Retirement

AntarcticPilot said:
My Dad died at the age of 66, and all the plans he and my Mum had made for their retirement went undone.
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Yes - I think we are seduced these days by images of people being hale and hearty well into their 80s - and in fact many people are - but not everyone. My father died at 67, whereas my MIL is still very active at 87.

If we put too much effort into planning an active and financially secure retirement we might get caught out and ending up regretting not doing (spending) more earlier in life.
 
I have wrestled with this problem for last few years.

you receive comments like the lost of status/job feeling of worth brought on an early death whether its at 50 or 89!

For a number of people their work is an important anchor to their life and for many people their status is their job.

I have been paying off mortgages and saving in pension plans/ISA's to try and ensure I can enjoy a similar life standard as working but frankly have no idea as apart from less travelling/wear on vehicles less office uniform of suits etc I anticipate having more free time to spend money on holidays etc!

I have bought new car and motorcycle, paid off all mortgages and hope I have enough to have a series of holidays including starting in July14 with 6 weeks sailing. Hopefully I have set it up to be comfortable but expect to cook more rather than eat at expensive restaurants.

After 52yrs of working its the thought of waking up in the morning and not having a set agenda that I find slightly disturbing. Hopefully I will spend more time working on the boat but suspect DIY will become a priority and fill any time available as I will have no excuse not to start it. If I get bored I will consider working a few months after new Year Skiing but while not having lived an extravagant lifestyle I have been able to buy most things that I want but will probably have to now give greater consideration to purchases before getting the CC out.

Sorry not a specific answer for you but points I havce considered.
 
I can't wait

Going as soon as I can, I've got heaps to do.

Of course my attitude is coloured by the fact my father worked hard all his life and died at the age of 63 after fighting cancer for two years.
 
Well at 26 I've 41 years to go officially. . . . I don't ever plan on working until I am 67.

There won't be any kids to support, getting a house bought and paid for by the time I'm 50 is a huge priority. I'm a good saver, but pension plans etc do mistify me slightly.

I know you can't count on it, but with a long term illness that optimistically shaves 10 years off my life span I have no idea what the future holds, all I know is to prepare for it well in advance.
 
It's really difficult to advise others. I stopped at 52, in the mistaken belief that I'd have loads of dosh in due course from my private pension. Sadly, Norwich Union decided that my hilariously-titled "with profits" fund wasn't worth quite as much as they'd forecast. So I put it all into a SIPP, grew it and put it into drawdown.

In hindsight, it was a good time to finish working. I doubt that my health would be as good today if I'd kept up the stress of the daily grind. And I've had lots of time to play boats. And lots of sunny holidays. And lots of "projects" at home. And I've been able to give some time to the local community too. In fact, the last 14 years has flown by. If I look like running out of money, I can sell the boat, or downsize the house.

So I reckon if you think you can fund a sensible lifestyle in retirement, go for it.
 
An enormous amount depends on your skills and job. I earn my living sitting with a computer on my lap typing - I can do it anywhere that I have a reasonable internet connection and power to keep the battery topped up. Thanks to our wonderful education system, the competition for my job is dwindling, so I expect to work at least till I'm 70 - sitting in the cockpit in a pleasant anchorage with a glass of chilled wine and a bowl of peanuts - why retire?
 
I retired (Medical) some 12 years ago, I think the most important things are an all consuming hobby, sailing would do !That you BOTH enjoy, then pick the time of year if poss, early spring is ideal. If you leave in the Winter its a long time to be stuck indoors. Most of my friends are now retired and they all say that after about 3 to 6 months they suffered a "low" period, so dont be suprised, mine lasted about 4 weeks.
 
I would hate to retire my brain and skills, ever, no matter how small both may be!

If your job is rewarding, helpful, creative even, and you live a rounded interesting life, then perhaps flexibility is the key? Sabbaticals, projects, a RTW trip or two, but not 'retirement' period.

If otoh you have put in years and years of commuting, employment, scrimping for kids, cars, wives.. Then sooner rather than later.

It is amazing how much we spend ' ON OTHER THINGS' just because we are not using our time doing exactly and simply what we want.. Or whom we want to do it with ahem...
That fancy midweek meal cos you're both knackered and overworked...? Or the same cash sum spent on fresh fish, salad and cold wine under a beach tree for five or ten meals over five days....

Just putting a few ' contrast and compares' up for you really..

Only the OP can decide, as captain.

I technically retired in my early 30s and buggered off sailing for one summer..because I wanted to gather more info and experience for the next' big thing' . And lie around in the sun too for half an hour thinking and pondering and teasing out ideas..I certainly wasn't rich . That summer off became several years and a few thou miles and encounters, all incalculably invaluable...
I sold up everyfink a few years ago, again, and reinvested..

I am always ' busy' but enjoyably. And time on here is choice, not the filler to a dull 9-5 employment...

I do get a very clear idea of the way various posters retirement is going by the tone or candour of their postings and musings, some happy, some perhaps less so..Carpe Diem, take the helm!
 
