Column 1 - Why Plan for Retirement
Column 2 - Basic Principles of Saving and Investing
Column 3 - Four Basic Concepts of Saving and Investing
Column 4 - The Loss Of Work In Retirement
Column 5 - Finding a Financial Planner
Column 6 -How Much Will You Need and Where Will It Come From?
Column 7 - The Magic of Compounding
Column 8 - How Much Can Fees and Expenses Hurt Your Investments?
Column 9 - Margaret's Alone Now.

Getting Ready For Retirement – Web Column #1
Why Plan For Retirement

RETIREMENT. Say it aloud. What are your reactions to that word? What does it mean? Have you thought about it? Have you planned for it? If you have, you are in the minority. Few people take enough time to stop and really think and plan for this stage of their life. Few think about what retirement actually is and what it can mean for them, their mate and their families. Far too many spend more time picking out a new TV set or planning for a two-week vacation than in planning for their retirement.

There is nothing strange or difficult about planning. It has been a part of our routine for years. We plan on a long-term basis: our education, our careers, our marriage, and our children. We plan on a short-term basis: what to wear, what to eat, where to vacation. Most of us plan for tomorrow, next week, next month, next year. Why not plan for retirement?

Many people see lazy days as an ideal retirement. After a life of sometimes overwhelming responsibility on the job and at home, they want to retire to relaxation. They feel that they have earned it. Still others are apprehensive. For 40 or more years, their lives have been tied to breadwinning, managing a household and raising children. Because society expects us to produce, we frown on non-working people and reward those who are more industrious. It’s not surprising that many feel guilty and unworthy when they stop going to work.

When you retire, you’ll have plenty of company. For the first time in our history, there are more Americans than there are teenagers. Every day, about 5,200 Americans become 65 years old, and approximately 3,600 people over 65 die---a net increase of almost 600,000 older people every year.

Almost two-thirds of all working people retire before age 65. The average age for retirement today is 61 years. Partly because we’re living longer, the elderly population increased to more than 35 million or 13 percent of our population by the year 2000, and this will increase to 64 million or 21 percent by 2030.

In 1900, life expectancy for men was 46.3 years compared to 48.3 for women. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states that it is now 74 years for men and almost 80 for women. Men and women, who reach 65, now live, on average, to 81 and 84 respectively. Older women now outnumber men three to two. There are 149 older women for every 100 older men and this ratio is increasing.

How long will you be retired? What many of us don’t realize is that retirement can last as long as 20 to 25 years or more. For example, a 65-year old man can expect to live an average of another 15 years (to age 80).

A 65-year old woman has an average life expectancy of another 19 years (to age 84).

Planning for retirement means planning for age 85 as well as for age 65. It’s important to keep this in mind when you’re thinking about financing, housing arrangements, long-term care and the other key issues of retirement. Professor Jeanne Hogarth, from the Department of Consumer Economics and Housing at Cornell University states, "You want to plan for at least enough retirement income to keep you going through your mid to late 80’s."

When should you start your planning? Prof. Hogarth states "The most successful plans start early because you can clearly take advantage of time in your planning." Helen Saunders, a Certified Financial Planner with the First Albany Corporation, adds, "I just think it’s the basic part of planning. It should begin as soon as possible. It’s never to early and in my opinion, never too late."

Ideally, planning for retirement should start as soon as you begin working. If not, then absolutely not later than your early to mid-forties. While it’s never too late, just remember that the later your start, the shorter the amount of time you’ll have to make adequate plans. The one inflexible fact about retirement planning is that there is no second chance

Return to Top.

 Getting Ready For Retirement - Web Column

  Getting Ready for Retirement – Web Column #3

       Four Basic Concepts of Saving and Investing

In column #2 we looked at the five basic principles of saving and investing.  As you begin to develop your plan and strategy for building your nest egg, you should also be aware of four basic concepts.  Let's take a look at four of them.

Concept #1:  Diversification.  The experts say that investors should set targets on how they want to divide their portfolio among stocks, bonds and short-term investment vehicles.  Look at your present situation; your time horizon, your tolerance for risk and put together a well balanced diversified portfolio which includes all of these vehicles.

