Some people worry that when saving for retirement, they must give up everything they enjoy. While there needs to be a balance between spending and saving, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy life.
Look at Your Current Situation and Set Goals
You should start by reviewing how you live and how you save. Make a list of questions about your lifestyle to assess what is most important to you: Am I happy with my lifestyle? Are there things I want to pursue? Do I have enough money to support my lifestyle and the things I want to pursue?
Prioritize your responses by order of importance, so that you can budget for the things you really want to do. Next, you will want to make a list of how you are managing your finances and savings: Am I able to cover my bills? How much am I saving for retirement? Am I saving enough for retirement? How much disposable income do I have every month?
Once you have answered these questions, it is time to look at your responses to figure out how you can accomplish both. You’ll want to develop or revise both lifestyle and
retirement goals being as realistic as possible with your current financial situation.
Make a Plan
Now you need to figure out if you can make it all work. As part of your budget, add both your lifestyle goals and your retirement goals with specific dollar amounts.
If you can’t meet all your goals within your budget, you will have to make decisions about what is most important.
Also assess your job. Are you making enough money for the type of job you have? Are you happy with your job? Changing jobs takes time and energy, but you need to decide if it is an option if you need more disposable income.
Review and Reassess
You will want to review your goals and budget on a regular basis to determine if you need to adjust, especially if you are having trouble accomplishing your goals within your budget. Also, as time goes by, you will find that your goals will change and you need to adjust your plan as well.
Please call if you’d like to discuss this in more detail.
