 |
||
Retirement Financial Planning.Planning a More Secure Financial Future.How much retirement financial planning is necessary? The answer is - it depends on your goals for retirement and your preferred lifestyle. Richard, a good friend of mine, enjoys the good life. He likes to dine in fine restaurants on a Saturday night, and he travels to exotic locations. Perhaps he’s checking out the best places to retire to! “I found this little known island in the Caribbean, you would love it Greg!” Well maybe I would, I thought. He was nearing retirement and he told me he was both saving for retirement and investing for retirement to continue that lifestyle in retirement. He told me he was expecting a higher standard of living - and a better lifestyle - in retirement. He said he was saving and investing for retirement to achieve those goals. As long as I have known Richard he appeared to me to be a man who likes a structured and well planned life. He prides himself on being organised, decisive and in control. I have little doubt that he was up for retirement, both emotionally and financially. By way of contrast, Joe - who I have known since high school, likes to "go with the flow". He enjoys a flexible and spontaneous lifestyle. I still see him rushing at the last minute to meet a deadline, like he was in school! For him retirement would be a time for mellowing, valuing spouse and children, and contributing to the community. And yet he understood that you can’t retire without money. “For me the question is not "how much money to retire?" - it's how little do I need to retire!”, he quipped! Joe had a plan, a bit vague and flexible, compared to Richard, but nevertheless a plan. “I can live on much less in retirement”, he suggested. “Let me explain”. As we looked at my Retirement Planning Guide - I reminded him that some expenses would stay the same, groceries and entertainment - he was hardly going to cut back on his golf and the twice weekly visit to his local pub? Other expenses would increase - health care, and travel if that was part of his plan. He believed that he had one very attractive option. He had a large house - they had three adult children - and the mortgage was paid. Downsizing to a smaller home was a possibility. This would lower the cost of maintenance and also give him a nice little nest egg for investing or emergencies. I asked him if he had discussed this retirement scenario with his spouse. “Sort of”, he replied. I urged him to talk it through in detail, especially the idea of selling and moving. I knew she was a very keen gardener, and loved their present house. I also suggested he prepare a detailed budget, with the help of a financial advisor, find a Retirement Income Calculator and do some retirement calculations and check out his assumptions. Also consider the rules of retirement governing his pension plan and social security. This would cover:
Knowing Joe, this was a task he would not enjoy, but he agreed to report back to me on his progress at our next coaching meeting. Both Richard and Joe’s stories illustrate that when it comes to retirement financial planning one size does not fit all. It is essential to incorporate your personal goals and lifestyle choices into the planning. Finally, it's never too early to start - as I discussed at at Retirement Financial Planning Coaching meeting with Peter.
Stay in touch and subscribe to my monthly email newsletter, "Retirement Stories". It is full of new stories and tips on planning for and enjoying an active retirement. Subscribe Now.. Back from Retirement Financial Planning to Retirement Planning |
Recently Added StoriesAlso - Go to Retirement Sentiments - where you will find a full index of stories available on retirement-stories.com. The Bucket List: It's About Time! - You may have seen the movie "The Bucket List" - DO YOU have a Bucket List? ... Retirement? Never! - I love the sentiments expressed in this prize-winning Toastmasters' Speech ... About Butler - That last day at work ... after "About Schmidt" - the Jack Nicholson movie ... this funny and moving story takes a sobering look at retirement... Follow The Yellow Brick Road - In your transition to retirement, you may wonder if you have the resources you need for the new situation. The Wizard of OZ reminds you that sometimes you need look no further than your own backyard... The Road Not Taken - When you come to a fork in the road, how do you decide which way to go?.. The Mountain Kings of Africa - If you’re looking for retirement ideas, you might try an adventure holiday... Let's Go- “Do something you would LOVE to do, really WANT to do.” This was one of my prize winning Toastmasters speeches. I was 50 at the time of the adventure it describes... Christmas Eve, 1954 - Sometimes, we retirees get nostalgic as we look back with happiness and gratitude at “the way we were”. Many of the older “Baby Boomers” will have their own version of this story... Circle - One of the challenges you may face in mid-life is supporting aging parent(s). This story also deals with assisted living and senior living communities. .. Vocation - In this story, a teacher reflects on the disparity between the dreams he had for his career, and what he feels he has achieved. He is heartened by thoughts of small pleasures and triumphs... Life is beautiful - A philosophical, and sometimes humorous, reflection on the mid- life transition. This is a phase when thoughts of major change or early retirement might first surface.... Trudy - This is a story about one of my best friends, and learning to let go with dignity, humanity and gratitude. Retirement is a time to let go of former colleagues and roles and begin again... Going back - “I knew then why I had come back...to discover how I had changed"... Peter the Great. - Prepare to be surprised and entertained as you enter the curious world of stage hypnotism-but this is also a story about the roles we play and the choices we make... Transitions - We experience many changes and cross many thresholds in life. We leave school, leave home, change jobs, get married, parents die, we retire…in all those cases we are faced with the need to give up one way of life and begin another... This is the theme of my story... Go to Retirement Sentiments - where you will find a full index of stories available on retirement-stories.com. |
|
|
Enjoy This Site?
Then why not use the button below, to add us to your favorite bookmarking service? |
||
|
Retirement-Stories.com Copyright © 2008 -2009. | ||