Retirement is a massively modern phenomenon. Whilst there have been small snippets of saving for retirement prior to the 20^th century, the industrial revolution was a great driver of this as was the introduction of state pensions. However, for many centuries before that, many of us worked for as long as we can, with many more of us living more agrarian, less industrial lives. 

But what if I told you we can learn lessons about retirement from a philosophy which preceded modern retirement by a couple of thousand years. I believe we can… 

So, in this article, I’m going to talk about the 5 lessons from the philosophy commonly called Stoicism (and one tip from ancient philosopher Aristotle) to help you plan and prepare for your retirement, or whatever happens next in your life. 

Now we’re definitely more knowledgeable in the modern world than our ancestors, I often wonder whether we might have more access to information than ever before, that doesn’t make us any wiser. The reality is that whilst we’ve definitely got way more choices than we did two thousand years ago, we’ve also got loads more distractions!  

That’s why in this video I want to talk about 5 stoic lessons we can benefit from when we’re thinking about our retirement (or whatever the next chapter of our lives brings!) and I want to throw in a bonus lesson for Aristotelian philosophy thrown in for good measure! 

The reality is that no philosophy or worldview has all of the answers, but I believe that the ancient Greeks and Romans were onto something when they explored the concepts I’m going to discuss today. 

When we’re talking through all of these lessons, I’m going to help you understand why following these principles will mean you’re going to live happier, healthier lives in our 50’s, 60’s, 70’s and beyond… 

However, the last point I’m going to talk about, which is inspired not by Stoicism but by the Greek philosopher Aristotle, is the one I believe is going to both challenge you and create a decent amount of debate! 

So, without further ado let’s talk about the 5 stoic principles (and the one Aristotelian principle) we should think about when planning for our retirement. 

Now, we’re going to do a deep dive into many of these principles in the coming weeks, but today I want to provide an overview on the principle and why it’s so vital. 

Focus on what we control 

The reality is that in our lives there’s three pots all our actions fit into… 

The things we can control when it comes to our retirement. We can control whether we exercise to improve our physical wellbeing or saving more (if affordable) to achieve financial independence, or actively getting involved in community groups to boost our community wellbeing. 

There are things we can’t control. We can’t control investment markets when it comes to investing our money. We can’t control when we suffer from ill health. We can’t control if we’re going to get made redundant. 

Then there’s the things we can’t control but might have a bit of influence over. We might be able to influence our friends, but we can’t control their behavior. We can control how volatile how investments might be by managing the risk but knowing that you can influence volatility but not entirely control it.  

However, often stress and frustration comes from thinking we can control what we can’t, or that we believe we can control elements which we can merely nudge with our influence. 

There are going to be elements of your retirement which are frustrating. However, by focusing on the elements of your wellbeing you have direct control over you can take the right action in the right direction. 

Engage in lifelong learning 

The stoics believed in lifelong learning. They believed that education was a path to both wisdom and virtue, the two of the elements which underpin all Stoic philosophy. 

The stoics also believed that lifelong learning wasn’t only limited to formal education but extended throughout our lives. 

This ancient philosophy has been validated by up-to-date research. The research into Neuroplasticity talks about the fact that continuous learning delays cognitive decline and reduces the risk of dementia. 

Also having a growth mindset allows us to become both more adaptable and resilient for the challenges you might face in this chapter of our lives. 

Contribute to both our community and society 

The stoics talked a lot about making positive contributions to both our community and society.  

Now community and society might be fundamentally different to the lives we live now. However, the stoics were onto something when they highlighted the importance of making a positive contribution to the world, however that looks for you. 

We know that making a positive contribution to our communities and societies gives us a sense of purpose beyond our selves, encourages social connection and increases our eudemonic wellbeing, the positive feeling we get when we challenge ourselves and do great work.  

Reflect on mortality 

“Memento mori” is a stoic phrase you’ve probably heard plenty of times. If you haven’t heard this phrase it simply means “Remember you must die”  

Even though it can be perceived as a morbid thought it’s something we encourage you to think about. Why? Because remembering you’ll die also allows you to appreciate how precious time is AND what’s actually important. 

Practice Negative Visualization 

 The stoics liked to visualise what could go wrong with a particular plan. They call this technique premeditation malorum (the premeditation of evils) however in the world of financial planning we have our own phrase… 

Plan for the best. Prepare for the worst. 

By looking at what can go wrong we can take action. Some of that action might be really simple like making a will or power of attorney. Some of the actions might be a lot more complex. 

However, planning for the best and preparing for the worst are both worth doing when thinking about your future. 

Also, thinking about what we don’t want might allow us to build some ‘anti goals’ – and focus our attention on taking action to move away from the things we want to avoid in the next chapter of our lives 

Nature Abhors a vacuum 

This one’s not strictly speaking a stoic virtue but Aristotelian…meaning it came from Aristotle, who said… 

“Nature Abhors a vacuum” 

It’salso not strictly true in a purely scientific way.  

However, it might be a philosophy worth thinking about when we think about retirement. 

If you don’t plan your own ‘version’ of what happens next doesn’t mean your time won’t be filled. 

However not being intentional about your time is something to be cautious of… 

I recently did Bronnie Ware’s 5 regrets dying and many of them are linked to a common subject. Not being authentic or intentional with how we spend our time. 

I’m going to do a follow up video on why in our lives we need to be conscious of the vacuum of time but in the meantime you can watch the video I made on Bronnie Ware’s 5 regrets of the dying here… 

Along with the anti goals philosophy and why it’s so powerful when you’re planning your retirement here…