Wait! Before You Even Consider To Retire Early, Get Ready Mentally First!
Wait! Before You Even Consider To Retire Early, Get Ready Mentally First!
The fact that you want to retire early, you probably have amassed a pile of money from a high-paying job or from a lucrative business (both also garnish you with the trappings of power and status). And of course from your smart investments as well.
Before you plunge into the next phase of your life, thinking that you would be heading for happy and carefree days, think carefully and plan out real serious first.
This is because you aren’t just retiring from a full-time job per se, you’re also giving up a major productive part of your life that’s been the trademark that identifies your “self worth”. You leave it behind when you retire early (or not eraly…).
Be prepared for some emotional assault of sorts. The mental trauma and feelings of loss would surface to attack you, whether you like it or not.
You could feel fear and anxiety creeping up pretty fast because you’re unsure of your future, wondering whether you’re making the right decision to retire early; whether you’ll be happy to settle into a life that’s entirely a new ball game altogether.
Or you couldn’t see yourself comfortably making changes to accomodate the new lifestyle.
Bad news! These could be signs that you aren’t mentally ready to retire, as yet. You’ve got more fine tunings to do….like to work through the feelings of fear, insecurity and discomfort or the dread to face the unknown changes in your life…..
But these kinds of emotions are normal. Don’t avoid them. Work through them. Get comfortable with them. Then move forward with your goal to retire early.
For men, retire early or for that matter, retirement itself, could be a stressful thing for them because they define thier life through work.
For women, retirement may not be that hard on them since besides pursuing a career, they also pour out their energies into raising children and families.
Preparation
Before you jump off the “corporate treadmill”, consult some retired friends who have retired early, for their advice and guidance on matters such as:
- What emotions they had
- How did they handle the emotions
- What did they do or not do in their first few years of retirement
- What did they wish they’d done and not done
Establish your own informal support group of retired persons and seek help and advice from the group whenever you’ve doubts or encounter problems.
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