Blogging with a Purpose

My name is Laurel Haropulos Bailey, and I am experiencing my first year of early retirement. I retired in May of 2008, at age 52. When I resigned from my Vice President position at a major international company (Hilton Hotels Corporation), my boss reacted with surprise. "But you're too young to retire! What will you DO?" The purpose of this blog is to share the reality of my early retirement, and more:

1. Deciding that retiring early from corporate life was the thing to do
2. Laying the groundwork for making this life change
3. Insuring that my husband and I were on the same page in our vision
4. Taking the leap
5. Getting settled into a new life
6. Recovering from our old life
7. The challenges and the solutions

As our new life unfolds, I will blog about issues as we face them. As yet, I don't even know what those will be. Some possibilities - the negative impact of the economy on our plans, finding purpose outside work, establishing a new non-professional persona, and how we occupy our time.

I'll also write about our newfound joys. There is life after work, and it is different, surprising, and amazing.

Today, many people who carefully planned retirement have had their plans temporarily derailed or postponed. We have many common issues, and I believe it's valuable to share experiences.

I hope you will enjoy what we have to share.