Beware of These Eight Passive or Detrimental Activities in Retirement
If you’re planning to retire soon, understand that you’ll be entering a new chapter in your life; one that offers tremendous opportunities for satisfaction and fulfillment.
Until now, most of your life has centered around work and there has likely been little opportunity for any other activity that may provide personal joy. All that’s about to change.
The world is now your oyster. With that in mind, make sure you’re activites are in some way satisfying and don’t just “pass the time.” For reference, the following activities should be considered “passing the time” and exercised with moderation, if at all.
“The options for wasting entire days, weeks, and longer by binge-watching television are absolutely enormous these days. It’s almost not fair to tempt us with so much media. ”
Day Trading
Stocks and bonds should be left to the professionals. Nightmare stories of vanishing life savings due to a day trading habit litter the retirement landscape. Don’t be a victim.
Similarly, sports betting trips to the casino, and bulk lottery purchases should all be avoided as well. Bitcoin? If you’re retired, stay away from that one too. It’s too unpredictable for a retiree. Besides, why gamble with your money when it’s the best time of your life to spend and enjoy it?
Social Media
Facebook and other forms of social media are great tools to check in on family and friends. You can message them, read their posts, and of course, look at the pictures of their adorable children and pets.
It’s key to not underestimate the power of social media to consume you. It’s deceptively time-consuming and almost addictive for some. Make sure to stop swiping after a while and get out to meet people for coffee or dinner occasionally. Engaging in an actual conversation is still one of life’s simplest pleasures.
Watching Television
The options for wasting entire days, weeks, and longer by binge-watching television are absolutely enormous these days. It’s almost not fair to tempt us with so much media.
Not only do we have all the cable channels that we’ve had for decades now, but we also have a litany of streaming services that provide their own content.
Resist the temptation to sit on the couch early in the day with the remote in your hands. Better yet, set aside a specific time of the day (keep it reasonable) to watch television.
Eating to Excess
With the gift of unlimited time on your hands, it’s easy to spend a lot of it going out to eat. Chances are that no matter where you live, there are great options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Definitely enjoy these options in moderation; just don’t make every meal an elaborate occasion.
There’s great satisfaction involved with cooking a healthy meal from home as part of your regular routine. If you have a partner, this is also something you can do together. You can also police each other to make sure of portion sizes and desert limitations.
Alcohol Consumption
Sure, a glass of wine can actually be good for you. Several studies have pointed to the facts of that claim. Two glasses? Not so much. Hard liquor? Definitely exercise moderation? What about beer? Again, one per day isn’t a problem.
Alcohol in moderation is fine, especially when it’s part of a social occasion. But the need to know when to say when continues during retirement just as it did for the rest of your life. Enjoy alcoholic beverages with common sense and you’ll never have to worry about the seriously negative impacts that come with addiction.
Stop Smoking
The signs to stop smoking have been around for decades now. If retirement is what it takes to get your attention, then, great. It’s never too late to stop!
If you retire at age sixty-five as a smoker, your heart, lungs, and more could prevent you from enjoying an active retirement lifestyle and cut it much shorter than it would as a non-smoker. If you stop, you could add five, ten, or more years to this next—possibly best—chapter in your life.
Being a Bookworm
This will probably be the only time in your life you’ll be told that reading can be bad for you. Okay, that’s not entirely accurate. Reading is a great activity to increase your vocabulary and stimulate your mind, as well as massively entertain.
It cannot, however, be the only thing you do.
Being an avid reader is an admirable personality trait, but make sure to close the book covers after an hour or two and get your mental stimulation somewhere else. Why not go put that increased vocabulary to good use by meeting with family and friends?
Being a Movie Buff
Similar to the limitless options available for binge-watching television, the same exists for movies. Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime and other streaming services offer their own content as well as older movies. Also, most cable providers have an on-demand library of recent Hollywood blockbusters, independent films, documentaries, and more to make you want to grab the popcorn and enjoy.
Indulging in a good movie once a day is no problem. Again, it just can’t be the only thing you do. If movies are your jam, why not write a movie blog? That’s two activities wrapped in one interest; a win-win.
Walking the Dog
So many retirees talk about how they’re going to take the dog for a long walk every morning in retirement. This is a good idea because it gets you out there and bonding with your best friend while being a healthy activity for both of you.
The key here is to remember that it’s not really something you should plan for. It’s just something you do as part of your daily routine—a classic example of “passing the time.” Even if you walk the dog three times a day, you still need other more comprehensive activities in which to participate.
This article was adapted from the book, Retiring? written by Ted Kaufman and Bruce Hiland. Ted was Biden’s Chief of Staff for nineteen years and led his presidential transition planning in 2020. Bruce’s career included McKinsey, more than four years as Chief Administrative Officer at Time Inc., twenty years of independent consulting, and four startups.