Retired Baby Boomers face emotional adjustments

The transition to retirement isn't always easy, especially the emotional adjustments, a new survey of retired Baby Boomers shows.

About two-thirds (69%) say they had challenges adapting to this change in their lives, according to a survey of 1,000 people, ages 60 to 73, who retired in the last five years from their primary profession and who have at least $100,000 in investable assets. The survey was commissioned by Ameriprise Financial.

The toughest parts of retiring include missing the day-to-day social connections with colleagues (37%); getting used to a new and different routine (32%); and finding ways to give meaning and purpose in their days (22%).

That said, 76% say they felt in control of their decision to retire; 52% say they were emotionally prepared. More than half (65%) say they got adjusted to their new routine fairly quickly. In fact, 97% say they are "somewhat" or "very" satisfied with their retirement lifestyle.

"My overall conclusion is that it seems like there is a magic formula for feeling confident in your retirement," says Marcy Keckler, vice president of financial advice strategy at Ameriprise Financial. "It's three parts. The first is being in control of your retirement decision. The second is the right financial preparation, and third is the right emotional and social preparation. The people who have all of those are the most satisfied in their retirement."

Respondents said that making the decision was a process for them, she says. "They didn't just wake up one morning and decide to retire. They had considered it and planned. They had some doubts, but they were also looking forward to retirement."

Other survey findings:

• 35% say the main reason they decided to retire was because they wanted more time to do the things they really love; 17%, felt financially ready; 16%, no longer wanted to work; 16% were forced to retire by their employer, were offered early retirement incentives or lost their full-time jobs.

• 63% say they felt stressed about retirement leading up to the decision; 25% say they still feel stress after being retired for some time.

• 47% said they felt ready to retire but had mixed emotions about it; 25% said about one year before retirement their mindset was that they "couldn't wait"; and 21% said they felt uncertain or not ready.

• 22% say they are spending more money in retirement than they thought they would; 24% believe they underestimated their income needs; 28% are not spending as much as they had planned.

• 40% are volunteering.

• 11% have gone back to some kind of paid employment, with 5% doing something totally different than they did before; 5% are consulting or doing something related to what they did before; and 1% started a new business.

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