Many of the calls I receive from prospective clients are those in an age window of 45 to 60 year old. For many of those, while they may not initially admit it we finally get around to the fact that they are on approach for retirement and they are not sure about how they will land. The truth is, they are trying to figure out long their runway is and whether they can catch up. Most pilots, in their pre-flight planning, know exactly what the runway looks like, their load, needed thrust, and all the pieces for a successful takeoff. For most of us, we should have been doing some pre-retirement planning in our earlier years, but now retirement is in better focus. We are now forced to look, see, and ask ourselves – how long is your retirement runway?
A client gave me this thought several months ago. She is getting older, as we all are, and she is considering options. She has worked hard to get and stay out of debt and really knows it is the key to her being able to save more for her future. One day she made the statement that she needed to know how long her runway was – how much room do I have to work, save, and invest.
Remember, your runway sets you in flight. All the pieces together make for a wonderful take off and smooth sailing. The younger you are and the better you plan and execute, the better retirement is going to be. While you may not have your course completely set yet, you do know you need fuel for the flight and retirement is not going to be fun without the needed fuel.
What do you do now? Really, it does not matter your age, but you have to assess your runway and aggressively work to build up what you need. You must be on a plan to eliminate all debt and build retirement accounts – yes, I said accounts. Take advantage of every retirement option you have.
Simple math >> earn more + spend less = the ability to save and invest more.
Are you on the right plan? How long is your runway?
