Retirement Advice For Everyone

[rrich]

Nothing financial.

When I was about 55 I woke up one morning in the shower with a terrifying thought. I realized that I was going to retire in about 10 years. Ten short years!

The terrifying thought was, "What am I going to do?" How am I going to keep myself busy?

Obviously I'm here because I'm a woodworker and have been for most of my life.

Next May 5, I'll have been retired for 14 years.

The advice other than have something to do is make sure that you have a secured health care. Everything else during retirement can be arranged or secured. You have to keep busy and you need health care.

[Ari2]

What were you doing...sleeping in the shower...

[Big Shed]

Rich, here in Oz we are fortunate to have a nationally funded Medicare scheme where everyone pays a levy to fund it.

Under this Medicare scheme every citizen is entitled to health care in a public hospital.

Some people pay for private health insurance to get treatment in a private hospital, usually this includes other "extras" such as dental, optical, physio etc.

Prescriptions are also subsidised pensioners pay $6.10 per prescription, others generally pay $20-$35.

I have been retired for 15 years now and it is great to have an interest such as woodworking etc.

We also travel a fair bit with our 5th wheeler and Holden (Chevrolet) Colorado ute (truck to you).

Life's good

[BobL]

Nothing financial.
When I was about 55 I woke up one morning in the shower with a terrifying thought. I realized that I was going to retire in about 10 years. Ten short years! .

When I was 55 the last thing I had on my mind was retirement, but two years later I discovered I could retire early so 12 months later I jumped.
At no stage did I ever worry what I was going to do as I had enough projects and ideas inside my head to last 10 lifetimes. During the last year of full time employment I went to several retirement seminars including one on "how to occupy your time in retirement" which was a complete waste of time for me. I wanted the seminar that tackled, "how can you fit 10 life times worth of projects into one".
I do realize that not everyone is that fortunate

[Twisted Tenon]

I'm due to retire in the middle of next year and have some trepidation over this. And like Rich am wondering what the heck i'll be doing too. My wife intends to work for another 3 years. I was chatting to a couple of retired gents last Saturday morning and they told me about "The List". This is the mental list of jobs that the partner has in mind for you. There is no use in hurrying through this list because it has no end....

TT

[P.W.H.]

I've been earning a crust for nearly 30 years by running my beef farm - quite a change from my 'real' profession.
I had to retire at 58 because my knees just weren't up to the job any more.

Plan for retirement? Ha. I do woodwork, I repair and build computers for people, I take photos and first and
not least I love spending a lot of time in the kitchen. No danger of boredom.

Like Big Shed said .. here in New Zealand we also have publically funded health systems. Seriously, I think the US were
just about the last country in the 1st world who did not provide that to their citizenry. Don't have to worry about that.
Don't have to worry about money: once I sell the farm we'll be set up for the rest of our lives.

But, at only 61 I am currently trying to figure out what to do for my next career! I am certainly not ready to hand in my spoon.
First things first, sell up, build a house as well as a huge his-and-hers workshop on the 12 acre plot we have already bought for
our next home, and then see what we can do in the new social environment (place called Whangarei). Hope to be able to keep
on going for another 20-30 years before we need to hire someone to look after us.

[Chesand]

I retired completely 3 years ago after progressively reducing my hours over the previous 15 years. There is a point where you earn less but pay less tax so you still have the same money to live on.
When I first started working reduced hours, I used to set myself a task from "the list" to do on particular days otherwise I found that I wasted time. After a while, I did not even bother with that.
The secret is to have something to occupy the mind and well as the body. As well as woodworking, I have a couple of other interests and for 10 years I was a director of the local Community Bank.
I often wonder how I had time to go to work but life is great

[AlexS]

