35 Retirement Quotes That Will Make You Laugh, Smile, And Cry

I remember when my daughter got her first full-time job just out of college. Of course, she was so excited to be "done" with school, and moving on to a new chapter in her life. After a few short weeks, she realized the 8-5 grind was not all it was cracked up to be. No more taking afternoon classes and sleeping in. No more long breaks at the holidays, spring, and in the summer — just one week off in the whole year! The reality that this was her new normal was a bit jarring.

It's funny how then when we face retirement, we can go through a similar range of emotions. We look forward to it for years and years — just like we couldn't wait to be done with school, we can't wait to be done with work. But we might be faced with the same realization that "this is it" when the time actually comes to say goodbye to our careers. 

We may experience different stages in the retirement process including an initial "honeymoon" phase where it seems like we are on a much needed vacation, but that doesn't last forever. We may become disappointed, even depressed after the novelty wears off. It takes time to rebuild a life after retirement. We know about financial planning for retirement, but we also need to plan emotionally for how we will stay active, maintain relationships, and enjoy our retirement years.

One of the things that might help us through this transition is to read what some pretty smart people have written about retirement, little insights into the life of a retiree. Some of these quotes are great reminders that we need to keep a sense of humor about this next chapter. Others are there to motivate and inspire us to make the most of our retirement years. Others are great for reflecting, which a greatly undervalued use of time in our working years.

Quotes To Make You Laugh

Laughter is the best medicine, or so we are told. If you are feeling down or lonely, these funny quotes will give you a reason to smile.

“I can’t wait to retire so I can get up at 6 o’clock in the morning and go drive around really slow and make everybody late for work.”  - Unknown

"Half our life is spent trying to find something to do with the time we have rushed through life trying to save."

- Will Rogers

"I’m not just retiring from the company; I’m also retiring from my stress, my commute, my alarm clock, and my iron." - Hartman Jule

"Retirement is wonderful. It’s doing nothing without worrying about getting caught at it." - Gene Perret

"I enjoy waking up and not having to go to work. So I do it three or four times a day." - Gene Perret

"Retirement is like a long vacation in Las Vegas. The goal is to enjoy it the fullest, but not so fully that you run out of money." - Jonathan Clements

"You can be young without money but you can’t be old without it." - Tennessee Williams

"It’s paradoxical that the idea of living a long life appeals to everyone, but the idea of getting old doesn’t appeal to anyone." - Andy Rooney

"A lot of our friends complain about their retirement. We tell ’em to get a life." - Larry Laser

"Retirement is when the living is easy and the payments are hard." - Anonymous

"Retirement: That's when you return from work one day and say, 'Hi, Honey, I'm home, forever.'" - Gene Perret

"Retirement kills more people than hard work ever did." - Malcolm Forbes

"The best time to start thinking about your retirement is before the boss does." - Unknown

"Retirement: The time in your life when time is no longer money." - Unknown

Motivational Quotes

Transitions are hard for most of us. And retiring means the end of not only a paycheck, but a set schedule too. We may have difficulty getting into a routine that suits our new life. These quotes will help you realize the potential for your new life in retirement.

“There comes a day when you realize turning the page is the best feeling in the world. Because you realize there is so much more to the book than the page you were stuck on.” - Zayn Malik

"There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity you bring to your life and the lives of people you love. When you learn to tap this source, you will truly have defeated age.” - Sophia Loren

"For many, retirement is a time for personal growth, which becomes the path to greater freedom." - Robert Delamontague

"Don’t simply retire from something; have something to retire to." - Harry Emerson Fosdic

Inspirational Quotes

Retirement can be a time for personal growth and development. We may find we actually have time to find our true passion in life, and a passion for life itself. Here are some quotes that will make you think about how you live your life in retirement.

“Retire from work, but not from life.” - M.K. Soni

"Retirement is not the end of the road. It is the beginning of the open highway." - Unknown

"A man is not old until regrets take the place of dreams." - John Barrymore

"Before you speak, listen. Before you write, think. Before you spend, earn. Before you invest, investigate. Before you criticize, wait. Before you pray, forgive. Before you quit, try. Before you retire, save. Before you die, give." -William A. Ward

“Retirement, a time to enjoy all the things you never had time to do when you worked.” - Catherine Pulsifer

"The key to retirement is to find joy in the little things." - Susan Miller

"Retirement may be an ending, a closing, but it is also a new beginning." - Catherine Pulsifer

"Retirement is a great opportunity to become the person you have always wanted to be but have never been." - Dave Erhard

Introspective Quotes

We can think of our lives like chapters in a book. When we retire, we may be older and wiser, and begin to look more inward for happiness and satisfaction than when we were young and working and we looked to what we could acquire to make us happy. These quotes will give you a chance to look at your life as you transition into this chapter in life.

“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” - Winston Churchill

"Retirement is a time to look back with satisfaction, and a time to look ahead with anticipation. A time to fill each day with enjoyment. A very special time for you." - Unknown

"There is a whole new kind of life ahead, full of experiences just waiting to happen. Some call it 'retirement.' I call it bliss." - Betty Sullivan

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of the water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time." - J. Lubbock

"At age 20, we worry about what others think of us. At age 40, we don’t care what they think of us. At age 60, we discover they haven’t been thinking of us at all." - Ann Landers

"Retirement has been a discovery of beauty for me.
I never had the time before
to notice the beauty of my grandkids, my wife,
and the tree outside my very own front door.
And, the beauty of time itself."
- Hartman Jule

"For retirement brings repose, and repose allows a kindly judgment of all things.” - John Sharp Williams

"Retirement is wonderful if you have two essentials - much to live on and much to live for." - Unknown

"Retirement gives each of us another opportunity to smell the flowers. Once again, some of us will, and some of us won't." - Unknown