Know Your Drivers BEFORE You Plan Your Future

Regardless of your age, stage of life, or financial situation you need to discover what motivates you before you retire or else you are doomed to create some unnecessary pain for yourself. Many people have little self-knowledge or self-awareness. People need to be aware of the emotional impact that change, particularly a major transition like retirement, can have on our lives.

When people think about retirement the focus should be on financial planning AND life planning. The question shouldn’t be “Do you have enough money to retire?” Rather, it should be “Do you have enough money to retire to do what fulfills you?” The last part of that question stumps people. They really don’t know what fulfills or motivates them.

In doing research for Don’t Retire, REWIRE! we asked 200 pre-retirees age 39-77 and 100 retirees age 41 to 99 the question: “WHY DO YOU or DID YOU WORK BEYOND A PAYCHECK?” We got back 85 reasons, which we chose to call DRIVERS.

Here is a sampling of some of the top DRIVERS. Many are fulfilled through work (paid and volunteer). Which are important to you and will remain important to you in the future?
• To be a problem solver
• To make a difference
• To be a continuous learner
• To have power
• To have structure

Check out the full list of 85 drivers found in DON’T RETIRE, REWIRE!