Virtual reality is amazingly realistic, but it’s still not real  

I recently had the opportunity to strap on a pair of virtual reality goggles and sky dive over the Grand Canyon. Knowing my fear of heights, I should have chosen a virtual activity closer to the ground – like driving a formula one race car or skiing in the Alps. After the simulation program finished and my stomach returned to its normal location, I was astonished by how realistic the experience was. Yet, it wasn’t real. I can’t truthfully say I’ve actually sky dived over the Grand Canyon even though I experienced it in the virtual realm. I can say without any doubt; I never will do it for real! Five feet, eleven inches is my height, and it’s about as high as I care to go these days.

Getting real in retirement
There is a difference between how I envisioned my retirement (virtual planning) lifestyle before it began and how it’s playing out in real time (retirement reality) today.

I imagined that the transition from working-for-a-living to living-for-a-living would be easy, especially since my lifetime career involved helping people retire successfully. I created an unrealistic expectation that because of my specialized education and experience in the retirement planning profession, I would be nothing less than the poster child for my seamless retirement transformation. As it turns out, I was wrong.

The truth is, as I moved from the virtual planning phase to the reality stage, it took about a year for my new retirement lifestyle routines and adventures to begin to feel real. I kept thinking I was going to suddenly wake up to the work alarm clock and realize this was only a dream. It took time for me to accept I wasn’t in a dream; I was living one.

One of my favorite  “ah ha” reality moments came when I realized that the few deadlines I have are self-imposed. After working in a career filled with due-dates created by others, I found tremendous relief and freedom in the reality that I am the creator of my daily agenda, as long as my wife agrees! Some experiences can’t be replicated through a pair of virtual reality goggles – like the feeling of doing what you want, whenever you want, for as long as you want.

Until next time, imagine the life of your dreams, then make it real.