When you are thinking about retiring, no one comes up to you and gives you
instructions and says: “Here… this is what you need to know and this is what
you need to do. These factors will help you find your way to achieving a successful
and fulfilling retirement.” Yet, retirement is an emotional and psychological
process that we all have to go through. We are entering a new life cycle.
Cycles have the potential for renewal, but not everyone will feel comfortable
about crossing that bridge – especially if they are unprepared. It requires us
to change our past patterns of behaviour or outlook in some way.
With retirement, we are entering 'new territory' without any infrastructure.
We will be spending, on average, 10-15 years of our retirement there before
we even enter old age. On average, members of Sentinel retire at the age of
54 years. We need to plan for it unless we want to spend a considerable amount
of time in a 'wilderness experience'. Going through the transition into retirement
is like going through a wilderness experience, but you want to come out on
the other side with hope and clarity and a renewed focus on where you are
heading to with your life.
One day a pensioner said to me: “Can you imagine six months ago, I was
somebody and now I feel I am nothing. Nobody calls me and asks for my advice.
Nobody needs me anymore.” He died after two years in retirement. Research
shows that many simply die after they have stopped working and life loses
meaning for them unless they are prepared to keep their minds busy.
Someone else said: “I hope I never retire, but if I had to, I would like
to go back to university and study all the things I never had time for. But, I
don’t want to study with my grandchildren, nor do I want to be taught by
professors who could be grandchildren of mine, but by people of my own age
group who have had much the same life experience.” He is 85 years old today
and is still working full days. One day, you too will realise that you don’t
know what to do with the next 20-30 years of your life. Plan for it now and
you will have a fruitful retirement.