Ideally, retirement is a point in your life wherein you stop working for a living. It is supposed to be a time wherein you start reaping everything that you’ve worked hard for and enjoy life. Retirement doesn’t come with age, it comes with income, savings, or financial stability. You can retire as early if you want if you have built a strong financial foundation and can live even without working.
In reality, people associate retirement with age. Ask people what is their ideal retirement age and they’ll tell you either 60 or 65. Most people think that retiring at 50 is too early. Why is that so? Because most people don’t know how to make money work for them, they only know how to exert their physical effort in order to earn an income. Tragic isn’t it?
People have the wrong notion of retirement. They think that retirement means putting an end to employment. Wrong. Retirement doesn’t necessarily mean putting an end to employment but rather it is a time wherein you get financially independent that if whether you continue working or not, you’re well financially supported and can live comfortably and worry free.
So the question that most people find dilemma in, should they continue to work after retirement or not? The answer is relative and subjective and would depend on one’s personal and financial goals and interests.
You should continue to work after retirement if you find fulfillment in your job or in something that is of your interest and passion. Most retirees get bored after they stop working because first, going to work and getting busy has been their lifestyle for decades and they can’t change it easily. You can go back to work if you love the job that you’re getting in to. It really doesn’t necessarily mean that you should work for the same industry, sector, and job description that you’ve been working for during your younger years. Retirement is a time wherein you should start enjoying what you’re doing and there is no better satisfaction than doing something that you love and at the same time being paid.
Another reason why you should work again after retirement is if your financial foundation isn’t that strong and can’t stand during extreme financial strains. Unfortunately, this is the reason why most retirees go back to work after retiring. Ideally, this should be the case.
However, if you’re tired of working and want to enjoy life, especially if you have amassed huge amounts of wealth already and have built numerous income generating streams, you can opt not to work again after retirement. Face it, working is tiring, it demands time and energy and such time and energy can be used on other things such as to enjoy. If you’re old enough, maybe at least 50 years of age already, then you may consider not going back to work. This is the time wherein you should let your money generate more money for you. Focus on investments and maybe fund businesses.