The Part Time Retirement Revolution: How I'm Taking a Year Off Every 5 Years (And You Can Too)

Burnout hit me like a brick wall.

Here’s the thing—I’d been grinding as a police officer, pulling 60-70 hour weeks for £33k, dreaming of that magical retirement age when I could finally enjoy life. Then it hit me: what if I’m too old and tired by then to actually enjoy the fruits of my labour?

Part time retirement changed everything for me. Instead of working myself into the ground for 40+ years and hoping I’ve got energy left at the end, I decided to sprinkle retirement throughout my life while I’m young, healthy, and can actually chase my kids around a beach in Egypt.

Let me break it down...

What Is Part Time Retirement (And Why It’s Genius)

Part time retirement isn't about being lazy or giving up on ambition. It's about going against the grain of the traditional work-retire-die mentality.

The concept is simple: instead of working most of your adult life and retiring at the end, you add more retirement to your life while you can actually enjoy it.

My current plan? Take a year off every 5 years to have adventures with my wife and two kids (both under two—chaos, but the good kind 😅). This could mean traveling the world, learning new skills in sunnier locations, building better habits, or doing community projects that have nothing to do with my career.

Fun fact: Most entrepreneurs start their journey chasing freedom and security. Somewhere during the hustle, we forget what our original goal was and get trapped in the same rat race we were trying to escape.

Setting this part time retirement goal was huge for me because it kept me focused on systemizing my businesses, investing safely, and saving enough to take a year off work comfortably.

The Real Numbers: What Part Time Retirement Actually Costs

Important caveat—everyone's circumstances are different, so some of this may not apply to you. But hopefully, you’ll get some golden nuggets to apply to your own situation.

Having a supportive partner made this possible (even with two babies under two!). We needed extra support with the kids since we’d be moving away from family in the UK, so we looked for places with strong familial values, halal food, and really safe environments.

Living in the UK and earning GBP (£) meant we could go to most places in Asia or Africa and live extremely comfortably at a fraction of the price.

Here’s our part time retirement budget breakdown for a family of 4:

🇪🇬 Egypt: £26,400 yearly

🇦🇪 Dubai: £50,400 yearly

🇲🇺 Mauritius: £25,200 yearly

🇩🇿 Algeria: £14,400 yearly

🇲🇾 Malaysia: £31,800 yearly

The kicker? These numbers include living extremely comfortably—not scraping by or backpacking. We're talking villas, help with the kids, and enough budget for proper adventures.

My Strategy: The "Cheat Code" That Made It Work

Now for the difficult part—organizing your life to actually make part time retirement happen with your family.

My passion has always been growing wealth through Sharia-compliant vehicles. I looked at Risk vs ROI vs Sweat Equity factors and found something truly passive that would build wealth at a reasonable rate: Managed Real Estate (I haven't heard this term anywhere, so I'm calling it MRE).

Why I chose MRE for part time retirement funding:

Pro Tip: I could take monthly profits and pay off loans over 5 years, but I wanted to eliminate risk faster. My calculation: if the investment held out for 2.5 years, it would pay off the loan. The next 2.5 years would be pure profit.

The Three Types of Leverage I Used

Using leverage to fast-track part time retirement was scary, but here’s how I made it work:

1. Financial Leverage

I took out a loan and invested in the MRE strategy. We also considered a 60% mortgage on our Dubai property to add more to the MRE strategy. Why? Because loan rates were 5.9%, and the ROI on the MRE strategy was 16-18%. The math made sense.

2. Relationship Leverage

Being trusted by people meant they'd share their problems and goals with me. "With great power comes great responsibility" (thanks, Spider-Man's Uncle Ben). I was positioned to help solve problems and fast-track their growth in exchange for a small slice of the results.

3. "Stealing Someone Else's 10,000 Hours"

I used commission from solving people's problems to hire specialists in areas where I wasn't an expert. I paid them 30-50% above market rate in their country, which was still a fraction of UK rates. This meant better results faster for my clients and something I could scale.

The Emergency Fund Strategy

In our savings account, we needed enough for:

Our magic number: £15-25k before starting our part time retirement adventure.

Having more money sitting in the bank doing nothing felt like a waste at this stage in our lives. Every pound needed to work toward our part time retirement goal.

Part Time Retirement vs Traditional Retirement

Traditional retirement assumes you'll:

Part time retirement flips this script:

The hard truth: Most people work incredibly hard toward goals, achieve them, then immediately move to the next goal without enjoying the journey. Part time retirement forces you to pause and actually live.

How to Start Your Journey

Ready to break free from the traditional work-retire cycle? Here’s your action plan:

Step 1: Calculate Your Number

Research living costs in your dream destinations. Add a 20% buffer for emergencies. Don't forget insurance and visa costs.

Step 2: Choose Your Wealth-Building Vehicle

Look for passive income streams. Prioritize safety over massive returns. Consider your risk tolerance honestly.

Step 3: Create Your 5-Year Plan

Step 4: Build Your Support System

Get your partner on board (crucial!), consider childcare needs, and research visa requirements.

Strategy you can use right now: Start small. Plan a 3-month sabbatical first. Test your systems, see how your finances hold up, and learn what you need to adjust before committing to a full year.

Summary

This journey represents a conscious choice to break free from the conventional work-retire cycle. Instead of deferring all joy to "someday," part time retirement prioritizes family, life experiences, and financial security now.

You can't change your circumstances, but you can change yourself.

Part time retirement isn't about having tons of money lying around—it's about being intentional with the money you do have and the life you want to live.

The hope is that this strategy inspires you to pursue a balanced, intentional life. Your kids won't remember you working late, but they'll remember adventures in Egypt, Malaysia, or wherever your part time retirement takes you.

You can do this. Start planning your first break today.

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