A Tale of Two Arthurs

Let me introduce you to Arthur. He’s 65 and bored out of his mind.

His job of 40 years got automated when he was 62, and he went - unwillingly - into early retirement. His relationship with his son, Jack, is strained. Jack is too busy juggling his career and family life to spend much time with him, and on the rare occasions when they do meet, they usually end up arguing about money.

Arthur is worried about money. The stairs in his empty house seem to get steeper by the day, and with modern medical advances, according to his doctor, he could see 100. But his financial advisor tells him that, short of a stock market miracle, his finances might not be able to keep up with years of mounting medical bills.

“This is what you get playing by the rules,” he would exclaim, disconsolately looking out of the window and nursing his second scotch of the morning.

Poor Arthur. Now let’s examine Arthur 2.0, in a parallel universe.

It was certainly a shock when Arthur’s old compliance job became redundant owing to the rapid development of AI alternatives. However, he picked himself up, gave a gracious speech at his leaving party, and started planning for the next phase.

His devotion to cycling over the years had left him in rude health, and after consulting his doctor, he realized that he was likely closer to the halfway point of his life than its end.

The talk with his financial advisor was also illuminating. He had always dreaded the ‘retirement cliff edge’, but saw now that he still had many earning years ahead of him. He could afford to take risks.

Taking stock of his skills portfolio - 40 years of corporate life plus a keen interest in woodworking - he decided to launch a bespoke furniture business. This was not only a way to replenish his savings but also gave him an ongoing sense of mastery and purpose.

A few years later, his old firm, which had run into an unexpected regulatory crisis, called to ask if he would be prepared to return as a special advisor, a highly compensated, flexible role that honored his experience.

Meanwhile, he decided to sell his large suburban house and move to a walkable neighborhood with accessible dwellings, located closer to his son’s family. Financially secure, and with his old 9-to-5 life behind him, Arthur was in a position to ease the burden of two working parents by spending time with his grandkids, and supporting them financially where needed.

The grandchildren enjoy learning how to make physical things in Grandpop’s workshop (“There’s no app for this, kiddo”), hearing stories about their grandmother, and learning old proverbs that don’t get taught in school anymore. In return, his grandson is helping him set up an online storefront for his furniture business, and his granddaughter is looking into modern exosuits that help older people get around more easily.

At 65, Arthur looks at his future and sees only good things. He is not ‘retirement-ready’ as his old financial advisor (fired) used to say, but just “ready”.