The Myth of a Static Retirement
The biggest myth about retirement? That once you get past the adjustment phase, the rest will fall into place.
Many expect some initial upheaval when they first retire, but assume that once they get it figured out, they’ll settle into a stable routine for the rest of their retirement.
This is not a realistic assumption.
Retirement = Change
Why shouldn’t retirement be like any other time in life, when things are constantly changing?
Retirement isn’t a fixed destination. Like every other life stage, it’s full of surprises:
• You’ll discover new interests.
• Curiosity may pull you in unexpected directions.
• Relationships will shift—some deepen, others fade.
• You might relocate or downsize.
• Your health and energy will decline over time.
Far from being static, you can expect and plan for change in retirement.
Retirement Plans Are Good—But Don’t Get Too Attached
Recognizing that change is inevitable doesn’t mean you shouldn’t plan—it just means your plans need to flex with you.
Some retirement planners, especially those with a financial background, treat retirement like a financial projection—set it once and stick to it. But life after work isn’t linear. What appears to be a solid plan on paper can become irrelevant as your interests and values evolve.
You won’t know what your retirement will be like until you’re retired.
You won’t know what your retirement will be like until you’re actually living it.
I made plans before I retired. Ten years later, I’m not doing most of the things I thought I’d be doing.
It takes time away from work to figure out who you are and what you want to do. As Celia Dodd wrote in Not Fade Away: How to Thrive in Retirement, “People often need to put a bit of distance between their new life and their main career to discover what really drives them.”
Practical Tips for a Changing Retirement
Before you retire, it’s valuable to consider the issues surrounding retirement. It’s also helpful to make a tentative plan. However, despite all this preparation, you can still expect it to change over time.
Here are four tips to deal with change in retirement.
• Give yourself time to decompress when you retire. Usually, there’s an initial honeymoon period when you first retire. That’s when you just enjoy not having to go to work, not having schedules and routines, and you can spend time doing whatever you enjoy doing. Take full advantage of the honeymoon phase. Enjoy the freedom.
• Don’t commit to too many things too quickly. Don’t rush into commitments or routines right away—you need space to breathe, reflect, and recalibrate. Don’t tie yourself down and preclude other options that may arise later as you transition into retirement. See my recent blog post, How One Wrong Yes in Retirement Taught Me a Bigger Lesson.
• Give yourself time and distance to figure out who you really are and how you want to reinvent yourself. Take the necessary time to allow curiosity to lead you into different areas, try on things for size, and decide what fits and what doesn’t fit.
• If you have a formal retirement plan, consider it as tentative and expect it to change. Think of your retirement plan as a living document. Keep adjusting it as you learn more about what this season of life is really about for you.
Stay Open to the Journey
Retirement isn’t something you figure out once and then coast through; it’s a process that requires ongoing planning and adjustment. It’s a process of continuing discovery.
Let yourself evolve. Don’t be afraid to change your mind or take a different path than you expected.
Take a few minutes this week to review your retirement expectations. Where do you need more space to change—and how could you begin making room for that now?
AI Note: I wrote this blog post myself, using my own words and thoughts for the initial draft. I used AI only to suggest headlines, section headings, and text improvements.
When I post links to product pages on Amazon, my links include a referral code, which allows me to receive a small percentage of the sale when products are purchased after clicking on the link. While the amount I receive is small, it helps to defray some of the costs of running this site and gives me a small vested interest in having readers purchase products using these links. That said, I strive to only include links to products I believe are worth purchasing.