Welcome to the Halloween edition of Retirement Answer Man. On this spooky episode, I regale you with 4 scary retirement stories that will haunt you. You’ll want to make sure that you don’t end up living one of these retirement nightmares. You can begin by listening to the Hot Topic segment to discover what solutions you can begin implementing if you are behind in your retirement savings. Listen to this episode now to hear 4 scary retirement stories to use as a cautionary tale for you to avoid a similar fate.

Are you one of the many that are behind in saving for retirement?

1 in 3 people has less than $5,000 saved for retirement! The ‘experts’ recommend that you have 1 million in savings by the time you reach retirement age. If you are in your 40s and 50s and you are behind in saving for retirement, then you know its too late now to really take advantage of compound interest. You may feel doomed, but there are ways that you can begin to turn your nightmare into an amazing retirement. If you are feeling a bit behind the retirement 8-ball then make sure to listen to this episode of Retirement Answer Man to hear 3 things you can begin doing right now to prepare for an awesome retirement.

What is the best investment that you can make?

Many couples get divorced in the empty nest cycle of life and even more wait until the retirement phase. Once they realize that they have 20-30 long years ahead with their spouse they head for the hills. As bad as a divorce is, it is even worse later in life. Not only is there the huge emotional toll but the older you are the bigger the financial ramifications are as well. Your earning power is quite limited and having to split your savings can bring about financial ruin. Invest in your relationship now to ensure a happy retirement is in your future.

Have you built yourself a financial cage?

Our economy is scientifically designed to suck money out of your wallet. Advertisers manipulate your emotions to get you to spend money. With the ease of Amazon Prime and Apple Pay, there’s no more distance between the thought of buying something and actually doing it. Many buy the toys to create all the fun right before retirement. You then have to end up working longer because you become a slave to your stuff. Vacation homes, outdoor kitchens, and RV’s bring about dreams of good times, but make sure you can actually afford them before you end up trapped in a scary retirement story of your own.

Natural savers are used to delaying gratification, but for how long do you delay?

Automatic savers sometimes have trouble easing themselves into retirement. When you are used to constantly saving and delaying gratification, making the transition to spending your savings can be scary. Many natural savers end up working longer because they can’t bear the thought of dipping into their hard earned savings. But then they wake up one day and realize they won’t be able to spend all of their money. It can be a challenge to find the right balance between saving and spending, but in order to rock retirement, you’ve got to learn how. Listen to all the spooky retirement stories on this special Halloween edition of Retirement Answer Man.

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE RETIREMENT ANSWER MAN HOT TOPIC SEGMENT

• [3:38] Do you have the ‘recommended’ amount saved for retirement?
• [5:51] How to turn your nightmare into an amazing retirement

PRACTICAL PLANNING SEGMENT

• [9:24] Many get divorced in the empty nest cycle of life
• [14:56] Have you built yourself a financial cage?
• [19:07] Baby boomers have student loans 
• [21:54] Vacation homes are something people buy right before retirement
• [23:59] Natural savers are used to delaying gratification

THE HAPPY LAB SEGMENT

• [26:08] Eat some Halloween candy to cheer up from those scary stories!

TODAY’S SMART SPRINT SEGMENT

• [27:07] Spread your candy eating out over the next 7 days

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

Roger’s YouTube Channel - Roger That

BOOK - Rock Retirement  by Roger Whitney

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Work with Roger

3-video Series: 5 Minute Retirement Makeover

Roger’s Retirement Learning Center

The Retirement Answer Man Facebook Page