Whether you take the option as soon as you’re in your 30s or decide to do it in your 50s, early retirement is generally not a decision many people regret. However, there are some people who would choose to do things a bit differently if they had the opportunity to do it over again.
GOBankingRates reviewed comments from Reddit users who retired too early and would have tried to avoid common mistakes if they had the chance to hit redo on retirement.
These people retired too early — these are their biggest regrets. See more about advantages and disadvantages of retiring early.
Worry About Long-Term Finances
It’s fairly common to experience some financial anxiety after retiring. Three months after retiring, a Reddit user named naffion wrote in a Reddit thread about worrying over long-term finances.
Naffion said they retired from a high-paying career at a young age. After retiring, they said they sold good assets out of panic and those assets have since become too expensive to buy back. Additional issues also have crept up with naffion’s rental property and the Reddit user wrote about possibly going back to work on a short-term contract.
Stock Market Concerns
In the same thread, a Reddit user named reddituser4455 said they can feel bad when the markets go down. To fix this issue, the user has a bond ladder.
“I have a certain dollar amount of Treasury bonds that mature each month to match my average monthly expenses for the first two years of retirement so I can tell myself, ‘It doesn’t matter what the market is doing. I don’t have to sell a dime of stock for another two years,’” wrote reddituser445. “It has been pretty effective at calming money anxiety.”
People Asking for Money
For Reddit user Moe_Bisquits, the biggest regret in retirement is not being prepared for the number of people outside immediate family asking for money.
Moe_Bisquits said these people ask for money because they didn’t save enough.
“Keep in mind that people outside your immediate family may ask for money, especially if you look like you are enjoying your life,” the user wrote on Reddit.
Not Getting an Eye Exam
Those planning for retirement, especially if they plan to do it early, are advised to see doctors for all physical and wellness exams. This includes making appointments with the dentist and going to the eye doctor.
Not getting an eye exam before retiring was the biggest financial regret for Reddit user Whut4. The user wrote they had cataracts and didn’t know it.
“[I] could have worked a few more years after my cataract surgery — easily,” wrote Whut4. “If I had just kept on a few more years, money would be less tight.”
Not Taking Better Care of Health
Longer lifespans and longevity are a big part of retirement for retirees young and old today. Reddit user Haroldchan1, who retired five years ago, wrote that their biggest regret was giving 100% of their emotional, intellectual and physical energy to their job.
As Haroldchan1 saw their retirement nearing, they said they worked “like a fiend” in sales management with long hours and plenty of pressure.
“Since I was a senior manager, I felt achieving excellent work performance would be a spectacular way to go out my last two years. Instead, my company was bought and the entire management staff was let go,” wrote Haroldchan1. “The stress caused cardiac symptoms for me which later got resolved with a hospital stay and medication.”
The lesson learned, Haroldchan1 wrote, was to take care of your health and don’t give 100% of yourself to a company.
