September is a Great Time for Back-to-School Lists

Summer can also be a great time to create a back-to-retirement list too!

It’s hard to believe, but soon Labor Day will be in the books. The weather will start to turn a little cooler, college football will return, and the kids will be back in school. For me, it was always the kids going back to school that really marked the end of summer. Gone are the late bedtimes, flip-flops and lazily sitting outside listening to baseball on the transistor radio (ok, that might not be you).

If you have school-age kids, shortly after Labor Day, you will be bombarded with parent/teacher conferences, emails from the school and the dreaded lists of required back to school items.

Now some of the items on the list make sense to me. Pencils and pens and calculators all seem like they’ll get put to good use. But does your 6^th grader really need six different colored pocket folders? And not just any pocket folders, he needs the shiny ones with two pockets and a way to hold loose-leaf paper.

And whatever happened to highlighters coming in just one color? He has to have 8 different color highlighters for goodness sake. And four boxes of tissue? Really?

So all this got me thinking: did my parents go through this with me?

You see for us, going back-to-school-shopping meant buying clothes, not supplies. Two pairs of pants, three shirts and a new pair of sneakers. Maybe some new socks and underwear. And then they would send me to my first day of school in my new clothes and a box of new #2 pencils. That’s it.

So what happened? Is it a conspiracy to sell more stuff? Are the schools that strapped for cash that they can’t provide basic tools to their students (the answer is yes, but that’s another topic)? And is all of it really necessary?

But rather than complain, I decided to look at the glass as half-full and ask myself this question: shouldn’t every person have a Retirement List that they go through every year, much like a Back-To-School List? And knowing that the answer is yes, what should this Retirement List look like?

The Wealth Guardians have created this Retirement List for you to think about at least once a year.

And while the time of the year is less important, I recommend that at the same time every year you:

Review your current financial situation by assessing your income and assets versus your expenses and liabilities. Make a spreadsheet.
Determine a realistic amount to contribute regularly to your employer-sponsored qualified retirement plan, e.g., a 401(k) plan. Of course, if possible, you want to maximize allowable contributions and take advantage of the company match, if offered.
Make a real plan toward reducing your debt. Pay off the highest interest rate bills first and your large bills as soon as possible. Curb your spending somewhere – maybe your daily Dunkin’ Donuts run – and apply that to your debt. And avoid taking on any new debt that could carry over into retirement.
Consult with us about your life, health, and disability income insurance policies to determine the amount of coverage for your current and future needs.
Determine how much you can expect to receive in retirement from pension plans, veterans’ benefits, or Social Security. To get an estimate on your future Social Security benefits, visit www.socialsecurity.gov.
Make a list of which expenses are likely to decrease after you retire (clothing, commuting, etc.) and which are likely to increase (medical, travel, etc.), and then make sure you plan accordingly.
Schedule a visit with your financial planner. And before you go, make sure you’ve completed items #1 – #7 first.

So, this Labor Day, as you reflect on the summer gone by and prepare to head back into the fray, take a few minutes to think about your Retirement List. What do you need to do in order to make sure your golden years are just that – golden? And most importantly, how can you get started today? Whether you’re just starting to think about retirement or are already in the midst of planning it, be sure to use our Retirement Checklist as a guide.

And if you want even more personalized help and guidance, our Custom Retirement Paycheck Plan shows how to protect your retirement from the risks of unexpected market swings, tax changes, and health care expenses using a mathematically tested strategy to create lifetime income allowing you to stop worrying about outliving your money and get on with enjoying the rest of your life.

Let us show you in black and white a custom retirement income plan that is comprehensive, individualized and based on strategies that balance growth with downside protection. Get your Custom Retirement Paycheck Plan now!

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Give us a call at our Charlotte office at (704) 248-8549, or our Clemmons office at (336) 391-3409. Or, click here to request a no-cost, no-obligation meeting.

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