The transition nobody rehearses

Retirement replaces income, but it also removes structure, colleagues and a role. Research on retirement satisfaction consistently finds that the non-financial variables carry substantial weight.

The pattern many people describe is an initial period of relief, followed by a stretch where the absence of structure becomes noticeable, followed by the construction of something new.

Phased transitions — reduced hours, consulting, seasonal work — soften both the financial and the personal edges, and they also shorten the years the portfolio must carry alone.

This is worth planning with the same seriousness as the withdrawal strategy, and it is the part a spreadsheet cannot model.