One of the privileges of editing a magazine is getting to work with some remarkable people. This list includes our editorial staff as well as our contributors, among many others.
One of those contributors, Steve Gresham, is the author of this month’s cover story on page 38. Though I’ve known Steve for more than two decades, I’ve enjoyed the chance to work with him more extensively than ever since the pandemic began almost two years ago.
When the pressure is on, some people rise to the occasion, and that’s what I’ve watched Steve and others do for the last two years. From the onset of the public health crisis, Steve was clairvoyant enough to see big changes ahead.
Covid-19 coincided almost exactly with a long-anticipated demographic trend—the average baby boomer turning 65. That’s traditionally seen as retirement age in America (in Europe it’s earlier). But in recent decades, the notion of retirement has grown more flexible. While that would seem to be a positive development, early retirement often seems to find those who need to keep working. Meanwhile, those who have enough in assets to really kick back, including the clients of financial advisors, instead choose to keep working, in many cases just for self-fulfillment.
Steve’s cover story cuts right to the heart of this paradox. Financial advisors and the financial services industry have done an excellent job at preparing affluent America for a future of their choosing. And now there are plenty of ways for rich people to fail in retirement.
But Steve’s concern lies with the millions of other Americans for whom financial independence and security aren’t a given. Frothy equity markets and lifestyle disruptions induced by the pandemic have prompted millions of Americans to pull the trigger on retirement. In a more normal era, they would have kept working for a few more years, a move most advisors see as critical to security.
How this all will unfold remains to be seen. Steve cites numerous authorities, including Ric Edelman, who built a colossal RIA by focusing on the middle-class Americans most advisors avoided. Edelman believes that the so-called Great Resignation will turn into a “premature sabbatical.”
He notes that the average 65-year-old watches 47 hours of television per week (that made me feel good). It is probably a positive development that Edelman believes many recent retirees will return to the workforce, either because they need to work or because they will become insanely bored watching the boob tube. Right now, the economy could use them—or almost anyone for that matter.
At any rate, I’d urge all of you to read Steve’s cover story. It’s only one of many excellent articles in what is an issue we’re very proud of.
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