Let’s retire at 50 so while there's still time to do something interesting with our lives

The NYTimes has another article that feeds my interest in changing attitudes toward work: Lisa Rabasa Roepe, Millennials Want to Retire at 50. How to Afford It Is Another Matter, Sept. 24, 2022. It opens:

Although Devangi Patel, 33, has been working as a cardiothoracic anesthesiologist at a large medical center outside Atlanta for only two years, her goal is to afford to walk away from her job at 50.

“That, to me, is the American dream,” she said.

Dr. Patel is not alone in her quest to become financially independent — and at a relatively early age. It seems that a generational shift is well underway: Many millennial workers don’t aspire to retire in their mid- or late 60s, like their parents. Instead, many with professional careers are seeking to leave their jobs by 50 and work for themselves or take a lower-paying role that is more aligned with their interests, studies are showing and financial advisers are finding.

“I want to get to a point where I don’t have to work for money anymore, and I can work for pleasure,” Dr. Patel said.

But reaching that goal has been harder than Dr. Patel anticipated. Although she contributes to a 401(k) and a Roth individual retirement account, invests in stocks with a brokerage account and maxes out her health savings account, she is also paying off a $250,000 loan for medical school and paying for her wedding in December.

There’s more at the link.