re: Anyone retire early early?

quote:

---

What did you do instead of working?

---

I guess I could have “retired” in my late 20s. And by retired, I just mean having a corporate job. I would have still stayed involved in my real estate and other ventures.

I guess from my father and grandfather, I have a real need to be doing something. I have to be involved in something, even if money isn’t the prime motivator. So since retiring from the corporate world, I still run my options trading business, dabble in private equity ventures, but mostly I work with several nonprofits. My wife and I also travel a fair amount - and I can trade from anywhere in the world as long as I have cell service or the internet. For hobbies, I take my car to the track a few times a year and pretend that I’m Mario Andretti or Ayrton Senna.

All that to say, if you’ve been used to a fast paced, action oriented work lifestyle, you’ll probably hate just sitting around. A friend of mine is a retired attorney. Yeah, he plays a lot of golf, but he also works part time driving a tractor trailer (of all things!) - says that it makes him feel more productive, and more like a real person than when he was practicing law. He also volunteers at one of the nonprofits that I’m in and is into the car culture (how we became friends).

TL/DR: Find something that you enjoy doing that makes you feel alive. And do it for as long as you can.