8. Explore How to Stay Socially Connected
While retirement planning is somewhat about finances and numbers, retirement itself is much more than that. It’s also important to see how you will stay engaged and socially connected during this phase of life.
This can’t be emphasized enough. Many retirees find themselves struggling with a loss of identity after they stop working. It can be easy to lose touch with former coworkers and professional acquaintances.
You will need to take a proactive approach to making new friends and building up a new social network that will allow you to play a tangible role in your community.
9. Test-Drive Your Lifestyle Plans
Consider test-driving your retirement lifestyle for a few weeks or months before you actually stop working for good.
If you get bored after lying around the house for a few weeks, then you will probably be bored after you retire as well. Different people handle retirement in different ways.
Some people need to stay active in order to avoid depression or loneliness. Others are able to take refuge in their solitude and don’t need as much interaction in order to stay content.
But it’s important that you find out how you will react to retirement before it actually happens. This will give you some “wiggle room” in which you can make contingency plans if necessary.