If you think a successful career always equals a successful retirement – think again!

When you think about planning for retirement, what’s the first thing you expect to do? Earn money, of course – enough of it to save some for ‘a rainy day’. You assume that the more successful you are, and the more money you earn, the more likely you are to have a good solid nest egg saved up, right? In theory, yes, but nine times out of ten, this may not be the case. 

Success at work often leaves little time for concentrating on yourself and planning for the future, so while you may have the cash to invest if you’re climbing the career ladder and seeking professional success, you might not have spent time making your money work hard and go further. We see this all the time with clients who are thriving at work but haven’t spent much time thinking about life after work and how they’ll fund their lifestyle. They know they have cash to fund their lifestyles now, but can’t quite shake off the feeling which comes every time they think about the future… Will it be enough?

If you think you might be in a similar situation, ask yourself the following questions:

• When is it that you would like to retire?  Should you finish all at once or gradually wind down?  It’s important to know what you want because, financially, it makes a difference
• What level of spending do you think you will have when you retire?  The easiest way of thinking about it is by looking at how much you spend now (you can adjust for inflation later).  There will be some basic life costs to keep you warm and fed; but then there are the kinds of things you would like to do or continue doing which mean additional expenditure
• You have spent some time accumulating assets; what is their value?  
• Do you have any equity in your workplace? How and when will this pay out?

Pretty soon, you end up with a page of information about yourself that you can now share with a professional to help you start planning for retirement.

It doesn’t matter if you’re successful at work – and which industry you work in – it’s difficult to find time to step back and think about your future. You’ve got the means, now put them into a plan to deliver your goal; a comfortable and fulfilling retirement.