Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible
    Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible
    Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible
    Ebook168 pages2 hours

    Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible

    By Dave Hughes

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    Design Your Dream Retirement will show you how to visualize your retirement in an optimistic, possibility-filled light, and provide you with the knowledge and tools to help you create a plan for achieving your retirement dreams.

    You will be inspired to rediscover and reinvent the real you – the you that has probably been buried by years of adapting to the demands of your career.

    While there's no question that saving and financial planning will make it easier for you to enjoy your retirement, you know that money alone does not buy happiness.

    You will learn how to fill your life with a balance of activities and pursuits to keep you happy, healthy, and fulfilled.

    This book will help you envision, plan for, and ultimately enjoy the best retirement possible.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPrickly Pair Publishing
    Release dateNov 16, 2015
    ISBN9780997001716
    Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible
    Author

    Dave Hughes

    Dave Hughes is a leading authority on retirement lifestyle planning. He writes about retirement lifestyle planning on his website, RetireFabulously.com, and in his published books. In 2016-2017, Dave was a regular contributor to US News’ On Retirement blog. In 2017, RetireFabulously.com received the Best Senior Living Award from SeniorHomes.com as one of the top retirement blogs, by both reader polling and judge’s selection. Dave was named one of NextAvenue.org’s Top 50 Influencers in Aging for 2017. Following a 34-year career as a software engineer, trainer, course developer, and manager, Dave accepted an early retirement package and retired at age 56. During the final phase of his working career Dave began searching the Internet for information about what life in retirement is really like. He discovered that almost all of the retirement-related information was focused on the financial aspects of retirement. Relatively little was being written about how to live a happy, fulfilling life during retirement, and of that, practically nothing was being written from an LGBT perspective. Dave created RetireFabulously.com to fill that void. Dave has extensively researched retirement lifestyle issues, as well as drawing upon his own experiences of transitioning into retirement and those of others. Dave is an accomplished public speaker and workshop leader. He was active in Toastmasters International for over eight years, and earned Distinguished Toastmaster, that organization’s highest honor. Dave offers a fun and engaging workshop, also called Retire Fabulously!, that brings to life many of the key messages from his website and his books. In addition to writing articles for RetireFabulously.com and books about retirement lifestyle planning, Dave is musician who plays trombone, electric bass, and steel pan. Dave lives in the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona with his husband Jeff and their dog Maynard. Dave is available for interviews, speaking engagements, workshops, panel discussions, and writing guest articles. You may contact Dave at D2D@retirefabulously.com. Please visit these websites to learn more: RetireFabulously.com TheDaveHughes.com

    Read more from Dave Hughes

    Related to Design Your Dream Retirement

    Related ebooks

    Self-Improvement For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      For Real Financial Security, Do NOT Do What Everyone Else Is Doing

      Apr 5, 2022

      If you were to characterize the perfect investment, how would you describe its features?  You most likely are describing something that doesn’t exist –  a financial unicorn that, if it actually did exist, would do away with all other financial produc

      5 min read

    • Article

      No Drink? No Problem. The ‘Sober Curious’ Movement May Be Here To Stay.

      Jul 26, 2019

      Even as Americans are drinking more, interest in the sober curiosity movement is swelling. The trend coincides with a wellness obsession.

      4 min read

    • Article

      The Cheapskate's Guide to Retirement

      Dec 30, 2018

      Even if you're enjoying a comfortable retirement with a healthy portfolio, you may recognize a bit of yourself in retired physician Walter Gadkowski, 76, of Naples, Fla. He regularly tools around the neighborhood when his car runs low on fuel, survey

      8 min read

    • Article

      ’Tis The Season To Be Sceptical

      Dec 1, 2021

      Everybody thinks there is a stock-market Holy Grail: a method, a technique, an algorithm, a repeatable process that guarantees stockmarket success. And they’re right. I’ll tell you what it is: “Predicting the future.” Predicting the future is the sto

      3 min read

    • Article

      It’s You and Me, Honey

      Oct 24, 2023

      It’s You and Me, Honey
      5 min read

    • Article

      Educate Yourself on Being a Caregiver

      Dec 4, 2018

      The role of being a caregiver often happens by default: A parent or older loved one falls and cannot live alone anymore. Or during a visit, you notice an empty refrigerator or unopened mail piling up at a senior's house. For caregivers of someone wit

      4 min read

    • Article

      An Ageless Bath

      Jul 30, 2021

      An Ageless Bath
      2 min read

    • Article

      Would You Rather Putt Like A God Or Drive It Miles?

