Packing for Retirement
When planning or entering into retirement the financial considerations are big and most always front and center, for good reason.
Often overlooked is the emotional planning. The shift in this season is significant and if we don’t give it some thought and space we may feel a bit untethered.
Paying attention to what we want this chapter to look like is both challenging and thrilling. It’s a huge opportunity to dream those dreams that may have put on the back burner. A time to look at ourselves in a new way. To view the world as a gift we are about to open.
But first, we must know where we are going.
We must know where we are going on a trip before we can pack our suitcase.
We must know where our errand is taking us before we back out of the driveway and start driving.
We need to know how much that gorgeous pair of shoes is before we start saving for them.
It’s not any different when it comes to retirement or partial retirement.
Where do we want to be in this phase? What does it look like? There’s a huge amount of value in being curious and discovering what we want to feel like in this next chapter.
What will replace the things we will leave behind in the workplace?
Will there be a need to find a new social circle? Or at least, part of one? What will take up our days when we aren’t touring Rome or visiting grandkids?
What kinds of new things do we want to learn or do?
When the structure of 9-5 is gone, that may feel like we have become adrift – how will we put some structure back into our day?
What is our purpose now that deadlines and weekly meetings are gone?
When we take time to trust ourselves and our inner desires to the kind of life that is important to us, we can allow our new chapters to be written thoughtfully.
When we take time to really envision what retirement looks and feels like in many areas of our life, it’s easier to find that “where”.
It is not that different from the strategic plan you did at work, but it will always be fluid because life is fluid. Knowing where we are going, how we want it to feel and what we aim for it to look like, we will help us begin to take steps to a vibrant season in life.
Find your destination before you travel so you don’t end up with boots and a down coat in Figi.
Until next time, Keep Blooming, friends!
Pam