As a personal finance junkie, this is a question I think about a lot. Who am I in retirement? How do I define myself?

For someone whose identity and sense of self-worth comes from their work, these can be tough questions to answer. Take the police officer who’s been proudly serving and protecting for 25 years. Enforcing the law is part of their identity. Same goes for the company executive who is fully committed to leading their organization. So how do you prepare yourself for the shock that comes with the transition to retirement?

Think about who you are ahead of retirement.

This means separating yourself from your job. If you couldn’t use your profession to describe who you are to someone you’ve just met, what would you say to them instead?

If you don’t know, that’s totally fine. A good place to start might be any hobbies that you enjoy. For example, I might say that I’m a writer, photographer, traveler, martial artist, personal finance nerd, or whatever else.

If you don’t have any hobbies today, that’s ok too. It might be a good place to start doing some exploration. You might find that there’s something you really come to enjoy; that hobby could then act like a bridge from your working life to your retired life. If you’re a baker while you work, you could continue to refine your baking skills in retirement, know what I mean?

Visualize your ideal week in retirement.

If you no longer had to dedicate 8+ hours a day to your job, how would you spend your time instead? Would you travel the world? Dive in to your hobbies? Go for long walks or hikes? Visit with friends? Take the time to imagine how you’d spend each week in a world where your job doesn’t factor in. That preparation can help make the shock easier to stomach when the time comes.

Understand that there will be an adjustment period.

This post by Investopedia talks about how the stages of adjusting to retirement aren’t really that different from the stages of adjusting to any other phase of our lives. It talks about the pre-planning phase, the big day, the honeymoon phase, the disenchantment phase, reorientation, and transitioning to the new normal. These phases are very similar to the steps we go through when we move from high school to post-secondary education, from there to the workforce, and even moving from dating to marriage.

No amount of planning or preparation can totally short-circuit this emotional journey. But thinking ahead can help shorten the duration of some of the tougher steps. For example, you might spend less time in the disenchantment phase if you realize ahead of time that you’ll need to find purpose in order to avoid boredom. Having that purpose already in place helps you avoid the “what now?” feeling you get from not having a plan.

Wrapping it Up

Retirement is meant to be a joyous, exciting occasion… and it is. But it can also be jarring for many folks. The key is to plan ahead, and make sure that you’re not going from 100mph to zero with the snap of a finger. With the right preparation, the transition will be as smooth and painless as it can possible be.

Man, am I looking forward to when I can write about how this process feels from the other side of retirement. Any of you readers already go through this journey? I’d love to hear your perspective in the comments!