How to Assess if You’re Mentally Ready for Retirement

We all know that how well you’re financially prepared for retirement plays a significant role in your ability to enjoy your golden years. After all, according to a recent Forbes article, approximately 50% of Americans consistently report they will struggle or are currently struggling financially with respect to retirement. Confirming this data are Federal Reserve Bank of New York statistics that reveal the debt burden for people in their 60s and 70s has increased significantly over the last two decades.

While having enough money to enjoy retirement is a significant challenge, there is another less-buzzworthy component of the retirement equation that is often just as imposing: mental preparation.

Many new retirees are often surprised to learn that in addition to a lot more time on their hands, they also face negative psychological effects they hadn’t anticipated: such as feelings of uselessness and a lack of purpose. In fact, it’s estimated that for roughly a quarter of retirees, life after work involves isolation and a loss of direction.

In our quest to help make the transition to retirement a bit smoother for you, we’ve identified five questions for you to ponder before venturing into retirement.

Do you have a shared vision for your retirement?

Thinking about where you and your spouse want to live during retirement is a good start. U.S. News & World Report publishes an annual “Best Places to Retire” study based on various factors including taxes, affordable housing, happiness ratings, and desirability. This is often the perfect place to begin if you’re unsure about where to spend your golden years.

Should you both envision residing someplace new, consider renting before you buy as a practical experiment. This is especially important if this new area is located far away from friends and family or you haven’t previously lived there. As a worst-case scenario, if you both find yourselves unhappy in this new locale, you’ll likely enjoy the ability to pivot more quickly and with less hassle given no need to sell a home.

After deciding where to live, spend time figuring out what you plan to do with your newfound freedom. You’ll hear from many retirees that retirement, in itself, is sometimes boring. Exploring new hobbies helps. Have you always wanted to paint? Learn to play golf? Take guitar lessons? Beyond these popular pastimes, volunteering is also a great way to get out of the house and into the world during retirement—and it can have a profound impact on your happiness. Regardless of what you decide, the goal here is to find new, interesting activities to fill your time while putting your mind and body to work. You want to pinpoint pursuits that inspire you and give you a new sense of purpose.

Will your spouse work while you are retired?

Another conversation to have with your spouse is whether or not each of you will retire at different times, thus relieving any potential tension before it arises in this regard. Basic activities such as rising at the same time every day (versus one spouse always sleeping in), assigning household chores, and staying occupied and not feeling trapped at home while your spouse works are often significant factors involved in maintaining a healthy marriage.

How do you feel about leaving the workforce?

If you’re like many retirees, the initial thought of retirement may excite you. You’ll now have more time to fill with those dream vacations you’ve placed on the backburner for so long and time-consuming projects put off due to your work schedule. However, at some point, this honeymoon phase (typically a few months post-retirement) will end once these projects are complete and you realize there’s only so much traveling one can do (and finance!).

Consequently, it’s not uncommon for retirees to report a number of emotional changes in the first years after retirement. Many admit to feelings of inadequacy or a loss of identity. This is particularly true for people whose lives revolved heavily around their careers. Given that many friendships arise and are nurtured in the workplace, feelings of loneliness are also prevalent.

For some soon-to-be retirees, perhaps a slower transition to retirement makes the most sense: such as reducing your hours over time rather than doing so abruptly. In this way, you can ease into this new phase and identify passions you may have outside of work.

How will you strengthen your relationships?

Strong interpersonal relationships are chock full of numerous benefits. In fact, Harvard research has found that people who are more socially connected are happier, healthier, and live longer than their less-connected peers. Isolation, on the other hand, can yield devastating effects: such as a decline in brain function and a shorter life span. According to Dan Buettner, author of Blue Zones—a book dedicated to uncovering the secrets of longevity—loneliness has the potential to shave eight years off of your life. This is reason enough to seek out strong bonds and connections with those closest to you.

How active will you be in retirement?

If you find yourself watching more TV as you get older, you’re not alone. Statista states that the more you age, the more time you spend engaging in this activity. As a result, the biggest culprits are people ages 65 and older; this age group, on average, spends more than seven hours a day in front of the television!

Living a sedentary lifestyle is associated with inferior health outcomes including heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, and cancer. Moreover, deteriorating health conditions can also negatively impact your wallet given additional prescriptions, co-pays, and perhaps even commuting expenses.

According to various sources including WebMD, just 30 minutes of daily activity that gets your heart going and blood pumping (such as a brisk walk) can lower your blood pressure, keep your bones, muscles, and joints healthy, ease symptoms of depression or anxiety, lower your chances of heart disease, and help you better manage chronic conditions such as diabetes and arthritis.

The bottom line is that the more active you are, the greater the chance you’ll stay healthy during retirement.

In sum: final thoughts on psychologically preparing to retire

Retirement can arrive sooner than you might have expected. According to a recent economic wellbeing report published by the Federal Reserve, 45% of retirees claim they were forced into retirement due to health issues (29%), the need to care for a family member (15%), or a lack of work (11%).

What these numbers ultimately reveal is that retirement can sometimes arrive sooner than you expect. Therefore, it’s critical to not only prepare to enjoy retirement financially but to equip yourself to address the psychological and emotional aspects of retirement as well. Hopefully, this post got you off to a good start in this regard.

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Vision Retirement is an independent registered advisor (RIA) firm headquartered in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Launched in 2006 to better help people prepare for retirement and feel more confident in their decision-making, our firm’s mission is to provide clients with clarity and guidance so they can enjoy a comfortable and stress-free retirement. To schedule a no-obligation consultation with one of our financial advisors, please click here.

Disclosures:
This document is a summary only and is not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual or business.