      Dec 14, 2023

      Says Fergus Bisset Golfing guru Harvey Penick once said, “A good putter is a match for anyone.” If you can hole putts and avoid three-putts, you’ll always have a chance to score well and win matches. Driving it miles could be good for one’s ego and w

      2 min read

    • Article

      Run Your Own Retirement Race

      May 26, 2021

      When I read an article recently by journalist Karren Vergara (on Moneymag.com.au) on her super balance of $154,000, it got me thinking. With just over 25 years to retirement, she can’t possibly reach the $1 million mark that so many of us are convinc

      3 min read

    • Article

      Dave

      Mar 31, 2022

      RETIRED: At 28 INCOME NEEDED: $45,000 a year for Dave and Alison INVESTMENT STRATEGY: Selling down investment properties and buying more index funds and REITs. When you ask people about their saving and investing, often they will tell you that

      4 min read

    • Article

      The Ham Notebook

      Nov 1, 2021

      The Ham Notebook
      5 min read

    • Article

      Lifestyle

      Jul 3, 2019

      Lifestyle
      2 min read

    • Article

      Ditching Distraction

      May 17, 2023

      Ditching Distraction
      7 min read

    • Article

      What Really Drives You?

      Jan 19, 2024

      What Really Drives You?
      4 min read

    • Article

      After You Retire

      Jun 17, 2022

      After You Retire
      6 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Design Your Dream Retirement

    0 ratings

    0 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Design Your Dream Retirement - Dave Hughes

      Also by Dave Hughes

      Gay Tales for the New Millennium

      Maybe Next Year

      Instant Adult

      Open Books, Closed Sets

      If I Seem Quiet...

      Karma Train from Kansas (Coming Soon)

      Standalone

      Design Your Dream Retirement: How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy the Best Retirement Possible

      Smooth Sailing into Retirement: How to Navigate the Transition from Work to Leisure

      The Quest for Retirement Utopia: How to Find the Retirement Spot That's Right for You

      Watch for more at Dave Hughes’s site.

      Design Your Dream Retirement

      ––––––––

      How to Envision, Plan For, and Enjoy

      the Best Retirement Possible

      ––––––––

      By Dave Hughes

      Prickly Pair Publishing

      Chandler, Arizona, USA

      Other retirement lifestyle books by Dave Hughes:

      Smooth Sailing into Retirement: How to Navigate the Transition from Work to Leisure

      The Quest for Retirement Utopia: How to Find the Retirement Spot That’s Right for You

      Visit www.RetireFabulously.com to discover more valuable resources and informative articles about retirement lifestyle planning.

      If you would like to contact the author, please send email to DYDR-book@retirefabulously.com.

      ––––––––

      © 2015 by Dave Hughes. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, scanned, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission by the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review.

      Library of Congress Control Number:  2015957381

      ISBN-13: 978-0-9970017-1-6

      ISBN-10: 0997001712

      Table of Contents

      Setting the Stage

      How Do You View Retirement?

      About Dave

      25 Great Things about Being Retired

      How to Get the Most from this Book

      A New Paradigm for Retirement

      Your Renaissance

      Who Will You Become After You Retire?

      5 Reasons You Shouldn't Wait Until You Retire to Figure Out What You're Going to Do

      How Will You Spend Your Days?

      4 Essential Ingredients of a  Balanced Life

      Physical Activity

      Mental Stimulation

      Socialization

      Fulfillment

      100 Things You Can Do After You Retire

      How Much Money Will You Need?

      How Much Money Will You Need to Retire?

      How to Retire Early

      Do You And Your Spouse Want the Same Things?

      Aligning Your Vision with Your Spouse

      Planning for Your Retirement

      7 Things You Shouldn't Put Off Until  You Retire

      Create Your Retirement Plan

      To Achieve Your Ideal Retirement,  Are You Willing to Change?

      Parting Thoughts

      ––––––––

      PART ONE

      Setting the Stage

      ––––––––

      Chapter 1

      How Do You View Retirement?

