Are you experiencing the retirement glitch?
Transitioning into retirement is retiring to something, not from something. After careful planning and preparation, you find fulfillment doing things you looked forward to for years. You’re taking care of yourself emotionally, physically, and mentally. You’re finding yourself a new purpose.
Let’s call this Retirement 1.0, and you are loving it!!
Then you experience a glitch. The Pandemic.
It’s temporary, but you don’t know how long it will last. In trying to manage through, you hold on to what you had. That’s when you run up against limiting your new-found “freedom”:
quarantining, canceling a long-awaited vacation, unable to give back and volunteer, not being able to spend time with your children, grandchildren, and parents, and putting a hold on your health, wellness, and fitness plans. The list goes on.
The more you try to cling to Retirement 1.0, the more you will feel the glitch. It hurts. It’s frustrating.
I reached out to clients to find out how they were doing and what I could do to help them manage through the glitch.
Many are embracing the glitch, even though their “retirement dream” has come to a standstill.
Money planned for travel is now spent on a home remodel, exercise equipment, or a charitable contribution, to name a few. Others are learning about technology, reading, studying a new language, writing books, starting new hobbies, becoming more skilled in the kitchen, or adopting a pet.
What about post-Pandemic, after COVID-19 is behind us? Let’s call that Retirement 2.0.
Daryl Diamond, a retirement income planning specialist in Winnipeg, has taken a unique way to help clients look forward to Retirement 2.0. He asks them to prepare two bucket lists: One for things they want to do close to home, and another for what they want to do after the pandemic is over. This approach is about taking care of yourself and making sure to avoid frustrations mentioned earlier.
Many retirees may now feel disillusioned. “This is not what retirement is supposed to be,” they may say to themselves.
So if you find yourself stuck and out-of-sorts, reach out to friends, family, former co-workers, or a professional about managing the glitch in your long-awaited plans, then start planning for Retirement 2.0.
Remember, we are all in this together.
