How Retirement Lifestyle Coaching Helps You Achieve the Retirement Lifestyle of Your Dreams

When is the right time for me to retire?

This is a question with many individual facets, but the average age for people retiring today is 62. You qualify for Medicare at 65. You can start collecting Social Security, without penalty, at 66. But, if you wait to collect Social Security until 70, you can benefit by receiving the highest level due to you.

But it’s important to remember—all these benchmarks are just an average.

If you want my advice, I believe it’s key to retire when you want to, rather than when you must.

Instead of letting retirement happen to you, like a rogue wave sweeping you off your feet, I advise my clients to anticipate and surf the waves. While you may not be able to control the ocean, you can learn to read the currents and adjust your sails accordingly. After all, wouldn’t you prefer your retirement to begin on your terms?

Speaking of, let’s tackle that one next.

How can I retire on my terms?

Before you take a trip, you take care to plan your departure. It’s the same mindset when you’re contemplating your retirement.

Let’s get down to brass tacks.

Here are my top tips to start your retirement off on the right track:

• Amass all the money you can into your 401k plan.
• Be kind to your work family by imparting your professional wisdom. Don’t be shy, share your knowledge. It’s an important part of your legacy.
• Decide if you’re interested in offering your services back to your company in a professional capacity, post-retirement, as a consultant.

Most importantly, really sit down and imagine how you want your life to look and feel in retirement. Then, create a plan that addresses your goals and needs.

Some questions to ask yourself to help with this process include:

• How do I plan to finance my new life?
• Who will I be sharing my retirement life with?
• Where do I want to live? Or do I want to travel?

You should also ask: What shape is my health in and how can I improve it or keep it at an optimal level? Retirement only feels as good as you feel, and investing in your health and well-being is never wasted energy.

Need guidance to create your retirement on your terms? Retirement Lifestyle Coaching is here to offer you the customized support you need.

Should my partner and I retire at the same time?

This is a great question, and one that depends on a myriad of personal factors. The answer really hinges on the ages of you and your partner.

Some questions to help you parse out this issue include—

• How close are you both to qualifying for Medicare and Social Security?
• How well have you planned for your retirement years in terms of funds, location, and your joint physical health?
• What will the two of you do with your time together or apart?

Clearly, this question is complex. It’s best effectively addressed and answered with the help of a qualified third party.

Retirement Lifestyle Coaching can help skillfully facilitate these discussions, to ensure no stone is left unturned and you’re both on the same page with your retirement goals, wants, and needs.

Should we consider downsizing and relocating when we retire?

This question inevitably pops up when you start to really look at your personal finances and budgeting for your new life.

Just because retirement is a major life transition doesn’t mean that the day you retire your life will suddenly transform into an endless parade of sunny beaches and umbrella drinks.

Your kids still need you to help with your grandchildren, your doctors’ offices are in the same place, and your normal life keeps marching on.

The best advice? Don’t expect everything in your life to suddenly change just because you’ve retired. Real life isn’t like the movies.

It’s important to focus on making changes that will benefit your standard of living and make you feel happy and fulfilled with where and how you live. Make choices from a place of love instead of fear and spend time considering what is truly best for you and those you love.

How do I adjust to no longer having a steady income from my career?

You’ve gotten used to a certain cash flow and standard of living. And that’s fine. But, when it comes to retirement, you may feel the cold breath of fear whispering in your ear that you’ll be lost without the comfort and certainty of those regular paychecks in your bank account.

Some folks even avoid retiring when the time is right, because they’re so afraid of facing this unknown.

In my opinion, it’s one of the biggest mistakes I see folks make, and one I try to steer my clients away from making whenever I can.

Because having a successful retirement is all about exercising the control you have and learning to accept that there will always be factors that aren’t fully in your hands.

What you don’t want is to put off planning for your transition into retirement until the choice to retire is made for you. If that happens, you’ll suddenly need to adjust to your change of income, rather than carefully planning for this event.

Planning for retirement is a vital component of ensuring this natural life transition is a smooth and happy one.

Know what you need to live on in retirement, and create a solid, realistic plan for how you intend to fund the retirement lifestyle you desire.

Some tips:

• Create a monthly budget so you know what you’ll need to live on.
• Decide if you want to continue to work in some capacity, once you retire.
• Ponder where you want to live, if you plan to travel, and how you’re willing to modify your existing lifestyle to accommodate your retirement goals and needs.

Because it’s not rocket science, my friend. But retiring successfully does take forethought and careful planning if you want to do it right.

If you need people in your corner who are experts at ensuring you achieve all your retirement lifestyle goals, Retirement Lifestyle Coaching is here for you. It’s our honor to help hardworking folks like you to realize the retirement lifestyle you deserve, without all the stress and worry.

When you’re facing down the reality of your retirement, it’s helpful to have someone in your corner who can help you effectively map out your steps to the retirement lifestyle you want. Bob and his team are highly skilled at helping you focus on the vital components that add up to your successful, fulfilling retirement lifestyle.

We can help you get clear on your personal answers to common retirement questions like:

• How to successfully shift into your retirement lifestyle.
• How to navigate retirement both with and without your life partner by your side.
• How to get back into the workforce at retirement age.
• How to address and overcome the common physical, mental, and emotional stumbling blocks people face when they retire.

RLC can help address these and all your burning retirement questions. When you work with us, we’re completely focused on helping you achieve a retirement lifestyle that’s perfectly suited to you.