Sarah Explains What It Takes to Side-Step Retirement Fiascos — Here’s What I Learned
When it comes to retirement, life experience is everything.
Recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about retirement.
Not that I will be retiring anytime soon. Far from it. Still, I must be prepared for the invisible path ahead of me.
I started speaking to retirees.
Many, many of them.
I’ve tapped into the brains of successful on-time retirees, early r’s, and failed ones. The latter suffered tremendously during their Golden Years.
And I wonder.
Can I side-step potential retirement fiascos before they blow up on my face?
Sarah, a recent retiree at 57, says yes.
I was delighted.
The Retirement Fiasco List
Before we begin — Let’s get to the drawing board.
Actually, no. A napkin from Starbucks will do.
Let’s make a list.
How many retirement fiascos can you think of? List them.
Here’s mine.
- Running out of money before biological expiration.
- Financial markets decimating all my investments.
- Health issues that impair normal daily function.
- $100 for Panadol for migraines [inflation].
- No work opportunities when I need them.
- Side hustles that no longer work.
- Living life without meaning.
This is my list without [deep] thinking.
And I got fearful.
Here’s why.
We are woefully inadequate when it comes to retirement planning. Many of us equate that to financial planning. That is one leg, just one, supporting the retirement superstructure.
Yes. We must pay our bills to go through life.
We spend our working years saving, investing, and earning more.
But what about the other legs? How do we prepare for those?
I Spoke with Sarah, a Recent Retiree.
I know her to be,
- Methodical,
- Meticulous,
- And a person who doesn’t go 180.
In short, she knows what she is doing. Sarah never turns back.
Well, that is my observation for 5 years. Sarah’s profession as an auditor could play a part in shaping her thinking. Maybe her personality is such.
Sarah avoids passing unfounded remarks or comments. She speaks very little. But precisely because she does, her words carry weight.
She said this to me 8 months ago.
“Aldric, I am on my notice period. I am retiring.”
I remember looking at her face. She was calm. Her words? Cold.
I knew she meant it.
“Ah. Good for you. How prepared are you?”
It was a genuine question.
And I received a straightforward reply.
“I am.”
Wow.
The Unavoidable Retirement Money Question
“I presumed the retirement money problem is resolved?”
It was a direct shot off the bow. I wasn’t expecting any spectacular answers.
Indeed. Sarah’s reply was boring.
“Yes, I am prepared. Investment portfolio, cash, and others. I did my sums. Based on 7% dividends, I will get $6,416 monthly. This money is enough for my day-to-day.”
That number [to me] is too precise to be ignored.
“What if…”
Sarah interrupted me with a laugh.
“Hahaha! I know you will ask. I can even guess your question. If the amount drops or I need more, what will I do? I will be trading the market. I have active income.”
Yes, what more can I say?
Sarah has a base and an add-on income stream.
She will cruise through her retirement years unscathed unless a meteorite comes along and destroys us all.
Of Health and Meaning
These 2 are tricky.
I don’t think anyone has got simple answers for these 2. Not for folks I know in their mid-40s.
“I worry more about being healthy into my old age. But that is the problem. What does being healthy even mean? Are there any standard definitions?”
At first, I thought Sarah was being cynical.
After thinking for 5 minutes — I believe she has a point.
And then, she tossed a bomb in my direction.
“I started dancing.”
I was stumped. I didn’t quite understand.
“Dancing? Like pilates or modern dance?”
No was the answer.
It was figurative.
“I meant dancing with my fingers and my tongue. I wanted to engage my mind and hands at the same time. Like, feeling them, knowing that they are alive. I took up cooking. It is crazy tough…”
She went on and on, but I was lost in my thoughts. Cooking?
“… It is so exhausting. My fingers are moving all the time. And I must be fast, too. Chopping food into fine bits is a test of my eyesight and dexterity. It is unbelievably taxing. Better than running.”
I was bemused. Cooking? For fitness? This is the first time I hear this.
But I am glad it works well for her.
“I am happy to get my finger strength back. For a long while, I thought I had lost my grip. Now? I can deliver shocks with my pinches.”
Sarah was about to pinch me as she spoke. I dodged. Fast.
“Haha, good try! But not thanks! What about the meaning piece? Dancing again?”
Sarah’s answer is equally fascinating.
“Yes, but this time, with my tongue. I am taking on an adjunct faculty role in a B-School. I want to address the need to be vocal in the workplace. Students near-employment age must know that silence is costly.”
I gave her my concurrence. Why not? I have seen way too many outstanding people getting buried by the articulate ones.
You know… I mean, the [extremely] articulate and noisy ones.
“I will spend my next 10 years working on this problem. I want my students to be confident and articulate graduates. This will be my mission during retirement.”
I remember thinking…
Wow. Purposeful.
The Close
Side-stepping retirement fiascos requires us to identify and then pin them down in the first place.
Not easy.
It requires us to be self-aware.
And my conversation with Sarah demonstrated that. She is highly self-aware.
She knew money would be an issue during retirement. She worked to close that.
She also knew [via conversations with other retirees] that health and meaning can determine the quality of life during our Golden Years. She closed that, too.
And maybe… this is the way to side-step retirement fiascos. To be clear, we are talking about our retirement.
We ought to be proactive.
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Oh, oh, you can buy me a cup of black too! Thank you!