The key to a happy, healthy retirement
I recently attended a luncheon where I heard a woman say, “I’m not sure if I want to retire—it seems like all the people I’ve seen retire have a decline in their health.”
She wasn’t wrong. As an advisor who specializes in retirement planning, I’ve seen plenty of examples of how retirement can impact a person’s wellbeing, both positively and negatively.
I told her I have lots of clients who have retired successfully—and not just from a financial perspective. And that most often, the difference in these two groups of people—the ones who thrive and the ones who seem to slowly fade—is in how they spend their time in retirement.
The ones who don’t seem to age have mastered a pattern I try to instill in all my clients before they retire. If you want a healthy, enjoyable retirement that doesn’t just feel like the end of your career, you need to do three things:
Find your purpose.
Whether you love it or not, your job is a way you contribute to the world, and losing that can be unsettling. So once you leave your job, it’s important to find new ways to contribute. I have some clients who devote time to volunteer work, and others who become more active in their grandchildren’s lives. For some, it’s a mix. Your purpose in retirement doesn’t have to be world-changing, but it does need to give you a good reason to get out of bed in the morning.
Find a routine.
Even if you love the idea of not having a rigid schedule, having a healthy routine can make all the difference in your health, success, and enjoyment during retirement. Similar to your purpose, a routine gives you a reason to keep going, something to look forward to. And during a season of life when you don’t have a job dictating how you spend your time, a routine helps you answer the sometimes-daunting question of, “What am I going to do today?” It can be as simple as having a cup of coffee on your back porch, walking your dog, calling a friend, and so on. The idea is to give your day structure so it doesn’t feel aimless.
Find your people.
Socialization is incredibly important to our wellbeing. We need to get out of our houses and see other people. Even if you don’t consider your coworkers or clients your best friends, they fulfill a crucial part of your human experience by simply existing and interacting with you. When you retire, you can’t just give that up. You need to be intentional about building relationships with others and spending time with them in person.
EXPLORING YOUR OPTIONS
The idea of creating a whole new life for yourself can seem overwhelming at first. After all, your job is typically your primary source of contribution, routine, and socialization, and it takes effort to reestablish all these things. Plus, when you’re working, it can be hard to find time to explore what you might be interested in.
The good news is, there are plenty of ways to create a meaningful life after work.
I have one couple that plays pickleball together every day. It keeps them active, engages their minds, and gets them around other people. The husband is convinced this new routine is the reason for his improved health.
I have another couple who decided to sell their home and travel the world. They’re planning a mission trip soon, and while they’re in the States, they’re attending college for fun, enrolling in the classes and clubs they didn’t have time for when they were studying for their degrees.
I have clients in book clubs, prayer clubs, mahjong groups, bridge clubs, gardening clubs—the options are virtually endless; the key is making the time and effort to explore what you’re interested in before you find yourself twiddling your thumbs.
Sometimes, finding purpose and enjoyment in retirement is easier than you think. I have clients who tell me before they retire, “I don’t know what I’m going to do with my time!” and just a few months later, they’re telling me, “I don’t know how I worked!”
WHAT IF I’M NOT READY?
Age and strong finances aren’t the only indicators that someone is ready to retire. If you enjoy what you do and your job isn’t stressful, you may want to work longer. Some people are very passionate about their careers and simply can’t picture themselves apart from their job.
I’ve worked with couples where the husband is burned out and ready to retire, but the wife feels like she just went back to work after taking care of the kids and isn’t ready to leave. Other times, it’s the opposite. While couples certainly don’t need to have the same retirement timeline, it helps to be on the same page about how you’ll spend your days, especially if you won’t be able to rely on each other as “hobby buddies.”
One of my clients is keeping her job when her husband retires. They’ve wanted to travel for some time, but his stressful position has made it difficult—whereas she enjoys her job, and the hours are flexible. So, once he retires, they plan to finally take some of those long-awaited vacations. He also plans to volunteer while she works, and I have a feeling there might be a honey-do list waiting for him to help ease his transition out of the working world!
If the idea of leaving your career feels unsettling, you might consider a semi-retirement first. This isn’t an option for everyone, but it can be a great way to transition and explore your interests while you still have a built-in routine and social network.
Again, the key is to think about how you’ll spend your time post-retirement—before you leave the office on your last day.
A new chapter
Above all, it’s important to remember that retirement is a new season of life—just like adolescence, adulthood, marriage, and your career were once new opportunities. It’s a chance to spend more time doing what you love, or sometimes, discover what you love. It should be just as fulfilling as the other chapters in your life, and with a little forethought, it can be.
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