There have been several recent articles confirming what many of us in the financial planning industry have observed - the pandemic has caused a surge in the number of people retiring and leaving the workforce; there is an increasingly large flow of people reaching that stage in life.
It doesn’t come as any surprise and as someone that started work in a large life company in the late 80s I now have a large network of people that have been fortunate to have Final Salary pensions and no longer have mortgages to pay.
I often meet people who tell me they are retired and my response is often, “you don’t look old enough!”
With changing priorities and a shift in what people value, the question on many minds is: "Can I afford to retire?" and as more and more of those reach their mid-50s the answer is yes!
The challenge for those taking an early retirement is what to do with their time and many haven’t considered what they want their retirement to look like. If you aren’t a ‘Solicitor or Doctor….insert your job description here’ ….who are you?
Making that transition into the next stage of your life can be difficult to adjust to and many will try several times to retire and may look to re-join the workforce for more reasons than financial. In his book ‘The new retirementality’ Mitch Anthony gives the following nonfinancial retirement challenges people face:
😱 Sense of identity loss
😱 Social/relationship Challenges
😱 Change/Reduction in mental stimulation
😱 Psychological issues around nor getting a paycheck
😱 Extra time to fill in the day
😱 Anxiety/Depression
As a financial planner, I encourage everyone to take control of their financial future and strive for financial independence, rather than being dependent on events like inheritance or business sale.
But there is much more to consider than just finances.
Taking a comprehensive approach to financial planning, including budgeting, saving, investing, and risk management, can create you a solid foundation for a secure retirement. However, you also need to consider how you are going to spend the time you will have!
That’s 168 hours a week to fill, how will you fill yours?