No one person can accurately predict all of the investment "winners."  No one single investment performs well all the time.  And, because some parts of the market will "zig" while other parts will "zag", you will need to diversify your investments.  Diversification is a time tested principle of investing that helps to moderate risk.

Many financial planners say that the easiest way to diversity your investments is through mutual funds.   In one portfolio, you can achieve a level of diversification that perhaps you could never achieve in individual securities.  Many savers and investors agree.  One out of every four households now invests in mutual funds.

Concept #2:   The Relationship between risk and return.   More than one expert has stated that there is no free lunch.  Higher returns on your investments come with higher risks.  But some individuals are very uncomfortable with risk.  They remember the drop in the market back in 1987 (-36%), 1990 (-21%), or 2000 – 2002 (?%).

Even though risk cannot be completely eliminated, a portfolio of investments goes a long way toward reducing the overall risk of investing.  With a diversified portfolio, you balance the relationship between risks and rewards to best match your investment style and your tolerance for risk.

Why take on any risk at all?  In some cases, a low risk investment may be appropriate.  But, in others, when you need higher returns, when your want to build your retirement nest egg, you might consider higher risk investments in order to help you avoid one of the biggest risks---that you won't have enough money for your financial goals. 

Concept #3:  Compounding.  As the years go by, any money that you invest will earn interest and dividends.  Those earnings, in turn, generate additional earnings.  This process  is called compounding.  And, interest that compounds on a long-term basis is the best 

When you give your retirement savings as much time as possible to grown, you give compounding more time to work.  The sooner you start saving and investing, the greater your benefits will be through the power of compounding

Let's look at one scenario.  Ted and Ellen James started saving and investing for their retirement when they were both 35 years old.  In the first year, they put $4,000 into their program.  Thereafter, they increased their annual savings along with a three percent inflation rate.  They were able to earn 8 percent a year from their investments.

At age 65, they had $611,000 in their retirement nest egg.  A commitment to a long-term savings program, the power of compounding, and good investment returns helped them along.  Over the 30 years they saved $190,000, and that is equal to 31 percent of their $611,000 nest egg.

Concept #4:   The effects of inflation.  We all know that inflation is a part of our lives.  Prices for the things we buy rise a little or a lot, but they rarely go down.

Since 1965, the annual rate of inflation has averaged around 6 percent.  If we go back to the turn of the century, the rate has averaged around 3 percent.  Some individuals feel that a 3 percent rate of inflation is "mild" inflation.  How "mild" is 3 percent?  A 3 percent rate of inflation each year will cut the purchasing power of your income by one-third in just 11 years.  A yearly inflation rate of 4 percent means that the cost of living will double in 18 years. 

You will not be able to obtain all of the information that you will need to know about saving and investing in just one or two columns. We suggest that you continue with your financial education for retirement.  Speak with a qualified investment professional.  Gain knowledge and understanding about the importance of planning, saving and investing.  It's your responsibility. 

 Return to Top

   Getting Ready for Retirement – Web Column #4

       The Loss Of Work In Retirement

Jim is scheduled to retire in six months.  He is the sales manager for a plastics firm.  He describes himself as "a workaholic."  He just can't seem to nor does he really want to get away from his work. 

He likes being in the office and on the road talking business, taking orders.  At home, at night, he's usually on the computer, on the phone talking to someone about a new product, an order, a shipment.  He's has been into "plastic" for over forty years.

Jim is not looking forward to retirement when he reaches 70 in six months.  He'd really like to keep working but, even though the law says that he can stay on the job, he keeps getting "unofficial" signals that it's time for him to move into the next stage of his life.  Jim says that when he thinks about retirement he gets depressed.  He has no hobbies and he does not belong to any organizations.

Hilda, his wife, is tired of hearing about Jim's upcoming "boring" retirement.  In fact, when she thinks about his retirement, she gets depressed.  In fact, she's threatening to keep on working when Jim' retires so she won't have to put up with "this stuff" 24 hours a day.

