7 years have flown by. It really does make you appreciate getting out earlier rather than later. Congrats!

 

[Hopeful]

I realize I didn’t really give any details. I think I was looking to vent my fears to others who probably had some of the same fears. I think our plan is solid, with a lot of cushion, making most of our fears unnecessary. But that doesn’t keep those fears out of the back of my head.

 

[Dtail]

Time>Money.
Check out the thread of how many people on this forum know folks who died in their 50's/60's.
"Keep calm and be hopeful" - sound familiar......

 

[tmm99]

Time>Money.
Check out the thread of how many people on this forum know folks who died in their 50's/60's.
"Keep calm and be hopeful" - sound familiar......

Yeah, this.
https://www.early-retirement.org/fo...nds-dying-too-young-109045-4.html#post2601447

I was thinking the same thing, Dtail.


And this thread titled "Coping with losing ability to do loved activities"

https://www.early-retirement.org/fo...ng-ability-to-do-loved-activities-109053.html

There's a time limit for rigorous physical activities as well.

 

[RunningBum]

My responses to your fears inline:

-Are we crazy? Who in their right minds retires in their late 40’s?
-We don’t know anyone else who retired so early, except a few police officers in their 50’s
To other above two, who cares what others do and if others think you are crazy. You're the two who get to savor the fruits of your labors.
-Why would we give up good jobs and paychecks
When you have enough, the importance of a good job and paycheck is replaces by "why would I keep working and give up my time that I could be enjoying, going different places, doing different things, etc. Time is really a more important factor now.
-We are at the peak of the market now, this is a horrible time to retire
IMO this is a valid concern. Have a buffer in funds or have extras that you can cut out or cut back on if the market does plunge. Some here may say that you can ER as soon as you are able, no matter what state the market is in. But they aren't going to offer you any bailout if they were wrong. Your FA should be able to give you more confidence, or hint that you might want to build some buffer.
-What if runaway inflation hits
Pretty much the same answer as above. Talk to the FA about how to be defensive against inflation in your portfolio. Especially at your younger age, you probably shouldn't be all fixed income.
-If the whole plan fails, it would be highly unlikely to be able to go back to work in our fields at that point
-Maybe we should keep our jobs as casual positions, just to keep our foot in the door. But that would require commitment and keeping up to date with education etc.
I had the same concerns about the above two. I stayed a few more years telecommuting part-time because I just wasn't sure. Turns out it was totally unnecessary, but I couldn't know that.

 

[Walt34]

Lots of people have expressed the same concerns so you are by no means unusual for having them. Retirement is (usually) an irrevocable decision, or at least it's hard to get back to even close to where you were.

I've told this story before but it's been awhile so I'll risk boring the old-timers on the board here again. DW and I both left a lot of money on the table as is the case with most people who retire early. We agonized quite a bit over whether we were making a wise choice, even after having done so.

Six months after retirement we went to visit my younger sister, then living in Northern Virginia and still hard at work. The first thing she said when she saw us was "You two look more relaxed than I've seen you in years".

Any lingering doubts about the wisdom of our decision to retire immediately went away.

 

[1242Vintage]

I stopped working last May at age 56 and had most of the same fears and emotions. We did a similar financial analysis and we were sure that we had more than enough financial resources to comfortably retire. But the fears lingered.

Looking back, retirement was the best decision we ever made. My health is better, family relationships are better, spending much less than we thought and investments are doing better.

Everything in retirement is just plain better.

Good luck in your journey into retirement.

 

[Hopeful]

Thanks to all who have shared their experiences and words of encouragement.

 

[38Chevy454]

I assume you have run several retirement calculator simulations. If your budget and expenses are accurate, you just need to let the logical overcome the fear. It can be tough to do. As previous replies said, it can be hard to get back in work environment once you make the jump. With confidence in the calculators, you can ensure that jump is successful and no need to go back.

 

[Time2]

I hate to add to your fears, but remember all the people that retire during the last 5 or 10 years are almost all positive because they probably have more now than when they retired. That does not necessarily predict the future.
I can hope it does, but hope doesn't pay the bills.

 

[Hopeful]

I hate to add to your fears, but remember all the people that retire during the last 5 or 10 years are almost all positive because they probably have more now than when they retired. That does not necessarily predict the future.
I can hope it does, but hope doesn't pay the bills.

That is definitely something that stokes the fears. The one thing that makes me feel a little better is we have built a pretty good cash buffer in case of a downturn right after retirement. I will probably put it in some MYGAs, after our financial planner review.

 

[DrRoy]

If you are nervous about the market, reduce your equity AA. I RE'd at 57, should have gone sooner. Time > money.

 

[Ronstar]

Fear about ER is normal - for those who are about to take the plunge. But that fear goes away gradually after retirement.

Don't let fear change your plans. Go for it! You won't regret it. Every retired person I know wishes that they would have retired sooner.

 

[pjigar]

OP,

This is pretty much the same list I have in my mind plus fear of skyrocketing healthcare and education cost. I also have a special need son so I can never forgive myself if we run short when his needs are greater than what we planned. My solution is overly conservative and this may not apply to every one: We plan to live on cash flow generated from non-retirement assets only. All retirement assets+returns and non-retirement assets are there as a giant buffer. We are few years away from FI but it still scare me to RE after that. We will see what happens when we actually get there.

 

[FLSUnFIRE]

I finally can empathize with all the threads I have read over the years about people’s fears when it comes time to retire. My wife and I have been working part time these last couple years, with plans on retiring when she turns 55 at the beginning of next year, at which time I will be 48.

We made a one time appointment with a fee only financial advisor to look over things. After the initial meeting a couple weeks ago, he implied that he didn’t see an issue with retiring right away. We have the final meeting late next week. We were both really excited with the prospect of retiring now and having the whole summer with no work obligations. That excitement lasted a couple days, and then the fear hit.

All the things that started running through our minds:

-Are we crazy? Who in their right minds retires in their late 40’s?
-We don’t know anyone else who retired so early, except a few police officers in their 50’s
-Why would we give up good jobs and paychecks
-We are at the peak of the market now, this is a horrible time to retire
-What if runaway inflation hits
-If the whole plan fails, it would be highly unlikely to be able to go back to work in our fields at that point
-Maybe we should keep our jobs as casual positions, just to keep our foot in the door. But that would require commitment and keeping up to date with education etc.

I am pretty sure at the final meeting this week the advisor is going to confirm my calculations and planning. We are very excited to start this new journey, but that fear in the back of our minds is strong. This is something that I don’t want to be wrong on! I know that these thoughts are normal, but I wanted to share them here as this is the only place where anyone else would understand. I know our friends and family will not, as they will say we ARE crazy and stupid. To others that are having the same fears, you are not alone.

As you may have picked up from my posts and those of many others... you are not alone and are in good company having these thoughts! To most people we are crazy... I've always been a bit of a contrarian! The folks here are starting to think I'm crazy for going to w*rk tomorrow! (And they are right!)