As an IFA specialising in retirement planning and advice I can assure you that you're not alone in feeling like this.
Having something to 'retire to' is as important as having something to 'retire from. Many people struggle emotionally with the loss of status and moving from 'I'm Des ... the XYX' to 'I'm Des, I'm retired' - society has a way of making us feel that being retired we have nothing to contribute.
A great option for many which works really well is reducing hours, not sure if it's an option for you, but it gives people a chance to build their identity outside work, which still keeping the routine and status. I personally love the idea of a 3 day week as it seems the ideal tipping point of a non-work week being longer than a working week ... imagine that Friday feeling every third day!
I run retirement courses for university staff, with a big part of this focusing on the emotional aspect.
A good strategy is to plan your ideal week, and what it will consist of; there are loads of options from voluntary work, family, travelling, DIY ... it's a cliche, but if I had a pound for each time I hear 'I don't know how I managed to fit in time to work' then I'd have lots of pounds!!
I've actually built a 'Retirement Scorecard' that you may find helpful. It's a tool which people tell us helps clarify their thinking around retirement and how ready they are, financially and emotionally - it 'scores' you in several aspects of planning for retirement and you receive a personalised report which will have a series of specific tips and actions based on your score in each area.
Feel free to take a look ... it should take a few minutes and we've had great feedback since launching it for our pre-retirement courses earlier this year...
https://confidentretirement.scoreapp.com
Originally Posted by Re-sign Carl Dale
As an IFA specialising in retirement planning and advice I can assure you that you're not alone in feeling like this.
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