How to Plan for the Perfect Retirement

Discover the many aspects of retirement planning that you’ll need to consider when working toward financial security for your later years. Explore the differences between the go-go, slow-go, and no-go years of retirement, and why your plan must address the specific needs of each period. And when considering financial products, learn to differentiate between a salesperson and a true advisor.

You might have heard some “rules of thumb” about financing your retirement, and they might point you in the right direction. But in this episode, learn why no generality, statistical average, or one-size-fits-all answer will work for you. Instead, learn how to accurately estimate how much money you will need by creating a series of personalized expense, income, and withdrawal timelines.

We all have one important thing in common about our retirement: We do not want to run out of money! Examine the five major risk categories every retiree will face and learn the key aspects of developing a responsive and resilient financial plan to address these risks in retirement. Then you’ll be in solid shape to weather any storms that might come along.

Many of us resist the idea of creating a budget, but having a handle on your spending is the starting point to financial success. Compare and contrast two different ways to create a personalized spending plan. You’ll also learn how to make some crucial planning decisions, including whether to pay down debt first or boost savings and whether to rent or buy a home.

If you’re a mid-career parent, you’ll have some decisions to make when funding your child’s college versus funding retirement accounts for yourself. You’ll also want to make sure you’re using your company’s benefits to your best advantage. In this episode, you’ll learn how to address those issues, plus why tax-deductible contributions to a retirement plan might not be the boon you think it is.

Where should you put your money when saving for retirement? That feels like the million-dollar question, and the sheer amount of information out there is overwhelming. Understand why discipline, not superior skill, will be your key to success as you learn how stocks, bonds, and mutual funds work, and the differences between active and passive investing.

Discover the crucial actions and decisions you’ll face in the five years immediately prior to your retirement. You’ll learn about the importance of building up cash reserves; how and why to simplify your financial life; when to begin taking Social Security; whether or not to downsize your home; and, if you have a pension, whether to take that payout as a lump sum or as an annuity payout.

Look into four main strategies for withdrawal. For example, what is the income-only approach to retirement savings and is it right for you? Dig deep into annuities as a vehicle for your retirement and learn why this sometimes-controversial product is neither all good nor all bad. You’ll learn about the other three main types of annuities as well: income, deferred-income, and variable.

Learn about the costs and availability of healthcare coverage, the pros and cons of two spouses retiring at the same time, when to start taking Social Security payments, and rules related to required minimum distributions from your retirement accounts—all of which will figure into the many financial decisions you’ll make in the earliest years of retirement.

Most of us consider our trust, power of attorney, and healthcare directive as among our most important estate-planning documents. But in this episode, you’ll see why these are equally crucial: the titling of your accounts and property, and setting up beneficiary designations on your retirement accounts, life insurance, and investment accounts.

Don’t make your crucial decisions about Social Security, health insurance, or your tax strategy based on outdated information or what anyone else did. In this episode, you’ll learn about the pros and cons of all your decision options. The reward for getting these decisions right can be worth thousands, or even hundreds of thousands, of dollars.

Creating a secure retirement plan that meets all your needs is complex, with lots of integrated moving parts. Small decisions you make now can have major consequences for your financial security later on. Explore 10 questions that can help point you to a plan for your perfect retirement.