Early retirement - heaven, hell or both

Some people tend to have different views on the so called F.I.R.E. population (Financially Independent Retired Earlier). Like they are spoiled, lazy, their parents helped them or  they certainly won the lottery. But none of these things apply to me.

I grew up in a low-income household. I worked hard to earn good grades. I was the first one in the office and the last to leave. Sure, I got lucky once in a lifetime by landing a high-paying high-management job and in some of my investments, but I have also lived a frugal life and have always been diligent about staying on top of my finances.

People told me I was crazy to leave a high-paying job at such a young age, but I was absolutely burned out and felt disillusioned by my industry of work.

Early retirement isn’t for everyone. But from my experience, the pros outweigh the cons. I get to wake up whenever I want. I no longer have to endure unproductive meetings or put up with nefarious colleagues. I’ve traveled to more than 12 countries with my life partner, established a small business enterprise and started getting knowledge to make the same by my own also in the digital world.

I am also becoming a dad soon and guessing that it will be the toughest full-time job ever😊

I will admit that there are a few downsides

Some surveys said they retirees were not excited about retirement. Some of the top concerns included losing social interactions at work, a loss of purpose, boredom and depression.

That said, here are the biggest negatives of early retirement that no one likes to talk about:

1) You may suffer from an identity crisis.

One of the most common questions people ask when they first meet each other is: “What do you do for a living?”

When you’ve spent at least few decades working in any job, you may find it incredibly jolting to no longer be identified as an expert, the investment professional or the business consultant.

It was only after I left my job that I realized how obsessed I was with my profession. I often wondered: How is the business doing without me? I was there for 24 years. Were they really able to survive without my expertise?

But after months of no emails or phone calls begging for me to come back, I finally accepted the fact that I was no longer needed.

2) You may second-guess yourself.

When you retire young, you may find yourself questioning whether you made the right choice and regret all the money and status you forewent.

I still have living costs and upcoming extended family to pay and was worried that I made a grave mistake. But after some time, my retirement plans grew clearer. I started writing more on my blog Simple.Minimal.Stoic, aiming to perhaps evolve one day into a website. It is one way of dealing with my stress, anxiety and uncertainty.

Because retiring early is unconventional or people are simply jealous you are not stuck on a daily job (then you daydream of a day when you retire and "everything will be beautiful"). Whatever the reason might be, people will not always give you the same amount of respect as to a working-class citizen.

Eventually, I grew tired of explaining why I retired early or that I am no longer in the „Rat race“. To keep the discussion simple and regain a social identity, I’d simply say I was a business consultant. 

4) You may be surprised that you aren’t that much happier.

Many people think that once they achieve financial freedom or leave a job they hate, they’ll be permanently happier. But, as I mentioned earlier, many surveys have found that any significant amount of elevated happiness is only short-term.

5) You may get really, really bored.

With an extra 12 hours of free time every day, my productivity suffered and I grew less motivated to achieve anything. It didn’t help either that none of my friends or former colleagues were able to hang out. There were no more company holiday parties, various client events or business fairs. Even external business meetings. Believe it or not, I actually enjoyed all those things!

Now, I try to attend various meet-up events in order to make new friends, but my social life mostly consists of the folks I meet through various sports I practiced or high school, university and business contacts.

When my life partner joined the jobless phase by entering into pregnancy leave, my boredom began to dissipate. We did a lot of traveling in the past, but more importantly, we will become parents, which I hope will renew my sense of purpose.

Here’s the truth: If you’re unhappy before you retire early, it’s likely that you’ll still be unhappy after you retire. It’s better to figure out what’s at the very core of your issues and fix them first. Then, have a clear vision of what you actually plan to do when you retire.

Example:

* writing a blog called Simple.Minimal.Stoic

* investing in stocks, crypto and real estate

* being a life partner and future-to-be father and stay-at-home parent

* reading books, playing AOE2, watching movies

* callisthenic workouts and cold swimming

Early retirement isn’t the elixir to everlasting happiness, but it sure beats commuting to work and sitting in meetings all day long. I gave up a safety of a paycheck but gained something priceless in return: my freedom!

 

Written by Raido Simson / Earth, winter 2021

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Raido Simson worked in a multinational corporation and private companies for many years before starting Simple.Minimal.Stoic Blog, a personal health & wealth website. He received a B.A. in Economics, currently actively simplifying his personal and business life.