Episode 80: Is It Time to Retire… or Just Time to Retire Your Job?

Published August 17, 2026

Not everyone who is ready to leave their job is ready to stop working entirely.

In this episode of Money Monday, Darren Devine, Financial Planner with Sun Life and President of Devine & Associates, explores a question many people begin asking as retirement gets closer:

Is it time to retire—or simply time to retire your current job?

Retirement is often presented as a single moment when work stops completely. But for many Canadians, the transition is much more gradual.

You may be financially ready to retire but still value the structure, purpose, or social connection that work provides. Or you may feel finished with your current role, commute, or workload without being ready to leave the workforce altogether.

This episode explores flexible alternatives such as:
→ Phased retirement with gradually reduced hours
→ Part-time consulting or contract work
→ Moving into an encore career that feels more meaningful
→ Reducing your workweek rather than stopping completely
→ Using employment income to create greater flexibility in your retirement plan

Even modest employment income can influence retirement planning by reducing the amount you need to withdraw from investments and potentially giving your portfolio more time to support future needs.

It may also provide more flexibility during periods of market volatility, when relying entirely on investment withdrawals can feel uncomfortable.

But this conversation is about more than money.
Retirement is also about designing the way you want to spend your time.

The goal is not simply to determine whether you can retire.
It is to understand what you want your next chapter to look like—and build a financial plan that supports it.

Call now

Related Money Monday Episodes

Retirement can be a gradual transition rather than a hard stop. These episodes explore how work, income, lifestyle, and investment decisions can adapt as you move into the next chapter.

Episode 78: What Happens If You Retire and Then Want to Go Back to Work?
Retirement plans can change. This episode explores what happens financially and emotionally when someone decides they want work to remain part of their life after retirement.
Episode 76: The First 90 Days of Retirement: What No One Prepares You For
Leaving work can create unexpected changes in routine, identity, spending, and income. This episode looks at how to prepare for the transition itself.
Episode 58: If You Retired Today, What Would You Keep—or Change—in Your Lifestyle?
Before deciding when to retire, it can help to think about how you actually want your days to look. This episode focuses on defining the lifestyle your retirement plan needs to support.
Episode 22: Generating Retirement Income in a Volatile Market
Part-time income can sometimes reduce the pressure on investment withdrawals. This episode explores retirement income planning when markets are less predictable.
Episode 27: Does Your Investment Strategy Match Your Life Stage?
As your relationship with work changes, your investment timeline and risk needs may change too. This episode explores why your strategy should evolve alongside your stage of life.

Is It Time to Retire… or Just Time to Retire Your Job?

Presented by Darren Devine, CFP®, CLU®, Financial Planner, Sun Life and President of Devine and Associates Financial Services Inc.

Many people in their 60s tell us, ‘I don’t know if I’m ready to retire—but I’m definitely ready to retire this job.’

Hello, and welcome to Money Monday, where we help simplify your financial journey.
I'm Darren Devine, Financial Planner with Sun Life and President of Devine & Associates. I’ve been helping families across Ontario plan, protect, and enjoy their retirement income for over 20 years.

When we talk about retirement, most people picture a clean break: one day you’re working, the next day you’re done.

But in reality, there are two questions to answer:
Am I financially ready to retire?
and
Am I emotionally ready to stop working—or do I just need a different kind of work?

You might be financially ready on paper… but still enjoy the structure, purpose, and social side of work.

Or you might be exhausted by this job, this commute, or this workload—but not ready to step away entirely.

That’s where the middle ground comes in:

  • A phased retirement where you gradually reduce hours
  • Part-time consulting in your field
  • An encore career doing something more meaningful, even if it pays less
  • Or simply going from five days a week to three or four

From a planning perspective, even a modest income from part-time work can make a big difference.
It can:

  • Reduce how much you need to pull from your investments each year
  • Help your portfolio last longer
  • And take pressure off during market downturns, because you’re not relying 100% on savings right away

The key idea is this:

You’re not flipping an on/off switch—you’re designing a life.

Your retirement plan should reflect that. It’s not just about “Can I retire?”
It’s: “What do I want my days to look like—and how do we make the money support that?”

If you’re wondering whether it’s time to retire, or just time to retire your job, that’s exactly the kind of conversation we can walk through together—both the numbers and the lifestyle.

Thanks for tuning into Money Monday. Don’t forget to like and comment for more episodes filled with tips to help make your financial journey a breeze. Until next time, I'm Darren Devine, and you can always talk to us today at DevineAndAssociates.ca!

Talk to us today