"Yes" or "No" - Spencer Johnson
The Guide to Better Decisions
A better decision is one that makes us feel better, and gets better results. Decision is mine. If I make better decision, I am heading towards a better direction. Better decision makes my life happier and more successful throughout my life. I am in a life is largely the result of all the choices I've made. These choices impact my future.
Steps to make a better decision:
1) First stop proceeding with a poor decision - If you want a hot cup of tea, you must first empty your cup. Pouring hot tea into a cup full of cold tea means the hot tea cannot enter the cup but rather spills over onto the saucer. First, stop doing what we know it doesn't work (stop following what was done before)
2) System to make better decision - I avoid indecision and half-decisions based on half truths. I use both parts of a reliable system to consistently make better decisions: a cool head and a warm heart. I use my HEAD by asking myself a practical question and I consult my HEART by asking myself a private question. Then, after I listen to myself and act on it.
ASK YOUR HEAD
"Am I meeting the Real NEED, informing myself of OPTIONS, and THINKING it through?"
1) The Real Need - a need is a necessity. A want is a wish and it is nice to have. If you know what you need, it is easier to make a better decision.
Pursuing only the real need in the very beginning gets me better results in the end. This means both seeing a vision of needed results in such real detail that I sense myself already achieving them, and then doing only what meets the real need.
Wants are wishes. Needs are necessities. Needs are essential for success and fulfillment. To see what I merely want, I ask, "What do I want to do now?" To see what is really needed, I ask, "What would I like to have done?"
What I really need from this decision? For me and for others to feel successful & fulfilled? Is my vision clearly focused on the needed results? Am I saying "Yes" to only what meets the real need, and "No" to everything else?
Am I meeting the real need?
I use my head by asking myself a practical question : "Am I meeting the Real Need, Informing Myself of Options, and Thinking It Through?"
Yes or No.
It takes less time to make a better decision than it does to correct a poor decision.
One of the options we have is we do have options. When you say you have no other choice, means you are not aware of your options. How do we become aware - by asking questions and gather needed information (information you need to know to make a better decision). It would be wiser to make our own observations, talk to people yourself - validate the information yourself. By gathering information, you become less naive and more realistically informed. You begin to see more reality. You become more aware of your options.
There are two kind of information - information nice to have, and information that you need to have.
Which option is the best - meet the real need.
When one stop feeling sorry about himself and saw the reality of other possibilities, he realized he could develop a variety options, and he can be better (The reality was that these and other options were always there).
Informing Myself of Options : A Summary
First, I realize I probably have several options I am not aware of.
As I gather the needed information, I become more aware of my options.
I choose the option which meets the real need.
Information is a collection of facts and feelings: that is, what really is, & how people feel about it.
I gather the needed information, I observe it, or if someone gives me the information , I verify it.
Do I have the information I need? Who has it? Where is it? What is the best way to get it? Have I verified it myself?
As I gather the needed information, what do I see my options are? Am I informing Myself of Options?
I use my head by asking myself a practical question:
Am I meeting the Real Need, Informing Myself of Options, and Thinking It Through? Yes or No
Thinking it through - like a cheese player - thinks several moves ahead. We can imagine any situation we might find ourselves in and simply ask, "Then what would probably happen? Then what? Then what? until we think the situation through."
Before I make my decision, it could be useful to take each of my options and ask, "Then what would happen? Then what?"
Our lives are shaped by decision which we do not think are all that important at the time. But our decisions work like dominoes. The results of one decision can affect the next decision - more than ew realize - and we need to respect this.
Thinking It Through : A Summary
My past decisions are my own best mentors. Looking at them realistically can teach me more than any person to avoid illusion and see reality.
As I look at my results, I am not too hard on myself. I lighten up. I did the best I knew now.
Now I get better results because I focus on meeting the real need, informing myself of options, and thinking things through to a better result.
To see how good my results are, I measure them against my meeting the real need.
What would the results have to be to fill the real need? If I act on my decision, What would probably happen? Then what? Then what? What do I fear would be the worst result? What would the best result be? What would I ddo in the worst/best case? How clearly do I forsee the most likely results? For me? For others? How I Thought It Through?
I use my head by asking myself a practical question:
Am I Meeting the Real Need, Informing Myself of Options, and Thinking It Through? Yes or No
To make a far better decision, you have to ask you head and your heart.
The better answers, the ones that more easily get better results, are invariably simple (Simle is all that is needed and nothing more). Once you discover the simple answer, it becomes the obvious answer. Making a better decision often depends on seeing, at the time, what becomes obvious to you later.