An exaggerated situation?  No.  Jim is like a lot of people who like to work.   Whether it comes at a planned moment or whether you get the news in a quick meeting on a Friday afternoon, that time will come.  For some, they will happily express, "I won't ever have to work again." For those individuals, a pardon from the governor has arrived.

For others, they will unhappily express, "I won't ever have to work again."  For those individuals, the door to the jail cell is closing.

In the March-April, 1988 issue of the Harvard Business Review, Thomas H. Fitzgerald, the director of organizational planning and development at General Motors, describes his feelings in his article "The Loss of Work: Notes From Retirement."

His retirement was quick.  "The news came suddenly one afternoon."  "It was like a traffic accident, I've come to think:  one minute you're driving along and the next you're looking up from the pavement.  One day I had a wide office, a big desk and management-level chair, my own secretary, even a walnut credenza to hide junk in.  The next day I was sitting home in a sweater and corduroys watching the snow fall outside."

In the next couple of months Tom experienced what many retirees go through.  He didn't hear from the people he worked with, laughed with, argued with, traveled with, had lunch with.  He thought that was odd until he realized,  "I had done exactly the same to those who had retired before me."   Tom felt "curiously disabled." 

Tom, like Jim, was a workaholic.  "For years, work ate up the center of my life, leaving only the crusts.  In spite of this--perhaps because of it--I bound myself even tighter to the organization."

Tom discovered the paradox of retirement:  "the more work taxed you, the more you'll miss it."

The question he faced, and the one that Jim and perhaps you will have to face is this: "Do we simply continue as a `former manager' or do we decide to go on and become something else?"

I could give you a lot of questions to answer and maybe some of the answers or point you in the right direction.  That might be easy but maybe not exactly the right thing to do.  Each of us will arrive at that point in our lives from a different direction, with a different frame of mind, a different reference point and each of us, I think, should really discover those questions and answers on our own. 

However, I will make one suggestion.  Don't put off thinking about retirement until that "quick meeting" on a Friday afternoon or until you "unofficially" discover that it's time to move into the next stage of your life. 

Tom Fitzgerald describes this a lot better than I could.  "Imagine this time as one of life's border crossings, one that brings you to a small clearing--an open space--between arrival and departure.  It is a place for quiet conversation with a circle of attentive listeners.  Is it too late to reawaken desire after it has been numbed?  Is there still opportunity--and courage--to pursue a calling, a project of one's own?"  

What will Jim be doing this fall?  Who knows?  Jim is like a lot of other individuals approaching retirement who see the glass as either being "half empty" or "half full."  Maybe I should put him in touch with Tom Fitzgerald.

It doesn't have to be a "boring" retirement.

Return to Top

  Getting Ready For Retirement Web Column #5 
 Finding A Financial Planner

I was just about ready to sit down for supper.  The story on page 1 of the Journal informs me about a big meeting in Washington with George, Colin and Dick.  On TV, Tom Brokaw is talking about another bad day on Wall Street.  Suddenly, the phone rang.

"Hello," I answered.   "Hi Bob, this is Charley Adams, with First Federal Financing Federation in Gotham City.  Bob, I'm calling just a few selected, sophisticated investors, like yourself, so that you can take advantage of the most exciting new stock offering we've ever had...."

Does this sound familiar?   Welcome to the exciting and continuing era of telemarketing.  Maybe I'm just lucky but I've had 4 of these calls in the last 6 months.  I guess this is just another example of the huge interest that a great number of folks have in helping us with our financial affairs.   Today, you can get a lot of financial planning and investing advice and a lot of it is free.  But, is this advice, information that should guide you on how you should be investing for your future....your retirement?

Will you be able to retire when the time comes?  How much income will you need?  To what extent can you rely on Social Security and your pension?  How long should you plan on your nest egg lasting?  What affect will inflation have on your purchasing power?  What steps should you be taking right now to enjoy retirement?

