Do you ever think about your retirement, how it will be, what you will do, how you will pass the hours of the day? Forget the money side for a moment – that’s part of a different dream (or nightmare). After a certain age, we all begin to take a look into our futures, wondering how life will be.
First of all life is totally unpredictable. No one knows what the next day will bring. Ask any Syrian and they will tell you how all their dreams slid out from under their feet overnight. But revolutions aside, you will need something to keep you occupied after you have stopped working. What will your days look like between sleeping and eating? What happens when you decide to give up golf or get tired of shopping or your eyes give you trouble and you can’t read any longer?
I live in a retirement home so I see what retirees do. Some sit around in little knots for hours at a time, drinking coffee and either gossiping or trying to solve the problems of the world. Others play bridge or other card games at every opportunity. But these are time passing activities. I see a few cars driving out in the morning and returning in the evening, so these are people who are either going to work or maybe to baby-sit for the day.
There is shopping, of course, and I am surprised at how much time it takes. It’s the whole deal, the parking, the shopping, the standing in line to check out, getting the stuff into the car and then up to one’s apartment. But shopping doesn’t count as a retirement activity.
One needs a retirement plan, a reason to get up in the morning. That’s what you should start thinking about now.