Retiring at age 62

[ws23rt]

The word retire can and does mean different things to different folks.

My take on it is it's a time when one no longer needs to work to live.

It is true that most of us have worked all our lives since our teens and that has been our lives. To stop at an arbitrary point for a traditional reason makes little sense.

We all have heard about those that work all the hours they can for as long as they can to make a pile of money to live on only to stop working and die from the shock from doing so. Their survivors spend their money.

I'm 63 and hear the question a lot. When are you going to retire? My response usually is I practice retirement in between jobs. (I work in industrial construction).  

I still work at what I do because I like my work, I am good at it, I get satisfaction from it, The folks that hire me want me to work, they pay me well, It is good exercise, etc.

To retire for me would mean what?   It would mean giving up what I do and replacing it with something.

I think the notion of retirement is a missguided goal.  

I've been working my life with a cloudy view of what the future will be and am starting to realise that the path I have followed is the life and the future will never arrive.

When we can't work at what we do for whatever reason we will need to fill the void with something. If that is retirement than we need to make that plan. What will we do with our time to fill our days?

BTW  I spend less now than I would get from pension, SS, investments,etc--In effect I am retired but still work.

[The70RT]

One good thing I see where I work at is when you retire at 62 they pay your health insurance till your 65. If I can live off of SS, kpers, my annuity, and a little ebay then I'm gonna do it. It seems a lot of people work till they cant then they die. If you truly love your job I could see sticking around.

[Mytur Binsdirti]

My desire is to get out at age 60. We'll see if it happens.

[ITSA426]

For me at least, a bad day at home still beats a really good day at work.

[Paul G]

My neighbor across the street retired at 62 last month. He comes home with a giant pusher motor home. He and his wife took it on a trip to Vegas this week. They plan to sell the house and live in that thing for year or two.

[HANDM]

If you like what you do then why retire..... I'm constantly trying to relax but around here, there is ALWAYS something to do!

[Paul G]

Recently a retired fella told me, "every night is Friday night, every day is Saturday". 

[ws23rt]

Recently a retired fella told me, "every night is Friday night, every day is Saturday".  

I like the sound of that. Their are many ways to say the same thing. It's a frame of mind that working is no longer necessary.

Their is a big difference between working because one has to to make ends meet and working because it's what gives us our life.

If we work for 30-40 years as a chore than retiring is a release. If we work those same years at what are than to retire could spell our end.

We live to work not work to live.---I don't think I got that backwards---

[PlainfieldCharger]

I am planning on 60. I have been in the printing industry since High School. I really just want to do something different. Working on B body mopars has been fun so far. I really believe that whatever you call it just do not become idol as that is what will do you in quickly.

[green69rt]

Retiring when you want to takes a lot of planning.   Not only for the money angle but to plan on how you will be spending your time.  It's pretty hard to work, work, work till the last Friday then wake up Monday and have nothing to do.   I've see people do it and it's not pretty for some.   Many either drive the people around them crazy (usually the spouse ) or they struggle for a while then decide to go back to work.  And, like some have said here, they veg till they die.   Not my idea of a good retirement.

I retired at 60, spent a year adding to my garage and shopping for my Charger, catching up on projects around the house.  Kept me pretty busy, but still time to set on the porch in the evening and relax.  It's nice not to be working frantically on weekends and evenings to do chores so I can go to work on Monday.   It's also nice not to have to fly when we go on vacation because we only got so many days and couldn't spend vacation days traveling.  We normally drive now and it is really nice to set our own schedule and not have to work with the airline schedule (and the poor service/ high cost.)