 Sometimes, making your plans is like trying to hit a moving target blindfolded.  Where can you find a trusted professional that can help you?  A good number of individuals are turning to financial planners for assistance.  However, there are planners and there are planners. How do you identify a "good" planner as opposed to a planner who may just want to sell you a product that will supply him/her with a high commission and you with a questionable investment?  There are some guidelines that can help you with your search.

Option #1 - There are some colleges and universities, which offer courses and degrees that deal with financial planning.

There are also individuals who have certain credentials and experience and designated titles. 

Option #2 -  A PERSONAL FINANCIAL SPECIALIST is an individual who is designated by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.  According to the Institute, this designation is given to Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) who have three years of personal financial planning experience.  They also have to pass a comprehensive exam.

Option #3 -  A CHARTERED FINANCIAL CONSULTANT is a graduate of the American College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.  According to the College, their graduates must have three years of financial experience and pass a comprehensive exam.

Option #4 -  A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER.   The Certified Financial Planning Board of Standards offers this designation.  Most of the CFP's are graduates of the College for Financial Planning in Denver. According to the College, these individuals must take two years of course work and pass a five-part exam.  And in order to be certified, they must have about three years of experience.

Continuing education is also a must for the individuals cited in options 2, 3 and 4.

There are a good number of very competent and qualified investment and financial advisors.  Unfortunately, there are also some predatory advisors.  Frank Lalli, Managing Editor of Money Magazine, in his Editor's Notes states, "Today, virtually anyone, from vicious murderers to vacuous incompetents, can register with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) as a financial advisor by paying a one-time $150 fee.”  “The biggest obstacle to becoming a registered advisor is getting to your mailbox to send in your $150.” says Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass)."

Selecting the right advisor for you can be as difficult as finding the right doctor, the right lawyer.  The best advice we can give is to talk to people (friends, your lawyer, your accountant) you trust.  Ask them for their recommendations and speak face-to-face with a couple of promising candidates.

What kinds of topics should you be discussing?  Their credentials, knowledge, experience, range of services, and the time they can devote to you, their fee structure.  Do you really understand the information they are presenting to you?  Are they good listeners?  Do they handle themselves in a professional manner?  Are you comfortable with the person?

In our very, very brief conversation, Charley didn't volunteer and I never really got around to asking him about his professional credentials.  Sorry, Charley.

 Return to Top

 Getting Ready For Retirement Column #6
  How Much Will You Need and Where Will It Come From?

The Annual Retirement Confidence Surveys ---the Reality of Retirement Today:  Lessons in Planning for Tomorrow ---illustrate a huge problem with saving-investing for retirement.

Although there is a lot of saving-investing is being done by workers...just check how much money goes into 401K’s each month...it is not savings grounded in a plan.  Only 1/3 workers have ever tried to determine how much they will need to save by the time they retire in order to fund a comfortable retirement.  And less than one-half of the 1/3 could give a dollar amount if asked.

Would you ever go on vacation without considering how much money you should take along?  How about a retirement that could last for as long as 30 years or more?  Carefully consider how much money you should bring into your retirement.

Some of the experts say that we will need between 60 and 80 percent of our final income before retirement to live comfortably in retirement.  That is a "ball park" figure.  But, if you want a closer insight, it really shouldn't be too difficult to determine how much you will need and where those funds will come from.  In the second edition of "Your Retirement Planning Handbook", we offer five basic steps to consider when planning for financial security in retirement. 

Let's take a look at the five steps.  You will need five sheets of paper.

1.  Develop a listing of Your Estimated Monthly Cost of Living expenses.  This will include such items as Household expenses (mortgage, rent) and Maintenance expenses (utilities, repairs, new purchases).  Food will be your next listing (at home and dining out), followed by Transportation, Clothing, Medical-Health, Personal, Savings, Taxes-Insurance, Recreation and Miscellaneous.  List what your expenses are now and then try to determine what they will be in retirement.  You can help yourself with these estimates by using last year's checkbook, or charge card records as a guide.

2.  Determine how many years you should plan for in retirement.  Example:  If you are a female in your 65th year, you can expect to live for another 19 years to age 84.  Life Expectancy Tables can be found on this web site (Employee:  Do You Know #1 “How Long Will You Live?)  You can also check the Internet, the Public Library, or an insurance agent. 

