Retirement Living Standards Do Not Have to Keep Improving

A recent OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) study recommends that member countries raise the average age at which people retire from the labor market so that people remain in the workforce longer.

Because the average age at which people retire from the labor market has declined markedly in the majority of OECD countries, the organization claims that the increase in the number of retirees relative to persons active in the labor force will reduce growth in material living standards and put public budgets under mounting pressure.

My question is, why do we have to have our retirement living standards continually keep improving. When will enough be enough? Isn't our standard of living pretty damn good compared to other nations and to what it was 100 or 200 years ago?

I a related vein, this ever-increasing desire for improved living standards and the greed with it has contributed to the economic crisis we have today. Common sense says that this caused by people not wanting to live according to their means.

For the record, I semi-retired when I was 39 and my net worth was actually minus $30,000. The reason that I have been successful in remaining semi-retired for over 20 years is that I don't live beyond my means.

So quite frankly, I don't have any sympathy for baby boomers who at 55 or 60 are broke today and are blaming the government or the economy. Come on, you big babies, grow up. Take responsibility for your lives.

You must force yourself to set retirement goals if you want to have an interesting retirement life. Regardless of how long you have to live, you want to make your life as interesting as possible. In other words, GET A LIFE or life will get the best of you.