I'd always planned to retire at about 57, and learn how to do my hobby properly. About two years before this, I was in a meeting listening to my boss raving on and decided that I didn't want to sit through the same merde, so I walked out and immediately enrolled in Sturt for the following year. Took the year off using a mix of leave on half pay, then returned for my last year at work, while I set up my workshop.
On my last day at work, a client that I'd been able to help said that he'd see me on Monday for more help. When I explained that I wouldn't be in on Monday, I was offered a short term contract in a completely different industry, which I found very interesting.
Once I got stuck into the woodwork, I found I was working longer ours than I had been at work, and enjoying it. I've had a couple of short contracts with my old employer and others, but mainly, I've kept flat out with woodwork for 11 years, and have no plans to stop anytime soon. Haven't had a day's illness since I stopped work, (hope I'm not tempting fate there) but do find more visits to the doctor for things like skin cancers, crook knees etc.
Dunno what I'd do if I had any spare time.

[Chris Parks]

It is a wonder where the time goes when you are retired. I have just recently invented something new, a world first for karting which is a very niche sport so not a huge production run at any time. What with trying to find somebody to model it in Solidworks, get some prototypes made, then try and figure out how to get it into production I might get it all done before I die.

[rwbuild]

Retire, never, idle hands and minds are the the tools of fools.

One of my Grandmothers once said "I will wear out, not rust out", she was active till 97, went to Heaven at 99.

Currently building our retirement home, plan to travel more, keep up with the Grandchildren, still involved with overseas humanitarian aid, still do work for old clients and try to keep my better half happy.

Retire is when you replace the worn out ones on the car....

[snowyskiesau]

Time and money are the main problems in retirement - too much of one and not enough of the other.

[crowie]

Retirement is was challenge me [medically way too early or young],
BUT, volunteer work at the local neighbourhood centre doing home visits for the elderly [you get so much more than you give],
plus volunteer work at the local community club [the kids are so worth it],
helps keep me busy, along with twice a week visits to the hydrotherapy pool & gym to keep everything moving has definitely helped,
along with a growing passion for wooden toys.
Keeping my heart, my hands, my body and my mind active have been & continue to be a key for me...
It's about having a positive attitude and looking out to help others, as and when you can, keeping the focus off me...
Life is good and I want to enjoy each new day....

[artme]

I was medically retired about three years ahead of the time I had intended to retire.

A number of health related problems have been an irritation since then but my mental
health has probably never been better. I think my cardiologist was right when he decided
I would be dead in three years if he hadn't written the report that led to my retirement.
I am now convinced that mental health is the number one health priority for all of us.

Ana and I travel and I keep busy in the garden and pursuing my woodwork hobby.

I have also spent quite a bit of time over the last 3 years doing renovations and
improvements to the house. Currently I am building a rough bench/storage unit for
the shed and will then start on a storage unit for inside the house. The finance minister
has few other projects lined up for me inside the house!! I also need to lay some
pavers!!

My biggest problem?? Not enough time!!!

[issatree]

Hi to all you Retirees,
Can't spell for starters.
I have been Retired 25 yrs. this year. I Retired at 53, with bad Migraines.
Worst part was, I received a lump sum, & had no Idea what to do with it. So I just turned it over in a Bank @ 2½ %. Stupid, Stupid.
Went to a couple of Advisers, who really were going to rip us off.
Not sure what they do these days, but no lump sums any more.
Well, we are still here, & we live on the thrifty line, but still do what we like to do. We are not Holidayers, so that saves a few $$$.
The People I Retired with all went a different way & did very well with their Investments.
To this day I wished I had had the fortitude to have followed.
We're happy & both quite busy, & I think that is the Secret.
I will receive the OBE in 2016, & of course you all know what that is,
Over Bloody Eighty, & still doing a lot of Turning, mainly for others.
I'm not sorry I Retired early, & I'm glad I'm not there now.
I convinced 2 Chaps to leave it with them as they were being pushed from pillar to post in their jobs, & they did, realizing they too were only a Number, not a person. They too are very happy.
Enough said.

[crowie]

I will receive the OBE in 2016,
Over Bloody Eighty,

So we'll see your photo on this website in another year or so???

OBE - Over Bloomin Eighty