What is a hobby?

A hobby is something that one likes to do in one’s spare time (Webster’s New World Dictionary, Macmillan USA)

A retiree is freed from work and responsibility which create a potential to devote more time to do something he/she likes to do.

Therefore a hobby is the best way to spend time during retirement.

Engaging in a hobby can also lead to acquiring personal fulfillment.

There are many types of activities which can be considered as hobby. However we need to find those which are only suitable for a retiree.

Some conditions for a retirement hobby:
- has recreational theme
- entertaining
- enjoyful
- fun to do
- last but not least can also be used to generate some income

The last conditions can be useful to help a retiree to get some extra money to cover some living expenses.

Retirement reality

With advancements in medical sciences, better health care facilities and services and improvements in living standards in some countries, people are living longer lives. Take Singapore for example. Singapore’s life expectancy is among the highest in the world. As per data by Singapore Department of Statistics, life expectancy at birth, 1995 – 2000 (years) is 77 years old. That means average Singaporean will survive for 15 years after they had retired (the mandatory retirement age is 62 years old).

If we take that example as our model, 15 years is a long time to live without any meaningful and enjoying activities.

Most of us are busy pursuing our life and family goal, making financial provision for retirement and routinely taking care of our health. But we don't give sufficient thought to how we will spend our time.

The early weeks and months of retirement can feel like an extended vacation. Having been used to the routine of the working life for so many years it can be quite pleasing not to have to get up early to work.

Some people spend these early months catching up on various chores about the house and on friends and families. The question is how long these activities will last? Soon we will run out of things to do. That is the reason that we must have at least a hobby which we can do to spend the time while at the same time enjoying it. It is unlikely that a person will suddenly develop a hobby on the stroke of midnight on their 62th birthday. That means we need to start finding and developing a hobby now.

Retirement should be a time of contentment and fulfillment.

How do I spend my retirement time?

This is the question which always bugged me for the past few years even though I still have 15 years ++ before I finally retire. 15 years is a short time when one has not made any effort to prepare for one’s retirement. At least that is what I am thinking and I need to do something to prepare myself starting from now.

I have been trying to find the answer by searching the internet. Most website prepares us on the financial and health of retirement. It tells us options to grow our money to meet our retirement goals and it tells us how to keep fit so that we will be able to spend our retirement healthily. However it does not tell us options on how to spend our time and to prepare us not to have a boring life during our retirement.

At the moment, I can not find the answer myself too. That is the reason I am starting this blog site. I will share with you my journey on my quest to find the answer for my own retirement. You can also share my journey with your ideas, suggestions or experiences. I hope that it will not only benefit me but it will also benefit other people as it can also serve as a “wake up call” for those people who have not start planning on how they will spend their time during their retirement. Happy reading!!

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