It is so strange to care so little about money anymore after sending most of my life yearning and striving to become wealthy. I’m never got there.
I am early retired. I live off of investments and savings until social security kicks in. My life is relatively comfortable, but it involves compromises I wouldn’t make if I had more money. Healthcare is a concern. Unexpected financial expenses have come up every year since my wife died that I hadn’t anticipated.
But whatever. I roll with it.
The biggest change is my total lack of interest in working. I worked hard from my teens until I was 50. Many years, work was all-consuming. Sometimes I really enjoyed my work. I loved when I was part of fast growing startups, when I was part of a cohesive team and when I excelled at my job.
My identity was wrapped up in two things – excelling at work and being a good husband. I took a lot of pride in being a man who worked his @ss off.
I had near constant financial pressure to ensure my wife would be taken care of no matter what. Because we lived in debt for so long this pressure didn’t ease until I was in my mid 40s.
Eventually it did ease but I was still highly motivated to make more money – for security, for the future, for my wife, for her son.
When my wife died, that all went away.
I’m grateful that I had saved enough money to enable me to retire early. I know I’m lucky.
I simply can’t imagine returning to work for money.
I might work again someday. And if I do, I’ll want to make a lot of money. But I’ll work for fun, for a challenge, to be part of a team or to build something.
Today, I get all of that (except for the team part) from my hobbies.