Factor in the cost of inflation.  During the last 10 years, inflation has averaged around 3 percent per year.  If you assume a 3 percent per year inflation trend, a box of cereal that costs $1.25 today will cost around $2.20 in 20 years.  You can build in a 3 percent factor and if you want to be more secure, factor in 4 or 5 percent.                    

Your next listing will be your Estimated Annual Cost of Living.

On this page you will list all of the items in Step 1 (Household, Maintenance, Food, etc.) and determine the annual cost right now, factor in inflation (3, 4 or 5 percent) and estimate what your Total Annual Expenses will be.

4. Your next listing will be your Estimated Annual Income After Retirement.  This will include such sources as Social Security, Pension, Savings and Investments, Earnings.  Total these items and then total what your Deductions will be (taxes).  Subtract your Deductions from your Income total and you will then arrive at a Total Annual Net Income figure. 

5.  If there is a difference between what income you will have in retirement and what you will need to cover your expenses, you have an income gap.  In order to close that gap, you will  need to establish a plan that will increase your income in retirement.

And, the sooner you recognize the gap, the sooner you will be able to do something about it before you discover that your retirement is unaffordable.

You will not achieve complete accuracy with this analysis.  You will probably have to revise your plans as you approach retirement.  This analysis will, however, serve as your starting point for improving your financial objectives.

If you would like to receive a free copy of "Your Retirement Planning Checklist," send us an email. 

 Return to Top

Getting Ready For Retirement   Web Column #7
The Magic Of Compounding

How easy - difficult is it to become a millionaire?  Is it possible to build a $1 million nest egg?   Difficult?  Yes, but not impossible thanks to a steady dose of savings and the magic of compounding.

John T. McCarthy, in his book, Financial Planning For a Secure Retirement, shows us the not too impossible or not too difficult road that we have to follow.  You begin by investing $1,200 a year ($100.00 a month or $3.33 a day).  We will assume an excellent annual return of 12 percent; not easy but not impossible. 

The average annual return from stocks over the past seventy years is 11 percent.    McCarthy states, "It should be pointed out that good quality stocks, over the long term, have been able to post returns in this neighborhood (12% annual return) when both dividends and capital gains are reinvested.  The operative words here are quality, long term and averaged. 

What can happen when you leave your investment in the market for 40 years?  Let's look at the chart.

Amount invested

Years    at $100 a month     at 6%      at 12%       Difference

10           $12,000               $16,766     $23,586        $6,820

20            24,000                  46,791       96,838        50,047

30            36,000                100,562     324,351       223,789

40            48,000                196,857   1,030,970      834,113

McCarthy refers to this as a "get-rich slow scheme."

What's the secret?  The long-term power of compounding.  With compounding, you take advantage of the time you will have until you retire.  The more time you have on your side, the longer period of time your money will have to grow.  And that means more money when you retire.

Compounding is the principle that if you reinvest the earnings on your investment, those investment earnings will earn additional earnings and thus enable your asset to grow over time.  When you give your retirement savings as much time as possible to grow, you give compounding more time to work for you.  Ben Franklin explained the concept by saying, "The money that makes money, makes money." 

With tax deferred investing (401(k), 403(b), 457 plan), your investment dollars work even harder because no taxes are paid on investment earnings until the money is withdrawn.  And, if your company has a match for your plan, you are even further ahead.  Eighty-seven percent of companies that offer a 401(k) match their employees contribution at some percentage. 

Wayne Bogosian and Dee Lee point out in their book, "The Complete Idiot's Guide to 401(k) Plans" that compounding can work against you when you borrow money or extend yourself credit on credit cards.  "Why do you think banks and credit card companies charge you daily interest on your mortgage or credit card balance?  They know that compounding works, too."

The power of compounding is illustrated in The Rule of 72 developed by Venita Van Caspel in "Money Dynamics for the 1990's (Simon and Schuster, 1988).  The Rule of 72 approximates how long it will take you to double your money using different rates of return. 

