That's really cold! But glad you joined the FIRE'd.I was 58 when the guy from HR and a security guard showed up with some boxes to put my personal belongings into and walked me out the door. Easy decision. I was retired!
Now almost two decades later, it's worked out great!
In my case, it was primarily because I was enjoying what I was doing - until I didn't.
Yeah, time goes by 3 times as fast when retired as it did when w*rking. I can't explain it but it seems nearly universal. Of course, YMMV.My brother died at 56 so that got my attention and I didn’t really like my job so it wasn’t that hard of a decision for me. In another week I will have 18 years of retirement in the books. Seems more like five.
It sure seems that way after the last 13 years of retirement but I have heard that it also happens as we get older. I'm not sure if it is one or the other or a combination of the two.Yeah, time goes by 3 times as fast when retired as it did when w*rking. I can't explain it but it seems nearly universal. Of course, YMMV.
We are not mega rich but I did walk away from a lot of money when I retired at age 58. I worked in a very hot field, machine learning and AI. Although the work was exciting, I was feeling progressively more burnt out as the pace of work was only accelerating. We had accumulated a big stash (50x expenses) but the event that triggered my retirement was the passing of my dad from Alzheimer's. Thats when I realized I had only a limited amount of time to enjoy our money.I was reading an article on this very subject. Why do wealthy and mega rich continue working.
They continue working not for money but the challenge of making more money and they enjoy their work.
So many reads I have done on this subject of retiring early don't always view it as a positive thing for people that retire.
Work keeps people young and engaged with others and is healthier than a person in retirement.
So, who really knows which way is better for the average person. I sometimes have questioned my decision but I have been very busy and engaged with life and activities. Not enough time most days to get all I want to get accomplished.
Nothing wrong with that. If you enjoy what you do, an argument can be made that you aren't really w*rking (just collecting a pay check for doing what you love!) That's fantastic and enviable.I'll make my usual point that I'm here for the FI, not the RE, I fully expect to keep making games for the rest of my life. The only change "retirement" might be is not doing it for a salary from somebody else.
Why are there so many of these?? I am feeling it too, but not quite there.I retired fully at age 59-3/4 in 2019 when the work went very south due to a misogynistic bully of a medical director.
This is definitely an interesting experience. My work was related to the design automation of semiconductor chips. It overlaps to AI in many aspects. I also did have a big paycheck and a feel of burning out with age. But this is where it stops. In the last 5-6 years of my career, I've been laid off three times. I managed to find a job the 1st and 2nd time, but decided to retire 3rd time when I was 56. There were absolutely no offers (even no contacts at all). I believe I did my job very well. There were some papers and other technical publications I made, as well as 10+ invention patents. Still, I feel like actually I did not even exist as a professional.I have enjoyed every minute of retirement and turned down several offers since I retired. My old colleagues still can't believe that I walked away from a big paycheck but I have no regrets at all.
Heh, heh, who are you trying to impress, wearing shorts?Love my job. It's easy, pays well, I can work when I want to, and I work from home in shorts and tee shirt.
Mike