So what are your thoughts on the concept of retirement? A recent study by Charles Schwab and AgeWave titled, “Rethinking Retirement: Four American Generations Share Their Views on Life’s Third Act,” reached the following conclusions

• Fifty-two percent of respondents see retirement as an opportunity for a new, exciting chapter in life.
• Seventy-one percent of pre-retirees said they want to work in retirement and the most popular reason for working in retirement was to stay mentally active.
• Three in five said they would like to move to a completely different line of work when they retire.
• Slightly more than half of the respondents said they want to focus on their own needs and interests in retirement while 45% said they want to focus on giving back to family and community.
• Forty percent said they anticipate providing financial support to their parents at some point in the future and 25% think they’ll have to support a sibling.

It appears that the very concept of retirement is changing. With people’s lifespan increasing, the idea of working for 40 years then retiring to golf and a rocking chair is pretty much gone. Today, many retirees are relatively young and in good health. Rather than relaxing, they want to pursue dormant passions and engage in more meaningful work–even if it means receiving little pay.

Whether you’re approaching retirement or in retirement, the China Stock Digest is happy to help you achieve your retirement dreams, whatever they may be.