Welcome to the Listening Time Podcast.
Hey everybody, this is Connor and you're listening to episode 62 of the Listening Time Podcast.
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So in today's episode, we're gonna talk about retirement.
So this is a good topic because many people hope to retire someday and people have different attitudes regarding retirement in different countries.
So I think it'll be interesting to talk about this topic.
Before we start, remember that you have the transcript available for this episode.
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All right, let's get started.
Are your ears ready?
You know what time it is.
It's listening time.
Okay, so let's talk about retirement.
First of all, what is retirement?
Well, this refers to the period in your life where you stop working and you live off of the money that you receive from other means.
In English, when we say that you live off of something, this means that you get paid from a certain source and this allows you to live okay.
So when you're retired, this means that you don't work anymore and you live off of the money that you get from other sources.
So let's talk about some of the different attitudes regarding retirement in different places.
In the U.S., retirement is seen as something really desirable.
It's seen as something that is very fun and romantic even.
People have a romantic idea about retirement that they're gonna just relax and travel around and enjoy life and have no problems and just have a great time.
A lot of people have this idea about their retirement in the US, And so people sometimes imagine themselves doing a lot of different activities when they retire, starting different hobbies like golf or gardening or things like that.
And it's something that a lot of people are looking forward to, especially if they've been working for many years and If they're in their 50s, for example.
A lot of people are really looking forward to retiring, and this is a great milestone in people's lives.
In English, the word milestone refers to some important point in your life.
So, for example, you could say turning 18 years old is a big milestone in one's life, for example.
So this is a big milestone in people's lives.
And a lot of times when people retire in the U.S., they throw a party to celebrate.
So, as you can see, people view retirement as a very positive thing and they're looking forward to this in the US.
Not everyone, of course, but many people do.
However, in places like Mexico, where I live, this idea is completely different.
I don't know many people here, or actually I don't really know anyone here that has retired or is going to retire in this same way.
I don't know anyone here that is going to have this amazing life once they stop working, and They'll be able to do whatever they want and have no worries, and they'll have a lot of money.
I don't know anyone that is preparing for that type of lifestyle when they're older.
So people here who don't view retirement in the same way. retirement looks very different in Mexico.
If people retire, it probably just means that they stop working and maybe they have a little bit of money saved up or a little bit of money that they can receive from one investment or another.
And they can maybe survive or maybe they have to live with their children or their grandchildren.
And this is a very different image from the image in the U.S.
And of course in the US people start planning for retirement when they're pretty young a lot of the time.
Some people start a little bit later than others.
But people will tell you that you need to start planning as early as possible.
You need to start your investments, start your planning, your retirement plan early.
Once you start working, whereas in Mexico, I don't think most people who are in their 20s or early 30s are even thinking about retirement.
That's not even an idea that they have in mind.
So the preparation is also very different.
And I'm sure in a lot of other countries.
It's very similar to Mexico here, where people don't necessarily plan for many decades before they retire and have this amazing idea about their retirement.
So the preparation is also very different.
So what is the retirement age in the US and in other countries?
Well, in the US, the full retirement age is either 66 or 67, depending on when you were born.
And so at that point, you can start collecting Social Security.
Social Security is the money that you pay in taxes when you're a worker.
And that money is supposed to come back to you when you're retired.
You're supposed to be able to collect that money that you paid in taxes to help you once you stop working.
This gives you a source of income.
So you can collect that when you retire at 66 or 67%.
But I think you can also start collecting that money earlier if you want, I think at 62.
But you're probably going to receive less if you decide to tap into that money earlier.
In English, when we say that you tap into something, in this case we're saying that you take money from that area.
So if you tap into that money a little bit early, you're going to get a little bit less, I think.
So in other countries, the retirement age is pretty similar.
I've talked to many students about this in different countries around the world and it's very common for people to retire at 65 67 around that time.
However, there is one big exception that I know about.
I know that in China the retirement age for men is 60 years old and the retirement age for women is 55 years old.
So that's a big difference, a pretty marked difference between China and many other countries.
When we say that there's a marked difference, this just means that there's a noticeable difference.
There's a significant difference.
So there's a marked difference between those countries.
And now let's talk about how people retire.
How do people have the money to actually stop working and just live the rest of their lives off of this other money?
Well, there is the conventional way of retiring, and I'm talking about in the US, but it's probably similar in other countries.
The conventional way of retiring is, of course, to collect social security money.
That's probably one thing that people do when they retire.
And people have retirement plans, certain investments that are specifically meant to help you have this source of income when you're retired.
So there are a lot of conventional retirement plans that you can pay into.
I don't know all the different ones, but there are some different options that are pretty popular.
And then, of course, people save money.
People have their savings and this can help them retire.
And so a lot of people start saving money pretty early on.
And this will help them have a certain sum of money by the time they stop working.
In English, when we say a sum of something S-U-M, we're saying that you have an amount of something.
So if I say, that's a pretty big sum of money, I'm saying that's a pretty big amount of money.
