You may have heard the popular saying, "retired but not tired". Retirement is a period during which an individual is relieved or withdrawn from public or official responsibilities and usually discharged by some financial gains such as gratuities and pensions. In Nigeria, retirement from public office starts at the age of sixty (60) or after thirty-five (35) years of service. Some believe that retirement is a time to rest, while others are of the opinion that retirement is a transition from a more active service to a less active one.
The retirement period is a lonely period when people are not around the retiree or the retiree is not engaged in activities. Are you aware that you can retire even before the age of 65? Yes, you can. One of the early pieces of advice I got in my current job was to "START YOUR RETIREMENT PLANS FROM THIS MOMENT".
Most of the time, during work, we get carried away by work responsibilities and forget to make plans for retirement. During the active service period, it is crucial to make plans early for retirement. The NOW to start plans may not necessarily be when you got the appointment, but it is when you realize early on the need to make your plans. I know of a senior officer who is less than a year away from retirement and has started making frantic efforts to set up a business. To me, that is very unwise, even though it is better late than never.
Business has a lot of intricacies, and these should be sorted out well before the age of retirement. Some people are of the opinion that they would have ample time to allot for their business after retirement, and this makes them start the business around or after retirement. We have seen businesses struggle at the start or weather the storm for years. This is an indicator that businesses have to be managed over time to a stage one can be comfortable with, break even, and make profits. It is better to see one’s business running well before retirement.
At retirement, the sources of income are limited to pensions, gifts, or grants. Even when in active service, loans are difficult to come by, and loaners would require satisfying evidence of repayment or collateral, which is limited during retirement. There are other financial obligations during retirement, such as health needs (medical check-ups and terminal illnesses), tuition fees for children or grandchildren in some cases, etc.
The elderly are at risk of being swindled by scammers, and pensioners may lose most or all of their life earnings. I once met a retiree I managed for hypertension in my consulting room who had his farm burned by herdsmen. He was devastated, but then, what would he do?
Business has a lot of risk involved; it is better and safer to have the business thriving before retirement.
Thank you for reading. I would love to have your comments and contributions. 🤗