Well, I've done it!

Good for you janthea, September won't come soon enough!

You'll love it, janthea. I think I was born to retire

Excellent decision Jan......roll on September when the world will be your oyster.

See you at the racetrack!

Good decision - I have never regretted it, even though the finances sometimes look a bit sick. I am now living my life and not someone else's.

Well done Janthea

Can I add my best wishes too, Janthea.
You'll have a ball

Sometimes you just know when the time is right!

Congratulations and hope it all goes smoothly for you.

Thank you, everyone, for your very kind wishes. A little daunting. I will miss the job and my boss, but not the commuting.

Well done, I hope you enjoy your retirement.

Happy retirement janthea

I do hope you enjoy your retirement as much as I enjoy mine. I THINK I retired 9 years ago but working was what I did in a previous life so unless I look it up I really can't remember !

Well done, you will never regret it.
I worked until 66, cutting down to part time after 60. I worried that I'd barely survive on the state pension plus a tiny one from work but you adapt and watch the pennies carefully if you have to.
Life is one long holiday and I've never been happier. I thought I'd miss work but I don't.

Hi Janthea I also took that deep breath earlier this year and told my employers that "I'm out of here" come my 65th birthday in July, which more or less will coincide (depending on when bubba comes) with the birth of my first grandchild. Like you, I also just knew that the time was right. For me it had to lot to do too with "trains and boats and planes" (well not quite, but I could no longer even face London-Birmingham and back in a day let alone Manchester or Liverpool.

So... having retired from full time employment, and I will have most of July and all of August off, I'm then going to freelance for my project for 10 days a month as and when I can or please, working from home, until at least the end of March next year. So yippee I've got a win-win situation. I am cashing in my pension.

I also have my moments where I panic about income (I have a husband who will still be working for a few years), but I know I'll adapt. I hate not having my own money. But I'm not a consumer, so I'll be just fine.

All the best for your planned retirement.

ooooooh. Good luck and enjoy

All the best with your plans, but do be prepared to feel a little lost at first, once the excitement and leaving do's have subsided. It took me a year to find my feet following retirement from a very busy job, but now I wouldn't go back for a million pounds! I find from speaking to others in the same situation that they all went through a tricky period of adjustment at first - but we do live in a fairly rural backwater, I'm sure it would be easier in town.

Dahlia , I was the same missed everything a lot for about the first 9 months, even though himself was also retired,

Then all of a sudden things fell into place and different things took precedence.

Would not change anything at all about my life as it now stands.

Ain"t life so sweet, many holidays, and doing just as you damn well please.

Enjoy, JAN no longer a wage slave eh !!

x

Well done janetha roll on September, enjoy your retirement

good luck to you all being able to retire, Ive now got 3 jobs and going round the bend trying to fit all in. I can never retire due to this stinking government putting the retiring age up so much !!!!

I came into retirement through a voluntary redundancy/early retirement scheme. I thought about it for months, did all the calculations and absolutely knew it was the right decision. Even then going into my manager and saying that I wanted to go had me physically shaking before I went in to see him and for hours afterwards.

It was absolutely the right decision and I have never regretted it.

Silverfish, the last Labour government set out plans to raise the retirement age for both men and women to 68 - you can't just blame 'this stinking government'.

I'm looking forward to officially retiring in December this year!

Ana

You won't regret it

I was really nervous telling him, but he was a perfect poppet about it. I have worked for him for 14 years and 28 years with the company. It will be very strange not being 'Executive Assistant to IR Director'!! It's a FTSE 100 company and there is such a buzz working in head office.

I know I am going to miss it dreadfully but all good things must come to an end and I couldn't stay there forever. This morning, standing squashed on the train, made me realise that I would not miss that part of the job! I'm going to have to be careful with money but I'm sure things will be OK. After all I will be 69 in January!