Why I won’t retire

What's up, you guys? It's Graham here. So, I felt like this would be a really interesting topic to discuss because the subject of early retirement is something I talk about very frequently here in the channel. In fact, actually, when I was 20 years old, before I knew anything about the whole financial independence retire early movement, my goal back then was to be able to retire by the age of 30. And back then, if I ever told anyone about my plan and my idea, they would either look at me and just laugh like I had told them the funniest joke that they had ever heard in their entire lives, or they would look at me and be like, "Well, good luck with that! You would be lucky to retire by the age of 55."

Well, to all of those people who laughed it off back then, the joke is on you. And now it's my turn to laugh now because all of my investments generate enough money to cover all of my cost of living, plus the surplus that I then just go and reinvest back into making more passive income. So yeah, being able to get to the point where you can retire in your 20s is entirely possible if you have a high income, practice extreme frugality, prudent investing, and of course, always hitting the like button if you haven't done that already.

But where I found this topic a little bit more interesting is the aspect of actually retiring and the reason why I won't ever likely retire. Because I realized on the surface that it seems totally counterintuitive from everything that I've been working towards. After all, what's the point of working non-stop, delaying gratification, saving an extreme amount of money if you can't just go and lay on a beach all day in your 30s and 40s, just drinking mai tais without a worry in the world? And that is actually a very good question.

So, to start, this video is really inspired by a CNBC article titled "The Five Downsides of Early Retirement That No One Tells You." Now, I know this sounds like the most pretentious topic in the world to talk about—the downsides of early retirement. Like number one, though, the worst downside is having so much money that you don't know how to spend it all if you don't want. Number two, I'm just tired of going to the beach; I get sunburns. It's not fun no more.

As I was reading through the article, I couldn't help but feel some level of relation with some of the downsides that he was mentioning that not many people openly talk about. First, the author describes a lack of identity associated with quitting his work. And even though I haven't personally experienced this myself because I haven't wanted to stop working, I could definitely see how this could be a concern. I very much identified myself from a very young age as the person who's just obsessed with whatever they find interesting at the time—whether it's playing the drums, doing marine aquariums, photography, selling real estate, making YouTube videos, or talking about making 20 cent iced coffee. Admittedly, this just becomes a part of who I am, and without that, I wouldn't be the same person.

I like having something that I can say I'm good at and I find interesting, and in a way, it's through that that I can share who I am as a person. Plus, I'm just always excited to be able to talk about whatever I'm into at the time, non-stop, like credit cards. The second, the author says you may second-guess your decisions in retirement and I can absolutely see how relatable this would be to probably most people watching. Look at what point would you ever step back from your career at a time where you're probably at your highest income potential to basically just take a step back and do whatever?

Like how much money would you be leaving on the table, and could you ever go back to that level of income if you wanted to later? This is actually what's known within the early retirement community as what's called the "one more year syndrome." This is when you've already reached your retirement goals but it's very easy to keep telling yourself just one more year because why wouldn't you pass up more money, more safety net, and more passive income for just one more year? This is especially even more difficult if you don't absolutely dislike what you do. Even though you might find it unfulfilled, the more tolerable the job, the more likely you are to be stuck in the one more year syndrome.

Third, the author describes people thinking of you as a misfit for retiring early. When it comes to this one, I'm thinking this is maybe just an LA thing because here in Los Angeles, it seems like no one has a job and everyone just hangs out at cafes and Equinox gym all day long. So this is the only one so far that I can't fully conceptualize just yet, but that's probably because I'm in a little bubble within LA of just full of rich people that don't seem to work.

But number four does resonate with me—that retiring early will not make you any happier. There's a saying that goes something like this: wherever you go, there you are. And that applies to everything. I believe if you're naturally an unhappy person, that will continue forward into retirement. And if you're naturally an optimistic happy person, well, guess what? That will continue forward into retirement. But don't expect retirement to solve all of your emotional well-being problems.

