The 6 Stages of Retirement - Stage 6

'It's just a stage you're going through...' how many times have well-meaning friends and family members said that to you over the course of your lifetime? And don't expect them to stop now, because, as far as retirement is conce ed, there are six identified stages that most retirees go through to varying degrees. Stage 6 - and the final stage of the retirement process is the Routine phase. Routine comes when you've sorted out all your 'issues'. A new order of life has been established, retirement is starting to fit you like a glove and you're wondering how you ever found time to go to work. However, even this stage is not without its potential pitfalls... The potential pitfalls of the Routine Phase include:

Becoming set in your ways by having too rigid a routine

Leaving no time or scope for fun and spontaneity in your life

Keeping yourself so busy that you don't leave enough time to spend with the people who matter most to you

Being too risk-averse, not being adventurous enough

Believing a little too much in the 'forever young', baby-boomer-generated aphorism that '60 is the new 40'. For example, although exercise is considered to be extremely beneficial (some would say crucial!) as we get older, our bodies aren't the same as they were when we were 20 and we need to learn how to exercise smarter. In addition, although procedures such as cosmetic surgery and liposuction can make us look better (and younger) by removing the excess skin and subcutaneous fat from our bodies, the incidence of heart disease is just as high after these procedures because they can't remove the internal, artery-clogging fat that does the real damage, making these procedures no substitute for a healthy lifestyle.

Not carrying out regular 'How's it going?' reviews (with your partner, if you have one) to make sure that you're still on track and that dissatisfaction or boredom haven't started to creep in So that's it - my guide to the 6 stages of retirement. My aim has been, not to spoil your fun as you anticipate your long-awaited freedom, but to alert you to the potential pitfalls in advance so that you can think about them and decide if they are likely to be a problem for you. I hope the guide will prove useful to you in your own retirement.