Ask Lemmy

If you're lucky enough to find something you're passionate about you may not begrudge the work week. I never have, so i work to live, got into a reasonable paying sector, didn't waste money on oversized property or flash motors, as they're not my bag, but used the cash to go adventuring at weekends, snow boarding in winter, the job takes up more time than I'd like but i'm earning freedom tokens. That mentality helped me at least.

Living with disability like I do means that process has sped up significantly.

I've been thinking about this since middle school (when I was thinking about what was waiting for me after school, which I wasn't much a fan of either) and I just distract myself by doing things I enjoy. If it occupies my mind too much, I take a hit of copium and tell myself that maybe I'll get lucky and strike it rich somehow to let me retire early.

I found a job with a career track that I can retire from in 25 years max and I already have 5 years of service. The system you envision doesn't really exist yet.

I can't imagine stopping to work. If I retire, I'll have no money. I cannot count on pension either.

But I have an IT job, it's just sitting in front of the computer all day; it's not like a physical job I wouldn't be able to do at old age.

I don’t live for retirement like a lot of American culture has historically taught us to do. I work to live first and that means, as much as I can within my means, taking the time and investment to have experiences while I can. Too many people in my life have died before getting to retire without having done anything with their lives because they were so focused on having enough money to retire with that it’s not a regret I’m willing to risk.

I am taking reasonable steps toward financial security as I age, but it’s a secondary concern to living for now. If I die in a gutter, I’ll do it knowing I’ve lived the best life I could.

Sir, “Retired” is the opposite of “Start”.

There are better options for those who find a way.

the ideal way would be to build up passive income and/or outwaging your living costs by double or triple, but god knows how hard that is.

Have you tried alcohol? That seems to be the popular approach.

I love my job. I have crippling depression, so I won't live to retirement.

I simply work part time on purpose. I don't have my own place (flatmates) so we all split the COL. It's not truly freedom, but it feels a lot more free than when I worked full time. I usually have enough to save a little and also because of this I am able to travel a few times a year. But you have to be REALLY able to manage your finances to live like this. I have no credit card and prepay everything ahead of time. It leaves me with a lot more time to enjoy LIFE. and feel less constantly tired as well.

The key is to do your living now while you still can. Don't waste your youth on a grind that will get you nothing.

I'm half done. I've kept up my health and I'm trying to improve it even more. When I hit 65 I won't be too old to do much.

But the real question should be what are you waiting until retirement to do and why not do it sooner?

The answer is: do a job you like and do the things you like. I’m due to retire in ten years and won’t be doing so. I won’t work as much but I will work

It’s easier in some countries than others. But the key is not wasting time on things that you feel pressured to do because of societal norms or because you’re too lazy to do anything different.

• I live in the UK, so I get 25 days off work, and I take full advantage of that, I rarely do staycations.

• I'm about to buy a property and I'm deliberately going to get a mortgage where my monthly payments are not as much as I can possibly afford, but a bit less. This means that it will take me longer to pay it off, and overall it will cost me more, but I will have more disposable income today to spend on life's pleasures.

• I don't have kids and don't plan to.

• I stay physically active, just simple going to the gym 5-6 days a week. And I think this is really important. It will keep your body in shape and by the time your 60 or 70, you'll be able to do much more than your average peers who spent their middle age doing office jobs followed by evenings in front of the TV. And here, instead of my 41-year-old self, I'm going to use the example of my mum. She's turning 70 next year, but it was only when she was 68 that she started taking swimming lessons and she got to love it. It was also around that time that I floated the idea to her "why don't I take you for holidays to New York". She was all "no, no, I'm too old, it's too much walking, you took me for a holiday to London when I was 55 and I was totally exhausted, I wouldn't be able to do New York at this age." Now that she's had over 1.5 years of almost daily swimming (and cycling, she's also a keen cyclist) - she said yes. She said she's feeling perfectly fine doing long walks, she's more energised, and she already gave me a list of what she wants to see in New York.

• Other than physical activity, scientists seem to agree that the other two pillars of long and healthy life are good sleep, and good diet. For the former, I recommend reading Why we sleep by Matthew Walker. And good diet means varied diet, vegetable-rich diet, and low-calorie diet (too many books agree on that for me to recommend a specific one).

First off, I'd try to find as much balance and joy as possible now. Don't wait for retirement. None of us know if we'll even be around at that point.

I also make sure to vote for people who want more work/life balance and more universal public services. Vacation time, family and parental leave, universal healthcare, affordable education, etc. Those are all things that free you mind to think about life and not just the basic necessities and surviving.

I've got "30 and out" at my union factory, so I'll retire at 56 which isn't so bad. Course, I'll lose my health insurance but it's free til then 🤷‍♂️

Yeah I’m doing whatever I want as long as there’s still some life left in this body. Opted for a career that gets me to live all over the world, decided very early on that I’ll never have kids, and live my life to the fullest.

Accidentally I’m also really good at what I do and got people pay me big time to live where I want to be. About to move to my 10th country on the third continent.

Times are tough, but here's what's worked for me so far:

1. Spend less than you make
2. Keep a budget
3. Keep debts to a minimum
4. If you live with your parents, try to save as much as you can
5. Have an end goal

Depending on your circumstances, you might only have to work for 20 years, and if you do what you love, it won't feel like work.

Have you heard of the five stages of grief? That's probably the best first way to deal with it. No capitalist/socialist/fascist/technocratic/authoritarian utopia will be able to fix that. I don't believe there is a better system yet than what the western world already has. Maybe one day UBI will exist and everyone will have more freedom to enjoy their passions but even then it you'll still have to work most of your life.

Best you can do is figure out what you want out of your life and take the steps to do it. Like what most people have said, living below your means helps with funding your goals and protecting yourself against accidents. Find ways to do what you want now but know there's always a trade off. It isn't fair but I don't think it ever has been, except for a very privileged class of people.