Retirement Time – About Me
Hi, I’m Teresa and on this page, I’d like to give you a little insight into my own retirement journey and how this website started because of it.
Retirement is something many of us spend decades looking forward to. We imagine having more free time, fewer pressures, and finally being able to do all the things we’ve put off while working. But the reality is often more complicated.
One thing I’ve learned is that no two retirements are ever the same.
For some people, retirement is about travelling the world. For others, it’s spending more time with grandchildren, taking up a new hobby, volunteering, starting a small business, or simply enjoying a slower pace of life. There is no right or wrong way to retire, only the way that’s right for you.
What many people don’t talk about is the emotional side of retirement.
After working for 40 years, your job becomes part of who you are. It gives you purpose, routine, social connections and a sense of achievement. Then suddenly, the work phone stops ringing, the emails stop coming and the structure that shaped your days disappears. It can leave a gap that many people never expected. You may even find yourself asking, “What’s next?”
Retirement brings change in so many areas of life. Your routine changes, your social connections may change, your finances and spending habits may change, and you suddenly have a lot more time to fill. For some people, that’s an exciting prospect. For others, it can take time to adjust. And that’s something I think we need to talk about more. Retirement isn’t just about preparing financially for the day you stop working. It’s about preparing for life after work and finding what makes that next chapter meaningful for you.
What surprised me most was how differently we embraced retirement. Greg was perfectly happy to meet friends for a coffee, spend time pottering around the garden and enjoy a slower pace of life. He settled into retirement almost effortlessly. I was different. While I enjoyed having more free time, I missed the challenge, the sense of achievement and having a project that kept my mind active. I needed something more stimulating, something that gave me purpose and a reason to get excited each day.
Fortunately, I’d spent many years running a web design business, so I had the skills to build something meaningful. What started as an idea gradually became this website. Today, creating and growing this retirement information resource has become one of the most rewarding parts of my retirement. It combines my love of learning with my passion for helping others by bringing together practical information, trusted resources and ideas covering every aspect of retirement.
This experience taught me something important: even two people sharing the same home, retiring at the same time, can have completely different retirement journeys. That’s why I believe there is no single “right” way to retire. The retirement that brings happiness to one person may not suit another at all.
My goal isn’t to tell you how to retire. It’s to help you discover what’s possible.
Whether you’re preparing to retire, navigating the transition, or you’ve already retired and are looking for answers, I hope you’ll find practical information, trusted resources and ideas that help you build a retirement that feels right for you.
Because retirement isn’t just about stopping work. It’s about creating the next chapter of your life – and that chapter can be every bit as meaningful as the one before it.
Thank you for being here, and I hope this website becomes a valuable companion on your retirement journey.