Sunday night dread is a sign it's time to retire
Sunday night dread is something I experienced at the end of my career. If you are reading this I'm going to guess you could be affected by this as well. Truthfully, just about anyone with a job can be faced with this phenomena at any time in their working lives, but it takes on a different connotation for people that are at the end of their careers. It can become the thing that pushes you to pull the string on retirement.
Before I go on I need to say this as a bit of a disclaimer. Sunday night dread by itself should never be the sole reason to retire. Retiring has a bunch of components that need to be in place before walking away from a career. In other words, make sure you have the financial means to support yourself. Typically, that's a discussion between you and your financial advisor.
The one issue that faces older workers is this increasing understanding that life (and time) is not infinite. Mortality is real and money can't buy time. When I was young I felt immortal. You just assume at 30 you have another 50 plus years or more. My hope is all of us live long and healthy lives. But, that's not always the reality. And the older you get you realize after a certain age, every day is a gift.
That's what makes Sunday night dread different for workers nearing retirement. It might not be that you hate your job. You may love it. The problem is the longer you work, the more time you take away from your retired life when the quality of your life is the highest. You know that you are stuck for yet another week doing things that take away from the life you'd lead if you weren't encumbered with a full time job.
Trust me, unless you are genetically blessed, the way you physically feel in your 60's will feel very different in your 70's. The way you feel in your 80's will feel extremely different than the way you feel in your 70's.
I used to sit on a Sunday night asking myself... do I really want to trade away another week of my retired life to save a little more money in a 401k? Am I OK trading away the most healthy years of my potentially retired life to continue working?
My dread was less about my job and more about watching time pass me by. I saw many friends and acquaintances struggle with health scares in their 60's. People that were very active during their early years and considered quite healthy. Cancer doesn't seem to care all that much about the fact that you worked out and ate right most of your life. It doesn't care that you retired too late and only got to enjoy a couple of years of retirement.
I could have worked longer. But, I was willing to have less money and more freedom. I love Sunday nights now. I rarely think about my old job. I value my freedom. I have enough.
Only you can decide how long you're willing to dread Sunday nights. Just remember, we're all mortal. Until next time, take care...