Why Do You Want to Retire?
Posted by John Draper | Filed under Retirement Planning
I can’t believe all the people I meet who are looking forward to retirement. And then there are all the people who are dreading it because they believe they’ll be destitute. You’re going to stop doing purposeful work, stop being with your friends, stop earning because… why?
I’ve always believed retirement is a really, really bad idea. I have no intention of ever retiring. There are times I work more than other times (during which I save up money so when I’m not as gainfully employed I have a stash of cash.) But I’m going to die in my boots. The idea of waiting for my Friday Hair Appointment while Waiting For The Kids To Call is anathema to me.
Statistics show that when people retire, they lose their social skills, they get poor and they die. Sometimes they die within weeks of their retirement. No, they weren’t sick. They just up and kick the bucket because, well, as Albert Einstein says, “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving.”
As for early retirement… Freedom Fifty-odd… bah! In one study, researchers found that settling into your Golden Years at age 55 doubled the risk for death before reaching age 65, compared with those who worked past age 60.
I’ve been a proponent of Restyling, as opposed to Retiring. While you may not want to do the job you’re doing right now, you can restyle to do another job, have another career, find another way to make a meaningful contribution while you make some money. Maybe not as much as before. Maybe more.
Perhaps the reason people are so hell-fired about retirement is The Grass is Greener Syndrome. Kind of like, “my life sucks and what you do looks better.” But you know what? The grass isn’t greener, and if your life sucks, why in heaven’s name would you wait until you were 55, 60 or 65 to fix it?
For many people work isn’t separate from life — it’s a part of it. While it may not be fun for some, for others it’s a passion. Either way, it’s a part of our lives, good or bad. The trick is if you’re in the ‘bad’ category, you need to start looking now at what you can do differently, as opposed to just sucking it up until you can retire.
People are always talking about striving for work-life balance. When you’re doing something you really love, you don’t need to cut back so you can up your Couch-Potatoing. Instead of tossing work out the window completely, maybe the trick is to find something you love, get really good at it, and then restyle your life so that you can do more of it, and make some money too. People who are passionate about personal fitness become fitness instructors or personal trainers. What, you don’t think you need to stay flexile when you’re old? People who are passionate about gardeners learn to landscape. All that life experience comes handy, doesn’t it? People who are passionate about design, cooking, photography, mechanics, animals… well, you get my drift.
Maybe it’s time to take a Big Picture look at your life — how are you spending your time right now? This is one of the exercises I used in my Retirement Answer Book (no longer in publication). I asked people to create 24 blocks for a day, over 7 days (so you’ll end up with 168 blocks), and colour in the squares with different colours that represented how many hours they worked, played, did personal hygiene stuff, took care of their families, and whatever else they did in their lives.
Of those things, what do you enjoy doing? What do you want to carry with you through the rest of your Whole Life? What do you want to eliminate? How are you going to do that?
Having the life you want should not be a case of holding your breath until you can retire. You should be working hard right now to create the life you want, while you’re aware of the restyling you may have to do as you slow down.
The home inspector I just worked with is in his 70’s. He loves his job. He’s the best at in. AND he works with his wife, who is also a home inspector. They tool around together, having fun, helping people like me, and earning $400 a pop to boot. Why would he ever retire?
November 21, 2008 at 10:25 am
Excellent post Gail.
I have always looked forward to ‘retiring’ at 55, mainly due to health reasons. However, although I’ve never thought of it in those terms, my wish is to ‘restyle’ my life.
I might work piecemeal, but on my terms, and if I’m really lucky (win the lottery, markets turnaround), do the Santa’s Workshop kind of thing and build and donate wooden toys for Christmas.
November 21, 2008 at 10:34 am
Murray, I love your Santa’s Workshop idea and I hope you pursue it as a hobby regardles if you win the lottery!
The discussion of reitrement makes me want to bring up a related question. Yesterday I read an article in Money Sense (published in Feb.2008) that said that Canadians actually need to save far less than everyone thinks for retirement. It said that we don’t need to save 70% of our income as we’re often told, because we are actually living off of about 40% of our incomes already, after deducting taxes, mortgage costs, the cost of raising a family, and of course, our savings for retirement. When we retire, we don’t need to spend on those costs and even if we upgrade our lifestyles slightly, we still won’t need 70% of our gross incomes.
Gail, do you agree with this? And do the other readers here agree?
