2919: How Retirement Is Like College (And Why I Love Both) by A Purple Life on Financial Independence & Travel

[00:00:00] This complex financial talk is very challenging. Do I get my depot ever?

[00:00:06] But you already have a depot.

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[00:00:26] This is Optimal Finance Daily.

[00:00:28] Finally, How Retirement Is Like College And Why I Love Both by A Purple Life of APurpleLife.com

[00:00:36] And I'm your host and personal finance enthusiast, Diana Merriam.

[00:00:41] Now let's get right to it as we optimize your life.

[00:00:48] How Retirement Is Like College And Why I Love Both by A Purple Life of APurpleLife.com

[00:00:57] First, some background.

[00:00:58] Until retirement, my freshman year of college was the best year of my life.

[00:01:04] The years after leaving college and before I retired didn't really come close.

[00:01:09] And I was curious to investigate why.

[00:01:12] Now in retirement, I'm the happiest and healthiest I've ever been.

[00:01:16] So let's see why that might be and what retirement and college have in common.

[00:01:22] Number one, time is my own.

[00:01:25] One of the things that I loved about college is how my time was my own.

[00:01:30] In college, I had deadlines and classes, but I picked when the latter would be.

[00:01:35] So much so that I engineered having every Wednesday free of classes at one point.

[00:01:40] It was like a mini weekend in the middle of my week.

[00:01:44] I napped when I wanted, hung out with friends at all hours and studied, wrote and read when the urge hit me.

[00:01:52] I chose my activities based on the natural rhythm of my days and my mood.

[00:01:58] And in retirement, I do the exact same thing.

[00:02:02] If it's a beautiful day and I feel like it, I head out on a long run, chill with friends, hit up a pool and then plan my next adventure.

[00:02:10] If it's raining and I'm feeling more chill, I might sit on the couch and read all day with a smile on my face.

[00:02:18] I'm able to do what I feel like doing instead of adhering to a rigid schedule like I did while working or even in high school.

[00:02:27] 80% of my college time was free to do whatever the f*** I wanted.

[00:02:32] And having to do work for the other 20% could slot into my life when my motivation presented itself.

[00:02:39] Now I do the same in retirement.

[00:02:42] I might have to do adult stuff like laundry or grocery shopping, but that takes up a minuscule amount of my time and I could do those things when I feel like it.

[00:02:53] Instead of trying to stuff it into my week and often just not doing it as a result of how constantly tired I was while working.

[00:03:02] Number two, stillness.

[00:03:04] In college, I would lay around for hours with my partner, not doing much of anything.

[00:03:10] Talking when we felt like it, lounging in the sun, just breathing and experiencing the world in quiet stillness.

[00:03:18] Our days overall were leisurely and there was time to do literally nothing.

[00:03:24] I didn't realize how much I missed that when I started working and as a result running haggardly all over New York City.

[00:03:31] The busyness of trying to kick ass at a job, maintain a relationship and sustain a clean home, build friendships, plan trips and generally be an adult didn't seem to leave time for anything but recharging by doing something mindless.

[00:03:49] Like watching a TV show I've seen a million times before.

[00:03:53] Now I've started doing nothing again in retirement and when my partner takes a break from his work from home job, he sometimes does nothing with me and it feels just like college.

[00:04:04] Today, we laid side by side while I watched the dappled sunlight dancing on the wall of the living room.

[00:04:11] It was so peaceful.

[00:04:13] I'm happy that the time I have now is enough that I don't feel the urge to stuff every minute full of activities and I can just live.

[00:04:23] Number three, constant community.

[00:04:26] I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia where a friend that was close by was an hour drive away.

[00:04:32] As a result, I had some weekend sleepovers but rarely saw friends during the week outside of school.

[00:04:39] In college, I had friends a few feet away from me at all times in our dorm rooms or at the farthest across campus, which was a short walk away.

