Time or Money or Happiness - What is your choice

Rich1976

Pat38493 said:

Rich1976 said:

Pat38493 said:

I am supposed to be in the office at least 3 days a week under our hybrid working rules.

I just completely ignored it and carry on making my own schedule - some weeks I am in 4 days, some none, some two, some I just go in for a few hours to do a specific task, avoiding rush hour traffic, but work from home rest of day - nobody has ever pulled me up on it yet and if they do I will just tell them I am financially independent so if they force me to the office 3 days a week for the sake of an arbitrary rule, I will simply quit and it will be none days per week

That says a lot about the management of your company then if they don’t know whose working at home and whose not.
at my place we do 3 days in and 2 days at home and anyone flouting those rules is pulled up about it and is always noticed by colleagues when people haven’t done their 3 days in, despite having a valid reason why!

I have a long history with the company and I am the IT lead for the UK - I need to travel to multiple sites regularly and I am also often working on projects or topics where I am mainly on Teams calls where nobody on the call is even in the UK, let alone at the same site as me.  It wouldn't make sense for me to drive to a particular office just to sit there on the phone all day, and the activities I work on also means it wouldn't make sense for me to be at the office on 3 specific pre-allocated days per week.

This is one of the benefits of long service and a fairly good record of success in the company - if they trust you to deliver your objectives, they don't really care where you are sitting to do it.

I appreciate that this is a luxury that most people don't have.

Yes quite probably true. 

I’ve also read quite a few comments and overheard previous comments from former colleagues why they have the attitude that if they don’t get their own way then they are leaving . 

Depends on their job and how specialised it is I suppose as well as how important  they are to the organisation. For the rest of us it makes little difference as we are all easily replaced and that persons name isn’t even mentioned ever again within a short space of time of them going.

That wasn’t a dig at your earlier comments by the way just something I’ve noticed on these forums from some people threatening to throw in the towel and retiring if their bosses don’t give them what they want.

enthusiasticsaver

I would say it is a combination of all three. 

From our early thirties we had in mind to retire at 60 which was 6 years earlier than our state pension age.  It was an arbitrary age we set just as a target as obviously we did not know what our health would be like but it gave us something to aim for with our financial planning. 

However things can change over the 30 years or so you prepare for retirement and for us two things changed relatively closely to our planned retirement age.  We had paid off our mortgage, helped our daughters through Uni and on to the housing ladder. 

In 2016 my husbands company changed working shift pattern requiring him to work weekends sometimes with no day off during the week.  He was asked to sign a directive to say he was excluded from the EU working hours directive and restructuring meant shortage of engineers meaning he was travelling sometimes 300 to 400 miles a day then driving home at 11 pm at night after being out of the house since 6 am.  Both of us were seriously worried about his health. Luckily because we had overpaid his pension his pot vastly exceeded what we had planned for so at 57 he gave in his notice and retired at 58.  A similar thing happened to me in that my employers went through another restructuring 2 years later and I retired at 57. 

So I think when you are no longer happy at work that is usually the catalyst to make you jump as long as the finances will sustain it.  As it is we are comfortable financially but even if our pensions/investments are lower we would still have gone then but have to lead a more frugal retirement. 

Pat38493

Rich1976 said:

Pat38493 said:

Rich1976 said:

Pat38493 said:

I am supposed to be in the office at least 3 days a week under our hybrid working rules.

I just completely ignored it and carry on making my own schedule - some weeks I am in 4 days, some none, some two, some I just go in for a few hours to do a specific task, avoiding rush hour traffic, but work from home rest of day - nobody has ever pulled me up on it yet and if they do I will just tell them I am financially independent so if they force me to the office 3 days a week for the sake of an arbitrary rule, I will simply quit and it will be none days per week

That says a lot about the management of your company then if they don’t know whose working at home and whose not.
at my place we do 3 days in and 2 days at home and anyone flouting those rules is pulled up about it and is always noticed by colleagues when people haven’t done their 3 days in, despite having a valid reason why!