November 21, 2008 at 11:04 am
I love my job. I can see being here for many, many years. But not forever. When I’m done my work in this industry, that will be it. I have no desire to be 70 and still in the office. Hubs and I are looking forward to being able to travel on our schedule, volunteer, go out more, etc. We will not have an inexpensive retirement, but we know that and are planning for it.
Over the past 5 years I have watched my dad slowly pulling himself away from his line of work, gradually coming into the office less and less. This is a man who LOVED his job. One of the few I know who truly did. But, as he aged, things that used to get him excited and passionate started to tire him out and frustrate him. That was his sign.
Now, he goes in to the office less than one day a week as they work through the final phases of selling the company. He & Mum have a timeshare near San Diego that they use for a month every year and this year they are heading to New Zealand for 6 weeks. They volunteer, sit on boards of non-profit groups and spend time with their grandchildren. They golf and garden in the summer and travel in the winter.
They worked hard for 40+ years. They loved their work. But, (IMO) they truly earned their retirement. Their investments are in relatively good shape and they have a lot of assets.
November 21, 2008 at 11:11 am
Saver Queen – I agree with the article but I wonder what Gail will say.
We live on relatively little now and that is with a mortgage to pay and 4 kids. Looking at what OAP and CPP will pay us (if it is still there) it is 1/2 of our net pay now! We are in a house that will be paid off when we are in our 40s and there is no need to upsize or downsize. We save the recommended 10% of our income in RRSPs but I am unsure if we need/want more.
I have recently “retired” from my last career and am trying to decide on how to “restyle” myself. We got dumped on with snow last night and after shovelling our laneway and our neighbours I know it won’t be snow removal! But I will need to make sure I have enough to pay someone to do that when I am old!
November 21, 2008 at 11:16 am
Here, Here Gail… “Freedom 55″ is a pipe dream for most and keeping busy will keep you alive. This is a short ride and sitting on the couch with an “I’m Retired, Don’t Bug Me” t-shirt on is not for me.
November 21, 2008 at 11:16 am
We’ll pay off our house when we sell it – not likely before. We bought it as an investment as we’re handy folk, like to renovate our own homes while living in it – making it a shade more beautiful & more energy efficient. We are ‘growing’ our next careers while we both work fulltime jobs. Since we’re both educators we have done the 4 over 5 thing = our employer withholds 20% pay for 4 years and then we get the 5th yr off with our steady stream of 80% income (+ benefits + job security). During our year off every 5th yr we whittle away at growing our next careers (artists/writers) while moving our homemade home renovations forward.
I suppose the point I’m trying to make is make the shift gradually to retirement – follow your interests and passions while seeding your next chapter in life.
November 21, 2008 at 11:28 am
@POST: I love my job, but I still plan to retire. As a teacher, I see that it’s something that becomes too stressful for some teachers near the end of their career. Conditions, curriculum and students change over the years and it can be too much to keep up with for some. To teach well requires a lot of energy and while some people are able to keep up into their 60s, others are exhusted by 50. I don’t see retirement as a stopping of activity. It’s a chance to fill my time will other experiences. I don’t want to begrudgingly keep teaching past my prime.
I agree with the restyling, but it’s not everyone who will be able to find a new job late in life. If I can make money in retirement working at new projetcts, that’s great. But I want to be free to choose an unpaid activity, such as volunteering abroad.
What about so many people who work physically demanding jobs and who have to retire due to the physical strain? Arthritis can set it, and old injuries can flare up. Any other physical job becomes impossible. Is this person supposed to learn how to do an office job just to be “productive”? Would anyone hire him anyway?
I agree with the spirit of your post. Not everyone needs to retire. But understand that some people do and that it doesn’t necessarily mean they wasted their working life hating their job.
@Saver Queen: I think that advice is ridiculous. With all the people who aren’t saving enough (or at all!) for retirement, why would anyone want to encourage people to save less? With life expectancy nowadays you never know exactly how much money you’ll need for retirement. I for one, will want to err on the high side. Sure, there are things I won’t need to pay out on, but I’ll have more free time to spend my money… I want to be able to afford to spend my time as I wish.
November 21, 2008 at 11:42 am
Saver Queen:
Do a budget!
Will you be mortgage free, really?
Does the house need some fixing up?
What will you do during retirement and how much will it cost?
What about medical and dental costs (got used to employer-paid benefits)?
How long will you need and how much will a decent retirement home cost you?