Why does asking myself questions help me so much? Because questions propel us to find answers. We often make poor decisions because we did not first ask ourselves a few simple questions.
"Questions are like alarm clocks, Questions wake us up."
Every effective decision we have ever made has been based on reality. Our ineffective decisions are based on illusions we believe at the time. The questions shine a light on the illusion.
There are two halves in you - your head and your heart. Head - the thinking half in your head, and the feeling half in your heart. - to meet our character. Our character is our collection of personal beliefs and how we act on them. Our beliefs are a private matter. Your practical decisions are mirrors of your personal thoughts, feelings, and beliefs on display for everyone to see. They clearly reveal the way you view the world and yourself.
My decision reveal my beliefs.
The private question concerns your personal beliefs about:
1) Your integrity - people who have integrity won't fool themselves about a situation. They will cut through the nonsense and get to the true core of things quickly.
2) Your intuition - people won't look to others to make their tough decisions. They can depend on themselves.
3) Your insight into your own worth
The private question you can ask yourself is
"Does my decision show I am honest with myself, trust my intuition, and deserve better?"
Reality is whatever really is. "Truth" is a description of reality - mine or somebody else's. Integrity is telling myself the truth. And "honesty" is telling the truth to other people.
My ego holds on to my illusions. I could put my ego aside for the moment.
When we make our decision is as important as what we decide to do. In this day and age, we all need to make better decisions sooner.
The sooner I see the truth, the sooner I make a better decision.
My Integrity : A Summary
My poor decisions were based on illusion I believed at the time. My better decisions are based on realities I recongize in time.
The sooner I see the truth, the sooner I make a better decision. To find the truth, I look for it.
The better decision is based on the simple answer as it actually becomes the obvious answer.
To discover the truth, I look for the fiction I want to believe is true but cannot really count in.
We see each other's mistakes more easily, so i often park my ego & ask others what they can see and then I notice what really feels true to me.
Have I looked closely enough at my past decisions to learn from them? Have I done a reality check by observing what is really going on around me and within me? Have I noticed the obvious? Do I see the truth? Am I telling myself the Truth?
I consult my heart by asking myself a private question:
Does my decision show I am honest with myself, Trust my Intuition, and Deserve Better? Yes or No
Your own intuition is your own unconscious knowledge based on your own personal experiences. It's what you somehow sense is right for you. You can learn by looking back at how you made your past decisions. Recall what you sensed at the time you were making a specific decision. Then look at consequences.
Intuition includes not only what you feel about the decision you make, but also what you sense about the way you arrive at your decision.
If you see a situation as complicated (you cannot distinguish one part from the other) you will remain lost. If you see it as complex (there are many parts to the problem) and analyze the many parts, you will find several simple, obvious answers. Put them all together and you will have your solution.
My Intuition : A Summary
The more I use my intuition to look at how I feel about how I am making my decision, the more I protect myself from making costly mistakes.
How I feel about how I make a decision often forecasts my results.
I will not make my decision based on fear, as fear has never brought me very good results.
I may make a much better decision when I guided not by ego but my "Better Guide".
Saturday, April 18, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
When Can I Retire
When Can I Retire? Andrew Allentuck
Chapter 1 Retirement: The Destination and the Trouble of Getting there
What keep people working is fear of poverty. A survey in 2007 showed that 44% of respondents said they were not worried about outliving their financial resources while 33% said they were worried. The remainder, presumably, did not care enough to have a firm opinion.
Another survey in 2007 shows 2/3 of Canadians now in their early to mid-forties will have difficulty as retirees paying for basics unless they increase their rate of savings or are prepared to keep working past age 65.
Life expectancy and Health Expectations - Planning for retirement is more than about just money, it's also about health. Life expectancy is going up but health expectancy is not keeping up.
Risks for the future - To minimize /control spending -
1) establish a way of life that minimize unexpected and large bills, like manage upkeep to avoid major expenses. Small repairs are often less costly than repairs deferred until breakdowns happen.
2) avoid debt as it can threaten financial security
3) unexpected cost - long illness and hospitalization, sue for an injury, etc
How financial planners see Retirement - the earlier you retire and the more completely you retire, the greater the odds of winding up poor at the end of life. Financial planners add 5 years to the conventional life expectancy of 77 for men and 82 for women and then assume in their calculations. What assets to buy - stocks, bonds, real estate, cash and commodities. It is not enough to stay in cash to catch the inflation. Diversification helps to minimize risks and improve return. It is always good to educate yourself.
