Early retirement or more work? While the former is often preferable, you may feel the latter is your only option.
If you’ve been diligently saving and investing throughout your career, however, you may be in a better position to retire than you realize. Of course, this presents another question: Why retire early? Do the benefits of leaving your job outweigh the potential drawbacks? Here are seven reasons why you might want to retire early.
SEVEN EARLY RETIREMENT REASONS
Not sure if you want to retire early? There are many pros and cons to retiring early, but the benefits often outweigh the downsides. Let’s explore what you could do with your time instead of work.
1. Take Up a New Hobby (or Pick An Old One Again)
Maybe you’ve always wanted to be an artist, or you always thought about writing a novel. You might be someone with skills in woodworking, knitting or home renovation — skills you haven’t used in years or decades because you were busy working to ensure your family’s financial future.
Early retirement offers the opportunity to explore new passions or pick up old hobbies. For example, you could take an art class at a local community center or college. You could take a creative writing class online or dive into online videos about home renovation projects.
Instead of putting expectations on yourself for perfection, you can focus on how hobbies make you happy and how learning new skills is always rewarding.
2. Learn a New Sport
Another early retirement option is learning a new sport.
One of the most popular sports for older adults is golf. Not only does golf involve plenty of outside time and fresh air, but the game depends far more on leverage than strength, making it possible to play long into your golden years. According to data from the United States Golf Association (USGA), the average golfer’s age is 43.5, making it a sport that starts young, continues into adulthood and remains popular with seniors.
Pickleball is also growing by leaps and bounds. Similar to tennis but with a smaller court and perforated plastic ball, the sport is fun and accessible, with courts popping up across the country. According to data from the Association of Pickleball Players (APP), more than 50 million Americans played pickleball in the past year. If there was ever a time to pick up the sport, it’s now.
3. Invest in Your Relationships
As we age, friends often drift away. As noted by a survey from the University of Michigan, 47% of adults with fair to poor mental health said they do not have enough close friends. Unchecked, this can lead to feelings of loneliness and isolation, especially if you’ve been so busy with work that you don’t have time to build friendships.
Retiring early allows you to form new friendships and invest in existing
relationships.
4. Travel the World
Different countries and different cultures offer unique perspectives. With only a limited amount of vacation time available, however, it’s easy to put world travel on the back burner. Adult children might face financial challenges, or you might find yourself in poor health — yet more reasons to postpone your trip. It’s no wonder that 23% of Americans have never been outside the country.
Early retirement lets you kickstart your world travel plans and see as much of our planet as possible.
5. Get Yourself in Shape
Your job may be bad for your health. For example, sitting and typing all day can put strain on your back and arms, while more physically intensive jobs can lead to repetitive stress injuries or even hospitalization.
Getting in shape is another great reason to retire early. First, you can give your body a chance to rest, then create a workout plan that meets your goals. This could be as simple as walking 10,000 steps every day. Or, it could mean joining the local gym or recruiting a group of friends to help achieve fitness goals.
6. Explore a New Career
Just because you stop working, it doesn’t mean you can never start again. Some retirees take on part-time work in jobs they enjoy, such as working in garden centers, at local libraries or for local sports clubs. Others invest the time and energy in learning new skills, such as programming, dog training or home repair, to kickstart entrepreneurial careers.
7. Give Yourself a Break
Sometimes, you just need a break. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ American Time Use Survey, adults aged 75 and older engaged in the most leisure and sports activities of any age group, with an average of 7.6 hours per day.
Retiring early is a chance for you to relax, reset and discover what you want to do next.
TAKING THE NEXT STEP
If you’re considering early retirement, the first step is ensuring your finances are in order. Even with savings and investments, you may come up a bit short to achieve your retirement plans.
In this case, it’s worth considering a life insurance settlement. This is the process of selling some (or all) of your life insurance policy to a third party. For example, if you have life insurance you no longer need because your children are grown adults with their own families, or if you have other protections in place for when you pass away, a life settlement is a great way to access the built-up equity in your policy. By working with a reputable broker, you can get the most value for your policy and take action on early retirement.
Not sure when to retire early? If you have the financial foundation, it’s a great way to jump-start the next chapter of your life.