Some people increase their expenses when they retire! Travelling … Really good retirement homes … Second property where the snow does not fall …
November 21, 2008 at 11:46 am
I never thought of retirement like that before… the blog and comments are very encouraging!
I work in environment where everyone gets their full pension upon hitting their rule of 80 (years worked & age = 80, with penalty for retiring before hitting 55), but most people stay beyond that, which is good because their expertise gets passed on a little longer to the young employees like me. That being said… some of them (nobody in MY office, as I look around suspiciously) get a little grouchy and don’t exactly keep up technologically, which sometimes makes it hard to work with them.
November 21, 2008 at 11:48 am
Gail, where were you when I was young and stupid?
I’m forty and I have essentially retired already – which has left me with a good deal of time on my hands. I’ve spent most of my life with existential angst and believed that if only I could break free of the 9-5 prison I would be happy. But wherever you go, there you are.
So I’ve been spending time thinking about my priorities. Sure I’ve been able to get out of the 9-5 “jail”, but there are always other prisons we choose to live in. I lived on so little for so long that it hurts me to spend money.
Don’t get the wrong idea – I wake up without an alarm clock, garden, cook, have plenty of time with my husband (a good thing), read books, take long walks with the dog, and have enough money to do it. But…
All the cliches were true. If I were to start over, I wouldn’t Save like Scrooge to live the Freedom 55 dream. I would live a little and focus on finding a job I loved, not ones which left me bitter and drained (okay, I was bitter when I started the jobs). But Scrooge did get a second chance, so I’m not finished yet.
November 21, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Beware of anyone who tells you 70% is a magic number without examining your retirement objectives. Remember, financial advisers make more money if they can get you to invest more. (A lot are starting to say 80% now, which is a number they pulled from the same place.)
Do your own budget based on how you intend to spend your retirement. For a lot of people 70% is too high. For example, if you plan to retire to a low cost-of-living area, (where there are no jobs, but you don’t care) there is no sense in trying to use your existing expenses as a guide.
November 21, 2008 at 12:25 pm
I quess it all depends if your work is your passion. I work because I have to, not because I love my job. I am alone all day in a small office ( I am a people person ) & often wish I had a different job. The pay is pretty good & in small town Saskatchewan, there aren’t many options. I’ve often asked myself – if money didn’t matter, what would I want to do career wise. Have my own greenhouse would be the answer, but with our long, cold winters & high heating costs-too risky.
My husband is 57 & works so hard. He dreams of retirement, but it’s because he is so tired!! He has a cleaning business & gets home late @ night, plus works on our unfinished house during the day, fixes cars & sells them etc. I joke with him that he will still be pushing that floor scrubber when he’s 90 as he can’t afford to retire!! I think what most people want is a bit of balance. I would love to cut back on work – -just work 2 or 3 days. Plus, there is volunteer work that we are involved in, that we would love to spend more time doing but can’t. As I get older,I feel time is more valuable than money, but that doesn’t pay the bills. And, how many people do we know that worked so hard to have a comfortable retirement only to die of cancer at age 55?
So, I would love to retire, but not to stay home & watch Jeoprady & the soaps all day, but to have the time & energy to enjoy the people & things that are important to me… And maybe take the odd trip here & there.
PS. my dad, who has been retired since age 55 ( forced) is 83 now & has never really travelled. He is getting his passport for the first time & going to Cuba with his grandkids. How cool is that?!
November 21, 2008 at 12:26 pm
Saver Queen et al:
What is this 70% of income statement that you were talking about? I have never heard of that before. And where does that 70% come from? I would hope you don’t mean save 70% of your annual income for retirement…that goes WAY above Gail’s (and others) 10%!! Heehee
November 21, 2008 at 12:47 pm
Wow! What a great post. I love the part about waiting for your Friday hair appointment and waiting for the kids to call. I have seen SO many retired folks fall into this category. And I have been living for retirement myself…and I am only 35. This post was a great wake up call.
I am going to re think my plans for the future. Thanks to your website and show I now have our family on a budget. We are no longer using credit to pay for things and we are agressively paying down our debt. Our mortage will be paid off by the time we are 55 but now I am re-thinking whether stopping work is the best idea. I think my hubby would like to work at a golf course, for example!
You raise an excellent point about how work can also be a social event and that the grass may not be so much greener on the other side!
