This morning I had a discussion over a can of Red Bull about when it's time for an entrepreneur to retire.  The conventional wisdom is that at some point in your life, whether you've made a lot of money or you've grown old, you should retire and "enjoy" the rest of your life.

I think that's a bunch of crap.  Entrepreneurs should never retire.  I can think of 300 reasons, but in the spirit of blog brevity, I'll give you just 3:

Only People who Hate their Job Should Retire

Retirement is what you do when you have a job that you either physically can't  do or creates some sort of cramp in your lifestyle that you can't wait to shutter.  If going to work means you're mentally engaged, forced to think critically, and making the world a better place, retirement is a horrible idea.

On the other hand, if you're boss is a major a-hole, your customers are royal pain in the arse, and you haven't seen your family in a few years, then by all means stop working.  In fact, if you're not close to retirement, at the very least it's time to consider finding another job!

You Have Nothing Better to Do

Entrepreneurs can't sit still.  Their minds are always racing, thinking of new ways to solve a problem.  Shutting down all of that critical thinking and simply playing golf all day is never going to replace the excitement of creation.

If you feel like you've been neglecting other aspects of your life for work, you may not need to retire, you may just need to put yourself on a sabbatical.  Take six months off, take a year off.  Just don't turn off your engine completely.

Never Stop Being Engaged

A good friend of mine once told me "If God hadn't created 'business' there would be nothing to do all day."  I don't think he meant it in terms of doing a job you hate, but rather participating in an activity that challenges you to think.

The idea of not being engaged frightens me.  If that means I will never officially retire then that's just fine by me.  That doesn't mean I've got to work myself ragged, but it means that I never want to stop being mentally engaged and enthusiastic.

Entrepreneurs shouldn't think about retirement like everyone else.  They should be creating the very world that they want to live in and make their companies work for them, not the other way around.  Retirement is about doing what you want to do, it doesn't necessarily mean you have to avoid the office to do it.