Day 271... Retirement

So this is the time to think of retirement and if you are not financially prepared you are terrified and if you have what you think you needed financially you are still terrified.  I've never seen the economy this bad in my lifetime.  I expect the Great Plains to start rolling in the dust soon.  And, I had my first taste of unexpected medical bills this year - what an eyeopener that was.

Of course the timing (and the choice) of retirement depends on a number of things.  My brother-in-law retired from working for one of the utilities.  He's never been happier.  He knew when he was going to retire.  He knew what he was going to get (monetarily) when he retired.  He has a health plan as part of his retirement.  I'm sure he counted off the days until he retired.  Because he was part of a union all of that was established for years.  And he couldn't wait for the day!

My husband on the other hand, worked his entire career in the corporate world.  As an executive his retirement planning (in dollars) was his to make.  The when however he had no choice in and that is a tragedy happening across this wonderful country of ours.  He is one of the sad statistics of putting an energetic, intelligent, experienced talented person out.  And then what?  How does a man change his mindset from a lifetime's "career" to finding a "job?"

(Special Note:  I am speaking regarding men here because as liberated as all of us women hoped to be by now - it is just not the same for so many reasons, the least of which is if some corporation gently nudged an older woman executive out - they would have some lawsuit on their hands!  And, it just isn't the same psychology for a woman vs. a man... which I will get into with a future essay).

I see so many different scenarios of retirement now.  Duh?  Perhaps it is because of my own age and the people around me.  Another example would be my step-daughter's husband (hmmm or should he be called my step-son in law?).  Anyway he has been prepped at home and in schools (MBA) to take over his father's business.  I wonder what challenges his father may have with what he created from scratch now being directed by new blood (his own but the nonetheless new).  Financially he probably has little to worry about but psychologically I'd imagine the transition to be revealing to him.

And then there is my husband's very good friend.  A college professor, a published poet, having had his career in the academic world since he graduated from college.  His salary was wanting as are most teachers of any kind but his pension has to be comforting... however, he lives in California and in this day at this time I would be more than concerned about the state of the state's economy and what I might lose in my pension simply because the money just isn't there.