When do you want to retire?

So I put in my salary on Blind's Salary Comparison tool and realised over 65% of people with the same job title earn more than I do. I'm not from the Bay Area, maybe thats why, but at this pace I feel like I can never retire.

I know a good portion of you are well off and some may already be retired. I'm curious to see what age you are planning to retire and what measures you have been/ are taking to retire (possibly early?)

 

I don't differentiate "work" as this big separate area of life. It's all just one big thing. So in that sense, never.

heister: Look at all these wannabe richies hating on an expensive salad. https://arthuxtable.com/
 
pip_1:
Um bro,

What do you do for a living?

Well I wake up and I write in a journal. And then I read books. I go for a walk, work out, and do some more reading in the sauna. I listen to podcasts and cook dinner. Many systems I've set up are running in the background. Some of them provide income. Some of them are more hands-on than others. When something requires my attention, I give it my full attention to put out the fire, and then I focus on adjusting the system so that if the event occurs again, my attention will either not be required or I will have systems in place to handle the event more efficiently next time and be better positioned to automate it out with next time's lessons. I can then get back to learning about the world. Over the course of learning about the world, ideas come up. Some of them can be categorized as artistic. Some can be categorized as business ideas. There's often overlap. Ultimately, I just pursue whatever I find myself drawn to. If the goal is money, then we maximize for money. If the goal is art, then we go in that direction.

heister: Look at all these wannabe richies hating on an expensive salad. https://arthuxtable.com/
 

It depends. If you mean retire in some glory riding off into the sunset in some Jaguar E Type without a care in the world, never. I would like to drive cool cars and have LESS obligations, but ultimately I would explode if I do nothing.

If you mean "retire" like managing some rental properties, being able to sleep in (to me sleeping in is 8:30A), being able to control more of my life- then as soon as possible. Ultimately, the goal comes down to freedom. Will my investments provide me with the income to sustain the lifestyle I want? Once I hit that point, I will still do stuff to earn income. But it'll be because I *want *to, not *have *to.

“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.” - Nassim Taleb
 

Very true. There is so much I would love to do if I didn't have to work. If I knew I could retire comfortable now, I would never look back. Even when people see news about how someone won the lottery, I always hear them say "I'd still work". Lol, if I won millions of dollars, id be so gone.

Dayman?
 

Those people work 40 hours not 100 and don't mind the 9-5 life forever. It's a lot different. You are the one who needs to get some hobbies.

 

My dad retired a few months ago after working for 45 years and he almost went into depression. I agree that he is not a guy who has a serious hobby, just random stuff like riding a motorbike, skiing, etc but I think some people are a bit lost without the structure that having to go to work gives to their life. Like, now he goes to bed at 4 am and wakes up at 11. Also, it can be quite isolating if all your friends are still working and you were used to being surrounded by people at the office (he was a manager).

For me the ideal age would be 35, and I would probably split my time between travelling and going back to study astrophysics before my brain gets too old.

 

This is such a dumb response I'm about to say, but it's the truth...

When you love what you do, you never want to retire.

...In your heart you feel you are so good at what you do that you want to wake up every day and show the world. It's an addictive feeling, and it's real.

Just understand that because you haven't found "it", doesn't mean that it doesn't exist.

Happy Hunting

 
Most Helpful

"So I put in my salary on Blind's Salary Comparison tool and realised over 65% of people with the same job title earn more than I do"

You'll never retire if you keep on comparing yourself to others.

I left my career recently (I am older than you). If I compared myself to my friends who are now making MD in banking and raking in huge bonuses, or my other friends in PE who are now starting to get the fruit of their carry I wouldn't be able to do what I am doing.

You need to detach yourself from others and only think of what YOU need. Start doing the math, how much is your mortgage, or your savings path to get a mortgage. It's easy to lose yourself and keep track of what is a normal life when all your friends are gloating about their new bentley, but it's doable. Also I've realised that my friends who are now making bank with their basic requirements met don't really spend it, it just accumulates in a bank account with little use. As long as you are not a sociopath who craves for world dominance - look at YOUR salary and only think of yourself.

 

First off - stop doing that immediately. Not only are most salary comparison tools way off, you can easily end up with biases that are all over the place depending on the data, company, geography, time of year, flood table, etc.

Secondly, as others have said, stop comparing yourself to others.

Third, and once you've done the first two, start figuring out what experience you can build that will set you up to do what you want to do, explore things you aren't sure you want to do or just interest you. Don't worry about the 'money' part, as if you are continuously worried about the incremental $5k - $25k you'll end up stuck, unhappy with whatever you do and it really isn't a good thing.

The other reality is that, until you hit a certain amount of compensation, your incremental couple thousand a year simply isn't going to matter. Throw away the "if you save 5 dollars a day, at 10% returns, by the time you are XX..." at this juncture, you need to build a foundation of skills that you leverage for higher earning power as you hit your late twenties, thirties and beyond. Focus on that and tell everyone else to fuck off. I certainly wish I would have.

 
Addinator:
"if you save 5 dollars a day, at 10% returns, by the time you are XX..."

This is exactly what I think about all the time. I guess a lot of others are in the same boat.

Thanks so much for taking the time to address & support my thinking process. (Will direct it towards stuff that will make a better me, than just the calculations)

 

Definitely has to do with location. Everything in the Bay is inflated because its so damn expensive to live over there. It could also have to do with underpayment, in which case you might want to consider both factors in your decision.

Also retirement ages have been getting pushed further and further out because people are living longer, and the money they had at 65 will now have to last people for over 20 years. Many people also used to want the 100% retirement too.

I love to work so no matter how old I get I can't imagine fully retiring, but at some point I will definitely cut back on the hours and make work a "side thing". I think mid 50s would be great to have some side income and have enough saved to live life more freely. Some people will aim for sooner but I see this as a really realistic goal. Also I'm in California so its really expensive out here.

Array
 

Is tomorrow an option?

Seriously though, after I leave my current job I would like to spend most of my time on smaller projects and investments. I’ve gone all in on a startup and exclusively focused on that for 8 years. I’d like my next career phase to be more about diversified, smaller investments that don’t require managing many, if any, people.

 

Whenever I hit my number (hopefully within 5-10 yr) I will likely go back to my business school or undergrad and get involved in teaching and running an industry immersion type platform for the students. I like writing on the chalkboard and believe I would enjoy the social aspects. I was very into academics in engineering and b-school, at one point considered a PhD in engineering. I feel like I could give a week worth of lectures that would add more value than years of worthless classtime.

 

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