Revisiting Your Plan for the Future
Imagine you have planned a wonderful vacation for your family to enjoy a cruise of the Greek Islands in December, 2024. Yes, it is more than a year from now, but you wanted to maximize your savings on the trip and decided to book early. Also, you know that life is going to be very busy for you and the trip will be a wonderful reward for your family.
You place the plan in a folder at your office and remind yourself to review it prior to the trip. Approximately 3 days before you board your flight you review the itinerary and realize you haven’t performed all the necessary steps for an international trip. You panic and begin to hyperfocus on the requirements for travel so that your family may leave on time.
What could you have done to make this experience more pleasurable? Of course, you could have established some predetermined dates to review the travel plans and process the necessary paperwork for international travel in a timely manner. The same process should be implemented with your life plan. Too many of us spend more time on a vacation plan than a retirement plan. Life is meant to be lived and lived abundantly. However, confidence is gained only through purposeful planning and execution of the intended plan.
You have been saving for your future for many years. Have you rebalanced your portfolio in a consistent manner based on time or asset allocation? Have you researched the investments you currently possess within the account to determine if changes such as buying or selling current and potential positions? How do you determine your buy or sell signals? Do you have the account titled correctly to avoid probate? Are beneficiaries to your IRA current?
There are many considerations you face as you plan for your future. It is a daunting task for some since you only retire the first time once. Don’t allow your future retirement plans to cause you stress and concern. Create a plan that allows you to maintain control of the future and wield its benefits in your favor. Research in portfolio positions should be performed in a timely manner that allows you to control the risk level you are willing to accept.
Life has a way of preoccupying our minds. Work, family, and charitable matters take precedence in our mental energy and other matters take a secondary role in the day. It is common that retirement accounts become orphaned at previous employers and the platforms hosting the accounts have changed. This causes a simple task to become a more arduous one. Phone calls, emails, proof of identity and other measures must be taken to reestablish your access to your funds. These measures are necessary to protect your interest as an accountholder but still can try the patience of a person.
Changes are often performed to the available funds on your employer’s retirement platform. Fund companies close and open funds all the time. If a particular fund you invested in is being closed, the sponsor company may arbitrarily move any future investments to another selected fund of its choosing. Typically, the funds are cash or cash-type funds that are considered less risk than other options.
Has your lifestyle created more security for you? If this is the case, perhaps you should review your risk tolerance originally accepted on your investment platform? As you approach retirement age, are you considering a change in your risk tolerance? These are important questions one must satisfy as you plan to initiate the distribution phase and close out the accumulation phase for retirement.
Don’t allow life to derail your best plans. Seek out a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional to assist you with these challenging questions and build a plan that gives you confidence for your future. Another of my favorite quotes on self-confidence is “Not everyone has to like you, support you, or believe in you. You need validation from one person in this world: yourself.” See you on the Pickleball court!
Registered Principal Securities offered through Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., a Broker/Dealer, Member FINRA/SIPC. Jimmy J. Williams is an Investment Advisor Representative of Compass Capital Management, LLC, a Registered Investment Advisor. Cambridge and Compass Capital Management, LLC are not affiliated. 321 S. 3rd, Ste. 4, McAlester, OK 74501. Cambridge does not offer legal and tax advice. Please consult your legal and tax advisor for specific estate and income tax planning strategies.
The information in this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be tax advice.
Past performance is no guarantee of future results in any investment. Investing involves risk including the loss of principal.