Basically the tittle. Let’s say I work at a job until I’m 80 years old, so I assume by this age I’m about to die, depending on the country is it possible for me to live off of government money or money I’ve earned throughout my life for the last few years just gaming my life away?
I’ll most play chill games that don’t require fast reaction that is if I don’t get any nasty diseases that will prevent me from doing so. Then I’ll die a happy man, I don’t think I’m destined for anything great, I don’t even know if I’ll be able to start a family and continue the bloodline.
At this point I consider it a good ending if I can go out gaming my life away based on the current economy.
Comments
Maybe not necessary doom gaming, but I’ll definitely game or study something I like.
Sure? Look at FIRE, people retire at age 40 and just do whatever they want.
Whether the gov. will still provide for you, who knows. Personally I don’t expect any assistance when I retire because those systems probably broke down a long time ago by then.
It sounds like you’re talking about retirement. Yes, people retire. At least in the U.S. some people retire with money saved while others have only Social Security.
After you retire, you can do literally anything you want as long as it’s legal and (if it’s not free) you have the money to pay for it.
Yes, you can retire and do what you want if you can afford it. Go to r/personalfinance for tips but don’t let it intimidate you because they can get pretty intense. Mostly remember this:
Pay off high interest debts (credit cards, payday loans, etc)
If your employer matches 401k contributions, put in at least the minimum you can to get the maximum they will match.
Keep some level of emergency savings on hand (cover expenses for some time, whether that’s a month or a year or in between you can figure out).
As much as you can afford while living your life, put as much as you are able into tax-advantaged accounts (more to 401k, HSA, traditional IRA if you qualify, Roth IRA if you don’t).
Do what you want with your money. If you do the above, you should be set for retirement. You can put any extra you have into bonds, stocks, mutual funds, CDs, HYSAs, etc, if you want to grow more (and you should, if you have money to spare), but also if you’ve done all of the above, enjoy your money, buy things you want and need now too. I’ve been trying harder to do that last part myself.
I’m almost 50 and it’s kind of sad/funny how often I think about retirement as when I will finally go through my Steam backlog…
That’s called retirement. If you have enough money to live from, you can in theory retire at any age and do whatever you want (as long as it’s legal) with your free time.
For receiving money in retirement, it varies by country but as you have posted in UK specific subreddits I’ll assume you’re UK based.
In the UK state pension retirement age is currently 66 but due to increase to 68.
When you earn over £242 a week, you start paying national insurance. You’ll need 10 years of contributions to qualify for any state pension. You typically need 35 qualifying years of paying national insurance contributions to get the full amount. So then once you’re 68 you can start claiming state pension. At the moment the max is 11k a year so not a large amount to live from.
If you are 22 or over and earn at least 10k a year your employer must provide a work pension scheme unless you specifically opt out. This is a separate private pension that you and your employer pay into. So ideally you’ll want a good amount in there too to supplement the state pension.
you’ll want to put money into savings and investments as that will help increase the amount you have available to you when you do retire. Would also allow you to retire early if you manage to save up a decent amount that you can live from for a few years.
What do you think job you’re doing at 79 ?
People retire and live off savings way before 80. Do you really think everyone works until the day they die?
Fuck government money, DCA into and HODL BTC. Not financial advise and diversification is never a bad idea
This sounds like a very, very normal life achievable in a lower-middle class economic position or higher. Just about everybody works for a living and then spends their downtime pursuing a hobby.
Get a job that you love, make enough to live comfortably, and serves the community in some way you seem important or noble. That will give you the necessary support and satisfaction to ensure a rich working life to support your gaming.
Can’t find a job you love? Stop looking around you for validation. The answer is in the opposite direction: look inward. What motivates you? Why are you on earth? What satisfies you?
Can’t make enough to live comfortably? First, adjust your means. Living within your means is about reframing what spending is considered necessities, high value (price vs benefit) wants, occasionals (how often and how costly are both important to consider here), and impulsive splurges (totally unnecessary but brings joy, novelty, and may be important to sharing experiences with others). After that reframing, set a longer term goal, like a career, and work towards it. Reframing “living within your means” as needed along the way.
Can’t or don’t care about serving the community? Finding something that makes the world, however small, a better place gives you something larger than yourself that you are bettering. Hugely important for long term satisfaction in your vocation. After a life’s worth of work, how much is that life’s work worth? Did it make the children of tomorrow healthier, safer, more educated? Did it help vulnerable people in some way? Did it use your strengths to help others? This will keep you feeling inspired to work hard when the rigor or grind gets you down.
All of this, of course, is to make sure you get to game successfully. It in no way has anything to do with helping you live a more fulfilling life than effectively skipping the cutscene that is all of your healthiest and most energetic years of life. Hell, nearly all of the years of your life. Why skip the game just to listen to the OST over the credits?
Best of luck.