Retirement: the case against

The lure of retirement can be strong – but is it really the paradise that many people think it is? When you give it some thought, you may realise that retirement does not stack up to your own expectations of your golden years.

You will miss the income

You may not miss it at first but the ability to no longer grow your income can be tough as you watch your bank account will grows stagnant.

After a few years of being retired, it may become evident that your desire to travel the world is not as easy to make a reality as you thought. You may find yourself looking for work to enhance your shrinking retirement income.

You will get bored

There are many stories of entrepreneurs who sell their businesses, retire and then start looking for a business for sale a few years later, just to renew their sense of purpose. Common problems among retirees include:

• Losing that structure that you had to your weekdays
• Losing the sense of accomplishment that work offered you
• Losing your identity as a person who helped others through your company

It’s not uncommon for business owners to start to look to buy a new business mere into your retirement – there’s a void in their life that still needs filing. One strong alternative (if possible) is giving yourself a little extra free time every week, transitioning into retirement slowly, rather than suddenly switching to an unfamiliar lifestyle.

The chances in your life can be too dramatic

Retirement can change more than you may initially realise: the way you pay your taxes; the way you handle health insurance; the way you schedule your time. For many people, the changes that occur after retirement can be too drastic.

One way to maintain the life that you are comfortable with is to simply not retire. While it may seem like your work is a personal burden, you never realise how integral it is in helping you to keep your personal affairs in line until you retire. If you are the kind of person who does not adapt well to change, you may find yourself happier by keeping busier.

The global economy isn’t stable enough

As 1999 turned into 2000, people all over the world lost their retirement funds as the global stock markets collapsed. Since that time, the world’s economic atmosphere has been unstable and unpredictable. The money that you have been saving for your retirement may not be there when the time comes. For those relying on their own business, the value could plummet and leave you financially short.

Instead of taking any chances, I believe the best approach (especially for business owners) is not retire at all. You can hire other people to allow you to take a reduced role in your company, but the instability of the global economic markets makes retirement a very unpredictable situation for many years to come.

People spend their whole lives under the impression that retirement is the reward for hard work. But when it finally comes around, the reality of the situation leaves many people wondering. Instead of jumping into a retirement situation that you will regret, it’s worth putting extra thought into how you want to spend your golden years. You may come to the conclusion that retirement is not the best choice for you and your family.

Do you agree with this opinion? Is adapting to retirement harder than it looks? And is not retiring the best solution?