Who wants to “retire” and do nothing for the rest of your life?
Just save a ton, buy whatever stuff truly makes you happy, and your savings give you flexibility. Like taking a year off between jobs, etc.
Just save a ton, buy whatever stuff truly makes you happy, and your savings give you flexibility. Like taking a year off between jobs, etc.
This is an extremely reductive characterization of retirement. There's no rule you have to do nothing.
> buy whatever stuff truly makes you happy, and your savings give you flexibility. Like taking a year off between jobs, etc.
You could definitely do this in "retirement."
Retirement simply means that you could just live off of your savings interest. But that doesn't mean that you have to stop working.
For me, this is about three things: 1) Prioritizing joyful experiences, social connections, self-development and happiness over (expensive) material possessions 2) Being financially responsible, knowing how much I earn, owe, spend and save 3) Maximizing future life options involving less well-paying jobs (working part-time, retiring, taking some time off, starting a new career, whatever) when I get bored/burnt out of my current career or get health issues, need to look after a family member etc. So much can happen in a life.
Neither is retirement, obviously, but you are correct that being financially independent gives you the freedom do do what you want. Whether that is time off between jobs, working on independent projects, etc.