How to Retire Early

Have you been thinking of retirement? Pondering that one fateful day in the future when you're finally be able to retire? Assuming your parents are still alive today, do they work jobs as well? Have you ever wanted to retire them? You may have been brought up like I was in school. Taught to believe that, when you came out, you'd go to college. After college you would get a good job and work until retirement. Have you ever sat down to think about this? What does your future life looks like years from now?

In my life, I have had many odd jobs. From Maze Room operator to Zip line tour guide. From Poker Dealer to Karaoke DJ. I worked days and nights hoping that I would get enough income to someday, somehow retire. But I never stopped to question the idea of retirement. I never stopped to ask if I was willing to work for the better half of my life. I never stopped to wonder if I would actually enjoy life when I retired.

My idea of retirement has started to change over the years. I came in contact with authors like Robert Kiyosaki. I've gone on ventures like network marketing. Meeting mentors and teachers who inspired me along my path. As my mind began to open, I realized that maybe I had it all wrong. If that was true and these ideas were all taught, then my teachers could have gotten it wrong as well.

I had to know for myself. I had to find out if this concept of retirement was real. If this was my destiny in life, I needed to know much more. Up until a year ago, I was content to go to my call-center job and lounge on the couch when I got home. Never seeming to have enough energy to go for my real dreams. I constantly felt deflated and demotivated. That is until I came across a question. A question you have asked or may ask yourself one day.

Imagine you had all the money you could ever want or need. Imagine financial worries were not a problem for you. You took care of all bills and could live any lifestyle you wanted. Knowing this, would you still work the same amount of hours you do today? Would you still work the same amount of days per week that you do right now? If your answer is "yes" I have some news for you, my friend. You are already retired. Let me further explain this. It started as a feeling.

The moment of clarity

I found myself sitting in a library parking lot one day. Thinking to myself that I wanted to be able to live my life on my terms. I wanted to be able to give this content to people, but I did not want to work my job. I wanted to continue to inspire the world, but I did not want to live from paycheck to paycheck. I also wanted to travel the world and see all that life had to offer. I thought about all these goals that seemed lofty at first. I thought about being able to go hiking at a moments notice, to do what I want, where and when I wanted. Then something strange happened. It hit me out of nowhere and, to this day, I don't know where the voice came from. My mind said, "Then just do it. Why not do it now? Go live the life you want today."

It was so strange. It was like having a sudden moment of clarity. Instead of complaining, why don't I live that life now? Instead of putting the life that I want in the future, why not start living that life today? It was a game changer for me. Wherever that thought came from, I am forever grateful. This transformed my whole perspective on retirement. Think about it once more. If you were able to do the things that you want to do. If money was no problem, and you would work the same amount that you work today, you're already retired.

Forget about a later date. You're retired right now! You go to work because you want to. Not because you have to, but because you choose to. Everything in life is a choice. Why wait until the fateful day when you're 65 or 67 to somehow retire and live the life that you want? Why put off tomorrow what you can do today?

If you are reading this blog, I already assume that you are open minded. Let this be a confirmation that you are expanding. It's to let you know that if you want the life tomorrow, you've got to live it today. Tomorrow is the day that never comes. As soon as tomorrow arrives, it has already been replaced.

A sense of fulfillment

"Laziness may be tempting, but true satisfaction comes from work."—Anne Frank

Here's another thought. What if you "retired" today and quit working forever? Imagine yourself on a beach day after day. See yourself living a life with no work at all. See yourself watching movies for hours and lounging around while money is rolling in. Would you be satisfied with that? Would you feel that sense of fulfillment you've been searching for? I doubt it.

There is a chance that after a few months without working on something your mind would start to race. You may even go crazy after watching the hundredth movie in a row. How long can you imagine you'd be on the beach when you finally went insane? How many bicycles would it take to pass you by while you lounged in the sun before you said enough is enough? Sometimes the life we want can end up as suffering. Sometimes the life we want is really the life that we think we want.

Doing what you love

I remember hearing someone say, "Don't do what you love, love what you do." Forget about retiring to do what you love and start to love what you do each day. With new perspectives come new insights. Imagine working because you love the work you're doing and not because it is necessary. Imagine waking up and greeting the day instead of dreading a job. As Dr. Wayne Dyer says, it is the difference between "Good morning, God!" and "Good God, MORNING!"

"When work is a pleasure, life is a joy! When work is a duty, life is slavery." —Maxim Gorky

Reframe your idea of retirement. Instead of retiring from your work, retire TO your work. Retire to your growing business. Retire to the things that make you happy. My greatest inspiration has been my parents. My mom is still working today. Even after she has "retired". Growing up, I believed that I was working so she could finally live the life I thought she deserved. One day her business partner told me that was a lost cause. "Don't work to retire your mom." He said, "What you don't realize is, she enjoys the work. She doesn't want to do nothing. She wants to continue working. She likes it."

I didn't understand at the time because I only saw things my way. The life that I thought my parents deserved was so small compared to the one they were already living. So, my friend, may you retire today. Realize that contribution to the world can give us the utmost satisfaction. Don't go to your grave with regret for the life that you wanted. I implore you, don't leave your dreams somewhere in a far away future. Think of ways that you can live that life today. I don't know about you, but I'm going to enjoy spending the rest of my life retired.

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