Retire Early
Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler
In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age
of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this
financially independent lifestyle, they invite you
to take advantage of their wisdom and experience. |
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The Allure of
Early Retirement:
Quitting the Rat Race and Embracing Freedom
Jonathan Frieder
For years, the standard life script
involved moving through progressive steps: graduate from high school, go to
college, get a good job, work your way up through various positions on the
corporate ladder, retire around the age of 65, and travel and take it easy for
the rest of your life.
Now, that model is getting a serious update
– and increasingly, for better quality of life and personal fulfillment, many
people are opting to choose to exit the working world early, ending their
careers well before age 65.
What’s Driving the Early
Retirement Movement?
This movement is driven by a confluence of
factors. Some are simply fed up with the rat race, looking for something more
meaningful and rewarding in life besides their job. Some want to spend more time
travelling, pursuing hobbies and, if possible, spending more time with their
family or friends, while they are also still young and in good health to do so.
Some are able to achieve this through
technological changes and the growth of the gig economy. Some are realizing that
they might be able to retire earlier, given the growing cost of healthcare in
their old age, and the uncertain future of social security benefits. The new gig
economy has allowed people to leverage their strategy skills in games like poker
to keep their minds sharp during retirement and also provides some of the
flexibility that a lot of people look for when giving up their day jobs.
Talking about online poker, this is an
interesting example of an entertainment industry that helped some people to make
a career from their hobby. Like Antonio Esfandiari, a really successful poker
player, who started testing his skills by
playing games on an online poker
site
and is now on his way to retiring super early with a net worth of around $18.35
million. There are plenty of other people who have found success using the
latest technologies and proved that sometimes the 9-5 lifestyle isn’t all it’s
cracked up to be. In the same way, people easily find options to make some
savings while working on their hobbies: It can be coaching, advising businesses,
etc.
Many variables go into the decision to take
early retirement – most obviously how much money you have available to you and
the degree of indulgence with which you wish to surround yourself. But the
glorious thing about this version of early retirement is that it seems to be
available to anyone who takes the time to plan.
The Allure of Freedom:
Unwinding the Chains of the 9-to-5
Another of the biggest benefits of early
retirement is flexibility: when you’re liberated from a job schedule, there’s
plenty of time to pursue leisure, hobbies, fitness, travel, volunteering for a
cause you care about, or any other activity that resonates with you. You have
the freedom to construct your day and life however you want.
This newfound freedom is also an important
health boost. As you no longer have the need to impress your boss, the stress
associated with the demands of professional life can evaporate. This can have a
positive impact on health, both
physical and
mental: many early retirees report
finding themselves with increased energy levels, a stronger immune system and a
healthier outlook.
Beyond Freedom: The Unexpected
Advantages of Early Retirement
Besides the obvious perks of time and
personal freedom that go with early retirement, there are a host of surprising
benefits of getting the hell out of there, as it were and starting a new life
with a new purpose.
Because of breadwinning pressures that fill
working life with obligations and responsibilities, those who retire early from
a career can finally expand their intellect beyond the constraints of the
workplace. People literally get the chance to take an online course,
learn to
play an instrument they’d always dreamed of, attend a seminar, or embark on a
research project they’ve longed to do for years. The result: a lifetime of
learning and intellectual engagement that most people don’t think they would
have the chance to explore after they graduate from college.
Moreover, early retirement affords one the
space to become your higher self. No longer bound by the habits and pressures of
later life, early retirees have space to learn more about themselves. They
nourish their interests, discover their values, and develop new talents. They
learn something about themselves that might not have been uncovered by continued
work. More fundamentally, this contemplation might allow them to live a more
genuine life – and who doesn’t want that?
Embracing New Roles:
Grandparents, Entrepreneurs, and More
While it might sound as if early retirement
must be a life of personal indulgence, for many this is not the case. New
parents no longer must argue over who will have to leave to go to work.
Entrepreneurs can at last launch the business they have long thought about.
Various forms of
volunteering beckon for early retirees. Many will find that
they still have important work to do.
Still, the decision to retire early is a
personal one. For someone with sufficient financial means and a desire for a
different kind of life, the rewards can be great. Freedom, self-discovery and
the chance to contribute in new ways – these are just a handful of reasons why
the siren call of early retirement is proving hard to resist.
About the Authors
Retire
Early Lifestyle appeals to a different
kind of person – the person who prizes their
independence, values their time, and who doesn’t
want to mindlessly follow the crowd.
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