Now, I've discussed this point before in the channel, but we have the phenomenon of what's called the "hedonic treadmill," which is our amazing ability to revert back to our baseline level of happiness after an extended period of time. So, even though you might be ecstatic about being able to retire in the short term and lay on the beach all day and drink mai tais, eventually, the novelty is going to wear off. Eventually, you're just going to revert back to becoming the same person you felt like before—except now you just might be a little bit more tanned.

And I know it sounds cheesy to say, but beyond a certain point, the only thing that can improve your mental state is you, and any sort of external factors going on just really become a band-aid to cover up what's really going on internally. And I'll admit, like money and things can certainly mask your feelings in the short term, but in the long term, it's eventually going to wear off and you're going to have to actually confront your issues head-on, independently from everything else.

And finally, number five—he mentions boredom. Now, this one is very true. Even though I've never retired from something, if I don't have any plans or I'm not working on something or doing something productive, I just don't feel good. I just feel lethargic, I feel tired, I feel depressed, I feel unmotivated, I feel unchallenged, and I just feel like I'm wasting my life. And I know this might sound extreme, but if I go a few days without doing anything, I just feel like I'm partially going crazy. I just feel myself deteriorating.

And I think this is really the point of the CNBC article: that early retirement is not a cure for life's problems. And don't get me wrong because it could certainly solve some logistical problems of money and time, but it won't cure whatever is going on in your life and it's not going to make you any happier or more fulfilled as a person.

Now, to me, the concept of retiring is really leaving behind a career or a lifestyle you didn't enjoy and using that to escape into something else that you find more fulfilling. But I got to say that when it comes to that, if I were retired, I would probably just be doing the exact same thing that I'm doing right now. Like at the moment, I get so much enjoyment from being able to make YouTube videos, to be able to talk freely about my thoughts, and to hopefully add some perspective to anybody else watching.

To me, this is basically just going and having fun all day, and there's no reason to leave something like that behind to go and do nothing. The same thing also applies to real estate investing. It's like a personal challenge of mine to be able to find something that no one else sees that's undervalued, go and buy it, and then I could just go and put my own "Graham stamp" on things in terms of the remodel and my own style and my own vision, if that makes sense. It's just fun.

And the same thing working as a real estate agent for me. It basically never felt like work. It felt like I can hang out with really cool people all day long, see homes that I never thought I would ever be able to afford, and somehow I get paid for it. I've really just gravitated towards careers that I've always just really thoroughly enjoyed doing. And while it's definitely fun going and making money, I wouldn't have done them in the first place if I just wasn't totally into it.

My own theory when it comes to this is that I wouldn't have done well at them in the first place if I wasn't 100 percent obsessed with what I was doing. Like there's just something invigorating about being able to work towards something and then feeling that sense of accomplishment once it's finished. It's a difficult feeling to describe, but when you've completed a task—even if it's a really small task—it just feels rewarding.

So then, what is the bigger point of saving money, living frugally, delaying gratification, and smashing the like button if you haven't done that already? Well, I would say the biggest advantage of the whole early retirement movement isn't from the early retirement itself; it's from the freedom of choice to work on the projects that you find the most inspiring and less on the ones that you don't. That's the reason why I like to save and invest so much money.

Like I know that the more money I have saved and invested, the less money is going to be clouding my judgment and affecting my decisions. Because I've seen that beyond a certain point, money starts losing its meaning. Like imagine if you're stranded in a desert for a week without water, and you had the choice between a million dollars in cash or a gallon of water—you would pick the water. Well, I found that the same thing also applies with life: that once you have enough money to reasonably cover your cost of living, money doesn't become as important as it once was.

Bill Maher actually said it perfectly on his interview with Howard Stern: that there is no amount of money that you can pay him to buy him. No amount of money will ever sway him to do something he doesn't want to do because he already has enough for everything that he could ever want. And honestly, when I heard him say that, that could not be more true. Beyond that point, more money doesn't equate to a better or a happier lifestyle. Instead, the type and meaning of work that you do takes on a much bigger impact in terms of your overall happiness and well-being.

