Golden Years Guide

If dad is on the brink of retirement or has already retired, Ernie J. Zelinski’s new book will help him make the most of it. How to Retire Happy, Wild, and Free (Ten Speed Press, 2004, $16.95) does not focus on ways to stretch limited retirement dollars or where to find the best senior discounts online, but how to enjoy the leisure time you worked so hard for in the first place. When it comes down to it, most of us spend a lot of time fantasizing how great retirement will be, and then have no clue how to spent the time, writes Zelinski. Some of us even miss those meaningless jobs we hated so much. That is, “retirement can set you free, or like work, can imprison you. Ultimately, it’s up to you,” writes Zelinski in the second chapter, “Retirement: A Time to Become Much More than You Have Ever Been.”

Zelinski's solution is to have a plan and stay active. He suggests several ways to develop the right plan, whether it’s creating a new identity or continuing to work part-time in a field you love.

Zelinski semi-retired at the age of 30 with a net worth of minus $30,000. He now works two to four hours a day and doesn’t like to work at all in any month that doesn’t have an “r” in it,” according to the bio at the end of book. This is his 11th book. Previous titles include The Joy of Not Working (Ten Speed Press, 2003, $16.95)

BTW, Tampa Bob is retired and has found many ways to enjoy his leisure time, including visiting his kids that are scattered around the globe.

Note: ERNIE ZELINSKI is the author of the international bestsellers Career
Success Without a Real Job by VIP BOOKS and The Joy of Not Working: A Book for the Retired, Unemployed, and Overworked (over 225,000 copies sold and published in 17 languages).