November 21, 2008 at 1:08 pm
These are interesting thoughts. My grandfather quit work and ‘retired’ to his couch, watching TV, for the last years of his life. Not pretty. By contrast my mother’s husband has retired from paid employment to an active volunteer schedule. If your financial needs have been met is there any reason you need to restyle to *paid* employment? I can see the health benefits of staying active and having purpose. A book that I loved was “Your Money or Your Life”, which extolled the virtues of volunteering.
Of course, if you really can’t afford to retire, that’s a different story.
November 21, 2008 at 1:56 pm
Gail, with regard to Saver Queen’s question, I wonder if you’ve read the book “Why Swim With The Sharks: An unconventional guide to early retirement”. It is written by Canadians Salomaa and Dembicki and is along the same vein as the article SQ mentions above.
I found it to be a very interesting read and completed the worksheets within it, etc., to calcluate what I should need at retirement.
If you have read it, I’m most definitely interested in your thoughts on it.
Thanks.
November 21, 2008 at 2:06 pm
I guess it depends on your personality and how tightly it’s tied to working for a living. My mother-in-law retired a few years ago, around 60. She’s thoroughly enjoying the ‘puttering’ lifestyle, probably because she despised her job so much though. Her husband was let go at 68 and has since had terrible health issues. I think being let go was a shock, because he’s worked since he was 15 and has never ever claimed EI or anything like that. He enjoyed the clients and the work, just not the boss. But now their Florida winter dreams may be in danger because of his health.
November 21, 2008 at 2:15 pm
I like it! (Your post that is)
My Dad said he loved his work too much to consider retiring (unfortunately he passed away before he even had the option), but I agree with that idea. If you are counting the days to retirement from your 40 hours a week, then you are in the wrong job!!!
I have always thought of retirement as reaching a point in your savings of having the option to move away from the “grind”. I never envisioned it to be puttering around the house all day! So many of my parent’s generation are doing the gentle weening away from their regular jobs. Two days a week on a consultation basis for the outfits that they spent the last 20+ years at. I’m not sure my generation will have that luxury. Work funded pensions seem to be a rarity among those I know.
One popular notion is to become self-employed after they quit their regular work, I see the merits in that. Keeping active, making money, trying new things, etc….
Since I am already self employed doing work I like, I may try expanding my horizons by doing a slower version of my career… switch from the tight deadlines of contract graphic design to something like fine arts, maybe fine art photography. The idea is exciting that I may be able to earn, learn and grow as a senior!
November 21, 2008 at 2:40 pm
I like the spirit of this post.. but I do believe that everyone is entitled to follow their own dream of retirement… its a personal choice. For some maybe it’s to continue working and others maybe not… perhaps some would just use their time to volunteer or for others maybe do a lot of travelling. You have to really ask yourself how you see yourself retiring and make sure you can afford whatever path you choose…
As for me, I own my own business that I love working at and already consider myself semi-retired… I love it! I don’t see any need to stop.
November 21, 2008 at 2:47 pm
i think i fall into the trap of thinking that retirement will be the time when i can do what i really love…but i do have to keep reminding myself that for me, retirement is 25-30 years away and i still have so many working years in front of me. i need to find my passion and my love and my joy now, not later.
when i retire i look forward to volunteering with my church and other social organizations, babysitting the grandkids when they’re sick, and probably working part time in some capacity.
November 21, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Debbie reading your post about your parents was like something i would write about my parents. My Dad retired around 20 yrs ago at age 55. He has volunteered, sings in the church choir, works a few days at a travel agency and travels with my Mom. In the summer they have a sailboat that they spend alot of time on and in the winter they travel. They have taken all(11 of us) of us on 2 cruises and to Holland and St Maarten. They have definitely invested their money the right way. If we can do half as good as they have we should be okay.
November 21, 2008 at 4:09 pm
This is a nice perspective (the blog post). Whatever our “careers” may be during 30, 40, 50..doesn’t mean we have to stop earning entirely in 60’s and beyond just because we’ve worked for 30 years maybe doing the same gig. Just shift to something else. Keep earning and have fun.
Lighten up people! Gail’s not quoting an exact percentage of income to retire on or saying don’t fully retire. Of course you have your own choice.
Keep your bodies active, your minds active..and hey, why not earn some$ if you can too. Even if you don’t need it at that age, I’m sure you’ll want to spoil grandkids by then and help with their saving accounts later in life.
A part-time job is another reason to hope for tomorrow and get out of the house at that age and feel a sense of contribution and accomplishment(60 and beyone). Do you really think this post is to disgust and insult people by implying you have to make money util the day you die for financial means only??…….
