Is it okay to still be “driven,” even in retirement?

Julie Kern, CPA, CFP^®, CDFA^®, Certified Dream Manager^®

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If that headline—“Is it okay to still be ‘driven,’ even in retirement?”—grabbed you, then 1) this article is for you, and 2) the short answer is, “I sure think so!”

If you’re a lifelong entrepreneur who’s facing the next chapter of your life, post-entrepreneurship, let me describe some of your issues and options.

But first, a quick test. I think you’ll like this.

I know a guy who spent his whole career working for a Big Corporate Enterprise Whose Name You Know. One day, when he was just in his fifties, the corporation decided to downsize, and made him a severance offer. He hadn’t been planning on retiring just then, but he took it.

Since then, he likes to, well, hang out. He reads books. He golfs. He naps. And he’s completely content.

Does this sound like heaven to you? Or does it make you gag?

I can see you smiling. Because I know your answer is the latter.

You know the stories of people who have dropped dead promptly after retiring, because their life lacked purpose. I think that these, sadly, are the entrepreneurs who didn’t have their next chapters mapped out. People like the guy I’d just described, by contrast, aren’t owners; they’re worker-bees. They’re perfectly happy to stop working.

So maybe you cashed out of your business a little earlier than you had planned. Sure, you’ve got more time with the kids and/or grandkids. But you certainly don’t have an “I’m done” mentality. You have a “What’s next?” mentality.

You might even feel that you “need permission” to still be aggressive, driven, and passionate at this phase of your life. For what it’s worth, you certainly have my permission! Even more, you can have my help. That’s why I’m not just a CPA and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER^® professional. I’m also a Certified Dream Manager^®.

So you might want to do more than, say, donate to a charity; rather, you might want to join its board. You might want to do more than cheer on your alma mater; you might want to create a chaired endowment for it. In short, you want to channel your energies and find purpose and direction for your passions. You see wealth as a tool in this regard. It’s a means. Not an end.

I totally get it. I’ve built a practice helping driven individuals like you.

Contact me today. Let’s create a plan, and then put it into one of your favorite words: Action.