Retirement? No.

A concept I came across not so long ago is to ‘Never Retire’. But still have question in mind – will you consider Retirement ?

This was at odds with what I had seen all along. People have jobs or business, they flourish in them, they earn enough or have a pension to sustain them, and then they take ‘retirement’. For them, retirement is a time when they can enjoy the fruits of the labor they undertook when they were younger. The reality may be different though knowing how unfair life can be, but that’s the idea.

This retirement concept and assuming that you cannot do much beyond a certain age is more prevalent in India, it appears. You will find people who after the age of 60 of 65 would start proclaiming that ‘I can’t do much work in this age’, ‘my body is giving up’, ‘I keep forgetting’ etc. In US, you can easily find 75-80 yrs olds living independently taking complete care of themselves together. It isn’t uncommon to see very old couples doing their shopping in Walmarts, go out to have dinner, go for movies, and volunteer their time for some social cause. You may even find them having a job at many stores.

The concept of ‘Never Retire’ emphasizes that you must continue doing what you love and what is productive until your story ends. The focus at a later stage in your life may not be to accumulate wealth but to utilize your knowledge and assets for the betterment of yourself, your dear ones, and your society. You must have a purpose that drives you.

If you think more about it, the following are some additional benefits of never retiring –
1. Keeps your body fitter
2. Gives required mental stimulation so that your brain cells don’t die
3. Gives you a social life
4. Lowers the chances of dementia
5. Keeps you focussed on a purpose, rather than counting your days in old age.

Have a purpose and focus. Don’t look for that wrongly glorified day when you will have enough and will retire never to worry about anything again. After a certain time in your career, that day is always there and never there. It only depends on how you see it. There is no end to how much you can accumulate and no day when you don’t have reasons to worry. The only important thing is what you choose to focus on.

Don’t look for retirement. Look for fulfillment.

Retirement won’t bring you happiness, fulfillment will.

One Life. Live Boundless.