Chapter : Not Just Financial Planning
Although financial planning is an important aspect of retirement, its not the main emotional transition. Some people choose to retire, get themselves ready, come retirement day, they leave feeling excited to have all their time back. But thats not the case for everyone.
Sometimes you dont get to choose your retirement. It could be because your health required it or that you were made to leave for various reasons. There are even cases that you decided your retirement date, and when the day arrived, it felt sad.
Walking away from your income, coworkers, and the routine you enjoyed takes time to adjust to. Expect a sense of grief or overwhelming loss, as its normal to begin looking back at your life and wondering what the future holds.
Some people may jump into scheduling their day full of different activities in an attempt to recreate that work schedule. That, too, can be exhausting and cause a sense of frustration.
Preparing For Retirement Emotionally
Retirement can be a shock to the system. It marks a significant change in lifestyle and will, at first, feel unfamiliar. Of course it will gone is the dependable workplace routine, gone is the daily contact with colleagues, and gone is the financial security of a workplace salary. Suddenly, youve got new challenges to worry about, like living off a smaller income, having less human contact, and wondering what on earth to do with all the extra time.
Feelings such as loneliness, boredom and worthlessness may work their way into a new retirees thoughts. And the first thing to note is that its totally normal – youre going through a significant and potentially unsettling change. The second thing to note is that its well within your means to live a happy and fulfilled retirement without letting those feelings overwhelm you. You simply need to prepare for retirement emotionally. This is what this article sets out to help you achieve.
Retirement Is Usually More Complicated Than Many Of Us Think
Its not only about quitting a job or ending ones career. This stage in your life will change the way you look at things. Thus, you have to think about it seriously, and if possible, work with a life coach who can help you prepare for your retirement. A life coach will also play an important role in your adjustment to your new life as a retiree.
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Make A Plan For The Free Time You’ll Have
Other Goals For Retirement
Look at health insurance options: Did you know that once you turn 65 you are eligible for Medicare? If youve paid into Medicare through taxes long enough, your plan might be premium-free. However, many retirees choose supplemental Medicare coverage to address their specific health care needs. Talk to your insurance broker ahead of time to get an idea of what health insurance options youll be eligible for as well as their costs.
Reduce Expenses: One of the best things you can do to prepare for your retirement is to reduce your expenses. Not only will reducing your expenses help you practice for when you need to live off less income, but it will also free up money to pay off debt or add to your savings RIGHT NOW.
Some simple ways to reduce your expenses include, installing a smart thermostat, eating out less , switching insurance providers, cutting your cable bill and using streaming services, and borrowing books and movies from the library instead of purchasing them.
Do retirement trial runs: A trial run is a great way to practice living on your retirement income and saving money to boot. If you have a general idea of how much money you will have available each month when retired, use those numbers to do a trial run twice a year. For that month, live off your lower retirement amount and then put the money you didnt spend into savings. If a month is too long, do a week trial run. Youll get practice and increase your savings at the same time. Win, Win!
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Any Final Words Of Advice For Those Facing Retirement
Life is going to be different after retirement. Your identity will change. Sometimes it will be fun and exhilarating and other times may be dull and difficult. Have patience while you make the transition.
At Iora, we take into account the whole person and offer support through Behavioral Health Specialists when going through lifes transitions. Interested in learning more or scheduling an appointment? Give us a call or click the button below:
Expect To Go Through Stages Of Emotions
Theres an emotional process that most people go through when adjusting to retirement. At first, theres a feeling of freedom. Its like youre on a vacation thats going to last forever.
That sense of novelty wears off, however, and you will settle into a slower lifestyle. There might be a stage that involves a lot of, Oh, no! What did I do? thoughts, followed by anxiety and boredom. You might even feel guilty for not enjoying retirement as much as you think you should.
Suppressing your emotions or denying your feelings can lead to unhealthy coping strategieslike relying on alcohol or food. Allow yourself to experience a wide range of emotions, whatever those emotions may be. Look for healthy ways to deal with those feelings. You might find walking, reading, writing, talking to others, or yoga helps you deal with your emotions.
