The way I read that is 40 percent of people are going to struggle on a vacation that requires some walking, standing or holding onto a rail. It means people are going to find it difficult to play on the floor or in the grass with the grandkids ... and things like gardening, biking or watching a movie may be less enjoyable than they thought it would be.
Just as I learned the keys to a successful marathon the hard way, too many people figure out retirement only after they get there, or are forced to slow down and examine the wells from which they are drinking. Be it illness, loss of a loved one or some other form of breakage, they look back and realize they should have drank a little more each day from the wellspring of life, instead of collecting fine wines to drink later and then having to consume them alone.
Two things financial advisors need to help clients figure out are: 1) why they are running the race in the first place and 2) how they hope to finish. The truth is, life’s many thirsts never go away. There will always be a longing or desire to chase one particular thirst or another. Once a client understands that retirement can’t quench all their thirsts in one swift move, advisors can use life planning tools and resources to help them focus on managing the ones most important to them.
I recently met with a dehydrated couple on their way to retirement. The husband had reached full retirement age, but his wife is still six months short of her 62nd birthday. The problem is, her work environment has become toxic, and it’s affecting other areas of her life. She wants to retire right now.
From the get-go, her husband was adamant about finishing strong. “I have less than 27 months before I retire, and if she can just take a couple of weeks’ vacation or something to let things blow over, we’ll be able to hit the marks we need to.”
I interrupted, “The last time we met I thought you told me you were closer to retiring in 18 months.”
“Well,” he replied, “I figured if we can earn a little more, we won’t ever have to worry about returning to work … or running out of money … and we can enjoy all the stuff we have.”
I pushed back, “Willie, you’ll be almost 70 when you retire, and with your arthritis, I’m worried you won’t be able to enjoy your stuff the way you think you will. You have ample funds to enjoy life now and to make retirement much sooner—you guys just need to figure out how you want to run the rest of the race.”
His response was pointed, “We’re too far into the game to give up. Why lose everything we worked for because she’s having a few bad weeks at work?”
At this point his wife interjected, “Honey, you may like going to work but I don’t … right now I can’t stand it or the way I’m being treated there. All you care about is working more … and then a little more … or losing my pay rate … why is it always more for you? What about me?”
I sat quietly for a moment and then said to her husband, “You know Willie, you’re right … it is late in the game and you shouldn’t give everything up. The only difference between what I’m saying and what you feel is that, right now, you’re winning the game. You’re up by a couple touchdowns and no one can take them away from you. You can either run up the score or take a knee and enjoy the last few plays before the next game starts. It’s up to you, but if you go for it, you could lose a lot more than some extra points.”