What’s the Honeymoon Phase of Retirement?

According to Dr. Joseph Coughlin, director of the MIT AgeLab (agelab.mit.edu), retirement is made up of four phases. (hartfordfunds.com/days). The Honeymoon Phase is the first one. Advertising portrays this time being filled with beaches, bike riding, and golf. It’s true that if you’ve stopped working, you’ll have more time for leisure activities. You might even think, “This is the life. This is what I want my retirement to be like.” But after a while, these activities can become routine. They might not provide the happiness we expected.

Instead of planning for ‘retirement’ as a single state, it may be beneficial to reframe the conversation to reflect a four-phased concept of retirement. Each is characterized by the tasks and issues individuals are most likely to be managing. 

The Highest Levels of Resources

In each of the four phases, we’ll have varying levels of resources in the following categories: financial, cognitive, physical, and social. These resources tend to diminish the longer we’re retired.

Financial resources tend to be highest in the Honeymoon Phase since retirees have just started spending their retirement savings. For most, aging hasn’t taken its toll on bodies and minds, therefore, our cognitive, physical, and social resources also tend to be at their highest level. As a result, our lifestyle and well-being are often comparable to our life during full-time work.
 

So, What’s The Problem?

Despite our resources potentially being at their highest level, the Honeymoon Phase comes with transition challenges related to our routines, roles, and relationships.
 

Breaking a Routine That Began in Kindergarten

Get up. Get dressed. Get breakfast. Go to school or work. Come home. Eat. Go to bed. Retirement can break this routine. Nothing is forcing you to live like this anymore. You’ll have a lot more time on your hands. You may enjoy this freedom, but if you’re not sure what you’re going to do with it, boredom can set in. Thirty-two percent of recent retirees struggle with getting used to a new and different routine.¹

Retirement can break this routine. There’s nothing forcing you to live like this anymore.

Clients’ Relationships Change

If you stopped working, you may miss the socializing, intellectual stimulation, and sense of accomplishment resulting from collaborating with co-workers on projects. Among recent retirees, 37% miss the day-to-day social interaction with co-workers.¹

In the Honeymoon Phase, clients will spend less, if any, time with co-workers, and way more time with their spouse. This adjustment can put a strain on relationships if couples don’t share similar interests or social circles. New conflicts can pop up about the sharing of chores, how to spend leisure time, and how to manage the household.

Half of parents with kids over 18 support them financially, averaging $1,000 in monthly support,2 and over 6 out of 10 parents admitted to sacrificing their financial security for the sake of their children.3 In addition to helping out their kids, about a third of adults in their 40s, 50s, and early 60s said they had given a parent money in the past year.4 Trying to care for either grown kids, parents, or both, under the constraints of a retirement budget, can cause stress on relationships as people wonder if they’re overextending their resources.
 

Their Role Will Change

Work can give clients an identity, a sense of purpose, and respect. In the Honeymoon Phase, if they stop working, they may miss that identity and sense of accomplishment. The might feel under-appreciated and like they’re in a state of limbo after leaving the structured world of work. Their family members may expect more from them, more of their time and attention, maybe more than they’d like. Their previous identity, built over their career, was clear. Their new identity is foggy.
 

Timing Is Important

If clients are nearing retirement, they may be a bit anxious about entering the Honeymoon Phase. Sixty three percent of people feel stressed about retirement leading up to that decision.¹ Retirees usually have a smoother transition if they enter it in a planned way, where they choose a retirement date. They tend to experience more anxiety if they’re forced into this phase by a layoff or health problems.
 

Help Clients Make a Smoother Transition

• Create a new routine
  Even though we know retirement is coming, most of us don’t spend much time planning what we’ll do when we get there. Ask yourself: “How do you plan to spend your time? What are your hobbies? What activities will fill your days?” Set some long-term and short-term goals. Moving towards these goals can provide a sense of purpose and control in your new routine.
• Find your new identity
  Find ways to be productive. Consider volunteering, working part-time, taking a class, or learning a new skill. For more ideas, check out encore.org. Find a retirement mentor, someone who’s thriving in retirement. Ask if they’d be willing to meet with you regularly to discuss transition challenges and options for your new role.
• Discover new relationships
  Build new relationships to replace work relationships. Consider taking a class, working part-time, or joining a group where you can meet people. Go to meetup.com, enter your zip code to find lots of groups in your area.
• Give yourself time
  Don’t expect to hit your retirement groove right away. It may take six months or a year or two to find your new roles, routines, and relationships.
• Work with a financial professional
  In the Honeymoon Phase, you may not be bringing in a paycheck. You might start withdrawing money from your savings for income. You may wonder if you’ll run out of money in retirement. A financial professional can help you evaluate your situation and create a financial game plan.