Rule of 72 Formula:  (72) - (interest rate) = number of years needed to double your money.  The number 72 divided by the interest rate (return) will give you the approximate number of years it will take to double your money,  Example:  If you want to double $1,000 at an interest rate of 8 percent, it will take you approximately nine years for the $1,000 investment to double to $2,000. 

(72 - 8 = 9 years to double your money from $1,000 to $2,000).

It is never too late to start to use compounding to build your next egg but the earlier you start, the better off you will be.  Albert Einstein stated that compounding interest might be the greatest mathematical discovery of all time. 

  Return to Top

Getting Ready For Retirement   Web Column #8:
How Much Can Fees And Expenses Hurt Your Investments?

The summary-of-expenses table that is found in every fund prospectus reveals the true cost of investing in the fund.  But, have you ever tried to read the section where "fees" are discussed?  Burton Malkiel, Professor of Economics at Princeton University in his book, A Random Walk Down Wall Street, states, "The mutual fund industry has developed a system of charging expenses to investors that is as complicated as Internal Revenue Service income-tax regulations and equally unpleasant."

All mutual funds, including the "no-load" funds, whether they are sold by a full-service broker or a discounting firm, charge management fees and administrative expenses.

The first area to examine are the fund costs.  There are two categories here:  "sales charges" or "loads" and "operating expenses."  Not all funds will impose loads but all funds have operating expenses that are deducted from the fund's income before that income passes through to the shareholders. 

The "front end load" is the sales commission charged at the time of purchase and it can range up to 8.5%.  Another charge is the "back end load", which is the sales commission charge at the time of the sale.  

Fees are typically calculated as a percentage of your investment in the fund.  For example:   if you own a fund with a 1.3% expense ratio, the fee would take $13 a year from your $1,000 investment.  Fees have a sizable impact on your fund investment.

Let’s say that you have a $10,000 investment in the Vanguard 500 Index fund which has a low 0.19% expense ratio and the portfolio earns an average annual return or 10% for 50 years.  Your take, after expenses:  $1,076,700.  That same investment in a fund incurring a 0.61% expense ratio would grow to only $888,958, all else being equal.  The difference:  a whopping $187,742.  Did I say sizable impact?

Funds that are "actively managed" (a fund with an advisor who researches, monitors and actively trades the holdings in the fund in an effort to seek a higher return) generally have higher fees.  The higher fees are associated with the management of the fund and the sales charges incurred from a higher level of trading.  Although these funds seek a higher return than the general market, there is no evidence that active management nor higher fees necessarily guarantee higher returns.

Fees and expenses don’t seem to hurt much when the returns are going upward.  But in a bear market (going downward), you definitely will feel the impact.  And, that is why fees and expenses should always be a consideration when you are evaluating mutual funds.

Scott West and Mitch Anthony in “Story Selling For Financial Advisors” note, “The long-term goal of investing is to multiply the eggs in our basket.  Too many investors are focused on more eggs (getting higher returns) but pay little attention to the fox (costs) that perpetually rob the hen house.  If you ignore the fox, soon there will be nothing left to produce more eggs.” 

The impact of fees on your investments is important but should not be the only factor to consider when investing in a mutual fund.  You should also consider the fund's investment objectives, the risks involved and the fund's policies.

The Department of Labor has been looking at 401(k) plans to determine if savings are being eroded by excessive or undisclosed fees.  The department has issued a 17-page booklet, which examines the topic.  You can obtain a copy of the booklet through the Labor Department's Internet site (www.dol.gov/dol/pwba) or by calling 1-800-998-7542. 

However, even this handbook can be a bit overwhelming.  Consider the section on Surrender and Transfer charges on page 10.  "They are fees an insurance company may charge when an employer terminates a contract (in other words, withdraws the plan's investment) before the term of the contract expires or if you withdraw an amount from the contract.  This fee may be imposed if these events occur before the expiration of a stated period and commonly decrease and disappear over time.  It is similar to an early withdrawal penalty on a bank certificate of deposit or to a back-end load or redemption fee charged by mutual funds."    It's almost as confusing as a prospectus.  We’ll take on a “prospectus” at a later date.

