After years of dreaming and planning for retirement, you’ve finally crossed the finish line. In the first few months after you retire, you might experience a period of readjustment. You’re learning to live in an entirely different way, on a different schedule, and without the grind of a daily commute. At first you might feel as free as a bird, but at some point you might begin to feel a bit of discomfort creeping in.

Sometimes when things feel wrong, we aren’t even sure what’s causing those feelings. Remind yourself of the following truths once you’ve settled into your new life, and reassess your new lifestyle. You still have time to make adjustments!

You don’t have to collapse after crossing the finish line. Have you ever known an avid runner, who trained relentlessly for a marathon, and then quit running altogether once he completed a single race? Probably not! He most likely enjoyed the sense of satisfaction and then began planning for a new goal. Your retirement should be like that race. Rather than collapsing once you’ve crossed this finish line, it’s time to use your newfound freedom to work toward new goals!

Reevaluate your goals. Okay, so maybe you already knew that, and have long been planning some new life goals for your retirement years. But if you set those goals years ago, you might find that they don’t really appeal to you now that the time has arrived to pursue them. There’s nothing wrong with admitting that your priorities or abilities have changed. You are fully free to abandon those choices and select new hobbies.

Now is the time to try something completely new. Throughout your career, you focused on meeting objectives, receiving accolades for your hard work, and enjoying the fruits of your labor. In retirement, such an ambitious person might not feel satisfied with pursuing the same activities they’ve been doing for years. Now is the time to experiment and reinvent yourself. You have the time and freedom to pursue anything you can imagine!

Give up spectating and become a participant. It’s a nearly universal truth that most people are happier while doing, rather than watching. If most of your retirement activities center around watching something – the theater, ballroom dance, golf games on television, and so on – you might consider becoming an active participant instead. Join a community theater group or sign up for golf lesson at your local country club. There are plenty of ways to participate in some of your favorite interests, even with limited ability due to health issues or other concerns. Most likely, you will discover that you appreciate your old interests in a whole new way!

As you reinvent your retirement, remember that we’re here to help. If you need to make changes to your financial priorities, schedule an appointment with us to review your long-term plans.