This was the caption of an article in a recent edition of the Weekend Australian. It looked at some of the implications of Australians living for 20 – 30 years in retirement.
Obviously there are a lot of financial issues to consider for individuals, governments, superannuation funds and financial planners. As the article was written by the CEO of a wealth management company, it’s not surprising that it was focussed on the financial challenges.
However, if it’s going to become the norm for people to live for another 20 -30 or more years after leaving full time work, it’s equally important to consider a range of lifestyle issues. A happy retirement is about more than just having enough money.
20 – 30 extra years gives us a lot of spare time to do something with. It can be a great opportunity or it can be cause for depression. What we do with these years is obviously up to us. If we stay active and involved with life, stay healthy, have good relationships with family and friends, contribute to our community and have a positive attitude, then these extra years can be a great bonus. If we don’t plan to use this extra time constructively and just “go with the flow”, we run a real risk of being bored and unhappy for many years. A healthy bank account won’t make much difference.
We have produced a range of books that can help you to make the most of your retirement years. You can find out more details on all of them on this web site.