Life after work

I have always been a firm believer in quitting while ahead, in leaving the party at five to midnight when I can still stand, rather than being dumped, lipstick-smeared and incoherent, on the doorstep at 5am. Also, years of interviewing entrepreneurs and CEOs, women who had risked everything to go it alone, had left their mark. Despite the perceived glamour — the business lunches and free handbags, the taxis, and shoes in which I could barely walk from car to bar — I had a growing and inexorable feeling that there was life beyond what I regarded as the world.

Reflecting On Five Years Of Early Retirement

And try as I might — and for a year or so I did try — I could not ignore it. More, I no longer wanted to ignore it. Others took it further, cornering me in the Ladies at industry dos as if I was the dealer of a new and addictive drug. Did I regret it? Some days yes, most days no.

Would I recommend it? What would I do? I had never been so sought-after in my life. Unwittingly I had become a poster girl for that singularly 21st-century fantasy: You can argue that reinvention is a peculiarly middle-class obsession, one that strikes at a certain career stage. But according to Blair it has little to do with age. Sam Baker with her husband Jon Grimwood. So what does it say about us that, in a society which defines itself through work, we can spend our lives building a professional identity only to yearn to divest ourselves of its trappings? There are many explanations.

But the desire to reinvent oneself is more than just demographics. Blair, whose new book, The Key to Calm published by Hodder next month , addresses this question, argues that with the world changing so quickly around us, and not a day passing without a new technological development, we are in the midst of a revolution more radical than any before. In the midst of change we have three choices: Those opting for reinvention are not — far from what people might think — stepping off.

They are simply seeking to do it on their own terms. Reinvention, while undeniably about freedom, is not necessarily about escaping the rat race. I had nowhere to go, nothing to do, I was not important anymore. In short, I was the lifer banging on the prison gates to be let back in.

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I had expected this, but the urge to sprint back to corporate safety was huge. This is not an uncommon experience. Lindsay, a fellow journalist who recently left her full-on, full-time job and took a part-time job in order to concentrate on writing, had a similar culture shock. I feel too guilty not to do my share in some way or another. Even though there are moments of stressing about money, something usually comes up.

And the freedom to go and see my mum and not have to cram it into a hour period has been life-changing. I was so institutionalised by office life, I never really considered that you could do it another way.

What could have been such a fulfilling change slips through their fingers. Six weeks to break a bad habit, another six weeks to form a good one. The year anniversary is most significant. A friend who took the leap from a senior job in retail agrees.

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Some 28 percent of recent retirees polled by Nationwide Retirement Institute last fall said that life was worse in retirement than it was when they were working. It's one of several surveys to find that, for roughly a quarter of retirees, life after work involves isolation and a loss of direction. Spouses James Pawelski and Suzann Pileggi Pawelski, who study and write extensively about the route to happiness, say few people realize that planning for retirement contentment is as important as planning for economic health.

He adds that "the habits formed before we are 50 are the biggest determinant on how well you retire. Money may not guarantee retirement happiness--but paying attention to it is a good first step. Once you retire, you'll want to be able to cover your regular bills without worry, says Robert Frick, the corporate economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. To reach financial security, take three concrete steps: Pay off debts; consider moving to a smaller residence; and create regular sources of income.

Yes, There's Life After Work — But You Have to Work For It

Frick advocates paying off all debts, including your mortgage. If making mortgage payments once you're retired is likely to be tough, he suggests making it a late-life career goal. If you can't pay off the house before you retire, consider downsizing, he adds: Finally, if you won't have enough regular income to cover your fixed expenses in retirement, consider creating a "pension" to fill the gap.



You can do this by buying income annuities, which promise to pay a set monthly amount for life, just like a pension. You can do this when you retire by buying so-called immediate annuities, which start paying you a monthly stipend right away. Make sure to avoid what are known as variable deferred annuities, which are higher-cost products with less impressive returns.



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If you're more than five years away from retirement, you can create this sort of pension the same way you build your k account, through regular monthly investments. Lauren Minches, vice president at financial-technology startup Blueprint Income, says this approach has many advantages.

It lets you diversify your annuities among a wide range of insurers, reducing the chance that any one company's failure could derail your savings.

How To Be More Productive After Work - Make Life Fun!

Income annuity returns are also set on the date of purchase, and interest rates are historically low today. By buying over time, you can potentially earn higher returns, boosting your monthly income.