Early retirement is a goal for many people, but it’s hard to know how to get there. How did you know or plan early for your retirement? What strategies did you use? How much money do you need to save to retire early, and what are some things that have helped make this happen? In this blog post, we will discuss the different ways people have gone about planning their future to set themselves up financially for success!
How did you know or plan for early retirement?
Some people know from a young age that they want to retire at an earlier than average age. Others may be retiring after their working career ends suddenly or unexpectedly. How did you know and plan for early retirement?
For some, it is rooted in the idea of doing what they love most during the day instead of having to work because they need money. For others, it’s about spending more time with family members who are not around as often when we have jobs outside of the home taking up our time. Still, other retirees are looking forward to spending more quality time on hobbies such as gardening, reading books, traveling without worrying about how many vacation days and sick leave we have left. How did you know and plan for early retirement?
For me, I knew when I was in my mid-twenties that I wanted to spend more time with friends and family members who were not living close by. It wasn’t until about three years ago that the idea of retiring came into play as a viable option.
I started off saving money obsessively from age 23 on because it seemed like an easy way to have some financial stability in life if anything ever happened or changed unexpectedly. When I turned 30, though, things began changing quickly; old friendships died out due to distance or job changes, so suddenly there was less need for cash at one point than another (i.e., no longer needing to buy birthday presents or pay for a dinner out). In addition, I was coming into my career and making more money than ever before. How did you know the plan for early retirement?
In the end, I decided that it would be best if I continued saving around half of what my annual salary was each year so that by age 40 (and after five years of doing this), I could retire with about $500k in savings which is enough to live off on without having any other income stream for the rest of your life.
What are your thoughts on retirement, and what do you plan to do once you retire from work?
There are many reasons people might want to retire earlier than their planned age – maybe they don’t like working, feel burned out from work, or want more time with family. Some even were laid off due to economic circumstances such as downsizing of jobs and found that they could live off their savings. How they chose to go about planning for early retirement varied – some had planned it out many years in advance, others began the process a few months or years before quitting work.
The person who retired earliest may not be the one you would expect! We spoke with two people who made over $200,000 per year yet only saved around $250k each because of spending too much on luxurious vacations and cars. Others say that just simply living frugally and saving money helped them reach this goal earlier than expected.
Have you saved for retirement, or if not, how will it affect your lifestyle?
Most of the retirees we spoke with said they had been saving since college – even if it was only $50 per month. They used various methods such as 401ks and Roth IRAs, while others created individual savings accounts to invest in stocks or bonds. Some were able to get a pension which they then invested. How much money you need to be saved to retire early depends on how much you make and what type of lifestyle you want when retired, but it will range anywhere from $250k to half a million or more!
What are some pros and cons associated with this idea?
One of the benefits of retirement is spending time with family members who live far away or have passed on. Others enjoy time-intensive hobbies such as gardening, reading books, and traveling but don’t like planning around vacation days and sick leave for their job (having unlimited vacation!).
Regarding drawbacks – some people may not be mentally prepared yet for this stage in life while others will miss aspects of work they enjoyed when younger. How do you think it would affect your lifestyle? What are the pros/cons associated with early retirement?
Others feel that retiring before age 65 can lead to a less healthy lifestyle because many retirees said they eat more junk foods than before, leading to weight gain and health problems.
Conclusion
This article has looked at some of the difficulties with planning for early retirement and asked how you knew or planned to retire early. How did you know the plan for retiring earlier than your intended age?
I hope this is helpful.