Was retirement for you a good or not so good choice?

[winnietrey]

I understand, and do not question, the reason folks retire. Job stress, health, want to do something different.

For some I think, it was the best thing they ever did, for others not so much.

I think, I fall in the latter category. I like my job, I have no real hobbies, I enjoy all that much. I take a lot of time off, and travel, we are healthy. I think for me, retirement could be one of the worst things I could do. Just wondering if anyone else feels the same. With my personality I think I would be bored stiff

[RedRollingRoadb]

I was forced into an early retirement...by the DW. Glad I married such a smart woman.

I spent 44 1/2 years in a truck and worked for about the last 30 years nights, the last 13 for an LTL freight company. The job was OK, enjoyed my co-workers but the company I worked for were bodily orifices. After all THEY invented the wheel. LOL. Plus the fact that they screwed me out of 6+ years of retirement, but that is another story.

The DW put the bug in my ear to retire in about February, took her several months to pound it in so we set the date as September 30/2015, just short of my 63 birthday, figured no need to chain again unless I wanted to. That sounded good then on July 3 I walked into the managers office and told him I was retiring on 7/31 at the end of my shift. At 0809 August 1 I dropped my keys and badge on the office managers desk and walked out the door. Never looked back. Don't miss it one bit.

DW still works but she works out of the house so as long as we have a decent cell connection were fine, She cut her hours to 30 a week a few months ago, so we do a little traveling, some hosting and whatever.

When we are home I stay busy catching up on the deferred maintenance, setting up the new Bounder the way I want, drive the MH 60 miles to the DD once a week so DW can help with homeschooling the oldest grand kids. I got the better deal as I get to play with the younger two.

Very glad I retired when I did, best thing I ever did. If I had a do over I would have planned better for retirement.

[Gdetrailer]

ktmrfs wrote:

winnietrey wrote:
I understand, and do not question, the reason folks retire. Job stress, health, want to do something different.

For some I think, it was the best thing they ever did, for others not so much.

I think, I fall in the latter category. I like my job, I have no real hobbies, I enjoy all that much. I take a lot of time off, and travel, we are healthy. I think for me, retirement could be one of the worst things I could do. Just wondering if anyone else feels the same. With my personality I think I would be bored stiff

pick the option YOU enjoy, NOT what someone else tells you to do.

Personally, I enjoyed my job as did DW, but when an opportunity came up to take retirement package at 57 I did and DW did two years later. Now we are doing other things we liked and wanted to do, traveling etc. and enjoy it. But we had also planned to be able to retire at 55 and be more than financially secure. So far our financial plan turned out to be very conservative and we can do way more than we planned and have growing investments.

I do know several folks our age that tried retiring and hated it, and went back to work. I also know several retired friends that do very very little traveling now that they are retired. If we couldn't travel I'd be bored stiff and go back to work. They are just the opposite, they do NOT like traveling and enjoy stuff around home.

We are all different. do what YOU want

Hmm.. Interesting statement.

I do enjoy what I do very much in my job, BUT, over the years my job has evolved drastically far, far way from what I started out enjoying.

Nothing wrong with that, BUT, at my current age, I have a lot to lose by finding a new job.. I would lose big time in vacation time (30 days paid time of per yr), I would lose seniority of 18 yrs and so on..

I am losing confidence with the management in my company and the direction they are heading.. Mergers and buyouts now have my company as a minority in the newest company buyout and things are looking ugly for the future of my now newly minted "division"..

Do I enjoy the stress that this new uncertainty has created? NO.

My Supervisor gave his two weeks notice, and last week they escorted him out the door, shy two days of his two weeks!..

I AM looking forward to getting off this bus ride with the mad bus driver BEFORE I get tossed under the wheels.

Looking forward to retirement is about the only way to keep my sanity going.. It IS a "goal" and when I reach that goal, I WILL set a NEW GOAL to look forward to.. That IS how life works..

About a week ago I ran into my old plant manager at a local store doing some shopping.. He retired from my company about two years ago.. He retired a bitter cranky man.. Now, HE IS HAPPY, pleasant and glad to see me, asked how I was doing, my family and how work was..

When he was the plant manager, he RARELY ever spoke to me and when he did, it was business only and didn't care about my personal life..

His little bit of advice to me was if any one gets the chance to retire, JUST DO IT!

I doubt anyone has ever wished the could spend MORE TIME on a job for someone else.. I would rather be working on my OWN jobs, they are much more fun and I can truly be my own "boss"..

[ktmrfs]

winnietrey wrote:
I understand, and do not question, the reason folks retire. Job stress, health, want to do something different.

For some I think, it was the best thing they ever did, for others not so much.

I think, I fall in the latter category. I like my job, I have no real hobbies, I enjoy all that much. I take a lot of time off, and travel, we are healthy. I think for me, retirement could be one of the worst things I could do. Just wondering if anyone else feels the same. With my personality I think I would be bored stiff

pick the option YOU enjoy, NOT what someone else tells you to do.

Personally, I enjoyed my job as did DW, but when an opportunity came up to take retirement package at 57 I did and DW did two years later. Now we are doing other things we liked and wanted to do, traveling etc. and enjoy it. But we had also planned to be able to retire at 55 and be more than financially secure. So far our financial plan turned out to be very conservative and we can do way more than we planned and have growing investments.

I do know several folks our age that tried retiring and hated it, and went back to work. I also know several retired friends that do very very little traveling now that they are retired. If we couldn't travel I'd be bored stiff and go back to work. They are just the opposite, they do NOT like traveling and enjoy stuff around home.

