Anybody here thinking about retiring early?

[tripods68]

What I mean by retiring early those who are thinking of retiring at age 55 years or less. I'm 49 will turn 50 later this year. What are the steps you are taking now to reach that early retirement goal? What age are you planning to call it quits?


I will have government pension at age 50 with full medical benefit. But it will be a lot more if I wait to retire at age 55.

[Gailete]

I'm hoping to never retire, but maybe to slow down a bit. We need that extra money that comes in via the pattern sales and if I genuinely retire, we won't be getting it.

[tripods68]

I'm hoping to never retire, but maybe to slow down a bit. We need that extra money that comes in via the pattern sales and if I genuinely retire, we won't be getting it.

I was talking to my daughter, what IF I retire early. She wasn't very happy because I will taking her to school everyday instead of mom each morning. Ah kids..

[Like2Plan]

I retired at 55.

Some steps I took. I attended a class on retirement at the T-5 year point. I asked for a pension estimate. I made sure my personnel file was up to date and correct (make a copy before you go).
I also kept a spread sheet with my own calculations and different retirement dates.
I carried over as my annual leave and sick leave as I could.
I picked a retirement date that maximized my leave earned in the pay period.
I saved up cash to cover the time before my annuity stated.

I also tracked expenses very carefully. And, about a year prior to retiring we lived on what our income would be post retirement.

[tripods68]

I retired at 55.

Some steps I took. I attended a class on retirement at the T-5 year point. I asked for a pension estimate. I made sure my personnel file was up to date and correct (make a copy before you go).
I also kept a spread sheet with my own calculations and different retirement dates.
I carried over as my annual leave and sick leave as I could.
I picked a retirement date that maximized my leave earned in the pay period.
I saved up cash to cover the time before my annuity stated.

I also tracked expenses very carefully. And, about a year prior to retiring we lived on what our income would be post retirement.

This is very helpful information. I am constantly on my CALPERS website with numerous calculation estimates. It does gives me pleasure, and playing with different age scenarios w/survivor benefits. Its gives me a solid information the best age to retire. I hope to make it at 55 years barring any health concerns.

[amarowsky]

I have been saying my goal is age 40 for "stage 1" retirement, or financial independence. Currently I'm 31.

The idea is I want to take a dramatic step to reduce my need to spend most of my life working in a career.

So hopefully, I'll be able to continue living off my passive income. However, I would like to try working different jobs, that are not corporate, and miles away from full time. So basically, continue to work 2-4 days a week, to maintain health insurance, and supplement my passive income (unless I find a job that I really like or something). I want a job I can leave w/ out having to worry, incase the wife (and maybe kids) and I want to do a random long term trip.

I guess full retirement (my stage 2) will probably be dependent on the future landscape for health insurance. The costs in America are just too insane for anything, the risk of retiring w/ out coverage is too high. Only way I could imagine pushing forward full retirement, is if I moved to another country until medicare age was reached.

For my idea at 40 for stage 1, I'm on track to meet my goals. This is considering no catastrophic changes to my wife and I's lifestyle. *Children don't count as catastrophic in my terms. My assumptions are also based on not getting any raises or promotions at work. I use this as a measure to offset inflation, and some random occurrences that would merit high expenses.

I think the average pay timeline at my work is, start at 64k --> @ 5yrs 95k --> @ 10 years 130k. So I think my estimate is being fairly conservative.

*Also I'm not including any raises or promotions my wife will make. This is a big one too.

[rennigade]

I will have government pension at age 50 with full medical benefit. But it will be a lot more if I wait to retire at age 55.

There's always going to be more. The more years you stay/work the more you'll have later in terms of package offered, etc etc. I hear this time and time again.

If you crunch the numbers and determine you have enough to live off of for the rest of your life...retire...(if thats your goal...if you want to work or like your job...then continue working)

[amarowsky]

There's always going to be more. The more years you stay/work the more you'll have later in terms of package offered, etc etc. I hear this time and time again.

If you crunch the numbers and determine you have enough to live off of for the rest of your life...retire...(if thats your goal...if you want to work or like your job...then continue working)

Agreed.

It is all subjective. Deciding when "enough is enough", is really what people should start to consider. Especially if they desire to change their "working" situation.

I'm excited to pursue jobs/careers that I am interested in, but didn't think they could lead me to the opportunity to save as much as I did in a soul sucking corporate environment. So I'll still be working, but in my perspective, it'll be a much less "serious" way.... Who knows, I/you may try a job later in life, and realize it COULD have been a career. And you COULD have followed that path, regret free. But that's all hindsight.

