What ‘Enough’ really means in retirement
Living well with what we have, and staying focused on what matters most.
So many of us reach this stage of life and start asking new questions: Are we spending too much – or too little? Are we making the most of the years ahead? Is this the life we imagined, and will we have enough to sustain us?
One of the biggest fears people share in retirement is whether they will have enough. The truth is that almost everyone I meet has had to adjust some part of their original plan. The world has changed, the cost of living has changed, we’re living longer – and in many cases, our dreams have changed too.
Retiring in a changing world
Retirement simply isn’t what it used to be. It’s not a full stop, but a comma – a pause before we write the next line of our story.
At Chartered, our conversations have never been about when you will retire, but about what Retiremeant™ may really look like for you – what you’ll be retiring to. At the heart of this conversation is how we find meaning, live purposefully, and stay engaged with the world from a place of worthiness.
When the numbers don’t quite add up
Sometimes the numbers don’t align with the life we imagined. If you’re not where you’d like to be financially, ask: What can I do now to create the future I want – with what I have today? There’s always something we can adjust or rethink.
For some, that’s meant letting go of a larger home and discovering the relief of simpler living. For others, it’s meant continuing to work – not because we have to, but because staying connected and purposeful adds meaning to our days. And for many, it’s been about redefining what enough looks like now.
It’s not about how much we have – it’s how intentionally we live
What I’ve learnt over the years is that fulfilment comes from shaping your time, energy, and money around what matters most – and adjusting as life unfolds.
I recently spoke to Business Day TV about this very topic: how to bridge the gap between our retirement dreams and today’s reality, and why it’s never too late to reimagine the life you want.
Coming back to ‘Enough’
In the end, enough isn’t a number – it’s a feeling of alignment. It’s knowing that your money supports the life you value most. Living with purpose and gratitude helps us see that ‘enough’ has less to do with what we have, and everything to do with how we live.