We are all different. do what YOU want

[derh20]

I have been retired for 12 years now and have one major problem with retirement. I don't have enough time to get everything done around the house. Seriously, my list keeps getting longer,

[Splashers3]

Wife & I have enjoyed reading this topic...since I am deciding on retiring next summer or waiting until Jan2018. She will have a few more years to go, but I think she will minimize "few".

I'll be 59+ and want to continue traveling while I have my health. Don't want to say "I wish I had".....She's a teacher, so we can take the summers off while she continues to work....plenty of home projects..health more of a concern than $.

Thanks guys.
Mike

[boomersooner198]

BCK wrote:
I retired at 55 from an IT job. On the job at the end I started thinking more about traveling in my RV. So I spent alot of time at work with spreadsheets and stuff calculating everything about my retirement. When things were just about possible, I pulled the trigger. That was exactly two years ago. Since then me and the DW have traveled about 20K miles in the RV.

After two years....

-Plan was good, finance is on target, no more, no less.
-Lots of goofy projects have been completed that I always wanted to try.
-Work around the house keeps me very busy.

I love retirement so far......Good luck....See you on the road...

This is nearly the exact same place I am. I am 52, retired Army and VA disabled so I do have a nice cushion when I get out of the work force. I spend a lot of time looking at RV's, camp grounds, routes, spreadsheets for my finances, etc. I am looking at another 5 years (getting ready to start a new 4 year contract), my wife is already "retired" and a few years older than I am. We are planning on a new Class A diesel, and spending 4 or 5 months on the road per year. Everyone I talk to says it is the best thing they ever did, and the money worked out. I am planning (and praying) on the same success.

[jplante4]

pitch wrote:
I now drive for an auto auction. So far so good, I let them know when I am available,and they let me know when they have work.

Funny, this was one of my first jobs as a kid. Money was lousy, but if you could score a delivery you did better.

[wa8yxm]

I took early retirement back in 2002.. The writing was on the wall. Increased work loads, Smaller staff, An Attempt (Failed and backfired) to get me fired. and more. I never regretted it, not for one minute.

Side effect: Blood pressure meds cut in half and more.

[pitch]

I am not sure yet. Retired 4 years ago. So far I have gone back to work twice. Probably won't again. I swore years ago that I would never work for another small business man. Well I broke that pledge and went to work partime for a guy.

For all aspiring businessmen: Do not expect me to work like a partner while treating me as an employee. Sorry does not work that way, a partner has to put up with your ridiculous idiosyncrasies,an employee does not.

I now drive for an auto auction. So far so good, I let them know when I am available,and they let me know when they have work.

[D_E_Bishop]

I'm getting into this fray late but here is my reason why I retired and how it's been.

I was once a young vibrant kid that wanted to learn and hopefully advance. I was successful and became a policy setter. I loved setting up new policies and procedures, absolutely loved it. Then I had things running smoothly and life was good.

Then along came a bunch of mini-me's. I didn't like their policies and procedures, mine were better, right?

No I was unalterably resistant to change. I figured it was time to go.

Has it worked out okay?, dam right, have I been bored?, NOT FOR LONG, I'd find a new project or revive and old interest and I'd be off again.

Twenty One years so far.

[BCK]

I retired at 55 from an IT job. On the job at the end I started thinking more about traveling in my RV. So I spent alot of time at work with spreadsheets and stuff calculating everything about my retirement. When things were just about possible, I pulled the trigger. That was exactly two years ago. Since then me and the DW have traveled about 20K miles in the RV.

After two years....

-Plan was good, finance is on target, no more, no less.
-Lots of goofy projects have been completed that I always wanted to try.
-Work around the house keeps me very busy.

I love retirement so far......Good luck....See you on the road...

[bucky]

On that same note my Dad survived hiking across France and Germany in '44 and '45, went to college with a family so wasn't involved with Korea, and was recruited by the "state department" after graduating from UVA.
He was everywhere US personnel were not supposed to be until my Mom passed in '68 leaving 4 kids under 18 to be raised. That ended the traveling and he soon retired. Only to die of a heart attack at 59 YOA. What a shame.
My advice is to get out as soon as you can, there are no guaranteed tomorrows.

[junmy3]

Financially it would have been a little better for us to wait 6 years to retire, but we pulled the plug 50 days after I was eligible. Great decision for us. The first year we went to Alaska, the next the Atlantic Providences, then Big Bend National Park, then Washington DC, and this year took our oldest Grandson to the Grand Canyon and in two weeks headed out for another weeks.
Also over the 5 years since we retired we have put in 10 months of volunteer work at several of our State Park.
We also have lots of trips planned for the future. Taking a granddaughter to Yellowstone, another to NYC, a trip to Quartzsite, back to Alaska with wife's sister when they retire. We will not run out of places to go.
One of the most saddest stories we heard was from a couple we met camping years ago in Indiana. One of the couples parents had always wanted to make a cross country trip, but kept putting off retirement. They finally decided to make their dream come true. They planned and bought a motorhome. The morning they were set to leave the mom had a heart attack and dies.
My father died when he was 63 and we didn't want one of us to live with a lot of what ifs and if only. Definitely the right decision for us.

[Big1]

I have been retired now for almost three years now, and I am more busy now than when I was working at a job but of course I'm a pastor of a holiness church. I can find a lot of time to stay in the gym, I don't have to punch no time clock and worry about being late. Life is good.

[noplace2]

Oh, moderator!