So a lot of people save money every month or every year, starting when they're younger, so that they have a pretty big sum of money in their savings account for when they're retired.
And this can help them retire and live the lifestyle they want.
So that's more of the conventional style of planning for retirement.
However, there are other ways to to plan for your retirement.
There is the more entrepreneurial way, as I would call it.
So for example, this might include investing in a business.
It could be your own business or other businesses.
This is going to be a continuous source of income for you.
It's going to pay you every month or every year.
And this is a way that you can generate more money.
And so if you have your own business, this can probably help you retire, because you're going to make money and you're going to hopefully make more money as time goes on, as your business grows.
For example.
This is something that I hope I can take advantage of if my online business gets bigger in time.
Hopefully that will help me be pretty stable or secure financially and it will help me in the future and help my family.
So another way that people can prepare for their retirements in a more entrepreneurial way is by investing in real estate.
So, for example, when people buy an apartment building, let's say, and they renovate that apartment building and make it better, and then they rent this apartment building out to some tenants, these tenants pay them rent money every month and that can be another source of income.
The word tenant just refers to the person who rents an apartment or rents a building.
So this is a tenant.
So, for example, if you get a credit from the bank, if you get a loan from the bank, A loan just means that the bank gives you money and you have to pay it back with interest, and interest refers to the small percentage that you have to pay extra when you pay back a loan to the bank.
So you get a loan from the bank and you have to pay this back with interest.
However, if you have a tenant living in your apartment building that you own, that you bought with that loan, and you charge more money each month than the money that you owe to the bank each month, then you make a profit right.
Because the person who's renting your apartment is going to pay you, let's say, 1000 per month, and you owe the bank 500 per month.
This means that you get $500 in profit every month.
So you can see how that can be an investment that can help you generate money over time and help you prepare for retirement.
So a lot of people like to invest in real estate, and people invest in other areas as well right in the stock market and cryptocurrency and a lot of different areas nowadays and they're hoping that these things can help them generate enough money and help them retire so And hopefully have more money.
Later on so that they can retire.
So that's another way that people might plan for their retirement.
And there's one more way that people can plan for retirement.
And this is more the traditional way I would call it.
And that is investing in your family.
So this is what people used to do more in the past and people do this a lot nowadays in certain countries like, for example Mexico, where if you invest your time and your love and your energy and money into your family hopefully, when you get older, your family will take care of you.
Once you can't work anymore...
You can go and live with your kids and your grandkids for free and hopefully you'll be able to have a good life with them and you'll probably help them around the house with cleaning and taking care of children and stuff like that.
But you can live there rent-free and retire there.
In English, when we say that you live rent free somewhere, this just means that you live in a place and you don't pay rent.
You don't have to pay a monthly fee.
You live there for free.
So, of course, this is the traditional way of retiring going to live with your family members, your kids and your grandkids rent free.
And you can stop working in a traditional job and maybe just help out with your kids.
And you can live that lifestyle when you're older.
So that's the type of retirement that's more common here in Mexico or in other similar countries, this traditional way.
And of course, some people never retire.
Some people have to work maybe until the day they die.
So, for example, some people find that it's very hard to retire nowadays because inflation just keeps getting worse and worse and prices keep going up, and it's harder to afford all the things that you need in order to live.
In English, when we say that you afford something, this just means that you have enough money to pay for something.
So it's getting harder and harder to afford many things that we need because of inflation and rising prices.
So because of this, some people don't stop working.
They just keep working because they need more money.
And some people really identify with their work and they're really passionate about their career.
And because of this, they don't want to retire either.
They just want to keep working and this is what they love doing.
And so they just keep working as long as they can.
And some people simply get bored of retirement because they have nothing to do.
And so maybe they get a part time job somewhere in some place that's fun for them.
Right.
Maybe not in their career where they worked before, but maybe some other job that seems interesting for them, and they just want something to do.
So they might get a part-time job or something because they're bored.
So some people never retire.
How about you?
When do you think you'll retire or do you think you'll retire?
Do you even think about this?
What do you think about this topic?
All right.
Why don't we stop there for today?
I hope this episode was interesting for you and I hope it was good practice for your listening.
Remember that in the next episode, I'm going to release an advanced podcast episode.
So I'll be speaking fast, at normal speed, like in my advanced episodes that I do for listening time.
Family members.
And you can get a sample of what my advanced episodes are like.
So make sure you're ready for that.
That will be next week in the next episode.
And remember to sign up to become a Listening Time member, super member, or family member.
If you need my help to train your listening skills, To reach an advanced level of listening and to understand native speakers when they speak fast at normal speed, click on the link in the episode description below this episode.
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And remember that you have the transcript available for this episode.
So that link is also in the episode description.
Remember to give this podcast a five star rating, if you can, and share it with anyone else who might find it useful and help this podcast grow.
All right.
Thank you for listening to this episode.
And I'll talk to you next time on the Listening Time podcast.