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cloud7 said:
Interesting comments to reflect on , i can support 51 being too young , at 56 i think its just about right.Kids settled , house paid . 40k pension . However its the same old story , can't live with work / live without work.
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£40K will not keep you in retirement in your 50's. You will need a big nest egg to supplement it. new cars & things soon eat into the nest egg & you spend more more money if you are at home. Once you stop work finances are on a one way slope down ward unless you have enough to add a decent interest return to supplement the pension.

i sold my business to retire at 56. I then built my current house to "calm my nerves down after 39 years of self employment" & re appraise life.
I then went on a 28 week sailing holiday & when i returned , having nothing to do I was asked by a relation if I could assist him for a week
What frightened me was that after a long cruise in the sun just drifting from place to place, dinning, drinking, lazing about etc my brain had switched off.
Just opening a letter when i returned was a chore & when I went to help out I was totally useless & after 3 days I was asked to leave.

I immediately went out & started working again & it was a month before I could sensibly apply myself.
I carried on freelancing until 65 & my clients did not want me to leave. I sailed round UK, took up model plane flying, model yacht racing, fishing & sailing club activities, . I did not have a spare moment so it was Ok

But when an old client asked me back to create & lead a team I was frightened i could still perform. I am pleased to say i can. But now I want to go sailing this summer they are doing everything to get me to stay. At least while I am working I am not blowing money as I do not have the time for other activities
I will go sailing, but I just do not want that " brain fade " again. It is a frightening feeling & I now know others who have had the same problem.
So be careful, if you find th pension is not enough & you have to go back to work it might be harder than you think.
 
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maby said:
An enormous amount depends on your skills and job. I earn my living sitting with a computer on my lap typing - I can do it anywhere that I have a reasonable internet connection and power to keep the battery topped up. Thanks to our wonderful education system, the competition for my job is dwindling, so I expect to work at least till I'm 70 - sitting in the cockpit in a pleasant anchorage with a glass of chilled wine and a bowl of peanuts - why retire?
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S'pose it depends what you're typing! Sounds intriguing - would love to know...
 
I'd like to pass on something important I learned about retirement, by observation.

As a photographer for BAe one of my less glamorous tasks was photgraphing retirement parties in the subsidised social club on the airfield; less glamorous than poncing about in flying gear, but a privelege.

Among the colleagues and usually friends I photographed were Ray Grayston, a Flight Engineer on the Dams Raid and member of the Caterpillar Club for baling out of a stricken Lancaster on a later trip.

Frank Smith, blind in one eye after his tank was blown from under him in the desert.

Dennis Warren, one of the design team on the Fairey Delta 2 ' Faster Than The Sun ' project, first aircraft to sustain 1,000mph.

I photographed the handshakes, presentations and goodbyes to these and a great many other really good people, and I quickly learned they fell into two categories;

When asked ' What are you going to do, Fred ? '

If they answered ' I've got this to build, that to restore, then we're off abroad, thenwhen we come back...' they went on forever, my Father is an example, at 90 he's fitter than me and helping get ready for launching my boat ( which he originally built ).

When asked and the reply was ' I'm going to put my bloody feet up for a change, I've worked hard all my life ' - no matter that being true and being great people, they were usually dead before my prints reached them.
 
A very topical thread for me, as I take redundancy with the option to draw my pension immediately, next week...at 57 1/2.

I got very excited about the freedom to travel extensively and sail intensively, but then got concerns about the affordability of it. I feel lucky that I have a final salary indexed pension, but my income will be much reduced...I have some reasonable savings but could easily blow a big hole in them with buying the boat I have in mind, ( mind you have a MOBO to sell first).

Trying to have my cake and eat it too, looking to do some interim or contract work to work part time ( probably in blocks rather than reduced number of days). I have become very aware over the nearly four months since I stopped working of how I have slowed down.

Two weeks fabulous sailing in the VI in January highlighted to me that the retirement I really fancy needs a bigger pension and savings pot than I have, but early deaths of a couple of friends and colleagues reminds me 'this is not a rehearsal'.

So I am wrestling with how to manage my own...I will buy some lottery tickets I think!
 
I'm 51 and can't wait to retire. But when I do get the chance I bet I'll be too scared to take it and just carry on working. I've had a job of one sort or another since I was 14. I really like the idea of retiring but I know it will be a massive wrench to stop working.
 
cloud7 said:
Interested to see the views of the Forum on when to retirement , Age , financial , etc
thanks
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At some point during you working life you have to ask yourself the question, is this what I do I want to do with the rest of my life. I lived and loved my job for almost 40years.
I have been happily retired for about 5 years and I think the secret of a good retirement is to have time for hobbies. Although sailing is still a passion, for me its something I enjoy when the weathers good, but its not a fulltime pursuit and I think this is the case for the majority of sailors. My other hobby is restoring classic cars ( E Type Jaguar ), this fills in the time nicely in the winter months and during the times when the weather does not permit "enjoyable" sailing. My advice would be, the age to retire is when your job ceases to be fulfilling but be aware that sailing occupies only a small period of your new found freedom

mike
 
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