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Welcome to How to Retire on Time, a show that answers your retirement questions. Say goodbye to the oversimplified advice you've heard hundreds of times. This show is about getting into the nitty-gritty so you can make better decisions as you prepare for retirement. Text your questions to 913-363-1234 and we'll feature them on the show. Don't forget to grab a copy of the book, How to Retire on Time, or check out our resources by going to www.retireontime.com.
Welcome to How to Retire On Time, a show that answers your questions about all things retirement. My name is Mike Decker. I'm a licensed financial adviser who can even file your taxes. Now that said, please remember, this is just a show. Everything you hear should be considered informational as in not financial advice.
Mike:If you want financial advice, you can contact our team today by going to www.yourwealthanalysis.com. Joining me is David Franson, my colleague. David, thanks for being here. Hello, Mike. David's gonna read your questions, and I will do my best to answer them.
Mike:Text your questions in right now to (913) 363-1234. Again, that's (913) 363-1234. Let's begin.
David:Hey, Mike. I have been retired for a number of years now. What are some ways retirees can stay active and engaged in their communities after leaving the workforce?
Mike:Get involved with your church, your community, a charity locally, or some cause that gets you out of bed. So the general rule of thumb is you need to create a lifestyle that isn't just you and your spouse, if you're married, or isn't just you and a couple of friends. You've got different groups. So just consider for a moment your work life. In your work life, you are being stimulated intellectually.
Mike:Your spouse may not give you that same intellectual stimulation. Your friend group may not give you that same intellectual stimulation. My friends don't really care to talk about macroeconomics. My wife, she could not care less. Everyone here likes talking about macroeconomics.
Mike:So you have to understand that when you retire, you're going to be giving up some different parts of your life that need to be filled. That void is gonna need to be filled. So I like to recommend that you have a group of friends or a group of some sort of tribe that is focused on the physical part of your life, whether it's a pickleball club or a tennis club, a cycling club, a pilates club, I don't care who, but you've got a group of friends that are gonna stay active. And that may be your spouse, that may not be your spouse, but you've got to have an active part of your life. Then you need to have a religious part of your life.
Mike:Now I'm not saying everyone needs to go to church, though I personally recommend it. Mhmm. But you want to have some sort of moral compass or guide or way to connect with people on some sort of, at the very least, a philosophical level, because that's causing you to critically think. Maybe you have a group of friends that are more intellectual in other ways. Maybe you have a book club.
Mike:We should start a book club.
David:Oh, yeah. What would be the book?
Mike:I don't know. It would be either one of the Greek tragedies or Les Miserables. Oh. But those are kind of deep reads. Yeah.
Mike:So we would be in different book clubs. Yeah. Yeah. We would. Anyway, but a book club, so you're having conversations.
Mike:There needs to be a work replacement as well. So it is very important to have a party require you or depend on you getting out of bed in the morning. Not every day, maybe they're different seasons. Yes. There's a client that runs a soup kitchen on Fridays, and most of the people that are there helping out are retired, because it it allows you to serve people.
Mike:And my goodness, if you wanna be fulfilled, serve. Don't be selfish. Don't self indulge. And I'm sorry. I'm calling all of the the silent generation and the baby boomers out for just a You've lived one of the most incredible lives possible.
Mike:I mean, when you were born, and then living through the seventies, an incredible time of growth and exploration and music. Let's talk about the music in the seventies.
David:I mean,
Mike:does it get much better than that? And then as you're entering into your careers, we have this incredible wave of technology in the eighties and the nineties that just accelerate your careers, and you've received an overabundance at the right time of wealth accumulation. And then you've you're finishing your career from 2000 to 2020, you've had an incredible life, but a lot of it was focused on self indulgence. If you maintain self indulgence in retirement, there's a good chance that you may end up sad, lonely, and depressed. It's just a word of warning.
Mike:You've got to reinvent yourself, but there's a reason why the 55 plus today are the highest rate of divorce. It's because of the focus of self indulgence. It's about me living my best life, and you spouse, even though we raised a family together, are getting in the way. I'm gonna indulge in myself. That kind of behavior ruins retirements.
Mike:So be very careful of just planning your retirement around your bucket list and how you're gonna live your best life. Balance it by giving. Maybe you're a tutor at the local school. Maybe you work with the Red Cross. Maybe you're part time.
Mike:Once a year, you go on a trip with one of these dentists beyond borders or whatever it is.
David:Yeah. Yeah. Doctors Without Borders. Doctors Without Borders. But, yeah, doctors, physicians, and dentists go on these trips to
Mike:I've got an uncle that was a dentist, and he's just always going all over the world doing dental work for free. Yeah. That's service. Yeah.
David:If you wanna really have meaning in life, you serve people. Little plug for a website and and slash app, just serve.org?
Mike:Yeah. If you don't know where to serve, that's a great place
David:to there. Find it.
Mike:So make sure there's a service element associated with. You've been blessed. If you can afford to retire, you've been blessed. Pay it forward. Humans are not meant to be alone, so be very cautious.
Mike:If you're not retired yet, take time. Go on a long walk or explore things, but don't just end up in retirement and then say, okay. I'll figure it out as I go. Deliberately reengineer or redesign what your life is going to look like, and then start to experiment a little bit. Start to say, okay.
Mike:I'm not retired yet, but maybe this week, I'm gonna take a week off and try this one thing out, or I'm gonna start donating my time in this way on this time of the week or whatever it is. Do a little toe dip, but figure out how you're gonna serve. I cannot say that emphatically enough. It's one of the most missed parts of any retirement plan. I think many times we, as financial advisers, do a disservice, saying, well, you can spend this much money and live a luxurious life and have a great time, and then forget to say, but don't just focus on yourself.
Mike:The service could be with your kids. It could be with your grandkids. Lot of ways to serve. There's a lot of need in this world. And it's so sad because we've advanced so much as a society.
Mike:We have so much technology. We have an abundance, and yet it doesn't matter how much money you have. We're full of pain. We have all sorts of issues. So be mindful of that.
Mike:Good. Yeah. Have a physical fitness group. Have an intellectual philosophical group that's keeping you engaged. Have a way to serve, and have fun.
Mike:That's the recipe. Love it. That's all the time we've got for the show today. If you enjoyed the show, consider subscribing to it wherever you get your podcasts. Just search for how to retire on time.
Mike:Discover if your portfolio is built to weather flat market cycles or if you're missing tax minimization opportunities that you may not even know exist. Explore strategies that may be able to help you lower your overall risk while potentially increasing your overall growth and lifestyle flexibility. This is not your ordinary financial analysis. Learn more about Your Wealth Analysis and what it could do for you regardless of your age, asset, or target retirement date, go to www.yourwealthanalysis.com today to learn more and get started.