Quote:
Originally Posted by jbgusa
Exactly. That is why retirement is often a bad idea unless, of course, forced by employers, clients or events. As far as the "choice" on a life span we as a society have increasingly made that choice for people. Fewer people smoke. No one is exposed to second hand smoke in public. Diets are better.
|
I think you are overgeneralizing on "that is why retirement is often a bad idea". Planning for the worst possible event in life as the main driver/worrying about how one is going to squeeze the last nickel when they are 90 which the vast majority of people won't see is silly over planning in my view, especially when it comes at the expense of one who wants to retire and has a good chunk of retirement assets/a plan to make it last. And that's coming from very much a planning type person like myself who wants his money to last a long time/knows how to do it as best as one can plan but nothing is guaranteed except death of course, even with the best of plans. And not to mention just as important to retire early enough when one has much greater odds of enjoying their retirement in good health and mobility.
Real life example. My grandmother made it to 93. She beat the odds/lived a long and until right up to the end, a very active/healthy life. She "retired" in her 20's, raised kids for part of her life, her husband died in his 70's, and she lived alone for several decades beyond that. She had her house paid off early/no debt and lived on measly SSN income and a very modest savings for decades and was one of the most happiest/active people I've met in my life. Simple things in life like volunteering, attending various events, etc. made her life very fulfilling to her. Especially in her 80's/early 90's, having a pile of money wasn't necessary for her happiness. Simple low cost/no cost activities were the most satisfying things to her.
So while I'd agree with you on the aspect that sure, for some people, retirement earlier in life or for some at any time in life isn't a good idea and it could be for various reasons. I've met many of them/heard their views on why it wasn't for them and perhaps yourself/a few people on this forum can relate:
Some aren't self starters to try new things in life......
some like the satisfaction of a paycheck/earning money......
some need to have a structure and aren't comfortable or can't figure out how to plan a day without someone telling them where to be.......
some fear change........
some have all/most of their self-worth tied to their job.............
Regardless of the reason, the point being if retirement is a good idea or a "Bad" idea is a most personal decision and shouldn't be generalized by anyone except the person making that choice. For me? I retired in my 40's. 6 years later it's still the best thing I've ever done and my wife agrees too. The days fly/time disappears doing what we want to do and we love the freedom. For my father and father-in-law it was the same....though they didn't retire early, their only regret in retiring was they didn't do it earlier.
What we all have in common is we like our freedom/are very independent people/self starters so perhaps that is the key in why we are most comfortable being retired as we value our independence/like to not be tied to anything like a structured job.
Not to get too far off topic but as for your comment that our diets are "better"? Not by a long shot in regards to how people are choosing what to eat/how much. Far worse by a land slide.
More Than Two Thirds of Americans Are Overweight or Obese
Diabetes of which Type II is weight, ie diet/activity related, is at epidemic levels:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/26/op...emic.html?_r=0
Even type II in young kids is epidemic because their diet/lifestyle is so bad:
Type 2 diabetes: an epidemic in children. - PubMed - NCBI
Procedures/pills can't fix everything. Not even close. I think we'll start to see lifespans starting to shrink in the coming decades. And getting even worse in quality than what many elderly are living now....some might be living longer but many with not so good quality of life.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
