Keen On Retirement™

"Ute" (SUV), "chips" (French fries), "sunnies" (sunglasses), and "mates" (friends) are just a few of the slang terms I picked up earlier this year when the Keens visited our family in Brisbane, Australia. Another was "super," which is short for "superannuation." This mandatory savings program is central to Australia's retirement planning. And recently, President Trump floated the idea of implementing a similar program here in the U.S. On today's show, we discuss if taking some inspiration from our friends Down Under could provide a "super" solution to Social Security's looming insolvency and help more Americans build their nest eggs for retirement.

As I've discussed in my recent blog posts, many of the most important retirement choices don’t happen on a spreadsheet. And, as you and your advisor navigate the complex money decisions that touch on your feelings, your relationships, and your goals, you'll probably start to see that these decisions also extend beyond the horizon of your own retirement. But rather than asking yourself what you're planning to leave behind, a successful wealth transition should answer the question “What are we preparing the next generation to handle?”

"Tom and Linda" are a married couple. They're both 55-years-old. Tom works as an operations manager for a regional manufacturer, and Linda works in corporate finance. They are both targeting retirement at age 65. Complicating that 10-year runway is a situation that's becoming more and more common among Tom and Linda's generation: they're "sandwiched" between taking care of Linda's parents, who are in their early 90s, and their 25-year-old son, who is still living at home with them. On today's show, we explain how comprehensive financial planning can help couples like "Tom and Linda" manage complex, multigenerational family variables while maintaining progress towards their retirement goals.

In my recent blog posts, I've tried to broaden the retirement conversation beyond running the numbers and optimizing projections. I want seniors to keep their lives at the center of their financial planning and let their goals guide more of their decision-making. But even the most carefully considered decisions, and the best-laid plans, eventually run into real life. And that's the true test of a financial plan. You don't have to do a lot of math and projecting to figure that you'll be OK in retirement if the markets are roaring, your health is good, and your house is sturdy. But are you prepared for market volatility? An unexpected diagnosis? A major home repair? Will you be able to handle disruptions without being forced into bad decisions? To answer "Yes" at these critical moments, your financial plan doesn't need to be "perfect." It needs to be resilient.

When I think about the start of spring, I think about spending the Easter holiday with my family, the colors returning to our green spaces, a little more sunshine, and maybe a shower or two. Hail the size of baseballs? Not a part of my vision! But that’s what a massive storm brought to Kansas City a few weeks ago. Like so many folks, I'm still fixing broken windshields and dents on my family's cars and having my roof checked out. Of course, none of us can control the weather. But we can prepare for the unexpected by buying insurance, keeping some emergency cash in our savings, and making home upgrades that protect our most valuable assets. And, as we discuss on today's show while answering three timely listener questions, the same principle applies to financial planning. We can't control what's happening in the world or how the markets react to the news of the day. But we can be proactive about how we weather the storms of inflation and volatility.

As I discussed in a recent blog post, many of the most important retirement decisions you’ll make aren't about your accounts and amounts. They're emotional choices that involve personal judgment, weighing trade-offs, and your most deeply held personal values. However, refocusing your retirement planning on the things that matter as much or more than money might spark a new concern: perfection. If hitting a number is your main retirement concern, you can always work longer, save and invest more, and keep topping off your accounts. But once you start thinking about your money as a tool that you'll use to support bucket list travel, philanthropy, lifelong learning, and your grandkid's education, the pressure to get every detail right on paper might feel overwhelming, even paralyzing. These three examples of financial planning "perfection" all start from a place that seems logical and proactive. But they all come with downsides that could sacrifice the flexibility and resilience most seniors need to succeed throughout retirement.