Why I’m no Longer Waiting for Retirement

retirement poster

I spent a good part of my life waiting. First I couldn’t wait until I graduated from college so I could start living. Once I graduated, I couldn’t wait to get a good paying job so I could start living. Once I got a decent job, I began waiting for retirement so I could start living. I worked as much overtime as I could to fatten up my 401k while telling myself almost daily “I can’t wait until retirement than I can finally enjoy life.”

One day I ran into a friend of mine who recently retired. I was envious of him and thought him so lucky to finally be able to live and no longer have to work. I inquired as to how he was enjoying his newly found freedom. He had much to say about it and his answer came as quite a shock to me.

“What a waste of a life,” he said with a sigh. “When I finally took the time to examine my life, I realized that I spent my entire lifetime in the acquisition of things I didn’t need or really even want. I spent years in eternal drudgery and what did I end up with? A house full of crap. I was so busy worrying about making money and saving for retirement that I forgot to live. But now I’m too old, too sick and too tired. I wasted my youth chasing after money when I should have been chasing after life.”

That’s when I started thinking about my own goals and my own future. I began to comprehend that the greatest gift we have is life and we have a choice on how to utilize this gift. We can either spend it chasing after money or spend it by actually living. My focus slowly changed as I realized that somehow I had subconsciously decided that I would live later – first after graduating, then when I found a good job, then when I reached retirement age. What was I thinking? It’s almost like saying “I can’t wait until I die.” After all, this life we’re living at the moment is not just a practice run but the real thing. This is it. This is our one chance. Life is to be experienced right now, not 20 or 40 years down the road when we feel we finally have enough time and/or money. Why wait to enjoy life when we’re too sickly or too tired to take advantage of it? So many of us waste our youth in the endless pursuit of money rather than in living life fully. In the past, I personally have passed up many vacation opportunities because I figured that the money would be better spent by being put away for retirement rather then be spent foolishly on something as wasteful as personal enjoyment.

These days my priorities are different as I remember my friend’s words. I try to consciously pull myself into the moment as much as possible rather than constantly thinking of the future or dwelling in the past. My focal point is no longer only on work or making money (and subsequently on being a good consumer) but on life itself. Experiencing as much as possible during my life and cultivating my relationships with friends and family is now my goal. It has been said that those who scream the loudest on their deathbeds are those who never lived. Imagine the horror as you realize during your last moments on earth that you neglected to live!

I have come up with 10 ways which have personally helped me to focus on living in the moment. This list is by no means exhaustive. That’s the fun part of life – finding your own ways to live!

These are just a few things that I have tried to apply to my own life:

Stop waiting for retirement, your next big break or more free time to live. Make a conscious effort to partake of life now.
Travel often. Try to see and experience as much as you can while you have your youth and your health. Try not to put it off until tomorrow because tomorrow may not come.
Live in the present moment. Consciously make an effort to stop, look around and take in the beauty that surrounds us on a daily basis. Stop focusing on the past and the future, but rather snap yourself to the present moment. That is where life is occurring – the present.
Really, really listen to people. It’s amazing how much richer life becomes when we are tuned in to those around us. Someone once said that the reason we have two ears and only one mouth, is that we should listen twice as much as we talk.
Avoid excessive materialism. Why buy things we don’t need and can’t afford? Unnecessary material objects just weigh us down emotionally and financially.
Turn off the TV. Why live our lives through fictional characters on the television. We have our own interesting real lives to live and real relationships to nurture.
Get out in nature. Nothing makes is grateful for being alive more than the natural beauty of the earth.
Spend more time with friends and family as they are what matters in life.
Get out and stay out of debt. We are able to enjoy life so much more without the burden of debt.
Work to live, not live to work. To use the old cliché, nobody ever said on their deathbed “Jeez, I wish I would have spent more time at the office.”

Remember – life is what is happening right now, not something to be experienced later. You don’t get a second chance. You alone have the choice – so choose life.