I have a long history with the company and I am the IT lead for the UK - I need to travel to multiple sites regularly and I am also often working on projects or topics where I am mainly on Teams calls where nobody on the call is even in the UK, let alone at the same site as me.  It wouldn't make sense for me to drive to a particular office just to sit there on the phone all day, and the activities I work on also means it wouldn't make sense for me to be at the office on 3 specific pre-allocated days per week.

This is one of the benefits of long service and a fairly good record of success in the company - if they trust you to deliver your objectives, they don't really care where you are sitting to do it.

I appreciate that this is a luxury that most people don't have.

Yes quite probably true. 

I’ve also read quite a few comments and overheard previous comments from former colleagues why they have the attitude that if they don’t get their own way then they are leaving . 

Depends on their job and how specialised it is I suppose as well as how important  they are to the organisation. For the rest of us it makes little difference as we are all easily replaced and that persons name isn’t even mentioned ever again within a short space of time of them going.

That wasn’t a dig at your earlier comments by the way just something I’ve noticed on these forums from some people threatening to throw in the towel and retiring if their bosses don’t give them what they want.

No problem and I would not have made such comments until recently when I feel a bit like I have enough money in my retirement pots that it wouldn't matter too much if I was fired tomorrow - that's a new situation for me.  Reminds me of the old saying that a bank is a place where they will lend you money if you can prove you don't need it!  Work is a place where I would not dare to rock the boat or insist on a pay rise or whatever until I don't need the money anyway!

cfw1994

Universidad said:

SouthCoastBoy said:

About 12 mths ago I moved jobs as wanted to do a couple more years before retirement, but my 3.5 hrs commute (return journey time) 3 days a week was getting too much for me, now wfh full time, it makes it much more bearable all be it I had to take a 30% pay cut.

Probably apocryphal, but apparently Bob Marley's last words were "Money can't buy life."

I think about that a lot when pension planning. Yes, you need enough, and no you can't know exactly what enough looks like. But the one thing you can never get back is your time.

100% this!
I had always vaguely aimed for mid-50s…enjoyed work, but enjoyed life outside work as well.
Then in a 14 month period I attended four funerals.  Two my age : one college roommate I had only reconnected with a year or two earlier; the other a worker I got on very well with (had cancer and called me to tell me she enjoyed working with me over the years - tough call 😢).

To the original question:
  Is it a time, so a certain age or year.
  Is it a target value of the pension.
  Is it happiness levels and work.

I guess the key to me was time…..
Those funerals made me want to retire and enjoy life to the maximum ASAP.
None of us know how long we have…..so getting “enough” money to enjoy however many years we have was my goal.

3 years in: not regretted a day!
No good dying the richest in the graveyard (or crematorium)…
Still in touch with many work pals, some of whom have joined me in this thing we call retirement.  Just finished a full month of skiing, so the old bones can still work a bit…& a full month is simply not possible when you’re working.  Unless you’re a ski instructor 🤪

Simon11

I am currently 35 and have been pension focused for the last few years with the target to retire at 50.

At the moment, the 'maths is mathing' maximising wealth and I remain on track, with still plenty of money & time to enjoy everything that I love at the moment.

But what I have realised is that 50 may not be the actual retirement age, as

• Having two young kids leads me to think whether it is worth giving up time/ money now for more time with the kiddies and thus retire slightly later. I am already really lucky to have plenty of time to enjoy time with my children (currently enjoying three months paid leave to look after them and plenty of leave/ wfh options) however have started to wonder if its worth going to 4 days a week despite the big impact on pension saving.
• The ambition of 50 as a target is primarily is to give me the financial freedom and along with another poster here, I would love to work on min-wage part time doing something that I really love and is stress free.  But for now, I have to take advantage of a high-paying job and all the benefits, keep up to date with trends/ technology then slowly 'quiet quit' over time.

