The images used in retirement marketing often show deck chairs on sunset beaches, golf courses and cruises. It is often portrayed as ‘the longest holiday of your life.’ However,
the picture of retirement is changing dramatically. The concept of gradual retirement, rather than stopping work suddenly, the ‘Working Retired’, is attractive to many people. This attraction increases with age. This supports a raft of other research that shows fewer and fewer people are looking forward to doing nothing but relaxing.
The measurement of a successful retirement is not solely in financial terms. Successful retirees retire ‘to something’, balancing vocation and vacation, staying plugged into meaningful pursuits, and focus on growth and wellbeing.
Failed retirees tend be those who have retired ‘from something’ – a decision made while they are still working, so it’s perhaps understandable that some people look forward to an ‘endless holiday’ after a lifetime of work. But in reality, this can mean going from bingeing on work, to bingeing on leisure. This often devolves into aimlessness and boredom, which can lead to a higher probability of faster physical and mental health decline.
Retirement is now more likely to be a time when you ‘don’t work so hard’ rather than a ‘big- bang, hard stop event’ of the recent past. Many financial plans focus on figures alone, regarding what level of income you need and want. That is not the only factor however, as we are all going to retire on the same 168 hours a week. How will you spend it?
Individuals will need to become more responsible for the success or failure of their retirement. Will it be the longest holiday of your life? It can be if you wish it to be, and you have the financial resources to do it. The challenge is to make it the most fulfilling phase of your life it can be.
Good financial planning can help with a long and fruitful retirement phase – if you want reassurance about what yours might look like; you know where we are!
Approver Quilter Wealth Limited, Quilter Financial Limited, Quilter Financial Services Limited & Quilter Mortgage Planning Limited. April 2024