Life After Retirement A Fresh Beginning
Life after retirement work, keeping busy after retirement, retirement schemes
Till the late 19th and the early 20th centuries, a person usually worked
till his death or till he is was longer able to work on the job he was
doing; whichever was earlier. In the latter case he had to depend on his
life savings or his family to meet his daily needs. There were no pension
schemes. At present, most developed and some developing countries, have
some sort of retirement benefits which the individual can rely on in his
old age. The money required for this pension fund is partly contributed
by the individual and partly by the employer or Government and is based
on a certain percentage of his salary. The age of retirement usually varies
from 55 to 70 which depends on the kind of work that the individual was
performing. Here in the United States it is normal to retire at the age
of 65.
Planning Your Retirement
The life style of a person after his retirement is completely changed.
There is no longer any need for you to get up early and get ready to go
to work. You will have nothing to do and after some life will become boring.
With the income that was coming in stopped, life will become stressful.
Well that is the situation you will be and how are you going to avoid
this situation? The simplest answer to this is that you should plan your
retirement finances early. Your company may not have a pension fund, so
you will have to start your own savings early, the earlier the better.
See that a fixed amount of money goes into the account regularly without
fail. This requires discipline. Most people fail to do so after a few
months.
Another suggestion is to take out an insurance policy; an endowment policy.
This is an insurance scheme that pays you a predefined sum of money after
the lapse of a specified period or at death whichever comes earlier. The
policy holder pays an amount called a premium regularly, either monthly,
quarterly or half yearly during the life of the policy. Some policy have
an accident provision added to it so that it pays out a sum of money if
the policy holder meets with a major accident or illness. If you go in
for such a kind of insurance policy see that it expires near your retirement
age. These are just a few ideas for your retirement planning.
After Retirement What?
The things that you can do after are many. Now is the time to do the things
that you always wanted to do but could not find the time to do it. But
whatever you do, it is your choice and you should enjoy doing it. Some
people simply potter around their homes engaged in some form of leisure
activities. Some who have always wanted to travel take a long vacation
and go to the places they wanted to see and enjoy or just pick a place
from the magazines or travel brochures that they read and set out to see
those places. Most people have some sort of hobby that they have indulged
in and can now put in all their efforts to develop their hobby. Hobbies
like playing golf, collecting stamps etc.
Some others who are mobile and want to work look for new career opportunities
after retirement. With the introduction of the Senior Citizens Freedom
To Work Act of 2000 which permits senior citizens to continue earning
a salary or the loss of Social Security; many retired persons have used
this option.
Some who have been careful and saved or invested their earnings wisely
and have a substantial nest egg, go into some sort of business after their
retirement. They could set up a small shop. If you had a green hand and
some open space you could start a small kitchen garden and sell the produce
that you grow. If you had a knack for cooking you could start a small
restaurant and get a decent income out of it.
Conclusion
Retirement does not have to put a full stop to your active life. It is
actually the start of a fresh life. A life that can be filled with excitement
if you choose to do so. It is you who is going to live this life after
retirement. Plan your retirement early. Save for a rainy day. Lead a peaceful
life and you may still contribute something to society.
