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Thinking of Retiring.


Pebble thats Stubby

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I've been planning to retire somewhere between Xmas 2023 and summer 2024.  however my work place conditions and hours are very likely to change within the next month or two and become a lot worse.  Right now I enjoy the job and don't mind the shifts.  if this thing happens at work then I will Hate the shift pattern. As a result I'm really tempted to quit work earlier  like this year.  - I only have to give a weeks notice.   We can afford this easy.  This thread is not about finically planning for retirement, that's sorted.

I'm looking for more general thoughts on being retired and are there other things I should be thinking off.  I want to be able to quit my job quickly knowing I've thought about things fully if the work thing happens and its as bad as I think it will be.

 

during the furlough lockdown I kind of treated it as a practice retirement, and had no difficulty filling the day.  I found it harder to go to work again after.  Retiring is not doing nothing, its doing different things.  I will not have problems filling my day.

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Just now, lessthanluke said:

What are the possible downsides you see to retiring as it seems like a no brainer to me!

the idea of it is scary.  I'm 44  I'm not old.

 

I've worked for just one company since I was 16.  its such a big change.   None if that is a reason not to do it.  I just don't want to regret doing it (not that I actually think that is likely to happen)

realistically quitting today would cost us £100k in lost earnings and the expense of not having an income for 2 years.  This would mean we would probably stay in the current house until we gain inheritance from one set of parents.  Current house is very nice but not 100% the dream house. 

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26 minutes ago, BigFatCoward said:

The fact I have a countdown timer on my phone that says I have 8 years, 8 months, 5 days and 19 hours to retirement should tell you my feelings on this  

I so know exactly what you mean with this. I have known the exact time I will be ready to begin my retirement for at least a decade. I cant imagine what the mindset is like with those that are uncertain about this.

I started thinking of retirement just a few years out of college when i realized i do not like working in the summer.

Why should i work summers now after a lifetime of having student hours? June to September was for the lake and ballfield, not this toiling stuff!

4 yrs and 4 months for me.

 

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1 hour ago, Pebble thats Stubby said:

the idea of it is scary.  I'm 44  I'm not old.

I've worked for just one company since I was 16.  its such a big change.   None if that is a reason not to do it.  I just don't want to regret doing it (not that I actually think that is likely to happen)

realistically quitting today would cost us £100k in lost earnings and the expense of not having an income for 2 years.  This would mean we would probably stay in the current house until we gain inheritance from one set of parents.  Current house is very nice but not 100% the dream house. 

If you take money out of the equation, would you keep working at your current job? If you would, then don't retire. On the other hand, if you would find something else that you'd rather do then retire and do that.

Also, at 44 you can always come out of retirement if you get bored or whatever.

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2 hours ago, Pebble thats Stubby said:

I've been planning to retire somewhere between Xmas 2023 and summer 2024. 

Pebble thats Stubby — time is the ultimate factor of life; health and wealth, proximate. Adequate amounts of each satisfies most of Maslow’s Theory of Motivation, a great guide to use as a checklist to determine how to best approach life. It sounds like you have the will and capacity to retire without regret.

Two things to consider as you prepare to transition: your sense of identity and purpose in life.

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1 hour ago, Pebble thats Stubby said:

the idea of it is scary.  I'm 44  I'm not old.

 

I've worked for just one company since I was 16.  its such a big change.   None if that is a reason not to do it.  I just don't want to regret doing it (not that I actually think that is likely to happen)

realistically quitting today would cost us £100k in lost earnings and the expense of not having an income for 2 years.  This would mean we would probably stay in the current house until we gain inheritance from one set of parents.  Current house is very nice but not 100% the dream house. 

I don't know what it's like in the UK of course, but as someone else has already said, at your age if you decide you don't like retirement you could always go back into the workforce, at least if you were in the USA. You say you don't think you'd have any trouble filling your day, but if you did, not only could you go back to work, but you might be able to find volunteer activities outside the home that would fit your values and interests. What charities might you be interested in helping out with your time and talents?

