We have read about young billionaires retiring early from active work and enjoying the sun set days that was advanced on their own volition.
A young billionaire with prudent investment decisions is assured of passive income that keeps the life going with not much change in life style.
We have also heard of wealthy individuals, though not in great numbers, turning into a spiritual or a philanthropic life spending their life earnings on poor people. That indeed is a laudable and noble achievement.
Could everyone aspire to be in any of the above categories? Definitely not.
How do we and when do we make that decision to retire from active work? There are some possible scenarios that look adequately safe to take that decision:
– you are in mid 30’s and you are left with a fortune in the form of real estate and stocks that could only swell year on year. The earnings keep you going as long as you are not a lavish spender.
– you have landed in a job due to your technical / business acumen and that you earn a high compensation. You work there for 12-15 years, save enough money with wise investment decisions and retirement year seems nearer when you are not avarice to earn more and more. Yours is a high pressure job that affects your health and you think of retirement . Your family fully supports you as your time is available to them all the time.
– you have worked for 25+ years, your children are in a position to take good care of themselves, saved enough money, created good assets but don’t want to continue in the high pressure work environment, has a liking towards travel with your spouse. Retirement is no problem for you.
– you are running your own business, have grown it to a reasonable size, created successor from within or outside the family to run the business, takes good returns from the business, finds it no longer exciting, takes a liking towards starting NGOs to help social causes. Retirement is not a hard decision for you.
– yours is a double engine run family of husband and wife with practically no commitments ( double income with no children, parents not with you). You have high savings that will sustain you for long years and hence retirement becomes a good option to take.
What could be other reasons or scenarios you think of ? Feel free to share your views.
#retirement
THE PULSE by Sivakumar Gopal 