For those of us who have retired from full time work, there is concern that our retirement money, or monies, may not be solid. For those looking at retirement in the near future, there is large concern that the nest egg monies may not be adequate. For those not yet thinking about retirement, maybe they should be very concerned. Most folks look forward to getting some Social Security payments when in retirement. This is comforting because making a living in this society is getting more and more difficult. In point of fact, it is getting downright "silly" when you think of the jobs that most people do for their forty hour weeks’ labor. Most work is "non-work", that is, it is unnecessary. There is very little manufacturing, no creativity, and the people are bored as they can be doing their babysitting and useless paper work endeavors. Sure, a job is a job, but there is very little out there to feed one’s creative energies, one’s soul, if you will. Retirement for most folks will be a replay of their work life. Instead of standing behind a counter and selling beer and cigarettes, they will be staying home and hoping that their monthly check will arrive on time. If we are to enjoy retirement, we must have something to look forward to that is exciting, creative, and useful. Being useless is tantamount to being dead.

In retirement we all must work diligently to maintain a sense of dignity as well as bringing in money to pay the bills. For those lucky enough to collect Social Security payments, there is a sense of having a partial cushion to ease the chore of making a living. By the time one enters the golden age of retirement, there should be in place a system for feeding the bills as well as feeding the soul. A nest egg (of some kind) should have been created so that there is something to tap into when necessary, a pension (if you are really lucky to have one) can add to the coffers, and some kind of meaningful work that will bring in money are a good combination of income sources. No one can live comfortably on Social Security alone. With costs rising every day, and with all meaningful work being outsourced to other countries, there is very little left in this society to create a comfortable lifestyle.

Retirement, these days, is different than it was a couple generations ago. Then it was well thought out, it made sense, and it was solid. Today, none of these qualities is present. We must preserve everything that we can to make our retirement unique and workable for us. Think about working at your present job for as long as you can. Even if it means taking a little less money (or benefits) it is worth having a steady income for as long as it is available. Try to not spend anything from your nest egg (hopefully, you have one in place). Until there is something worthy to invest in, keep your money locked away. In fact, the best thing to invest in is yourself. Make your life more enriched by learning something useful, or put the money into improving your home, or move to your dream location to enjoy your golden years. Don’t waste a nest egg on stupid things that will not serve you for many years.

When we stop working our career job we ought to seek out our dream job. If you can make it happen, start that small business that was your dream, or enter another type of employment that always appealed to you. But, most importantly, make your decision based upon a useful life, one of fulfillment; give future generations something to admire in your life’s pursuits. Show, by example, how to utilize all that you have learned and accumulated over a useful lifetime.