Figuring out how old you should be when you retire

This is a very personal question, and it depends upon how you respond to the factors in the preceding table. There is no objectively wrong or right time. I used to play golf with some retirees when I lived overseas and came back to Sydney for my holidays. The golf players on a weekday would be anywhere between 60 and 80 years of age, and I would meet many of them during these games. My questions were always intended to understand their perspective:

• When did they retire?
• Was it too early or too late?
• What would they do differently?

There were no real patterns or insights that I could gather. It just struck me that this was a deeply personal decision that had to be made with solid reflection. Therefore, planning for retirement is as important as planning for your career.

I learned on the way that there are some other questions beyond “how old should I be to retire?” While I don’t have a...