November 21, 2008 at 7:32 pm
My parents retired at 60 and have invested very well. They were actually busier when they retired, curling, cottaging, volunteering lots, walking the dogs, going to bible study, exercise classes, and tons of social gatherings. They are doing what they WANT to do — staying physically and mentally active. I have invested like they have and have financially planned my retirement since age 30 (I’m now 41).
I do agree that some people retire and lay down and die. But it’s all in the attitude and planning…. I have a list of things I want to do when I retire and where I want to spend my time. I will never get bored … but that’s me. But here’s the thing — you have to have the $$$ to do what you want when you retire. If you retire and you’re just scraping to get by financially, that is not fun.
I think everyone is different — there is no right or wrong… but definitely have a plan.
November 21, 2008 at 10:23 pm
It’s been interesting to read all the ideas which have come out of this blog.
I have been thinking of retiring for so many years – but not because I don’t like my job. Rather to prepare for the inevitable time when I do leave my work.
I’ve gone to retirement workshops 5 times over the past 12 years. It’s good to hear all the details which we just don’t think about. What you need to do, when you need to apply for CPP, how you need to budget and especially how you should have a plan for your retirement so that you get the best from it.
I’ve come away from the early workshops thinking – oh, good, I know what I’ve got to do so that I’ll be ready for retirement. I need to have my house paid off or nearly paid off, then I need to have a new car paid off before retirement and I need to have my savings and RSPs built up and I shouldn’t have any debt (credit cards, LOC, etc). I might not have all of the above before I do retire but I am trying to get there.
One thing that came out of a recent retirement workshop was the fact that pension plans are based over a 70 year time frame. You work for 35 years and then hopefully, there will be sufficient money for you for the next 35 years in retirement. Interesting, especially with the markets being the way they are right now. Apparently, some pension plans are very conservative and reduce as much risk as possible while other plans are more risk tolerant. For those of us who have pension plans it might be nice to know which plan you’re in.
I’ve been able to retire for a few years now but I just haven’t hit the point yet where I feel ready to go. Although, there have been some bad days where I wished I had retired or at least never come in to work that day. Most of the time, I think that I’m still doing a great job but I also have the feeling that I’m taking the place of a younger worker because jobs of my kind aren’t easy to come by. I can always say I’m a wealth of information – which is true, because I’ve seen many administrators come and go and they needed to be told what I knew so they could make good decisions. However, there is always the fear that we will stay past our time.
Giving up your job can seem as though you are tearing your family apart. If you like your work and your co-workers, you are part of a very important family structure. To leave can be difficult for many who don’t have outside friends and activities unique to their own lives. You need a life of your own so you can make a successful transition into retirement.
So, why do people retire? Firemen and police and military all seem to retire quickly – maybe after 20 to 25 years into their career – and perhaps because aging might become a problem. Others may be able to extend the years on the job, but not all of us are in control of this timing factor.
For the independent business person, there is no true reason to retire – except for maybe health concerns. Many family businesses have three generations working together. Grandpa and grandma may take some more time off but they are there continuing to be needed and useful.
The issue of retiring is very personal as all have mentioned. We go this road alone.
Retirement is just a transition to another phase in your life – restyling yourself. What you make of yourself is up to you, but planning for this change is imperative.
November 21, 2008 at 11:29 pm
Maxine, you have the voice of wisdom. It sounds to me like you need to stay in your job, whatever it is, for a few years yet. And don’t underestimate the power of the old-timers. My favourite job was with a “boss” colleague who had been around and just knew the ropes (and also organized great department get togethers). After he left, I lost interest.
November 22, 2008 at 10:08 am
Wow! Lots of great perspective posted here.
I’m 33 so I have a long time to go before retirement. I don’t even think about it. I do plan for it though. I contribute to my RSPs and have a pension plan and stock options etc. I plan to have my home paid for and upgraded as necessary before retirement.
I love my job and what I do. I love to work. Like Gail, I find it hard to imagine not working. When the time comes to consider retirement, I likely will still work part time or do consulting or something like that.
I like the idea of being able to work what I want to work rather than need to work. Maybe I’ll focus on my artwork or teach cooking skills, volunteer or teach customer service workshops. The world has lots to offer!
3 years ago when I was on matenity leave I thought I was going to go of mind for the 1st few months. I hated being home. Currently, I’m lucky to have a good work/home balance. I work 3, 9 hour shifts per week, however I’m about ready to go back to work full time if the right opportunity should arise through my work place.
