Thought Leaders Share Their Perspectives On Preparing For Retirement

In Partnership with Ascend Agency

Thinking about retirement can be a scary proposition for many people. After all, it means that you’ll no longer be working and have to live off of whatever savings or pension payments you manage to accumulate over the course of your career.

In other words, planning for retirement is something that requires a lot of foresight and attention to detail. It’s not as simple as just saving money—you need to account for things like taxes, inflation, and market fluctuations when determining how much you’ll need to retire comfortably. 

If this sounds complicated to you, then read on for some helpful tips and tricks on how you can plan for retirement successfully!

Research Your Investment Options

There are many different investment types that you can choose for your retirement funds. While each has its own pros and cons, one of the most important considerations when choosing an investment type is how much it will be worth when you’re ready to retire. 

“One of the biggest mistakes people make when preparing for retirement is not doing enough research on their investment options,” says Michael Baghoomian, CEO of Muscle MX. “When it comes to investing for retirement, there are a lot of different options and strategies available. You need to take the time to learn about all of your options and figure out which ones are right for you.”

The general rule of thumb is that you’ll need around 80% of your current salary in order to retire comfortably. In other words, if you make $100,000 a year currently, you’ll need $80,000 a year to live off of in retirement. 

While there are many different factors that go into calculating this number, one thing that is certain is that you can’t simply save $100,000 in a bank account and expect to live off of that in retirement. 

You need to account for the fact that your money will lose value due to inflation—the amount of goods and services that $100,000 can buy will decrease over time due to inflation. In other words, you’ll need to save more money in order to account for the fact that it will buy less.

Track Your Spending and Investments Regularly

It may seem tedious to track your spending and savings every single month, but it’s an important part of the retirement planning process. 

According to Datha Santomieri, Co-Founder and Vice-President of Steadily Landlord Insurance, “One of the best things you can do to prepare for retirement is to track your spending and investments regularly. This will help you see where your money is going and make adjustments as needed.”

In fact, many financial advisors agree that you should be keeping a budget and tracking your spending from month to month in order to get a better idea of how much money you’re bringing in and how much you’re spending on a regular basis. 

You can use different apps and websites to do this, or you can simply use pen and paper—it doesn’t really matter as long as you’re tracking your spending and savings amount. You can use the amount you save for calculating how much you’ll need to retire comfortably.

“Retirement planning is not a one-time event,” says Kirin Sinha, CEO of Illumix. “You should review your retirement plan at least once a year, or whenever there’s a major life event, like having a baby, getting married, or changing jobs.”

Don’t Wait until the Last Minute to Decide on Your Portfolio

One of the biggest mistakes that people make when planning for retirement is waiting until the last minute to decide on a portfolio. Whether you decide to invest in stocks, bonds, or some other type of investment, it’s important to decide on a portfolio as soon as you start planning for retirement.

“I tell my clients all the time, do not wait until the last minute to decide on your portfolio,” says Jae Pak, Founder of Jae Pak MD Medical. “Once you retire, you will not have the same income coming in every month, so you need to make sure that your portfolio is able to sustain you throughout retirement.”

In fact, you should begin researching and studying different investment types as soon as you decide to start saving for retirement. This is because it will take some time for you to learn about different investment types and how they work. Once you’ve decided on a portfolio, it’s important to stick with it and not make any drastic changes.

Cesar Cruz, Co-Founder of Sebastian Cruz Couture adds, “One mistake I see a lot of people make is that they will retire and then want to change their portfolio. This can be a recipe for disaster because you don’t know how the new investments will perform.”

So, if you want to be prepared for retirement, start researching your options now and create a solid plan that you can stick with. And, if you need help, don’t hesitate to reach out to a financial advisor who can help you create a retirement plan that is right for you.

Estimate How Much You’ll Need in Order to Retire Comfortably

While it’s good to track your spending and savings, you also need to take into account one important factor: inflation. After all, if you save $100,000 today, it will be worth less money tomorrow due to inflation. 

Therefore, you’ll need to account for this when determining how much you’ll need to retire comfortably. If you’ve been keeping track of your spending and savings, you can use this information to estimate how much you’ll need to save for retirement in order to live comfortably.

“Inflation is a growing problem for retirees. One way to help offset the effects of inflation is to plan to retire with a nest egg that will last as long as you need it,” says Maegan Griffin, Founder, CEO and Nurse Practitioner at Skin Pharm. “To do this, you’ll need to estimate how much you’ll need to cover your basic expenses throughout retirement.”

There are many different online calculators and tools that you can use to calculate how much you’ll need to save for retirement.

“Calculating your retirement needs is not an exact science, but there are a few methods that can help you get a general idea,” says Karim Hachem, VP of eCommerce at Maxine of Hollywood. “One common method is the ‘4% rule.’ This rule of thumb suggests that you’ll need to have enough saved so that you can withdraw 4% of your nest egg each year and have it last for 25 years.”

Juan Pablo Cappello, Co-Founder and CEO of Nue Life adds, “Let’s say you have a goal of retiring with $1 million. Using the 4% rule, you would need to withdraw $40,000 the first year of retirement. Of course, this is just a general guideline, and your actual needs may be more or less depending on your individual circumstances.”

Set up a Tax-Advantaged Savings Account

While it’s important to save for retirement as early in your career as possible, you also need to make sure that you’re taking advantage of any tax-advantaged savings accounts that your employer offers. 

“Many employers offer a 401(k) or 403(b) plan that allows employees to contribute money that will be deducted from their paychecks before taxes are taken out,” says Jesse DeBear, Fractional CMO of Renew Anchored Dentures “This means that your contributions will save you money on taxes, which is always a good thing!”

In order to take advantage of these types of savings accounts, you’ll have to defer taking the money out until you’re retired. This means that you’ll need to be disciplined and patient in order to take advantage of these benefits!

Decide How You’ll Pay For Your Desired Lifestyle

One of the biggest mistakes that many people make when saving for retirement is trying to save as much as possible. While it is important to save money, it’s also important to live within your means while doing so. 

In other words, you need to decide how much you’ll need to save in order to retire comfortably and then live below your means while saving for retirement. 

For example, if you need $10,000 a month to live comfortably in retirement, it won’t make sense to try and save $15,000 a month—as you’ll be living well below your means. Instead, you should save as much as necessary to ensure that your savings last throughout your retirement.

Dr. Michael Green, Chief Medical Officer of Winona says, “Don’t overexert yourself when saving for retirement. You should save enough to cover your desired lifestyle, but not so much that you’re depriving yourself of enjoyment in the present.”

Summing Up

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer to the question of how to best prepare for retirement. However, there are some key things to keep in mind that can help you ensure a comfortable and secure retirement.

First, start saving early and often. The sooner you start saving, the more time your money has to grow. And the more you can save, the more financial security you’ll have in retirement.

Second, make sure you’re diversified. Diversification is key to minimizing risk and maximizing returns. So make sure your retirement savings are spread out across a variety of assets, including stocks, bonds, and cash.

Finally, don’t forget to factor in inflation. Over time, prices will go up, so your retirement savings will need to grow at a rate that outpaces inflation.