When did you decide to retire????

[gillian handbury]

After seeing  Calis......and listening to One republic....No more counting dollars!!! Listen to it and let me know what you think....

[Colwyn]

I never did really "decide" to retire. I was on a contract which allowed me to take my occupational pension when I was 60. But I was quite happy so I didn't go. People would ask me "Colwyn, are you thinking of taking early retirement?" and I would have to answer "Sadly, I am too old to take early retirement". Then they changed the workload and much of the new stuff I didn't fancy learning. So I asked to go down to a fractional post, which was quite common in my organization, in fact it was advocated as a way of easing people into retirement. So I proposed to my Head of Department that I move to .25 post which he was happy with. But his boss wasn't because if I was on a .4 contract I would be on two days a week; but .25 they couldn't work out. I explained I had no intention whatsoever of working one, two or however many days a week. My workload was for more suited to working 3 months a year. This blew all their fuses and they went into mental meltdown. So me and my HoD had to work out a new scheme and take to the Personnel Manager for approval.

He insisted I didn't want a .25 post. The organization had just launched a new voluntary redundancy scheme. The usual scheme paid 1.5 weeks redundancy pay for every year of employment capped at 20 years; but the "special BOGOF" option was 3 weeks pay. So I would be entitled to 60 weeks salary if I left. "But what about the work you want me to do?"; "Once you have left for a month we can legally re-employ you on a part-time contract". "So you want to pay me a wheel barrow load of money to go away and then to pay me to come back again?". "Exactly".

So I didn't retire, I was made redundant. I carried on PT for another couple of years and then packed it in.

[Hamlet]

I decided to retire when a larger rival company made me an offer I couldn't refuse, for my business 

[KKOB]

I decided to retire at 50 and was only 1 month late doing so. We spent 6 very good years in Turkey but had to return to the UK due to Mrs KKOB's medical condition. A year after returning I went back to work. First as a Trade Plate Driver and now as a Security Officer.

[Jacqui Harvey]

I had tried talking my husband into retirng for years,  When he did so, reluctantly in October last year, he was worried he would be bored.   He now says he does not know how he had time to work, as he has so much to do. He also enjoys his games of golf every week.  We how can have long holidays. 5 weeks in Cals this time.
The strange thing is, his company has now collapsed and is in the process of closing.  He got out just in  time. However,  just  like him, he is very worried about the young Graduates who worked for him and who he mentored, as now they are out of work. 

[marina]

I always used to think that people who said they don't know how they found the time to work were being either ridiculous or just plain smug! However, since officially retiring in January last year, although I'd been made redundant a couple of years earlier but just did temporary work, I can say that it's absolutely true.

The days seem to fly by and I'm never bored.  But the best thing is being able to choose.  If my daughter wants us to look after the grandchildren for a few hours we can do, or if the weather's ok and I want to take my mum out I can do that too.  We can have holidays when we want and for as long as we want (finances permitting of course) and there's loads of other things to do.    We didn't exactly retire early but we're both glad that we gave up as soon as we could to make the most of the years we have left while we're still reasonably fit and healthy.

[Highlander]

Others, namely my pension administrators, decided that I still need to work : .

There is a silver lining to this cloud however. The present Mrs H has no desire for me to retire because she flatly refuses to have me at home all day.