Chapter 2 - The Big Gamble:Setting Up a Retirement Plan
The decision to retire is one of the biggest gambles, especially when you are retire young. If it turns out badly at the end, it may bot be possible to correct the mistake.
Challenges for planning - many of the things we want to predict are really not readily knowable.
Uncertainties of Retirement
1) Value of Assets - House, investments, currency, etc
2) Returns from savings and investments - volatility of the market
3) Health and costs - will the government continue to pay for it
4) Reliability of income - CPP, OAS
5) The state of your life - how is the lifestyle
6) The state of the world
7) Your state of mind about retirement
8) Employability
9) Inflation
Timing Retirement - time creates two very distinct meaning in estimating how much money one needs to retire.
1) Money to cover the length of the retirement period
2) Time to save for retirement
Large potential retirement spending
1) Shelter - mortgage, property tax, maintenance
2) Social spending - entertainment, travelling
3) Taxes
4) Medical, dental and drug expenses - depends on health
5) Other discretionary spending
Life is more than money. But people who are going to be the most free to enjoy life will be those who have no substantial debts and littel or no exposure to the cost of rising interest rates. They will be people who have set their incomes in retirement to be adequate for their expenses and who have financial reserves for unexpected cost. Whatever plan is devised, build in wiggle room - that means extra income and extra wealth. Achieve cash flow in excess of expenses and add a cushion for the unexpected. When you have that, you are ready to retire.
Chapter 3 - The Decision Point
Planning to retire is both a matter of mapping out cash flow and expenses for the future and hope that what you know today will still be true and right tomorrow. The longer the planning period, the more that can go wrong.
Building income security:
1) annuities - fixed amount of money every month
2) dividend paying stocks
3) government bonds
4) GIC
Reasons Not to retire
1) Lack of incentives - meaning to life
2) Aloneness
3) Loss of identity
4) Giving up your status
5) Losing perks - financial benefits
6) Loss of financial safety nets
7) Lack of pension
8) Cost of replacing job-related transportation and accommodation
9) Can't afford to retire
10) Concern about risk
Reasons to Retire
1) You can afford to quit work
2) You have to go - compulsory retirement
3) You want to be near friends and family
4) You have the opportunity and desire to take a buyout
5) Your pension and savings are so big that you might as well retire
6) You want to reduce stress
7) You want to use retirement assets already in place
8) Health concerns
Chapter 4 - Budgeting for the future
Financial planning is as much an exercise in imagination as it is pencil work. Retirement may be a continuation of a way of life or it may mean living a different life altogether.
Plan for retirement in stages because life will change:
- below 65; go-go stage - active and spend more in travelling; fear of running out of money
- 65 to 75; slow-go stage - normal spending will decline but health costs may rise
- over 75; no-go stage - less mobile but don't know how long it will be
A balance of components - the amount of spending depends on style of retirement. The more money you have for retirement, the lower the fraction of it you are likely to spend. The wealthy can diversify their assets more easily than the not-quite-rich. Diversification lowers their risk in any one investment and increases their chances of their fortunes growing larger.
Controlling expenses in Retirement
If you find expenses are greater than you had foreseen, you hae to cut discretionary spending (travel, entertainment, etc). With more time to spend, you can try thinking of value for each dollar (get bargain sales/careful shopping/looks for best deals).
Emergency funds
Having a cash reserve make a differnce between living as one planned. 3 to 6 months income for emergencies to avoid borrowing to pay unexpected bills.
Review and Sensitivity
Good plans have to be changeable. Sensitivity component to review:
1) Give up driving
2) Downsize of shelter
Chapter 5-6: Where will the Money come from?
1) Public pensions - OAS, GIS, CPP, QPP
2) Employment-based pension - defined benefit and defined contribution plans
3) Individual saving plans - RRSP, LIF, LIRA, LIRIF
4) Insurance-based pension - life policy
5) Tax-free savings account
Chapter 7: Managing Retirement Assets
One Basic Fact - If it goes wrong, there is less time to make up for losses
Assets management is really a form of risk control. As you grow older, the value of risk reduction becomes apparent. The reason - there is less time to make up losses if an investment sours. One cannot predict how any stock or even any sector may perform in a certain time period, so diversification among many stocks, sectors, and assets types is essential. A well-diversified portfolio may have stocks, bonds, and perhaps some real estate. As well, the investor has to be aware of tax issues that affect cash flow.
Chapter 8: What are you going to do with all those years?
