Do These Five Psychological Tasks Before Retiring

How do you know it’s time to say “I retire”? Most people don’t get to choose, but for those who do, it may be one of the most consequential decisions we ever make. Being able to say goodbye means two rare things come together like in a Venn diagram. You need to have enough money to retire on (about 38% of people approaching their mid-sixties) and a job you like and that likes you back, without age discrimination or physical and mental limitations. The intersection is only about 11% of people in their mid-sixties have enough money to retire and still work. Deciding to retire in a culture that praises work and makes you ashamed for wanting leisure is hard.

As a retirement researcher, I was sympathetic to President Biden’s initial resistance to quit his candidacy and admire him for overcoming powerful psychological and social factors to retire. Older worker with enough money to retire, like the President, are generally highly skilled, have high levels of job satisfaction, authority, status, and control over their work. All big losses when you quit.