Investing in Yourself - An Interview with Fritz Gilbert - The Retirement Manifesto, Ep # 284

Investing in yourself is a great way to invest in your retirement. You may know Fritz Gilbert from the Retirement Manifesto blog or you may even have read his book, Keys to a Successful Retirement. What you may not know is how he has invested in himself in retirement.

On this episode of Retirement Starts Today, you’ll hear how Fritz has chosen to invest in his community and himself through a charity that his wife started. Listen in to hear how Fritz’s life took off in unexpected directions because he chose to follow his curiosity.

Outline of This Episode

[2:22] How Fritz’s life has changed in retirement
[5:30] Getting engaged in a charity is a great transition
[10:23] How he has invested in his physical health

The Blue Ridge Mountains brought him closer to outdoor activities

Fritz Gilbert is well-known in the retirement community. He retired in 2018, but even before that he began his blog, the Retirement Manifesto, in anticipation of his retirement. Since then he has appeared on the Retirement Answer Man show, and here on Retirement Starts Today.

Fritz and his wife chose to move to the Blue Ridge Mountains for their retirement due to the wealth of outdoor activities they have access to and the fantastic climate. What they didn’t realize when they moved was that they would find so many dogs that were chained or tied up in yards because their owners couldn’t afford a fence.

Freedom for Fido helps to free dogs on chains

After seeing a tv program on the subject, Fritz’s wife decided to take action. She began a local charity called Freedom for Fido that builds fences to give these dogs more freedom. Over the past few years, the charity has grown through a network of volunteers and supporters. They have saved over 200 dogs by building 80+ fences.

Before starting this charity neither Fritz nor his wife had ever built a fence, but they took the time to learn from a professional and have been doing it ever since.

Retirement has taken Fritz challenged Fritz in new and exciting ways

While the charity keeps Fritz busy, he has also found a love for writing through his blog as well as finding a new love for woodworking.

When Fritz began his retirement journey, he had no idea where it would take him, but he was open to learning new things. This spirit of curiosity has led him in directions he never would have imagined, but he is happier than he has ever been.

In addition to learning new things, Fritz keeps himself in shape. He wants to be able to continue to build fences well into his 70s so that means that he works out several times a week.

How will you challenge yourself in retirement?

By having something to retire to rather than retire from, Fritz and his wife have found purpose, community, health, and fulfillment in retirement. Have you thought about what you want to retire to in retirement? Keep listening each week to hear our new Personal Development segment where listeners like you share the ways that they have challenged themselves to grow in retirement.