And that's really what I've tried to work so hard towards. And I'm really thankful to be at a point where right now I can really focus on whatever I find the most inspiring and the most fulfilling, regardless of how much money it pays. And of course, I'm not gonna, you guys, and say that I don't like making money because, of course, I do. I think it's a lot of fun. But it's not the driving force behind what I do.

And I'll be honest—like once I get to a point where I feel like I've plateaued and I'm no longer challenged as a person or learning as much as I could be, I'm gonna take a step back and I'm gonna find something else that I can just immerse myself in. Like it's no surprise you guys have noticed this and several of you have commented about this—that I'm focusing a lot more time right now on making YouTube videos than I am working as a real estate agent. And while I'm still keeping that business active for the occasional client, it's no surprise that I just have so much fun here.

I just feel so fulfilled. I am so inspired. I get so invigorated and just energetic about making YouTube videos, and that is where I've decided to spend most of my time. And I can do all of this just confidently knowing that this is what feels the best for me in the moment, and this is what I just decide I want to be doing with my time.

To me, this is really what early retirement is all about. It's not about quitting a job that you hate or expecting it to be the end-all be-all of everything. If anything, it's really just a beginning to a more rewarding lifestyle where you dictate the terms of exactly what you want to be working on.

And for everybody watching, I think it's so important that you find a career or an occupation that you really enjoy doing. I can't emphasize this enough: if there's anything that I felt that's increased my income, it's really just by loving what I do every single day. And if it wasn't for that, I would have no idea what I would be doing.

I really just believe in the mindset and the saying of "choosing a job that you love and you will never work a day in your entire life." Like when you find that, there's never anything to retire to, and at that point, the retirement really just becomes about having more fun and being able to outsource the things you don't like doing, just so you can enjoy it even more.

I mean, come on, that sounds like so much fun. Plus, research has shown that quitting altogether might not be the smartest thing to do from a health perspective. These were done across 7,000 UK residents between 2009 and 2018, which found that 8 hours of work per week was the ideal amount of stimulation to stave off mental health problems arising from unemployment.

And straight-up just retiring and not doing anything has been linked to so many health issues that they won't even bother going into all of the ailments that could come up from this. So when it comes to doing all of this, I think that all of us intrinsically just want to become a part of something and feel like we're constantly progressing in life. We never just want to feel like we've reached the peak where everything else after that is worse than the day before.

And for that reason, I really believe that retirement itself should not be the goal. But instead, the goal should be to have enough money to basically have the freedom of choice to do what you find the most enjoyable. And I know, here I am as some 29-year-old spouting off words about retirement. I get how that sounds, but trust me: if I wanted to retire, I would be on a beach somewhere not doing anything all day and just reading Reddit and watching YouTube videos.

And I fully acknowledge that everyone is different and some people can just immerse themselves in hobbies to keep themselves busy and fulfilled. But to me, the enjoyment is really just about feeling what's right in the moment and being able to help somebody else out or add to somebody else's life.

And it's for that reason, even though I love the whole financial independence retire early movement, that I would ever actually retire. Because it is my mission every single day to make sure that the like button is smashed. So, with that said, you guys, thank you so much for watching. I really appreciate it.

If you guys enjoy videos like this, make sure to subscribe. Also, make sure to add me on Instagram; I post there pretty much daily. So if you want to be a part of the air, feel free to add me there. Also, feel free to add me on my second channel—it's called the Graham Stephan Show. I'm posting there almost every single day, so if you want to be a part of that channel, it's very easy to subscribe; it's totally free to subscribe.

And yeah, so with that said, thank you again for watching. And until next time, this is like—this is like a half-grown cat already. Remember when he used to be a kitten? Ramsay, look at the camera; it's funny! Look at the camera, Rams! You came here, come here! Look at the camera, look at the camera! Go, music, and we're gonna focus on you. Hold on, if I duck down right here, the camera's gonna focus.

Yeah, right there!