Done With Work

  Larry Gard, Ph.D. We’ve all seen the ads on television telling us to plan for retirement and save more money. They’re absolutely correct and the earlier you start the better. But whether or not you build the nest egg you want, you still need to be psychologically prepared. In fact, I’ve encountered many financially comfortable people who were surprised by how strongly their emotions impacted their transition to retirement. You can’t go from the present to an active and meaningful retirement without giving it some thought. It simply doesn’t emerge on its own. What Has Been Satisfying? Long term, you need a strategy to figure out what is going to be interesting, meaningful, compelling, and rewarding. As a starting point, one exercise I do with clients involves determining key satisfactions derived from work and then identifying alternatives that can provide similar benefits. For example, perhaps one satisfying thing about work is that it allows you to tackle problems. You don’t nee...