Drop the flag on your life plan

My family will tell you that I probably spend too much time on Twitter.

In my defence, it is the only social media site that I regularly use, and I tend to be selective about who I follow.

Usually, those I follow on Twitter have to be fellow professionals in the Financial Planning sector or Bristol Rovers (other football teams are available) fans, “Gasheads” as we are known.

Whilst scrolling through Tweets today, I saw one that struck a chord.

It read, “ I have just realised that in 3 years I will be stopping work to retire after 19 years in my current job. I have absolutely no idea what I will be doing and I probably need to start thinking about that.”

The Tweeter certainly has a good point; they really need to think about what retirement means to them.

We have learned as Financial Planners that there is no single description of what retirement might look like. Everyone one of us is different.

Each of us will have different plans for retirement, including those who have no plans.

It might involve more travel. It might mean more time spent with the family.

Retirement might mean not stopping work entirely but doing something different, perhaps a vocational form of employment or self-employment.

For some, this phase of life might mean more time working in the community and volunteering by employing all the life skills that they have acquired to help others.

It might mean the start of their most significant life adventure. Amongst our clients, we have some cracking examples of individuals and couples who have embarked on truly life-changing experiences.

Whilst individuals will have different types of retirement, one consistent thing we witness is that having a Financial Plan is an integral part of making it a success.

At the very least, knowing that you are going to have enough money to do what you want to do will provide the confidence needed to follow through with your plans.

As one client put it so succinctly, their Financial Plan gave them “the confidence, intelligence and insight to drop the flag on our life plan.”

That is what Financial Planning is all about.