By Brenda Weathers Hargroves
Continuing the discussion about what makes me tick and how what I have to say might be of value to you, I move to the second question.
How did you plan for retirement?
I think each of us, no matter our generation, recognizes how fast time is moving. So, let’s face it, retirement is fast upon all of us who will be lucky enough to get there. Sadly, I didn’t seriously prepare for retirement until later in life. Certainly not what I’d suggest to anyone today.
I’ve always practiced good money management behaviors. I worked on eliminating debt and was an avid saver. But thinking back, I should have focused more on saving for retirement during my early employment years. At that time, I was more focused on reaching my goal to work full time until I reached my 40s. I then planned to work part-time for a few years and give myself the opportunity to explore other things before I got too old. All of my savings went toward reaching and fulfilling this goal.
My desire to give back led to founding and managing a nonprofit organization. Because I also believe our youth are our responsibility, the nonprofit focused on mentoring economically and academically challenged students and providing them with continuous financial aid. I am proud to say we touched the lives of 75 students.
I returned to full-time employment in my mid-50s, with diminished savings and retirement age fast approaching. It was time to seriously attack retirement planning. So, throughout those last years of working full time, I consistently saved a minimum of $1,000 each month. My only sister left me a tidy sum when she passed, which I socked away for retirement. I was fortunate enough to meet and make friends with two financial advisors who helped me invest in annuities with lower fees that guaranteed lifetime benefits.
Laid off from my last full-time job at age 59, I quickly become tired of age discrimination and the ‘overqualified’ excuse while seeking employment, so I officially retired. As a widow, I could collect Social Security when I turned 60, so I did just that. Why wait? Besides this monthly benefit, I receive guaranteed annual funds from my annuities and income from consulting projects. Combined, these funds allow me to live my best retirement life.
Fortunately, it worked out for me. But as I mentioned earlier, I would not recommend this path to others. Morning Consult’s recent data revealed that 39% of the polled audience started saving for retirement in their 20s, a little over 25% started in their 30s, 15% in their 40s and only 6% in their 50s.
So you see, I started much later than most. It was doable because I only had to prepare for one person’s later years. I didn’t have family, student loans or other debt to worry about. My situation likely would have turned out differently if I had other major expenses to consider. I might not be living my best life now if I hadn’t shown discipline, possessed sound money management skills, and practiced consistent savings habits. Both my journeys to entrepreneurship and retirement were bumpy. Here’s a plan to help your road to retirement less so. The key: start saving early!
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