However I still focus on 50, as you need some sort of target. The key is to save as much as you reasonable can now to give you options later in life.

barnstar2077

Simon11 said:

I am currently 35 and have been pension focused for the last few years with the target to retire at 50.

At the moment, the 'maths is mathing' maximising wealth and I remain on track, with still plenty of money & time to enjoy everything that I love at the moment.

But what I have realised is that 50 may not be the actual retirement age, as

• Having two young kids leads me to think whether it is worth giving up time/ money now for more time with the kiddies and thus retire slightly later. I am already really lucky to have plenty of time to enjoy time with my children (currently enjoying three months paid leave to look after them and plenty of leave/ wfh options) however have started to wonder if its worth going to 4 days a week despite the big impact on pension saving.
• The ambition of 50 as a target is primarily is to give me the financial freedom and along with another poster here, I would love to work on min-wage part time doing something that I really love and is stress free.  But for now, I have to take advantage of a high-paying job and all the benefits, keep up to date with trends/ technology then slowly 'quiet quit' over time.

However I still focus on 50, as you need some sort of target. The key is to save as much as you reasonable can now to give you options later in life.

I assume you are also taking advantage of your ISA to bridge the gap until you can access your pension? 

barnstar2077

For me the answer is time.  I have so much I want to do and work gets in the way.  As soon as I can afford it, I'm gone.

Family and friends think I'm money focused, I'm not, I'm just very aware that money equals time, and I would rather save it to exchange it for time. 

pensionpawn

warrenb said:

I was just sitting here looking at the spreadsheet I have created about my pension, and the thought crossed my mind.

What target do you set to retire.

Is it a time, so a certain age or year.
Is it a target value of the pension.
Is it happiness levels and work.

Time: to be fiscally independent at 55 to permit options to maximise....
Happiness: which, for me, is a) minimising all stress at work / be able to fully retire if desired, b) effectively be my own boss, c) spend more time with my family / interests which can be realised by achieving my...
Target pot value: which isn't maximising the size of the pot but reaching a value, which will reduce over time, that will cover my (actively reduced) living costs plus some luxuries.

The bottom line is happiness which is a function of having enough money to use your remaining time as you wish and stress free. However being mindful of not mortgaging the present to fund a future that isn't promised!

michaels

Simon11 said:

I am currently 35 and have been pension focused for the last few years with the target to retire at 50.

At the moment, the 'maths is mathing' maximising wealth and I remain on track, with still plenty of money & time to enjoy everything that I love at the moment.

But what I have realised is that 50 may not be the actual retirement age, as

• Having two young kids leads me to think whether it is worth giving up time/ money now for more time with the kiddies and thus retire slightly later. I am already really lucky to have plenty of time to enjoy time with my children (currently enjoying three months paid leave to look after them and plenty of leave/ wfh options) however have started to wonder if its worth going to 4 days a week despite the big impact on pension saving.
• The ambition of 50 as a target is primarily is to give me the financial freedom and along with another poster here, I would love to work on min-wage part time doing something that I really love and is stress free.  But for now, I have to take advantage of a high-paying job and all the benefits, keep up to date with trends/ technology then slowly 'quiet quit' over time.

However I still focus on 50, as you need some sort of target. The key is to save as much as you reasonable can now to give you options later in life.

So quick maths 5 years at 4 days a week equals one extra year to retirement although it will probably be slightly less due to progressive tax rates.

I have done this pretty much since my kids were born, oldest is now 19, and the afternoons off watching their sports matches, plays etc have definitely been the highlights of my week.

Ganga

barnstar2077 said:

For me the answer is time.  I have so much I want to do and work gets in the way.  As soon as I can afford it, I'm gone.

Family and friends think I'm money focused, I'm not, I'm just very aware that money equals time, and I would rather save it to exchange it for time. 

That is one thing you cannot do ,when the grim reaper knocks on your door it is no good trying to bribe him