Retirement is one of the most significant changes you will ever experience and one of the greatest social experiments of our time.
Retirees today are much healthier, more active and can expect to live longer than they could in the past. In 1951 there were fewer than 300 centurions alive in England and Wales. By 2036 statistics suggest there could be more than 40 thousand. We are in a unique position and facing a future that looks nothing like our parents second half of life.
Unlike our parents, for whom secure jobs and pension-funded retirements were the norm, we need to be self reliant and self-starting. This is because changes taking place in Government policy and in the workplace are placing increasing pressure on us to take personal responsibility for aspects of our lives, which were previously performed by outside agencies such as health professionals, teachers and the Government.
Despite the significant changes taking place, we are living in today’s world, and planning yesterday’s retirement. If you are aged between 40 and 60, you are a guinea pig without knowing it. Let’s look at some of the reasons why.
• It is anticipated that life expectancy will continue to rise. The population aged 80 and over in 1998 of 2.3 million will gradually rise to nearly 6 million by 2050.
• Attitudes regarding health and well-being are short sighted. Our lifestyle habits such as diet, smoking and drinking, illustrate the extent to which we prioritise the present at the expense of the future.
• When it comes to planning finances, our disregard for the future is blindingly obvious. Many of us are saving nothing or too little towards our retirement. Increasing levels of debt are being accrued and many of us are unaware of the difficulties we will encounter later in life, or are unsure how to plan for them.
• Our retirement plans are reflections of those of our grandparents or parents but our chances of living a long life are not. We’re living in the 21st century and planning a 20th Century retirement!
• Because people are living longer, many of us are spending our retirement caring for older relatives.
• As many parents now go to work, grandparents are playing a larger role in caring for grandchildren than previous generations.
• The percentage of people in mid life who are divorced or separated has more than doubled over the past 20 years. This will place greater demands on people’s abilities to self manage their lifestyles. This was less necessary in the past, when the overwhelming majority were in stable couple relationships.
Up to now retirement planning meant, ‘Do you have enough money?’ because retirement planning comes from financial planners and life insurance agents. However there is increasing awareness that if we are going to be spending 25 years or more in this phase of life, we need to plan for it properly and well in advance. Unfortunately most people spend more time planning a holiday or buying a car than a 25-year retirement!
When approaching retirement we need exactly the same process of self-analysis and sound consultation that we would receive from a competent career advisor if we were going through a job change. As job changers need to generate career options in a clear and understandable way, pre retirees need the same option generation process but with slightly different, content and goals and an entirely different purpose. People retiring at any age need plenty of options.
Everyone approaches retirement from a different point of view. Some of us will cope with it well, while others will approach it with uncertainty and even fear.
Nobody knows how long he or she is going to live and most people want a long and fulfilling life. This is an ideal, which few people achieve, but with planning and timely action, it is now attainable.
Personal retirement planning helps people extend choice and control in the transition from work to retirement, through coaching designed to help gain new perspectives and possibilities.
Your retirement will be as unique as your fingerprint. With professional coaching and effective planning you can transform how you approach retirement and the enjoyment and fulfillment you get from it.
Make the most of the opportunities it can offer and start planning now!
If you have enjoyed this post and are thinking about your retirement transition check out this interview with Ann Harrison. Available TODAY only
http://talkingprimetimewomen.com/st3ephia/
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