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How Will I Share My Professional Expertise Personal Knowledge Or Legacy
What professional organizations can you join? Connect with local universities and see if they have a mentoring program to mentor young people in your chosen career. Use your talents for your favorite non-profit. For example, if you are an accounting guru, can you lend your skills to your local house of worship?
Start Preparing In Advance
A lot of retirees only prepare for retirement financially and are not aware of the emotional impact retirement can have on your life. Every life change, whether it is positive or negative, comes with emotional discomfort. It can produce negative mental states that youre maybe not aware of beforehand and come as an unsuspected surprise.
And preparing a major life change for most people cant be done within the turn of a day, week, or month. So, its best to start preparing yourself mentally 1-5 years before retirement.
This timeframe is different per person and circumstance, but be aware that it takes more time than you think to get used to the idea of retirement. Figure out what it entails for you. What you want to do in retired life and how you can prepare together with your spouse and family. So, preparing well in advance will make your transition into retirement less stressful.
When youre planning on continuing your life without any other major life changes, then preparation of 1 year or less can be enough for you. But if youre planning to do a 180 lifestyle change in retirement, for example, moving, selling the house, or emigrate to another country. Then it can take up more time than 1 year of preparation. In these years before your retirement date, you can try things out and get prepared for whats coming after youre retired.
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Preparing Mentally For Retirement
When anticipating retirement, most focus on being financial prepared, but tend to neglect the importance of preparing mentally for retirement. And while finances are certainly important, having enough money does not guarantee a happy and healthy life after retirement.
Retirement is a major life event that brings many changes. With more than 70 million baby boomers set to retire in the next decade, there is increased interest in the notion of quality of life in retirement. At HPA/LiveWell in Albany, New York, we strive to support retirees in preparing mentally for retirement, coping with the transition, and creating the life they want to live.
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It is not uncommon for people to spend their whole life waiting to start living. Eckhart Tolle
Happiness and quality of life are something that many, if not all of us, strive for. One thing that I have noticed through my work with people in retirement is that the pull toward both of these aspects becomes even stronger when the days are no longer filled with work obligations. I have witnessed many people entering retirement who have no idea what makes them happy, and it makes me wonder why we arent very good at figuring that out. After all, you would think that happiness would be something that we constantly work toward and get better at over time. Ive seen many people struggle with what they are going to do during retirement and how they are going to live their lives. They spend so much time worrying about what they will become and what will happen to them. Many are even concerned that they will literally stop breathing if they stop working. Though I dont feel as though Im in the position to give you the answer to living a happy life just yet, I have realized that there are some consistent habits of happily retired people, and Id like to share them with you.
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Give Yourself Flexibility To Figure It Out
You might think that you want to spend your retirement painting, cooking, and reading, but then find out that all that time spent at home doesnt fulfill the lifestyle you dreamed about. After 30 years in the workplace, you finally have time to experiment with what you really want.
There are many different ways you can spend your time. And fortunately, theres no need to figure it all out right away. It will likely take a fair amount of experimenting to help you find just the right balance of how you want to spend your time. You can always increase social activities later or develop new hobbies if you want to stay busier.
The joy of retirement is that youll have plenty of opportunities to experiment. Its up to you to design the type of dayand kind of lifethat you want to live.
Create A Plan & Set Goals
Once you thought about how your retirement needs to look like, you can start creating a plan and set a goal to set it into motion. But before you can create your plan, you need to set a goal first.
Make sure you write down your goal in the SMART way to make it more tangible. Work backward from your goal to set milestones in your plan and put your actions into a schedule. Create a timeline and break large tasks into smaller and more manageable chunks. This way, you plan to do small daily tasks that will ultimately lead to the accomplishment of your goal. And dividing your goal into small tasks will helps you not to get overwhelmed. And also makes the goal more mentally achievable.
According to a study writing your goal down on paper, youll have a better chance of achieving that goal than if you dont. And creating a plan helps you to organize your retirement plans and gets you more prepared. You can adjust this plan along the way because your life is a constant work in progress, which continues to evolve in often unexpected ways.
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How Can We Help You Prepare For Your Ideal Retirement Free Retirement Review
To get started on your journey to retirement, you can take our free no-obligation first meeting.
