What Are 'Mini-Retirements,' and Who Takes Them?

I &quot;retired&quot; when I was 42, with a plan to finally study for a degree (Open University), write some novels, etc. I had saved enough money to get me through 3 years without support. Like many of the people quoted in the article the early deaths of my father and brother, who never made it to their retirements, were also a significant factor.<p>3 years turned into 7 years when I struggled to land a full-time job. Stacking shelves on a zero-hours contract wasn&#x27;t part of the dream ... but rent doesn&#x27;t pay itself. It turns out you have to be hyper-adaptable and resilient when life doesn&#x27;t go according to the plans you make for it. But I think that&#x27;s true of everything, yes?

This is difficult in most high income industries sadly, as an extended vacation&#x2F;mini retirement is considered a death sentence to your career even if the reality is your skills do not become stale.

A lot of people do it these days - earn money for 1-2 years, then live in a cheap LCOL place outside the US for 2-4 years.<p>This is primarily possible because the rat race COL in America is so so darned high that just getting out of America is enough to retire for someone who managed to save $100k-$200k.

I’m currently on a mini retirement myself. I didn’t know this turn of frases existed though.<p>I would just tell people I’ve stopped working. When they ask me if I’m looking for another job i tell them “No. Not yet.”<p>I recently a friend who’s hoping to sell his company next year. He wants to retire indefinite. I don’t know if it will work out for him. Most of us are not used to doing nothing. It gets boring quickly.<p>I was already tempted to take a simple position somewhere. Just to work 1&#x2F;2 days a week. Just to have a bit of a schedule and some people to be around with. I wouldn’t want to work from home. I want it to be in an office, with coworkers in adjacent offices.

I didn&#x27;t know this had a name. I highly recommend it, btw.<p>I usually do 1-2 years of intensive work, followed by 2-4 years of &quot;chill&quot;.<p>If you manage to make those work years enjoyable (I haven&#x27;t) you&#x27;re pretty much on perpetual vacation.

I wish we could all live like this, but realistically out of reach for most people who live paycheck to paycheck. It would be great for the economy, more people out vacationing, spending money, would create more jobs.

we had quiet quitting now we have quiet layoffs &#x2F;s.