Where you live, how likely are you to actually find your "100% dream house" even if you could afford it? And what would make it a "dream house"? Research tends to show that people are happier if they focus on experiences and activities rather than owning possessions -- so if the "dream" is primarily in terms of owning a more attractive or impressive house, it really might not live up to your expectations in the long run. If the "dream" is about things you could do or experience in a house with different floor plan or amenities, maybe it is worth considering. That's something you'll have to figure out for yourself. 

I am quite happy that I retired in September 2020 myself. Of course I was 69 then so it was more "normal" for my age. 

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9 minutes ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

I won’t retire until I’m 70, so….23 years. Mostly because I don’t want to retire. If I were to do so, I’d honestly probably turn to drink. I find my meaning in work. But everyone is different.

You sound like my uncle - most people spend more time with their hobbies after they retire, my cousin has said of him that work is his hobby.

On the original post, if you enjoy the job and it is mainly this new proposed shift pattern that you don’t like, how easy would it be to transfer to a similar role with a better shift pattern?

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If you are going to retire, make sure you have a plan on how to keep active and give yourself something to do. If your plan is to do nothing and sit and watch tv for the rest of your life you will be dead in 2 years. Once people lose the need to get out of bed, they just deteriorate, I've seen it too many times.

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4 minutes ago, Chataya de Fleury said:

I won’t retire until I’m 70, so….23 years. Mostly because I don’t want to retire. If I were to do so, I’d honestly probably turn to drink. I find my meaning in work. But everyone is different.

6 minutes ago, Heartofice said:

If you are going to retire, make sure you have a plan on how to keep active and give yourself something to do. If your plan is to do nothing and sit and watch tv for the rest of your life you will be dead in 2 years. Once people lose the need to get out of bed, they just deteriorate, I've seen it too many times.

Chataya de Fleury et al. -- interesting and helpful; and should be thoughtfully considered before transitioning. Colleagues who stayed on were usually high-caliber professionals. Some people really do fade away prematurely without an occupation and all its associated aspects (e.g., intellectual and social stimulation, wealth and status, identity and purpose); all legitimate reasons, human. Actually, I suppose I maintained those needs and added others, converted into something more personalized.

On alcohol, I was the opposite. I went went from drinking 6-8 beers every day after work (or 10-12 on weekends), to stopping almost entirely after retiring. I switched to MMJ to give my liver a break. Before retirement, I was out of control; now, I'm out of control.

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1 hour ago, Ormond said:

Research tends to show that people are happier if they focus on experiences and activities rather than owning possessions -- so if the "dream" is primarily in terms of owning a more attractive or impressive house, it really might not live up to your expectations in the long run.

Ormond -- I'd equate experience / activity with possessions, all essential and worthwhile endeavours, though I understand your core point and the research that supports it (i.e., that possessions be valued appropriately; and consumerism avoided). Possessions are usually a tradeoff between time and money, but property secures physiological, safety, esteem, and aesthetic needs.

Be [identities]. Retiree, mother, autonomous, et al.

Own [posessions]. Land and shelter, autos, tools, mementos, art, books, et al.

Do [experiences and activities]. Teach, invest, travel, study, socialize, play, et al.

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7 hours ago, Ormond said:

I don't know what it's like in the UK of course, but as someone else has already said, at your age if you decide you don't like retirement you could always go back into the workforce, at least if you were in the USA. You say you don't think you'd have any trouble filling your day, but if you did, not only could you go back to work, but you might be able to find volunteer activities outside the home that would fit your values and interests. What charities might you be interested in helping out with your time and talents?

Where you live, how likely are you to actually find your "100% dream house" even if you could afford it? And what would make it a "dream house"? Research tends to show that people are happier if they focus on experiences and activities rather than owning possessions -- so if the "dream" is primarily in terms of owning a more attractive or impressive house, it really might not live up to your expectations in the long run. If the "dream" is about things you could do or experience in a house with different floor plan or amenities, maybe it is worth considering. That's something you'll have to figure out for yourself. 