Youll be able to speak with our financial advisers who can explain our PlanHappy Lifestyle Financial Planning process, how it can help you, but most importantly, you can work through what it really is you want to do in retirement.
You tell us what you want to do, you tell us your goals and aspirations, and then we start your journey to retirement.
Retirement Savings how much you need to save for retirement Retirement Date when you can afford to stop working Retirement Income how much you can spend in retirement
So, if youre looking to make sense of pension and retirement planning options with straightforward financial planning advice, were here to help.Contact our friendly team on, 033 0133 3035 or fill in the form below to arrange a call back from one of our experts.
Joslin Rhodes Pension & Retirement Planning Real Advice, For Real People.
Dont Let Fear Kill Your Dreams
Retirement is the time where youve worked hard for yourself, and you owe it to yourself to make the most out of it. And sometimes fear can get away from our dreams. We let the negative inner voices distract us from what we want.
Dont be afraid to dream big and go after what you want in life. Its your life, so make sure you live it the way you want it. And have no regrets.
If you want to make your retirement the best time of your life, then my Ebook is definitely something for you!
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Pick Hobbies Or Skills That You’d Like To Learn
Stop Being Frugal And Find A Purpose
Planning for retirement takes time but also finding a sense of meaning and purpose.
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Transitioning into retirement is like flipping a switch mentally, emotionally and financially.
There are many considerations to make before retiring. Near-retirees must consider where theyll live, what theyll do, how much of their nest egg theyll spend each year and countless others. And for some soon-to-be retirees, that transition isnt easy, especially if theyre worried about losing a piece of their identity or theyre afraid theyll run out of money in retirement.
Everyone has a different path to retirement, but there are some ways anyone regardless how they approached or entered retirement can make the most of this next phase of their lives, said Barbara ONeill, chief executive officer and founder of Money Talk, a financial education and consulting business. ONeill is also the author of a new book Flipping the Switch: Your Guide to Happiness and Financial Security in Later Life, which is being released on Aug. 3.
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ONeill spoke with MarketWatch about how to flip the switch and why that may be challenging for Americans, especially in the midst of a pandemic.
The path and transition to retirement is different for everyone, but are there any commonalities among people retiring?
MW: What are some of the challenges that come from flipping the switch?
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Chapter : Psychological Transition To Retirement
Many people when adjusting to retirement choose to stay working or take on hobbies and activities. But sometimes, this leads to a greater sense of overwhelming emotion. So instead, look at what about your work-life gave you fulfilment. How can you gently transition those things into your new life?
Do some deep self-questioning, and consider every aspect of your life. For example, what level of social interaction is right for you? Ask yourself whether a sense of contribution and engagement is needed in your day-to-day? How can you manage your time to create joy?
Are you a problem solver or a creative? How can you bring these into a new routine? How can you communicate your needs with your family? Can they help you discover how to emotionally prepare for retirement? This is a great way to open up conversations with our loved ones on both an emotional and practical side.
Just because you are retiring doesnt mean you dont matter anymore. On the contrary, you have a lifetime of wisdom under your belt that you can share with others. This doesnt mean you need to become a public speaker , but you can share your advice with loved ones and the people you meet.
Social Effects Of Retirement Expect Dramatic Change
Socialising in will change dramatically after you retire. Your retirement lifestyle of today differs greatly from what it was in our Parents Day. For example,
- we are much healthier,
- wanting to have a range of travel experiences,
- embarking on new life adventures,
- wanting to start up small businesses,
- explore new hobbies, or
- spend more time with family or friends.
Our view of what we can do in retirement and as we are ageing has changed from previous generations. Without planning for the non-financial or the mental and emotional side of your retirement, you only wish for a happy retirement. That is like hoping you will win the lottery but not buy a ticket!What many retirees fail to think about is once you stop working your daily social interactions will probably cease to exist. Your social circle of friends will also dramatically shrink.
How you can best socialise in your retirement
- discovering new groups or various clubs that you can join,
- sign up for new activities/classes or hobbies that you are interested in,
- set prearranged coffee dates with neighbours or friends,
- consider volunteering for a cause that interests you in your local community.
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