Let me take a quick look back. I had my first retirement deposit when I was 17, which was 43 years ago. Here's a screenshot:
The screenshot shows my first payments into the public pension fund 43 years ago. Gross earnings were then 1136.83 DM (equivalent to 581.25€) per month for a full-time position. Elsewhere, it says that the total adds up to 0.2599 retirement points. According to the current status, this would be 8,88€ per month- after all…
At that time I had a helper position in a kindergarten, a kind of paid pre-study internship, which I needed for the following teacher training. There I was really lucky. Many years later I studied social pedagogy for two and a half years. Otherwise: Work, work, work… The list of years in which I have paid into the statutory pension fund is now 3 A4 pages long. Such ideas as sabbaticals didn't exist back then. My salary was also not so that I could have saved that seriously. Today I would certainly think of more anyway. I simply did not have this idea at that time.
Simply k.o.
The many years of work have always taken their toll on me. Of the 40 or so years I've been working, I've had to deal with waves of cuts in the social sector for about half of that time. There was a lot of talk about quality, what was meant was saving money. This kind of thing is exhausting and wears you down at some point, because people's problems don't get any less, of course. On the contrary. Then in spring of this year nothing worked out. I had an illness phase of several months. Allergies and intolerances went "through the roof." Besides some food allergies, everything looks like a histamine intolerance. I've probably been walking around with it all my life, asked doctors dozens of times, never got an answer. I used to be able to cope with it better than I do today.
The pension ideas of certain people..
Who talks about the pension with 70 years, would like nevertheless please also about it, how humans, who entered comparatively early into the occupation and then remained with it, over so many decades at all approximately healthy up to this border are to arrive. And don't come to me now with recommendations for back exercises, relaxation courses or fitness tips so that roofer Müller can still juggle heavy roof tiles on roofs at the age of 69, or so that the governess can still sit on children's chairs, crawl across construction carpets and run after the toddler at the age of almost 70. (By the way: Where is the employer's liability insurance association??) Those who don't have any really suitable answers should just hold back with such suggestions and finally think more seriously about sensible alternatives.
And dear young high-income earners: Save your money if you can. That makes sense. But be aware that it doesn't work for everyone and that there is no one-size-fits-all solution. And: Time is the most valuable resource. If you don't notice the awakening nature in spring, you will eventually have the feeling to spend the whole life like in a cold-wet winter. A very dull perspective on life. For example, if you don't see your children grow up because you are always working and saving money, you will realize at some point in your life how much you have missed. The well filled bank account can not bring back missed time.
What really helps me..
1. Working hours reduced
In the meantime I work a 40% part-time job. Unfortunately, still often changing time and thus little evenly. I hope that I will be able to improve this further. It's still very beneficial, because I simply have more regeneration time that I can use for myself.
2. No stress during leisure time
What helps me is the minimalist lifestyle. Just no cleaning and tidying orgies for hours, no time pressure, no experience stress after work or on weekends.
3. Minimalist financial planning
Working for consumerism: Not with me! Any leasing or credit rates I do not have. Streaming subscriptions and all the electronic entertainment monsters don't come into my 1-bedroom cooperative apartment. Tablet and smartphone are enough for me. My prepaid annual tariff costs me 4,58€ per month, the 20MB home internet line costs 11,99€ per month (it's a legacy tariff, now no longer available). I do not use landline phone. I buy green electricity and green gas from a small cooperative that has been on the market for many years. This is significantly cheaper than the cheapest (non-eco) tariff of the local provider. Within a radius of just under 1 km I count about 11 car sharing cars, the public transport is relatively well developed here in the corner. I walk all distances up to 2 or 3km anyway. An own car would be nonsense there. In my kitchen, there are only 4 electrical appliances for eating and drinking: refrigerator, hotplates, hand blender, coffee grinder. The coffee grinder lasts for several years, so of course I use it too. In principle, however, the following applies to me in the meantime: Where there are no electrics, there are no electrics to break down.
The broadcasting fee was recently increased, so my fixed costs are now 406,60€ per month on average – the costs for this website are already included there. Housing is usually one of the most expensive items next to cars. Rents are also rising here in the Ruhr area, but they are still well below the rents of z.B. Cologne, Berlin or Munich. Due to the optimized fixed costs I have more money available for variable expenses. It allows me to afford, for example, higher-quality food or, if necessary, better-quality clothing or household equipment.
4. Live more relaxed
For me, minimalism means living in a more consumer-conscious and relaxed way. I don't have to sit in an empty, top-designed apartment with white walls and chicly arranged green plants on the floor and count 100 pieces around me. 😉
It is more important for me to feel into myself again and again, in order to understand more and more exactly what I really need. Real needs instead of chasing trends, fashions and opinions. Such a lifestyle relaxes me, because it means a lot of freedom. I enjoy it, it makes me more balanced. I don't have to keep up in this overdone consumer world and can concentrate on my real needs. Hopefully this will continue to give me new energy for my last years of work.
The data consumption of my prepaid tariff in not quite 6 months:
63 phone units and 1.1 GB mobile internet – at least half of the mobile internet, because I forgot to switch to WLAN at home 😂. Not to be seen on the screenshot are the 10 SMS that I have sent. Wherever possible, I prefer to do a video chat from home. I don't have to be online or reachable by phone all the time and everywhere, but only when it's really important. – So if anyone knows a yearly rate with 200 phone units and 3 GB internet – keep me posted!