[disneysteve]

Am I thinking about it? Always. It is going to happen? Not likely. Not at 55 at least. My worst case goal is 62 but if we can make it happen before that, all the better.

[amarowsky]

Am I thinking about it? Always. It is going to happen? Not likely. Not at 55 at least. My worst case goal is 62 but if we can make it happen before that, all the better.

Is there any simple way to be a Dr. that only works 2 or 3 days a week?

I'm ignorant to how insurance costs work for Dr's. Maybe you need to keep a full workload to amortize the cost of insurance over sales per patient, making part time difficult?

Would part time Dr. work be something your interested in? Or do you think you would like to pursue a different interest if you gave yourself the chance to end career employment, and enter a more "relaxed" employment path?

[amarowsky]

I have been almost obsessed with the idea of retiring early....

But I think the origin is mostly, the feeling that I'm working more waken hours than I dont. Which I don't think is true, but it's too close. If you count drive time, I'd say I'm pretty close to 11 hours a day, that I have to spend 5 days a week to "work".

There is basically 112 hours available to experience in a week (24 - 8 hours sleep ) * 7 days a week = 112.

49% of my hours are consumed by work (getting there, lunch, work, getting back, +random calls w/ international associates, usually japan, +getting home in the rat race).

It just seems like too much time to be spent to earn money while doing something you absolutely love. I love my co-workers, bosses, perks, benefits and pay at my company. But the job function I do, I do NOT enjoy much at all.

I just think working a day or two less a week, will still maintain the satisfaction of doing something I don't like for a reason I do like. (work for pay isn't designed to be fun, it's supposed to be satisfying).

My worry, is that if I flat out retired, I would get lazy, and take my time off for granted. But when you maintain some frequency of work, it allows you to appreciate the time off just as much (in theory). Waiting ALL week for friday, and having the weekend flash by, is just such a sad way to spend a week to week life... (all of this is IMO)

[disneysteve]

Is there any simple way to be a Dr. that only works 2 or 3 days a week?

There is. I work in urgent care. At least at my job, part time is an option. I actually was part time for most of last year. That is 20 hours/week. That could be done in 2 days, a 12-hour shift and an 8-hour shift. That would have me earning just over 100K/year for a 2-day work week which would be a pretty sweet semi-retirement gig.

[Gailete]

My worry, is that if I flat out retired, I would get lazy, and take my time off for granted. But when you maintain some frequency of work, it allows you to appreciate the time off just as much (in theory). Waiting ALL week for friday, and having the weekend flash by, is just such a sad way to spend a week to week life... (all of this is IMO)

That is why before you ever retire, you must have plans in the works so that you don't turn into a couch potato. It could be volunteering on a routine basis at something like a soup kitchen, reading to children at school or helping tutor those that need help, working at a thrift store. I know my thrift store needs plenty of volunteers, and they are only open 3 days a week. Volunteering you can set you own time at least around the timeframe of the charity.

People need drives to the doctor, tests, etc. When I had an apt. get moved up three weeks early, I jumped at the chance, not remembering that my husband was going to be working all night long, and he had to come with me. I had no one else to ask, and my one friend had already spent the day before taking me in for an IV infusion. I royally messed up hubby’s schedule but since I have had such good results, I think at this point he is glad we went for it and rearranged his schedule. But chronically ill people, or for people in our case, when hubby had doc apts. in Pittsburgh, I couldn't drive him as I can barely handle a 40-mile round trip, much less well over 100 miles one way. It isn't that people aren't willing to pay for gas expenses, meal for the driver, etc. In my case, it is just lack of people to ask, since most of them are still working! Just a bigger bit of insight into one aspect of volunteering that is needed.

You could also work part time. If you can help it, you probably don’t want to be a WM greeter as they hire older guy, but very hard on their legs and feet as they aren't allowed to sit down. If at all, a change of pace type of work you could do be very beneficial. Or like many people do, start a side line business, which depending on how much you to retire on can help or hinder (if it increases taxes too much).

I think the guys that should really fear retirement, are those that have not thought ahead as to what they will do the next morning after retirement. And they never get themselves into any kind of routine because they can’t figure out what they are supposed to do with themselves other than explaining to the wife all the things she has been doing wrong in her housework for the last 40-50 years. I would suspect retirement is never so hard on a woman because, so many traditional roles are still in force, I would think most women have plenty to do.

[TexasHusker]

I thought about retiring once, but then I realized if I retired, I’d never have a day off.

[bjl584]

I do want to retire from the corporate world early. I doubt that I'll ever retire completely from everything though.

I want to get away from W2 earnings and shift to more passive income streams. If I can pull that off I will be "retired" as soon as I make enough passively/semi-passively to live life.