Retirement is a relatively new concept. Our great grandparents didn’t outlive their usefulness in order to indulge themselves in the thought of retiring. I used to think that if I had enough financial resources I could retire. But I have decided to RE-wire!  I’ve changed my focus from building homes to building people.

Society baits us into thinking it’s all about the nest egg. We don’t want to think about work when we retire. Certainly scripture is clear about the need and reward of work. I do not believe in retirement, as I do not think it’s Biblical.

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

Genesis 2:15

How can you “Re-wire” and change your work focus?  Do it in balance and with different rewards.

To achieve a satisfying and active retirement involves more than having enough financial assets. A great resource to help resolve this tension is called How To Retire Happy Wild And Free. You won’t get this from your financial advisor. It shows how money should not be what is holding you back from retirement.

You will find seven things in this resource:

1                 Courage to take early retirement; in fact, the earlier the better.

2                 Put money in its proper perspective so that you don’t need a $1M to retire happily.

3                 Generate purpose with meaningful activities and creative pursuits.

4                 Follow your dreams instead of someone else’s.

5                 Take charge of your mental, physical, and spiritual health.

6                 Create and maintain great friends- a key ingredient for a great retirement.

7                 Make your retirement years the best time of your life.

Again, I do not believe in retirement, as I do not think it’s Biblical. However, I recommend this completely secular book, as it talks about other aspects of life that many people never take the time to explore while working. Then people retire and are totally unprepared for it. Today we are living 30 extra years that our great grandparents never enjoyed. That is partly why we are so ill equipped.

Realize there is more to life than work. Life is about being of service to others. You don’t necessarily need a job to do that. You may or may not, decide to get paid for it.

Life change happened at my “re-wirement”.

1          financial change – less for me and more for His Kingdom

2          writing this blog and consulting, hosting conferences

3          homeschooling our boys with my wife, taking time to coach their hockey

What changes will you make?  What will you do in retirement to serve others? It’s not about the money – envision following your passions and mission in life. Visualize all of us figuring how to make retirement the most productive years of our lives. Dare to dream being of greater service to others in a rewired future.

Attitude:          Realize it’s not about the money. It’s about the lifestyle.

Action:             Buy this book to get more out of life than money and consumption. It will help you discover other passions in life.

Question:         With your finances in place, what do you plan to do?

Recommended Resource:  How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free: Retirement Wisdom That You Won’t Get from Your Financial Advisor by Ernie J. Zelinski

Kindle Edition:  How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free: Retirement Wisdom That You Won’t Get from Your Financial Advisor