Retirement Planning

As we get older, we all want to make sure that our later years will be worry free.  Financial security is important in attaining this goal.  This may not be totally possible of course.  But spending time planning where you want to go and how to get there is a required exercise for us all.  I am retired now and I thought I would pass on some strategies that I have found to be successful.  Hopefully, you can implement some of these suggestions.

First of all, you may need to consider how you will occupy your time when you do retire.  For some, this is spending more time with your spouse.  For others, it may mean continuing or beginning a new career.  Maybe you were doing something “on the side” for fun that you can turn into your new passion once retirement comes along.  For me, it was easy.  For the last 35+ years, I had a part-time job that I have successfully converted to a full-time venture. 

I used to drive my wife crazy on a part-time basis; now I do it full-time.  She’s thrilled.  What wife wouldn’t be.  You know, the 2 of us started out as soul-mates.  Now it is more like we are cell-mates!

Another thing to consider is how are you going to manage your expenses given that your income is reduced in retirement.  It takes planning to see where you cut back.  Food is one of those areas.  Obviously, you’ll be spending fewer nights out for dinner.  But you can also make changes at home.  We’ve found one significant way you can save money on food.  Here it is:

Attempt to acquire a taste for cat food.  Mixed grill on a Ritz cracker with a glass of chardonnay.  Not bad.  (Stay away from dog food; dogs palates are not developed enough).

Finally, the last thing anybody wants to happen when you retire is to outlive your nest egg.  You want to make sure that your funds will be available for you to use for as long as you are alive.  I have a strategy which addresses this problem.  It involves having knowledge as to your cash flows, both in and out, so you can project, in rough terms, when you make have exhausted your funds.  When you project that you may have just a few years left before the funds are gone, implement the final strategy as follows:

Take up smoking.  2 packs a day unfiltered cigarettes should do it just fine.

Implementing these strategy tips will go along way to a successful retirement.

McDonald’s World

I get a chuckle whenever I see certain McDonald’s commercials on TV.  They are the ones portraying life as they see it for their young 2o’s something guests.  The latest one shows two Generation OMG types drinking a McCafe Latte or whatever they are called and doing some sort of synchronized hand slapping.  You’ve seen that one.  What I find amusing is the disconnect that McD obviously has.  I’ve never seen any young adults like the one they show in any McDonald’s that I’ve been to.  This generation usually is at Starbucks and can be seen walking around with their head lowered staring blankly into their IPhones and occasionally rubbing their shins as they bump into things.  What I do see at McD’s are two extremes. 

The young one I see are the very young infants and toddlers brought there by their moms (and sometimes dads) who are there presumably because they believe that They Deserve A Break Today.  They use the playground for the kids to burn off their built up energy.  On the other end of the spectrum are our Elder Americans who use McDonald’s as a gathering place to discuss and decide the crucial political and economic issues of the day.  The Greatest Generation is drawn to McD’s for the atmosphere that allows them this forum.  They drink coffee all right but not the fancy ones, just the regular Joe.  Actually, it is the Senior Coffee that they are there for as it allows them unlimited refills.  This coffee is the fuel that propels most of their discussions.  But no young adults are to be seen.

I guess it is McD’s Field of Dreams motivation.  If they show it, they will come.  But it does make you wonder what they are thinking.

Just my opinion.

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