Over the years, we’ve noticed that our clients are often most concerned about the process of readying their business for a sale.

As we’ve discussed in a previous article, this includes making provisions for who will take over the company when you retire, along with putting the business’s finances in order.

While this stage is absolutely crucial, business owners often spend so much time focusing on preparing for retirement that they forget to consider what they’ll do once they exit.

If you’re currently preparing to exit, it’s likely that you’re deeply consumed by the preparation stage. However, it is equally important to look ahead and think about:

• How your life might change after you retire
• Your emotional wellbeing during this period
• The positive opportunities your retirement might present, such as spending more time with family.

Keep reading to learn how the milestone of retirement could affect business owners emotionally and socially, plus tips on how to ready yourself in the meantime.

Saying goodbye to your business might be a bittersweet experience

It is likely that growing your business over many years has been an incredibly meaningful experience in your life.

So, although you may know deep down that it’s time to retire and reap the rewards of your labour, saying goodbye to your company could be an emotional experience.

That said, focusing on the positive emotional impact of retirement could reassure you that retiring is the right choice at this time.

After all, running a business for many years may also have taken its toll on your mental health. A UK study from Credit Connect says that 1 in 4 business owners has seen their mental health “deteriorate” under the stress of managing their company’s finances.

With this in mind, while it may be emotionally challenging to hang up your boots, seeing this as a beneficial health choice as well as a financial one could put your mind at ease.

Retiring often reduces social interaction, which could have an emotional impact on you

One aspect of retirement that many business owners don’t anticipate is a reduction in social interaction.

In your working life, you likely interact with people every single day – sometimes to the point of wishing you had more time to spend alone! Yet once you retire, you could suddenly feel a shift in your social life, and go from almost constant daily interactions to having most of the day to yourself.

While you might be greatly looking forward to this change, it could help to reach out to friends and family in order to stay socially active when you retire.

Similarly, it could help to take on a new project or join a team, such as volunteering for a cause that you care about, to meet new people and boost your confidence as a retiree. In turn, this could help you to feel more comfortable with how your life changes after you exit your business.

Setting meaningful retirement goals could inspire you to see this chapter as a new beginning

At the moment, you may see your retirement as the end of an era – and in many ways, you’re right.

However, there’s another perspective here that you might be missing: retirement is the beginning of a new chapter, not just the end of your career.

Setting meaningful, achievable goals in retirement could help to shift your viewpoint and embrace this change – especially if you’re a goal-driven business owner who has always thrived on targets. These goals could be financial, or have to do with your personal development and wider community.

Some examples of retirement goals our clients have set over the years include:

• Learning a new language. Perhaps you have a favourite travel destination that you want to visit more often in retirement, or even purchase a property there. If so, learning the local language could be a helpful and motivating goal to set.
• Improving your favourite sport. To avoid “slowing down” in retirement, perhaps up the ante with your favourite sport. You could invest in private lessons or join a local club to keep yourself moving.
• Helping the next generation. Whether it’s teaching your skills to the next generation in a formal setting or improving the lives of your own children and grandchildren, you have plenty of wisdom to pass on to younger folks.
• Ticking off items on your travel bucket list. Now is the time to explore and enjoy the world in a way that you might not have had time to do before. Setting the goal of completing one bucket list item each year could keep you motivated and focused in retirement.

Carefully setting goals that are important to you could mean you feel less worried, disheartened, or overwhelmed by the emotional shift that retirement often brings.

Work with a financial planner who can help you before, during, and after retirement

At iQ Financial, our mission is to help business owners take control of their personal finances and use this to power their life’s ambitions.

Whether you’re not yet retired, about to retire, or are already enjoying your well-earned rest, we’re here to create a financial plan that ensures peace of mind in your life.

Email us at clients@iqf.ie, or call 353 71 915 5560.

Please note

This article is for information only. It does not constitute advice.

It describes financial planning services that iQ Financial can offer to you. Financial planning services are not regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.