Retirement as we understand in modern America is a relatively recent phenomenon. It really began back in the 1930's during the Great Depression. Prior to that period for hundreds of years, the concept of retirement was virtually unheard of. People simply worked until they died, or could work no more - they did not retire.

During the Great Depression in this country, there were at times as many as 25 million people who were unemployed, and that's when America had a population approximately one half its current 300 million. As President Franklin Roosevelt, a Harvard educated patrician by birth, came up with the concept of retirement. Since most of the jobs were held by people with seniority, meaning they were older people, the Administration determined that if we could just get older people to retire, we could get younger people into the workforce.

The concept of Social Security was then introduced as a matter of law to get millions of older Americans out of the workforce and into retirement to open up what limited jobs there were for younger workers. In the early 1930's when Social Security was introduced there were approximately 13 workers for every person collecting benefits. The problem today is that there are only 3 people working for every 1 person collecting benefits. This is all you need to know to understand why Social Security is in trouble, big trouble that is.

Under Social Security people can begin to retire at age 62 plus. If you retire later than that, you receive an increased benefit to compensate you for not taking a benefit during the earlier years. My suggestion is that you should consider rethinking the whole concept of retirement. If you are involved in work that you hate, than you really should retire as soon as possible. You probably should never have considered remaining in that line of work to begin with but that's a whole different issue.

If you are involved in work that you find joy in, than why retire? If it is mandatory that you retire, and you do not control circumstances than you might consider becoming a consultant in the very industry that you spent your career in. It is a quiet medical fact that people tend to die much more quickly when retired than if they remain gainfully employed. This is especially true for people who give up their homes and leave the cities that they spent their lives in. They go off to Florida or some other warm location and leave their friends of many years behind.

What they do not realize is that for many older people, the vast majority in fact it is very difficult to make new friends. You actually may be the friendly type, but what happens is that older people tend to be involved with cliques, and these cliques can go on for years. Now you move into a new town 2000 miles away, and it is difficult to penetrate the already formed cliques that are present.

You just might consider putting off active retirement as long as possible and continue to do what it is you love. You will be far happier, and your soul and pocketbook will reward you. Visit my Blog for other important articles.

Richard Stoyeck