This will be difficult to write, because i want to trample, not walk gently...

Retirement is an abhorrent word. We should remove it from our vocabulary like "mortgage" and "federal reserve note"

It only exists as a way, a meme, a golden carrot (poison pill) to dangle in front of working idiots.

The company, who took a person's life, now wants to get rid of the excess baggage after the person's body has been worn out.

It is an evil plot to use up men and throw them away.

Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin, Joe Dominguez
is a extremely good book to read.

It is not about saving money, or balancing your budget
it is about living your life.

Its main focus is financial freedom. You work to buy assets that continue to pay you even when you are not working. And after you have enough of them, enough to cover all your expenses, you are free to do whatever you want in life.

And the book doesn't stop there. Nor did it start by saying to cut all your expenses and live ultra-frugally.

One of the main focusses of the book is keeping track of what you spend.
And then, rating that expenditure on whether it added happiness to your life, or took it away.
In this way, you find out where to best spend your money, and on what, and how much (diminishing returns)

It also talks about finding what you want to do with your life.
"You now have enough continuous income to live for the rest of your life, what do you wish to do?"

And when someone finds what they really want to do, there will never be a "retirement"
Maybe there will be a shift to different thing, but there is no discontinuing of what you enjoy.