Ever since I found out what it is I want to be when I grow up, I've switched to thinking about what I want to do wihen I retire. Somewhere along the way I realized, that when I'm grown up, all I want to be is young again... but since I haven't figured out how to get off this train where I am growing old, I keep thinking about what I will do when I retire.
It seems to me the biggest problem with retiring which in my mind equates to discontinuing traditional employment is what am I to do with all my free time.
I have an uncanny knack of spending money like it is going out of style - working actually helps me keep my retail habit in check. So this retirement thing could really work out to be prohibitively expensive. Besides I have this ambition to finish seeing the world, and with all the elite frequent flyer status I've been qualifying for, I am getting used to the good life.. travelling coach will be a major hardship.
Retirement was starting to seem like a nuisance until I met the Sheths. The Sheths had just retired from AT&T after some 30 years of service. They were both in relatively good health, and wanted to experience different cultures.
So here they were on a 1 year contract with my company living and working in New Delhi. They went to new employee orientation with 22 year olds. And then came to work with gusto - Absent of any political affiliations or career ambitions, the Sheths had loyalty only to the integrity of their deliverables. And man, did they have a great time. They turned out some of the best work on the project, they saw every play in the city, attended every musical recital they were interested in and accompanied me to the Ananda spa. They made more friends in 12 months then i think I have in the last 5 years.
Every one of their friends in the US leveraged their presence in Delhi to complete a tour of the Golden Triangle, using the Sheths home as headquarters. 12 months later, after having sampled all that the city had to offer, the Sheths packed their bags and returned to their home in NJ to reconnect with family and friends. 3 months ago they did a stint in Australia, and now they are on their way to Denmark.
I now know what i want to do when I grow up (or retire) - I want to live like the Sheths - picking the country I want to visit - and going there to live and work like a local for a full 6-12 months rather than being a tourist.
Of course there are a few things I still need to learn from the Sheths. Though I've been living in Delhi for a full 2 years and speaking like a local, shopping at the usual malls and local markets - I have yet to see a play or go to a music recital. But I have many years to learn that.
Don't even think of retiring at this age, just because financial independence has been achieved. I tried it and discovered that there is way too much energy, drive and curiosity left to make retiring viable. There is only that much of golf, sailing, gardening etc. you can do to fill up all the time you have on your hands. IMHO, keeping yourself enjoyably occupied is the way to go.
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