Does Reaching Retirement Feel Like Looking Over A Cliff?

Put yourself in control of your retirement journey.

Retirement is a major life transition that can be both exciting and worrying. It’s also changing.

Instead of the age-old way of working fulltime right up to their last day, then waking up the next day to life in retirement, many people are opting for a ‘glide path’ into their golden years, gradually easing back on their hours, doing a less stressful job, or perhaps working for themselves.

For some, it could be a financial necessity to keep working. For others, it’s a lifestyle choice. But whether retirement is a cliff-edge, or something else, the emotional impact of finishing work shouldn’t be underestimated. You need to prepare yourself financially and emotionally for life after work.

“It’s very often the case that people nearing retirement or new retirees struggle with their sense of meaning and purpose once they’ve transitioned into the next phase of their lives, especially if they’ve really thrown themselves into their career,” advises Sharon Calderini of Pinnacle Wealth Management. “Added to that is the all-too-common worry about whether they’ve ‘done enough’ to support the lifestyle they’re hoping for in retirement.”

The key to helping manage this transition is to have a robust financial strategy in place; a plan based on a thorough understanding of what you want retirement to look like, and with the detailed structure for how you’re going to achieve those goals.

“That’s where our Pinnacle LifePlan comes into its own,” says Sharon. “Its forecasting technology and jargon-free format makes it easy to visualise how your future will look and how you can get there. It gives our clients confidence and makes them feel in control.”

If you get it right and plan early enough, retirement should feel like it’s your gap year all over again, rather than a future of minimal plans and hardship to keep your expenses in check.

A strong sense of purpose keeps our brains active, provides a sense of pride and a reason to get up in the morning. By building a fulfilling retirement plan that takes into account the need for solid financial foundations, purpose and social interaction, many people can still have that sense of achievement they took for granted during their working life.

So, dust off your rucksack and start planning for the longest gap year of your lifetime.

The value of an investment with St. James’s Place will be directly linked to the performance of the funds you select, and the value can therefore go down as well as up. You may get back less than you invested.

SJP Approved xx/xx/xxxx