Preparing for Retirement

Retirement is an exciting opportunity as well as a time of significant change and challenge. Here are some principles and activities I found particularly helpful as I prepared for life without employment.

Take plenty of time to think, pray, plan and prepare before you finish work. Start 12 to 18 months beforehand. It takes time, so be patient. It’s an opportunity to dream, think and pray about this new season of life. In what ways might God be calling you to serve? What new hobbies might you try? Reflect on what you’d like your life legacy to be and what you’d need to do to make that a reality. Some ideas may be obvious but expect surprises too. It’s good to take soundings from those who know you well, including those ahead of you on the retirement journey. I went on retreat several times. Others might find setting aside a morning or afternoon each quarter more realistic.

Use a journal to record your journey towards retirement, including possibilities and dreams for the future, as well as questions you may have. This will appeal more to some than others. However, it’s worth trying. It means all your ideas are in one place. From time-to-time revisit what you’ve written. My journal included sections for:

• Thoughts and ideas, including any conversations, sermons, incidents or pictures that fed into them.
• A to-do list to move your planning forward.
• Lists of possibilities for voluntary service and leisure activities.
• Some “criteria” for sifting options for the future. Identify pros and cons of your main options and some next steps. This clarified which possibilities I was most enthusiastic about.

How will you leave paid employment well? Are there particular “legacies” you’d like to leave for your workplace or profession? What life skills have you learned in employment that may be useful in your new life stage and worth sharing with others?

Take a gap of several months after you finish work, before you take on any new responsibilities or areas of service. This acts as a buffer and allows you to unwind, take stock and develop new rhythms. It also means you can consider invitations to get involved in new activities or areas of service strategically, rather than chronologically. Go away if you can (we cover creative ways to do this on the course). It will help you move on from the established patterns of many years at work.

Consider ways to develop your devotional life, now that you don’t have to rush out the door first thing every morning. Explore a new rhythm, pace and balance for this new phase of life, recognising that your energy levels are reducing.

What are the implications of supporting others and being supported, as you are perceived to have more time and as you grow older? If you’re married, consider together the implications for you and your partner both being at home far more. Also, how will you introduce yourself in future (without using a job or profession) and where will your self-worth come from, especially if work has been important to you.

These topics are covered in more depth in the Retiring Well Course and Retiring Well Workbooks About Retiring Well | Helen’s Headlines

Helen Calder is the author of the Retiring Well Course and Workbooks. She finished work in 2016 having worked at a senior level in industry before moving to the Christian charity sector, where she was part of the leadership teams at All Souls Church, Langham Place and Evangelical Alliance.