I am quite happy that I retired in September 2020 myself. Of course I was 69 then so it was more "normal" for my age. 

yeah I could retire and if it ends up I'm not ready or something happens I could get another job.  That in itself is kind of scary as I have worked for the same company since I was 16.  I mean I'd have to write a CV and all kind of weird stuff.  

What I'm more likely to do is volunteering, that is actually part of the plan after spending some time just enjoying myself and traveling a bit.  right now I have very restrictive holidays and basically get told when I have to take them.  I guess I kinda want that Gap year kids do before going to uni.... before settling in to a routine and making a regular time commitment a couple of days a week with some charity.  

 

As to the dream home,  I am very close to it now.  what we really want is a bigger garden, that is not North facing or mostly in shade with massive trees.  I like gardening, but the current one I struggle to grow the veg I want due to lack of light.  Hubby wants a small workshop so he doesn't have to pull the cars out of the garage every time he wants to tinker.   A slightly bigger kitchen would be nice and maybe an extra 2 foot on the dinning room as its a bit cramped when everyone is over.  A downstairs bedroom with shower room near it would be ideal or at the very least the ability to put a stair lift in at some point without it blocking access to other rooms.  Its very likely that at some point we will have one of our parents living with us.  Our current home is close to what we want but not quiet there.  a new home when we no longer need to live close to work is much more affordable.  I have seen several on right move.

7 hours ago, Maltaran said:

You sound like my uncle - most people spend more time with their hobbies after they retire, my cousin has said of him that work is his hobby.

On the original post, if you enjoy the job and it is mainly this new proposed shift pattern that you don’t like, how easy would it be to transfer to a similar role with a better shift pattern?

In a way much easier before Brexit as I'd have a right to work in a different country.  My role does not exist in the UK outside of my current location in my company.  there is similar in Halewood (who have stolen some of our machines) but that is being manned by agency staff not hourly paid.  I'd also still need to move.  To take a different IT job at say Dunton  I'd need a degree.  the three now Two of us are the the only hourly paid IT within my company in Europe,  Every other plant decided my exact job was salaried or agency.

6 hours ago, Heartofice said:

If you are going to retire, make sure you have a plan on how to keep active and give yourself something to do. If your plan is to do nothing and sit and watch tv for the rest of your life you will be dead in 2 years. Once people lose the need to get out of bed, they just deteriorate, I've seen it too many times.

Absolutely.  You need some kind of structure and routine and a reason for doing things.  There are so many crafting classes and stuff I have wanted to do over the years but could not as I could only attend one week in every 3.  Shift work really does mess with life not at work time.  I'd also have much more time to devote to the garden  and that is before even looking to regular outside volunteering.  + I also plan on getting back involved with Con running - did that a bit with TitanCon but being retired I'd actually have the time I can devote.   

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As another recent retiree, it seems pretty good so far, Advice:

There is lots of volunteer work out there, even if much of it needs some specialist skills. I recommend easing in gently and not taking on too many things too quickly.

If your garden is not big enough for veg, try looking into getting an allotment. Though they are also a lot of work, perhaps consider getting a half or quarter sized one.

Do make sure you get your wills, lasting powers of attorney, living wills, etc sorted out now. Don't wait until someone gets ill. (Though perhaps at only 44 you can wait a bit longer!)

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Nowhere near retiring, but am in Florence to see the Tuscan villa we bought for the first time, which feels like a definite step in that direction. Work to live if you need to or absolutely love what you do, otherwise get out as soon as you viably can. 

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On 9/7/2022 at 5:53 AM, Pebble thats Stubby said:

the idea of it is scary.  I'm 44  I'm not old

I retired at 45. I'm an artist though, so having copious free time to write, draw, or do whathefuckever I feel like is ginchy. 

The not-quite-so-littles-anymore keep me relatively busy regardless.

Congratulations to you, Peb. I've no doubt you'll be fine. :)

 

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