Often times when I speak to clients during our financial planning process, their goals for retirement are usually to maintain the lifestyle they currently have and maybe to enjoy some more free time for family and travel. There is pride in not wanting “too much”.
We also work with clients who have a hard time transitioning from working to retirement, or fear that they will be bored – this is common.
I am not sure if that is indicative of our clients already doing a great job of living the lives they deeply want to live, or if day dreaming about goals and visions of the future is just something we have lost touch with during our daily 9-5. And while I would agree that being happy with your current situation is a goal in itself, I wonder if it’s too much to ask to spend a little more time thinking about your deepest hopes and desires.
A big part of financial planning is helping clients to identify their priorities, encouraging them to act accordingly, and to spend their funds during retirement in areas that will bring them the most joy – which sometimes means cutting back in other areas.
While thinking about cutting back is never a fun discussion, having clear priorities and goals for the future is important at any age. In retirement, we have a unique opportunity to focus on those goals.
George Kinder, considered “The Father of Life Planning,” is an author, international thought leader, and life planning pioneer who has been at the forefront of the financial services industry for more than 35 years. He asks us three questions to help center our intentions for the remaining life we have, and without getting too sappy or “woo-woo”, I would encourage you to spend some time thinking about and even writing down your answers:
Question 1: Design Your Life
I want you to imagine that you are financially secure, that you have enough money to take care
of your needs, now and in the future. The question is, how would you live your life? What
would you do with the money? Would you change anything? Let yourself go. Don’t hold back
your dreams. Describe a life that is complete, that is richly yours.
Question 2: You Have Less Time
This time, you visit your doctor who tells you that you have five to ten years left to live. The good part is that you won’t ever feel sick. The bad news is that you will have no notice of the moment of your death. What will you do in the time you have remaining to live? Will you change your life, and how will you do it?
Question 3: Today’s the Day
This time, your doctor shocks you with the news that you have only one day left to live. Notice what feelings arise as you confront your very real mortality. Ask yourself: What dreams will be left unfulfilled? What do I wish I had finished or had been? What do I wish I had done? [Did I miss anything]?
If you’re like me, these questions make me a little uncomfortable and I’m no where near retirement.
Not that you asked for it, but this is some encouragement to listen to the inner voice telling you to travel widely, write a novel, knit hats for newborns, or create a regular practice of goat yoga – which is weirdly expensive. To prioritize your joy, you have to know where it comes from, and that’s not always easy.
Hopefully this exercise has inspired you to do something you’ve always wanted to do.
If you would like to learn more about how you can make your goals a reality during retirement, call us to learn more about our financial planning process. I hope I get to speak to you about your financial plan and I hope that your face lights up when we talk about your plans for the future.
