The #1 Retirement Challenge That No One Talks About, Ep #305

If you are new to the show, welcome! This is a place where we talk about how to spend more money, pay less taxes, and have an even better retirement. Today we’re investigating that last part–the even better retirement.

In the retirement headlines segment, we’ll take a look at a CNBC article that dives into an 85-year happiness study from Harvard University. Results from this study reveal the number one retirement challenge no one is talking about. Listen in to hear what this could be.

Outline of This Episode

[1:22] The number one retirement challenge that no one talks about
[3:38] Ask yourself a few questions
[8:17] How to go about bridging insurance before Medicare

Relationships make us happy

Harvard University has been conducting research for 85 years on what makes us happy. In doing so, they discovered that the biggest challenge that people faced in retirement was not being able to replace the social connections that had sustained them in their working lives. It turns out that the number one challenge people face in retirement is forming relationships: we miss being around other people.

People who fare the best in retirement are the ones that can develop human connections.

It is challenging to recreate relationships in retirement

People who are about to retire often stress about finances, not knowing how to fill their time or other concerns, but they often don’t consider their relationships.

When we retire, oftentimes we fall out of touch with our colleagues and friends in the workplace. Many people try to fill this gap by pursuing hobbies, leisure activities, or volunteering, but oftentimes these activities don’t recreate the types of relationships we developed in the workplace.

We don’t understand how valuable our working relationships are until they’re gone. While we have more time to pursue hobbies and leisure activities in retirement, this may not be enough to find happiness. Relationships have a major impact on our happiness.

Questions you can ask yourself to prepare your relationships for retirement

Before you retire consider your working relationships and ask yourself a few questions. Who do you enjoy working with the most? What is it about them that makes them valuable to you? What kinds of connections are you missing? How can you make these connections happen? How can you reach out to form those connections? How do you alleviate conflict in the workplace to preserve the relationships you have formed?

Take the good from your work life into your retirement

As you prepare to walk away from your career think about what you can learn from your time there. Intentionally leave the negative behind and bring the positive with you. Use your retirement to recreate the aspects and relationships that bring you joy. What do you love about your job? How could you create this in retirement?

As you retire, develop relationships by taking the reins of your life. Create a weekly coffee talk with other new retirees. Start a walking club. Think about the ways that you can create ways to bond and form social connections.

Have you been on the fence about joining Retirement Income University? If you have, now is the best time to join! To celebrate our 300th episode we’re offering a special promotion: RIU is now only $300 with the promotion code podcast at checkout. Don’t miss out on this limited promotion. The discount is only valid until July 31, 2023.