Having A Retirement Account Doesn’t Mean You Have A Retirement Plan!

I recently read that we make, on average, 612 decisions every day.  Everything from what color tie or pair of shoes to wear to who should we marry, should I buy my first house or how should I save for retirement.

Obviously, some decisions are more important than others.  Some decisions have a bigger impact on our lives in the short and long term than other decisions.  How our life journey turns out will depend upon not just a single decision but the combination of decisions we make every day, every month and every year. 

At a workshop I held last night, I used the phrase, “just because you have a retirement account doesn’t mean you have a retirement plan”.  Many folks believe that once the decision is made to open a retirement account and start funding it, their work is done.  Magically, 5, 10 or 20 years later, a large pile of money will be waiting for them to use in retirement.  I wish it were that easy.

When a plan takes off from LA to fly to London (first decision), it is off course 90% of the time.  It is the course corrections (the flight plan plus the pilot’s expertise) that will land the plan safely in New York.

If you have a retirement account or accounts but no plan then you may not make it to your destination.  If you have retirement accounts, created a plan but never use it or update it then you may not make to your destination.  If you have retirement accounts, created a plan and hired a competent pilot/guide/advisor, now you have a much better chance of getting the retirement you deserve.

So make one of those 612 decisions today to create a plan and hire a qualified retirement advisor to help you stay on course.

If you want to talk about how to stay on course to reach your retirement, please give our office a call at 215-968-1755.