Are you ready to retire?
How would you know?
Retirement is certainly about financial readiness. But it is also about so much more than that. I think it is important that you address some very important issues:
First, are you emotionally ready to retire? Work is a great source of identity for most of us. Just read the death announcements. “Joe Blow, 66, a plumber, died.” That’s it – how old he was when he died, and what he did for a living while he lived.
Is your identify wrapped up in what you do all day for a living? If so, are you ready to give that up for…well, that’s a darn good question. If you retire, what exactly will you be doing all day with your time? Some people have a great answer to that question. Others stare back at me blankly, as if I’d asked them to recite the Gettysburg Address backwards in Latin.
I know I am definitely not emotionally ready to retire now. Not certain I ever will be. I’ve told a few select friends that if they ever see me wearing khaki pants and white tennis shoes walking slowly ten paces behind my wife at the grocery store at 10 a.m. in the morning, just put me in a casket, cause I’m dead.
Second, am I physically ready to retire? Before you are ready to make any big decisions about your future, you’d better get a good, solid evaluation of the health of the only vehicle you’re ever going to get to take you through retirement – your body. I’ve known people who actually began diet and exercise programs after they retired. Maybe it was a health scare, or maybe they just finally woke up to the reality that if they lose their health, not much else can compensate.
You may want to see a doctor, to find out where you are, so you can make the most of what you’ve got and take care of it. It’s never too late to do the best you can.
Third, am I financially ready to retire? Ah, you knew we’d have to get around to the money talk sooner or later. If you are nervous about the prospect of retirement, I suspect you already know you may not be financially prepared. Fine.
Just like you need to see a doctor to get a realistic physical checkup, so you need to see a financial advisor to get an idea of where you are fiscally.
Your advisor can tell you how far off from retirement you are (in term of dollars and time) and what it may take to get you there. Remember, your advisor doesn’t have a crystal ball, so telling you exactly what’s going to happen over the next five to ten years is not a realistic question to ask.
What you can ask is: where am I? What do I have left to do? Do I need to keep working? If so, can I get away with making less money (a real possibility for an older worker laid off or forced into early retirement)?
Older workers have much to offer the workplace – maturity, judgment and dependability being three benefits that come to mind.
None of us know what the future holds. But now is the time to make a realistic assessment of the present, and let that dictate what your next steps should be.
After this kind of realistic assessment, you may find that work is not only in your past but also in your future.
And that may not be such a bad thing.