When I look at my grandparents, they all miss working. My grandfather misses the social interaction and feeling useful. I’m sure he would have worked up until 80 if he had been allowed to. Now his eyes would have forced him to retire. I think volunteering would have done them both a lot of good. My other grandmother is active with her Legion and social activities. She also does school lunch monitoring. She couldn’t sit still long enough! lol!
My great aunt & uncle were very active after retirement. They took classes and travelled. They volunteered and even went to 3rd world countries and taugh life skills lke making soap. I really admire their zest for life. Sadly my uncle passed away about 2 years ago, but my aunt is going strong and keeping active. I’m proud of her.
All I know is I’m not sit around waiting for my hair appointment watch soaps – I’m going to enjoy every minute!
November 22, 2008 at 4:27 pm
I can’t imagine not being busy my whole life. I think I’d go nuts.
November 22, 2008 at 7:52 pm
retirement is when we CAN to stop working. providing we are together and in ok health (that’s why younger the better) we will see the rest of the world and immerse ourselves in our hopefully growing families, other cultures across the seas, which to me, will allow for much more personal growth and enlightenment than any job. we will give freely of our time and skills to those who need it.
sure we may still work a bit if we want to. we may start another business. we may volunteer.
but the main focus is that we won’t HAVE to work for income to survive comfortably. we will choose to.
and boy are we looking forward to that, while we enjoy our lives to the fullest now of course.
November 24, 2008 at 12:35 am
You know I’m probably in the minority here but I’m looking forward to retirement. I’ve often heard people say that if they won the lottery they’d still go to work. But I can’t help but think that they mean they’d “play” at work – it’s not quite the same if you can afford not to be criticized by the boss or work until 2am on a Wed night. I love the idea of sleeping in all day on Mondays and refuse to apologize for it!
I’m hoping to retire at 57 but that’s 24 years away and I can usually picture how radically different that life might be by thinking about how little the 9 year old version of me could have predicted what would happen, and when, in the next 24 years so I try not to stress about it on a day to day basis.
November 25, 2008 at 5:18 pm
This is so I interesting to me. When we first sat down with our financial advisor about a year and a half ago, he asked me when I planned to retire. At the time I was just about to complete my PhD and actually start working for pay in my chosen field. I told him I didn’t plan to retire- why would I stop doing something I love? I guess I’m like Gail in that respect-I may restyle how I work (i.e., fewer hours in a week) but I can’t fathom not working at all.
On the other side of the coin, however, my husband stated that he wants to retire at 55. He’s 6 years old than me, so if he gets his way, when I’m 49 (about when I figure I’ll really hit my stride in my career!) he’ll be playing his video games and tooling around with his Jeep (yes, he’s an overgrown child, but he’s my overgrown child!). I don’t understand his mentality any more than he understands mine. I reminded him of his Dad, who counted to days to retirement, only to get a part time job mere months after that fateful day.
The real wake-up call, however, was when the advisor told him how much he’d have to save to fund such a dream. There would be much more sacrifice in the lifestyle he enjoys now than he was willing to deal with. I guess I “win” for now-although he keeps buying those Cash for Life tickets, hoping to be able to stop working if he hits jackpot!
I agree with many above that its a personal decision, and whatever you want to do, you have to plan for.
May 18, 2009 at 4:23 pm
I would like to Retire anyway, Any giant donations.
June 25, 2009 at 1:13 am
Folks, I think that more research is needed here.
For quite a few years I went looking for a research study that said that people that work full time after 55 ___LOSE_____ 2 years of life for every year.Now they weren’t saying that you can’t work or volunteer part time it’s just that at 55 we can’t take the stress.
For example a few years ago my wife and I headed into the Lake Superior mountians to go camping.The engine blew out and we were towed to Daves garage in the Sault.
He said he gets one blown engine a week and it’s always the same.THE CAR IS 8 TO 10 years of age and it can’t take all the gear and the mountians.The stress on an old motor will finnish it off.
So if I’m gonna make money after 55 I don’t want to trade that for an average of 2 years of earlier death.NO THANKS the money or your life thing changes the equasion for me.
Please don’t write me and tell you about your 83 year old grandfather that lived that long and then died after working full time till 65.I should tell you that I also have the same example in my family.Sure my grandfather did exactly that but it wasn’t uncomon for his family to live to 103 so you do the math.He may have lost 20 years of life by working full time past age 55.