Everyone has their own unique retirement journey. Here is mine. You may get some ideas for your own.
Work journey
I grew up in the Sputnick era and majored in Chemistry in college. My first professional job was in graduate school where I was an assistant in a chemistry lab and did research. Over nearly 25 years I had many achievements, including a PhD degree from UC Berkeley under the supervision of a Nobel laureate, a fellowship in the Medical School at UW Madison, a biochemistry teaching job at UMass at Amherst, many federal research grants and publications, and working in the computer area for a number of years.
Retirement Chapter 1
Investing was my hobby from the age of 8 – it was a father-son shared activity. In my early 40’s I turned my hobby and passion into my profession. This was very exciting for me, the fulfillment of a dream that I at first did not realize was a possibility. I had flexibility with my time and was able to take many vacations each year. I felt almost like I was retired!
This new career was easy and enjoyable, although there was much to learn. My job contained many firsts – learning about insurance and planning in addition to investments, hiring my first employee who eventually became my business partner, meeting and helping many interesting people, and running my own business. My first ten years were at The Equitable (now called AXA).
Retirement Chapter 2
After ten years, I launched an independent financial planning practice. Four years later, while on vacation, I had a heart attack that nearly killed me. I reflected on why I had not died. I realized that my financial planning work was much more than a job. It was my calling – to use my God-given talents to improve the lives of others.
Over the next 14 years I built up my business. I was working but I also was spending my time on my hobby—so I might have been retired.
Retirement Chapter 3
At age 68 I decided to retire (again?), at least partly, by cutting back on my work load. Another advisor offered to take over most of my business and provide service to the rest of my clients. I retained only a fifth of my previous clients, and the other advisor provided substantial support to me as I worked with him.
Surely I was retired then. Or partly retired. In celebration of my newly available non-work time I embarked on a few conventional retirement activities:
- I joined a bike club for seniors—we do 20 bike-mile trips on Wednesday mornings.
- I wrote a book— Serious About Retiring.
- I started taking cello lessons.
Retirement Chapter 4
At the end of this year I will be retiring fully from my financial planning practice. I will continue my activities of biking, writing, and playing cello. But I also have other activities in mind.
My wife Lucy Rose is a gerontologist, artist and writer. Her fifth book on aging, Grow Old With Me, comes out in September. We plan to speak together on aging topics starting in October of this year and in coming years.
I am also gearing up to do retirement coaching for people who need help transitioning to retirement. This will be a way to continue on my calling of helping people.
Some observations on retiring
I see retirement as another life stage that offers an opportunity to increase the quality of your life. A better life means growing as a person, making more of a contribution to people around you and having an impact.
Friends ask me, Are you really retired or still working? I don’t care what you call it—I’m having an exciting and fulfilling life.
I wish the same for you. I would love to get your comments and answer your questions about your own journey. Contact me at Mark@SeriousAboutRetiring.com