So, what's your idea of retirement? Do you have images of you and your significant other happily doing crossword puzzles on the porch of the same house that you raised your children in? Chatting about the grandkids and planning a batch of chocolate chip cookies for their next visit? Of course, you worked at the same job for many years and well into your sixties comfortable in the knowledge that your pension would take care of you.
I think a generation or two ago this is exactly what most people thought their retirement would be but I really doubt that many do now. I believe that my generation (I'm coming up on 50) is going to redefine retirement. And by redefining it, we are throwing away the rules. It's not that we are such amazing free thinkers blazing our own trails through life. A lot of this change will come from necessity. Many from my generation, especially our American friends, have been slapped financially in a really bad way. The economic crisis in the US and much of the world gave many people no choice but to rethink their futures. Suddenly, the idea of selling off (or just walking away from) everything and starting up anew in a faraway land became appealing. Not just a choice for the most radical, anti establishment, free thinkers. It's actually starting to feel a little bit main stream!
I think a generation or two ago this is exactly what most people thought their retirement would be but I really doubt that many do now. I believe that my generation (I'm coming up on 50) is going to redefine retirement. And by redefining it, we are throwing away the rules. It's not that we are such amazing free thinkers blazing our own trails through life. A lot of this change will come from necessity. Many from my generation, especially our American friends, have been slapped financially in a really bad way. The economic crisis in the US and much of the world gave many people no choice but to rethink their futures. Suddenly, the idea of selling off (or just walking away from) everything and starting up anew in a faraway land became appealing. Not just a choice for the most radical, anti establishment, free thinkers. It's actually starting to feel a little bit main stream!
So, here we are in Belize in 2014. The worldwide economy seems to be on the mend (albeit very slow) but many people are still wary. It's a little bit like the generations that lived through the world wars or the great depression. The scars ran deep and changed how they viewed the world.
For many people now, retirement means letting go of all the things that they spent most of their lives accumulating. All that 'stuff' that seemed so important at the time suddenly doesn't sparkle quite so much. You get to a day when you wonder how and why you collected all these things. I mean, did that thimble collection really make you so happy? Seems kind of contrary and I doubt than many younger readers will get this but it is so liberating to not be held down by 'stuff'. That is my experience.
For many people now, retirement means letting go of all the things that they spent most of their lives accumulating. All that 'stuff' that seemed so important at the time suddenly doesn't sparkle quite so much. You get to a day when you wonder how and why you collected all these things. I mean, did that thimble collection really make you so happy? Seems kind of contrary and I doubt than many younger readers will get this but it is so liberating to not be held down by 'stuff'. That is my experience.
Now, of course most of us still want companionship and security and you still need some kind of a roof over your head. But it's OK to rethink what and where that roof will be. And most of us are nesters to some degree so we still want some stability and comfort. But I challenge you to open your mind to all the possibilities. Look at the world differently. Our generation is the very first to have access to so much information. The world shrunk for us and very little is beyond our grasp.