I Retired at 52—Here Are the Three Things I Would Do Differently

Three costly retirement mistakes showed me that financial freedom requires more than money.

Early retirement success depends as much on lifestyle planning as financial planning. takasu/Shutterstock

I walked away from my career at 52 with enough money to never work again. On paper, it was the culmination of 25 years of disciplined saving, smart investing, and living below my means. I had hit my number, run the projections, stress-tested the portfolio, and pulled the trigger.

And within six months, I realized I had gotten three important things wrong. Not wrong enough to jeopardize my financial security, but wrong enough to cause real friction that I could have avoided with better planning. The money part was solid. The life part needed work.