Hope you will benefit from reading this.
Flo/Florence/Yoke
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Subject: Fwd: Pre-Conditions for Retirement...enlightening
>
>> Hope this will be of interest to those who are thinking of retiring and
>> those who are retired.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Every now and then we think about how nice it would be to Retire but before
>> we do, it's worth reading the advice below from a Retiree !
>>
>> *FROM SOMEONE WHO HAS RETIRED*
>> HOW TO RETIRE?
>> *4 Pre-Conditions for Retirement*
>> I retired in year 2000 at age 52. I am now 61, thus I can claim that I got
>> more experience at retirement than most! I thought I should share my
>> experience with mariners because I have seen too many friends and neighbours
>> who became *so bored that they have become a nuisance to their spouse and
>> children and to others!*
>>
>> A few of them have solved the problem by going back to work. They were able
>> to do so because they have a skill/expertise that is still in demand. The
>> rest (and many are my neighbours) live aimlessly or are waiting to die - a
>> very sad situation, indeed.
>>
>> You can retire only when you fulfil these 4 pre-conditions:
>> *1) Your children are financially independent (e.g. they got jobs),**
>>
>> 2) You have zero liability (all your borrowings are paid up),
>>
>> 3) You have enough savings to support your lifestyle for the rest of your
>> life,
>>
>> AND most importantly,
>>
>> *
>> *4) You know what you would be doing during your retirement.*
>>
>>
>> *DO NOT retire till you meet ALL 4 Pre-Conditions.** *And of course
>> you should not retire if you enjoy working and are getting paid for it! The
>> problem cases I know of are those who failed to meet Pre-Condition #4.
>>
>> When asked, "What would you be doing during your retirement?"
>>
>> some replied, "I will travel/cruise and see the World". They did
>> that, some for 3 months and then ran out of ideas.
>>
>> The golfers replied, "I can golf every day." Most could not because they are
>> no longer fit to play well enough to enjoy the game. Those who could, need
>> to overcome another hurdle - they need to the find the "kakis" to play with
>> them.
>>
>> It's the same with mahjong, bridge, badminton, trekking and karaoke - you
>> need "kakis"! Most could not find others who share their favourite game and
>> playing/singing alone is no fun. AND when they do find them, a few of them
>> found that they are *NOT welcomed like my obnoxious neighbour whom everyone
>> avoids.*
>>
>> Thus if you are into group sports or games, you must form your groups BEFORE
>> you retire. You need to identify your "mates", play with them and discover
>> whether they "click" with you.
>>
>> The less sporty "can read all the books bought over the years". I know of
>> one guy who fell asleep after a few pages and ended up napping most of the
>> time! He discovered that he did not like to read after all. We do change and
>> we may not enjoy the hobbies we had.
>>
>> *Routine Activities To Fill Your Week*
>>
>> For most people, your routine work activities are planned for you
>> or dictated by others and circumstances. When you retire, you wake up to a
>> new routine - one that you* yourself have to establish as nobody else would
>> do it for you!*
>>
>> The routine to establish should *keep your body, mind and
>> spirit "sharpened".*
>>
>> A good routine would comprise:
>>
>> a) One weekly *physical sport* - you need to keep fit to enjoy
>> your retirement. If you are the non-sporty type, you should fire your
>> maid and clean your home without mechanical aids. Dancing and baby
>> sitting are good alternatives.
>>
>> b) One weekly *mind stimulating activity* - e.g. writing, studying for a
>> degree, acquiring a new skill, solving problems or puzzles, learn or teach
>> something. You need to stimulate your mind to stay alive because the day you
>> stop using your brain is the day you start to die.
>>
>> c) One weekly *social activity* - choose one involving lots of
>> friends/neighbours. Get yourself *a**ccepted as a member to at least
>> 3 interests groups.* Unless you prefer to be alone, you do need friends more
>> than ever as you get older and less fit to pursue your sport.
>>
>> d) One weekly *community service activity* - you need to give to appreciate
>> what you have taken in this life. It's good to leave some kind of legacy.
>>
>> With 4 weekly activities, you got 4 days out of 7 covered. The
>> remaining 3 days should be devoted to family related activities. In this
>> way, you maintain a balance between amusing yourself and your family
>> members. Any spare time should remain "spare" so that you can capitalise on
>> opportunities that come your way like responding to an unexpected request to
>> do a job or to take advantage of cheap fares to see places or to visit an
>> exhibition.
>>
>> *Mind stimulating activities*
>> Most *judges live to a ripe old age*. They use their brains a lot to decide
>> on cases. I am sure MM Lee's brain works overtime. He's 80+ and still going
>> strong.
>>
>> In "Today" you would have read of 2 inspiring oldies. One is a granny who
>> learned to play the guitar at age 60 to entertain his grandchildren. She's
>> 70+ today and those grandchildren have grown to play with her.
>>
>> Another is an Indian radiologist who on retirement, qualified as an
>> acupuncturist. He's age 77 and still offers his services (by appointment
>> only) including free ones to those who have no income. I guarantee you that
>> they are happy people who discovered a "2nd wind" to take them to the sunset
>> with a smile on their faces.
>>
>> Mind stimulating activities are hard to identify. They require your will to
>> do something useful with the rest of your life, a mindset change and the
>> discipline to carry it through.
>>
>> *Your Bucket List*
>> Despite your busy routine, you will at times be bored. Then it's
>> time to turn to your Bucket List.
>>
>> Your bucket list contains a list of things to do before you kick the bucket.
>> They are not routine and are usually one off activities. You need them to
>> have something to look forward to. These include anniversaries, trips (and
>> pilgrimages), visits to friends and relations abroad, re-doing your home,
>> attending conferences (related to your hobbies), acquiring a new set of
>> expertise.
>>
>> *4 such activities that are spaced our quarterly would be ideal.
>> *
>> Retirement Is A Serious Business
>>
>> If you can afford to retire and want to, do prepare to live to your fullest.
>> You need to be fit to enjoy it - therefore get into shape now. You do not
>> want to get up on a Monday and wonder what to do each week, therefore
>> identify your set of weekly routine activities now and try them out to
>> confirm that they are the activities that you will be looking forward to
>> doing each week, week after week.
>>
>> You bucket list of "rewards" or "projects" or "challenges" is needed to help
>> you break away from the routine thereby make live worth living.
>>
>> Start listing what you fancy and refine it as you chug along in
>> your retirement. You will have so much fun, you would wish you were
>> retired since your turned 21!
>>
>> So how are you going to manage it ?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
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