My Retirement: Seven Years Later

On June 30^th I celebrated seven years since I retired from full time employment. I managed to escape the all too familiar mistake of retiring from life. I must report that my life is now fuller and more enjoyable. Why? I am free to choose what I want to do, when I want to do it, and with whom I want to do it.

Personality Labels

Many of my friends snickered when I told them that I was retiring. They suggested that as a personality type A, I would not be able to retire, and that I would soon get back to work in some form or another. My friends saw me as a driven person and workaholic. Little they knew that I was also a closet personality type B.

During my 50-years long career, I can hardly remember taking my briefcase home and working at home nights or weekends. I vowed early in my career that I would leave my job at the door when I came home. If I was behind in my work, I would go to my job office, often on Saturday and sometime on Sunday, or I would stay late to finish it.

Guiding Principles

Growing up, I latched onto two principles to guide me in my choices. One is named after Texas style poker: ”Know when to hold them, and know when to fold them.” The other comes from an old Sicilian proverb: “Move aside and let the river pass.”

These principles have served me well as I navigated through corporate life and when dealing with personal dilemmas.

Six months before I retired, on my birthday, I came to grips with reality. I was tired of traveling, I no longer looked forward to go to work, and I was not enjoying my job as much. I did not feel at my best, and I saw my edge slip. After talking with my spouse, I decided to hang it up and give my notice. My boss tried to dissuade me from leaving, asking me to stick around another two years. I respectfully declined his offer and thanked him for his strong support during past years.  It was time to fold them. I was ready to move on.

I realize years later than part of my fatigue was coming from the winds of change I was sniffing and the uncertainty associated with these changes. The Company had embarked on a somewhat mechanistic change program designed to improve overall profitability and reduce headcount. Up to that point we had focused more on expansion and integration.

We were now shifting to a strategy of holding and outsourcing as much as possible, often to companies ill equipped to maintain the quality level. While I admired the CEO’s strategic brilliance, I had many doubts about the driving force for the change and the change methods employed to achieve the intended results.

Neither of these strategies seemed to fit the CEO’s style and temperament. I had a choice to make: to resist the change and become a casualty, or move aside and let someone else, perhaps more supportive of the change process, replace me. This was the underlying rationale for my decision to move on. I chose to let the river pass.

About six months after I left, the change did not fully achieve the intended results. The Board also decided to divest the company of 2/3 of its operations and cash-in on the payout.  

Getting Old While Staying Young

They say that old people look to the past while the young to the future. Young people have dreams while old people have memories. You are advised that, in order to stay young, you must create new memories, and not admire faded ones. Active minds keep the spirit alert, the senses wide-open, longing for further knowledge.

Some retirees feel that their life is pretty much over, when in fact it can have many new beginnings. After all, one retires from work, not from living. Those who retire (in good health) from living become early casualty of father time.

Getting Off The Merry-go-around

The day after my farewell retirement party in a characteristic Lebanese restaurant in the hills surrounding Beirut, I boarded a plane for Palermo, Sicily. I would stop there for two and half months to transition and start constructing my new beginning. Although I had lost my passion for work, I had not lost my zest for life. I would need this time of solitude and reflection to chart my new journey.

This transition period was a marvelous way for me to let go of the familiar and the routine, go idle, and then move on. Steven Covey’s advice followed me: Always start with the end in mind.

I established four new goals: (1) put my skill set to good use by concentrating on what I always wanted to do, but did not have before the time to do it, (2) learn some new things, (3) spend more quality time with my family and my two brothers, and (4) not postpone or put off what is important to me.

Translating Goals Into Action

The first tasks were to help my wife remodel our home and select a reputable organization to help us manage our portfolio. We then bought a larger, seaside apartment in my native country. It would serve as our second home. Although a hygiene factor, our getting our physical and financial house in order would prove to be an important step forward.

After word got around of my retirement, I got unsolicited job or consulting offers. I chose to serve young companies looking for board members and/or advisors needing my skill set. I would limit my “work" to five days per month. Since then, I have served on the board of four companies.

One of my hobbies for some time has been cooking. I now spend considerable time sharpening my repertoire. In one instance, I attended the International Culinary Center to perfect my ability to make three French-style sauces. I do the cooking at home, relieving my spouse of this role, which she does not particularly enjoy in the first place.  

I have written and published two novels under the pen name of Antonio G. Sacchetta: Giacomo’s Luck Runs Out and An Unfounded Regret.  Both novels are available on Amazon.com. Although English is not my mother tongue, I have managed to put together two very different pieces of work, with two different themes. In the future I might write another novel, perhaps a mystery one.

I have followed through on my goal to spend more time with my brothers. I visit Angelo 3-4 times per year. I enjoy the time with him and his family. I continue to pray for his health. I have taken five trips with my brother Carmelo. I also have visited him and his family several other times. Getting close to my two brothers has given me much satisfaction and joy.

Cassandra, Thalia and I have gone to Italy together several times and to Greece once. We have also taken a couple weekends to explore Northern California. We have on our radar Florence, Costa Rica, and France. 

I have made several business-related trips since my retirement: London, Milan, Rome, Paris, Beirut, Manama, Kuwait City, Amman, Istanbul, Athens, Madrid, Vigo, Santiago (Chile), Santiago de Compostela, Ljubljana, Oporto, Buenos Aires, Cordoba, Mexico City, Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, Brussels, and Milan.

We often postpone actions or decisions, only to regret having done so. After retiring, I adopted the motto: For me, one of these days is now. It is a constant reminder that I do not want to accumulate more unfinished business. In fact, it is time to complete my bucket list, rather than to add more to it. For example, next year I plan on taking a 30-day trip exploring the southern states of the United States, such as Arkansas, Arizona, Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Northern Carolina, and Virginia. It is a part of this great country that I know the least and I want to savor.

Reflections

Our Creator has endowed each and every one of us with five senses: the ability to hear, to see, to taste, to feel, and to smell. Some folks, it is said, have also the gift of a sixth sense. In religious terms, we might more appropriately call it the Spirit. Listening through all our senses improves our decision-making ability. They are critical data collection tools, each with a different perspective. Sharpening our ability to use them will make our personal journeys less burdensome. 

I have been blessed many times by the great counsel that comes from thoughtful reflection.