When you think about retirement – what are you thinking it will be like? And more importantly WHEN are you thinking it will happen? If you’ve read my posts here, you know that I don’t think of retirement as a one-time future event.

For some people it seems that the “when” is always a rolling few years away. When I ask about timing I often hear , “Oh, I plan to retire in a few more years.” That sounds like maybe there really isn’t a plan at all.

Well, how about now?

I don’t mean to imply that you should waltz in and quit your job. My thought is more to get started on the things that you think will fill your retirement days. Start now to experience what that will be like. Be creative; can you take an afternoon to ‘retire’ to do some new activity? Well, then you’re on your way!

Imagine how fun and liberating it will feel to think, “Gee, I’ve started to experience retirement. This is awesome!”

If you have a hobby or idea of something you want to try or expand on, don’t wait years to do that “…in retirement.” Do it now. And by doing it now you can not only enjoy it but also learn whether it’s really something you’re going to want to do more of later.

Have a sense of urgency!

None of us know how long we have, and if the past couple of years have taught us anything, they’ve taught us about being flexible and really appreciating what we have in the present.