Retirement Vision: Financial Freedom or Halt Working?
What comes to mind when you hear the word- retirement? For many, those images are not positive. It means past bad decisions and continuing to live in the slavery of a job that one hates, but pays the bills.
For others it means not working. Not working doesn’t mean adequate income. If you are like many, much of your self-worth is tied to the association with your career.
It may mean cashing in the promises of pensions, Social Security, etc. Let’s examine retirement through the lens of financial freedoms.
Financial Freedom- What is Your Number?
If you were guaranteed $50,000 per year would you stop working today? (As a financial planner, I must add that the qualified of cost of living adjusted.) If that isn’t enough, what about $100,000, $150,000. What is your number? That means that your bills not necessarily your debt increases based on cost of living. It means that you have an idea of financial comfort. While other may make more money than you, you have an enough amount. If you still found satisfaction in working, you could donate your time free of charge to a near infinite amount of charities that could use you. Most of all you are budget friendly.
You may have no heirs or charities that you want to give the money to so having wealth to conserve and to pass on is of little importance to you.
This is generally what the theory of a pension or a fixed annuity gives. Be sure to make sure your pension has a cost of living increase or you may not be as financially free as you thought. Financial freedom may mean being free of depending on someone else for your paychecks.
Rich Today or Wealthy Tomorrow
Wealth for many includes the desire to pass on wealth. Wealth may mean fulfill your self-expression to be highly regarded and allow you access to people and places. Many confuse with wealth with being rich. The comedian Chris Rock said in his stand-up routine (sanitized): “I’m not talkin’ about rich I’m talking about wealth. Rich is something you can lose with a crazy summer and a drug habit. Maybe if we didn’t spend all our money on rims we might have some to invest. Wealth will set us … free…Cause wealth is empowering”.
What financial freedom do you envision?
What are your keys to break out of slavery? Need more financial capability and a coach to help you along the way? Contact us to learn more about developing your custom plan to build your vision of financial freedom.
(1) The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. To determine which investment(s) may be appropriate for you, consult your financial advisor prior to investing. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested into directly.