      ––––––––

      Retirement may be looked upon either as a prolonged holiday or as a rejection, a being thrown on to the scrap-heap.

      - Simone de Beauvoir

      ––––––––

      Welcome, and thank you for purchasing this book. I know you’re eager to dive in, so to get started, let’s play a quick game of word association.

      In a moment, I will give you a word. When you see it, try to notice your immediate gut-level response. Does this word make you feel happy? Hopeful? Afraid? Depressed? Next, pay attention to the first few thoughts or mental images that occur to you upon hearing this word.

      For example, suppose the word I give you is Disneyland. Your initial reaction might be joy. Then your next thoughts might be Space Mountain, photo ops with life-size Disney characters, Cinderella’s castle, Pirates of the Caribbean, and fun times.

      Or, perhaps your initial reaction is repulsion. Then your next thoughts might be long lines, screaming kids, junk food, high-priced souvenirs at every turn, and It’s a Small World repeating incessantly, torturing your brain and invading your nightmares.

      I think you get the idea. So, here’s your word:

      Retirement.

      What is the initial emotion this words stirs up for you?

      What thoughts come to mind when you think about retirement?

      I’m convinced that for many people, their retirement years end up being a lot like the preconceived notions of retirement that they held during their working years.

      If you look forward to your retirement years as being vibrant, fulfilling, and happy – they probably will be.

      If you think your retirement years will be dull, boring, and beset with declining health – they probably will be.

      Perhaps you visualize retirement as those sad last few years of life, when your health deteriorates, you have little money, nothing to do, no reason to live, and you ultimately move into an assisted living facility or nursing home and die. Most of the people you see are doctors and caregivers, and your primary mode of transportation is a motorized wheelchair.

      People of this mindset would rather not think about their retirement at all.

      Considering how youth-oriented our culture is, envisioning ourselves as older people is not something many people want to think about, let alone look forward to. It’s as if thinking about retirement and planning for it is an admission that you won’t be young forever, and if you postpone thinking about it and planning for it you can postpone its arrival or avoid it altogether. Intellectually, you know that’s ridiculous, but subconscious emotion can be a powerful thing.

      Maybe you have a hard time believing you will ever retire at all, probably because you believe you will never be able to save enough money. In this case, retirement seems like a cruel joke; it’s like that luxury item in the store window that you gaze at longingly but know you will never have.

      The purpose for this book is to encourage you to visualize your retirement in a more optimistic, possibility-filled light, and provide you with some knowledge and tools to help you create a plan for achieving your retirement dreams.

      Suppose you decided that you want to take a trip to Europe next year. After doing some research, you determine that this trip will cost you $3,000. (The amount doesn’t really matter, it’s just an example.)

      Assuming that you would be looking forward to this trip, you would start to find ways to save the $3,000. Perhaps you would eat out less, buy fewer new clothes, and cut back on visits to coffee shops and bars. Maybe you would divert your next raise or bonus into your vacation savings. These little sacrifices would be easy to make, because you are looking forward to this trip with eager anticipation.

      In addition to being motivated to save, you would also start reading about the places you plan to go and planning what you’re going to do once you get there. You would get excited every time you think about your upcoming trip.

      But what if, for some reason, you thought your trip to Europe was going to be awful? Maybe you feel compelled to go because your spouse or parents or best friend really wants to go and begged you to come along. You would be far less inclined to plan for it, save for it, look forward to it, or even think about it. You would probably decide to deal with it once you got there and hope it doesn’t turn out too badly.

      Europe will be the same either way. How you choose to visualize it and prepare for it makes all the difference.

      Your retirement years will be the same way.

      Most Americans are not saving enough for retirement, probably because they don’t have any goals to provide the incentive for them to do so. And if they are dreading retirement, why would they save for something they are not looking forward to?

      Isn’t it curious that many people will spend more time planning a two-week vacation than they will spend planning a stage of their life that could last 30 years or more?

      If you are now in your 20s, 30s, or even 40s, it’s probably hard for you to get too excited about something that is still a few decades away. That’s certainly understandable. There are so many things to occupy your time and interest today.

      You don’t have to be obsessed with planning for your retirement; you just need to be mindful of it.

      In fact, for most of your working life, if you consider the topic 2-4 times a year, you’ll be doing great.

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1