Psychologists explain that the loneliest part of retirement isn't being alone - it's realizing that your relationships were scaffolded by routine and proximity, and without the structure of work, there's almost nothing left - Silicon Canals

"Those relationships had been held together by the fact that we were in the same building, doing the same things, five days a week. Take that away and there wasn't much left. I was in my thirties when this happened. I had time and energy to rebuild. But imagine experiencing that same thing at sixty-five, after four decades of work, with far fewer natural opportunities to start over."

"The biggest predictor of who became friends with whom wasn't shared interests, similar personalities, or compatible values. It was physical proximity. People who lived closer together were far more likely to become friends than those who lived further apart, even within the same small building. The workplace operates on the same principle."

Workplace relationships are primarily sustained by physical proximity rather than deep personal connection. When the author left corporate life, colleagues who were daily contacts became strangers within months despite no conflict. This reflects the propinquity effect, a psychological principle identified in 1950 research showing that physical closeness is the strongest predictor of friendship formation, surpassing shared interests or values. The workplace leverages this effect through daily interaction around shared spaces and routines. Retirement removes this structural proximity, creating particular vulnerability to loneliness for older workers who have spent decades relying on workplace-based relationships and lack time or opportunities to rebuild social connections.

Read at Silicon Canals