This week I read How to Retire Happy, Wild and Free, one of the best books I’ve ever found on how to live well after work ends. While many retirement books focus on money issues, this resource specifically deals with how to spend your time during this stage of life.
In the Well Connected group I lead for Front Porch, Secrets to a Satisfying Retirement, I always remind others that while it’s interesting to find out how others are spending their older years, retirement is something that will look differently for everyone. But this book makes suggestions that everyone can benefit from:
- the importance of maintaining friendships – and being willing to take the initiative to spend time with others
- making learning a regular part of your life
- taking care of your health by eating well and staying active – it doesn’t matter so much what you choose to do as long as you do something
- traveling to new places – it doesn’t have to be very exotic, as long as you are intentional about exploring new areas. But author Ernie Zelinski reminds us, ‘paradise may be where you are right now.’
- being grateful for the many positive things you already have in your life
While most of this book is not about money, Ernie reminds us that ‘it is better to live rich than to die rich.’ Many of us are so trained to save money that we don’t enjoy the resources we have. Your family and friends would prefer that use your money on making your life happier now than to worry about what you can leave to them later.
While I’m still learning about how to live well during retirement, How to Retire Happy, Wild and Free is one of the best resources I’ve found on this topic. Ernie also wrote another book which I am currently reading, The Joy of Not Working.