A friend sent this to me recently...
For most small business owners, discussing the pros and cons of a pension plan vs. a 401(k) vs. a SEP IRA is about as exciting as watching paint dry. I get it. Yet, I’ve noticed over the years just how much time entrepreneurs invest in growing their business and how little time and money they spend on designing smart and sensible tax savings strategies that could save them big money at the end of the year.
If you’re a boomer nearing retirement, no doubt you have read, watched and listened to enough about retirement income planning to probably write a book about this topic yourself. I mention that because, yes, I too am discussing retirement planning, but my info comes with a twist. Please indulge me and allow me to offer you an alternative to the usual suspects when it comes to planning for your financially secure retirement.
In the past couple months, as the stock market continued its swan dive, I met quite a few potential clients that are literally worrying themselves sick over money. When I inquired about their overall health, many of these same clients that are worrying a lot about their money have also encountered lower back pain, in some cases, pretty severe back pain. It’s a common belief that much of our worry around money manifests physically as lower back pain.
It’s obvious yet important to remember that worry and stress are not things we catch like a cold or a bug. It’s our thoughts that create stress and anxiety and its stress that often can lead to illness.
Think there is a difference in how men and women plan for retirement?
I just read this interesting article by Dave Carpenter called Sex Matters When it Comes to Retirement Planning, where he explores the very different approaches men and women take when investing and retirement planning.
Having recently crossed over the 50 year young mark in one piece, (and knock on wood, no mid-life crisis to deal with thus far) my focus as a financial planner has been and will continue to be focused on retirement planning. I’ve quickly learned that it’s one thing to be in your 30’s and even 40’s contemplating as well as advising clients on how to transition into a successful retirement, yet it’s a whole other ball game to be in your 50’s and suddenly be reflecting on my own retirement plans. Even the word retirement has taken on new meaning for me. And who among has hasn’t received the infamous AARP welcome package only to stare at it in disbelief thinking “what, are you kidding me?”
What really concerns me about my fellow baby boomers nearing retirement is the risk they’re taking with their money. The great stock market and real estate crash of 2008 will be a memory that is not soon forgotten. One of the major fallouts from the crash, at least from my vantage point, is the undue risk people are taking with their investments in order to play the catch up game.