[00:04:49] There was always someone around to hang out with and this happened naturally instead of as part of a scheduled thing you have to pump yourself up to leave the house for after a long week of work.

[00:05:00] It was simple, effortless.

[00:05:03] Luckily, I found that the same is true in retirement, especially since I have become friends with so many retired and time flexible people from this amazing community.

[00:05:14] There's always someone to hang out with, even in all the random cities I live in around the world.

[00:05:20] I don't have to wait until a rushed Sunday brunch to get some friendship in my life.

[00:05:25] And number four, constant learning.

[00:05:29] I also loved college because it taught me how to think and analyze instead of memorize like high school.

[00:05:35] And I loved learning new things.

[00:05:38] Similarly, I now have the time and energy to dive into anything that strikes my fancy.

[00:05:44] If I see something interesting or that I don't recognize, I can stop what I'm doing and research it instead of filing it in my mind as something to look into when I have time, which never happened.

[00:05:56] As a result of this new freedom to learn, I've become a lot more knowledgeable about the world around me, from learning about birds to local wildlife and even other languages.

[00:06:07] Learning makes me happy and being able to follow my curiosity wherever it takes me is a wonderful gift.

[00:06:15] Or is retirement better than college?

[00:06:18] Twist.

[00:06:19] After thinking about it more, I'm going to declare that retirement is indeed like college, but better.

[00:06:26] One reason is because I have money now.

[00:06:29] Unlike my college self, I'm not stressed about splitting a restaurant bill evenly if someone ordered more than me.

[00:06:36] I'm also not stressed about my uncertain future after college and trying to make it and getting a good job, which are all in quotes because what in the f does that stuff even mean?

[00:06:48] In addition to the friends I was able to see in college, the fact that I'm a full-time nomad that travels the world means that I have seen my loved ones more in the last three years of retirement than in the rest of my life combined.

[00:07:04] Traveling the world and following the sun and avoiding winter is another lovely perk I didn't have in college.

[00:07:11] Conclusion

[00:07:12] I set out to discuss the similarities I saw between my beloved college years and my current lovely retired life.

[00:07:20] And in doing so, realized that retirement is even better than my college experience.

[00:07:26] And that's pretty wild for me to internalize.

[00:07:29] The happiest time in my life up until that point has been pushed aside for an even better time.

[00:07:35] You just listened to the post titled, How Retirement Is Like College and Why I Love Both by A Purple Life of APurpleLife.com.

[00:07:48] And I'll be right back with my commentary.

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[00:08:54] I feel that having full autonomy over my time and having so much free time at this stage of my life is simultaneously my biggest opportunity and my biggest challenge.

[00:09:06] I go through phases where I hop out of bed at 5am eager to seize the day and I have so much motivation to use my time well.

[00:09:16] And then I go through other phases where I can't get out of bed four months at a time and the depression is honestly debilitating.

[00:09:25] For me, it all boils down to mental health.

[00:09:30] When you are mentally well, you will choose to use your time in positive, life-affirming ways.

[00:09:38] When you are not mentally well, too much free time and no external demands can be devastating.

[00:09:45] I've experienced both sides of this coin and I've learned a lot about managing this dynamic since retiring from my corporate career a few years ago.

[00:09:53] The thing I find the most helpful is a laser focus on routine and tracking small accomplishments.

[00:10:02] Every morning, I visualize how I want the day to unfold and I write my to-do list on a post-it note.

[00:10:09] I like the size restriction of a post-it note because it ensures I'm not over committing as I've been known to burn myself out.

[00:10:16] I put everything on there, including going for a walk, reading, taking a nap, meditation, etc.

[00:10:24] The daily post-it is my effort at manufacturing structure and a sense of accomplishment that is so important for well-being.

[00:10:33] And it has done wonders for my mental health.

[00:10:37] And that's a wrap for another Thursday show.

[00:10:39] Have a great rest of your day and I'll be back tomorrow where your optimal life awaits.

[00:10:44] Take this.

[00:10:44] .