  Return to Top

 Getting Ready For Retirement  Web Column #9: 
Margaret’s Alone Now

Even though many people plan on going into retirement with a spouse- friend, some will become widows or widowers.  If you’re a woman, it’s likely you will outlive your husband.  That’s what happened to my friend Margaret.

Margaret is 68 years old.  She taught in the local school district for 35 years.  When she was 64, her husband of 42 years suddenly died.

“I just expected to go on as I was doing…. living with my husband and doing the things we did together with the expectation that I wouldn’t be going to work every day but it just didn’t work out that way.”

Here is some of our interview.

“Q. What was the most important thing you had to consider in planning your retirement?

A.  I had to do a lot of thinking in the year before I retired.  What was I going to do all by myself?  I guess not many people think that their spouse might not be there with them in retirement.  I certainly didn’t plan for that and that sure had an impact on my plans.

Q.  What’s your biggest problem in retirement?

A.  I guess my biggest problem is not having a husband and living all by myself.  There is still a considerable amount of grief to contend with.  And there are other problems.  An older single woman can’t go out as freely as a person with an escort.  There are emotional problems as well.

Q.  If you had to do it all over again, would you do anything differently?

A.  Probably save more money…that would help. I’d probably learn how to repair a faucet, fix an electric plug and some wiring.  I’d probably not get so nervous over the heating system then because I’d know what was expected of it.  I think every woman should know something about mechanics.  That’s one of my problems.  My husband took care of everything in the house.

Generally, I’m pretty well set.  One of my students in school asked me, “What are you quitting for?  You’re doing good.”  I told him that I think I’ve worked long enough and hard enough.  Now, I’m going to play for the rest of my life.

Q.  What advice can you give to someone thinking about retirement?

A.  I think you have to be sure of yourself.  You have to know what you want out of retirement.  I read a book recently about a widow whose problem when she was left alone was not material things but the fact that she had an identity crisis.

 Her husband and her family had been so much a part of her everyday life that she had a crisis when she was in a different situation of being alone without a husband.  It’s tough to think about that before it happens but perhaps you should.

Q.  Tell us about the problem of being alone.

A.  The problem is being alone.  In the case of the wife, the separation from the lover, the friend, the partner is traumatic.  It’s something that in four years, I can’t get over it.  There is the central problem of grief.  Even though I have a very happy nature and enjoy doing things very much, the problem of being alone goes right along with you all the time.  I’m trying to work on that and maybe it will improve in the future.

A single person in retirement has very special problems.  Couples are invited to dinner more often than single people.  I don’t drive and when something comes up, transportation is a concern.  Going out alone in the evening on the streets is a concern, but I must say it’s more of a concern for my children than me

I can’t get over the feeling that I grew up with…that I can go anyplace and do as I please, but I guess now I’m becoming a bit more cautious.

Q. How do you cope?

A.  Just by living.  I go on as much as I always did doing the things that I enjoy doing.  I can’t say that I have to run every minute and keep busy to cope.  I can be quiet.  In fact, I like to be alone from time to time.

I go out with my friends to concerts and plays.  It’s not a matter of doing things, although people suggest that.  It’s more a matter of having a happy nature and being able to accept the situation as you have it.  My biggest adjustment wasn’t to retirement but to the loss of my husband and that happened only a year before I retired.  He was a heart patient at the time and I had thought about retiring earlier because of that, but I didn’t.  Maybe I should have.

Q.What advice can you give to the single person in retirement?

A. Probably the old advice to know thyself.  What you want to do?  Where you’re at and where you are going.  I never had an identity problem but I understand that a lot of people do.  You have to know what your situation is, understand it, and then do what you have to do to get to where you want to be.  Does that make sense?”

How about you?  Have you discussed with your spouse or significant other the possibility and the implications of living alone in retirement?  What does he/she know about your pension plan, Social Security, insurance coverage, your assets and debts, your important papers?  Is there someone he/she can go to for financial advice/guidance?

Thanks for sharing this with us, Margaret.