Retirement at any age requires 3 things - 3M
1) Money - enough of it
2) Motive - a reason for retiring; and
3) Meaning - a sense of fulfillment in the time away from work
Useful retirement plan should be:
1) Fulfilling - you need a desire to do things and a plan to do them in succession as you age
2) Affordable - a life of cruising works only if there is a budget to support it
3) Engaging - the retirement plan should provide a way to make meaningful use of the free time you will have on your hands
4) Adaptable - if one plan does not work out, there should be another to take its place
Another option is to live outside Canada.
Chapter 1 Retirement: The Destination and the Trouble of Getting there
What keep people working is fear of poverty. A survey in 2007 showed that 44% of respondents said they were not worried about outliving their financial resources while 33% said they were worried. The remainder, presumably, did not care enough to have a firm opinion.
Another survey in 2007 shows 2/3 of Canadians now in their early to mid-forties will have difficulty as retirees paying for basics unless they increase their rate of savings or are prepared to keep working past age 65.
Life expectancy and Health Expectations - Planning for retirement is more than about just money, it's also about health. Life expectancy is going up but health expectancy is not keeping up.
Risks for the future - To minimize /control spending -
1) establish a way of life that minimize unexpected and large bills, like manage upkeep to avoid major expenses. Small repairs are often less costly than repairs deferred until breakdowns happen.
2) avoid debt as it can threaten financial security
3) unexpected cost - long illness and hospitalization, sue for an injury, etc
How financial planners see Retirement - the earlier you retire and the more completely you retire, the greater the odds of winding up poor at the end of life. Financial planners add 5 years to the conventional life expectancy of 77 for men and 82 for women and then assume in their calculations. What assets to buy - stocks, bonds, real estate, cash and commodities. It is not enough to stay in cash to catch the inflation. Diversification helps to minimize risks and improve return. It is always good to educate yourself.
Chapter 2 - The Big Gamble:Setting Up a Retirement Plan
The decision to retire is one of the biggest gambles, especially when you are retire young. If it turns out badly at the end, it may bot be possible to correct the mistake.
Challenges for planning - many of the things we want to predict are really not readily knowable.
Uncertainties of Retirement
1) Value of Assets - House, investments, currency, etc
2) Returns from savings and investments - volatility of the market
3) Health and costs - will the government continue to pay for it
4) Reliability of income - CPP, OAS
5) The state of your life - how is the lifestyle
6) The state of the world
7) Your state of mind about retirement
8) Employability
9) Inflation
Timing Retirement - time creates two very distinct meaning in estimating how much money one needs to retire.
1) Money to cover the length of the retirement period
2) Time to save for retirement
Large potential retirement spending
1) Shelter - mortgage, property tax, maintenance
2) Social spending - entertainment, travelling
3) Taxes
4) Medical, dental and drug expenses - depends on health
5) Other discretionary spending
Life is more than money. But people who are going to be the most free to enjoy life will be those who have no substantial debts and littel or no exposure to the cost of rising interest rates. They will be people who have set their incomes in retirement to be adequate for their expenses and who have financial reserves for unexpected cost. Whatever plan is devised, build in wiggle room - that means extra income and extra wealth. Achieve cash flow in excess of expenses and add a cushion for the unexpected. When you have that, you are ready to retire.
Chapter 3 - The Decision Point
Planning to retire is both a matter of mapping out cash flow and expenses for the future and hope that what you know today will still be true and right tomorrow. The longer the planning period, the more that can go wrong.
Building income security:
1) annuities - fixed amount of money every month
2) dividend paying stocks
3) government bonds
4) GIC
Reasons Not to retire
1) Lack of incentives - meaning to life
2) Aloneness
3) Loss of identity
4) Giving up your status
5) Losing perks - financial benefits
6) Loss of financial safety nets
7) Lack of pension
8) Cost of replacing job-related transportation and accommodation
9) Can't afford to retire
10) Concern about risk
Reasons to Retire
1) You can afford to quit work
2) You have to go - compulsory retirement
3) You want to be near friends and family
4) You have the opportunity and desire to take a buyout
5) Your pension and savings are so big that you might as well retire
6) You want to reduce stress
7) You want to use retirement assets already in place
8) Health concerns
Chapter 4 - Budgeting for the future
Financial planning is as much an exercise in imagination as it is pencil work. Retirement may be a continuation of a way of life or it may mean living a different life altogether.
Plan for retirement in stages because life will change:
- below 65; go-go stage - active and spend more in travelling; fear of running out of money
- 65 to 75; slow-go stage - normal spending will decline but health costs may rise
- over 75; no-go stage - less mobile but don't know how long it will be
A balance of components - the amount of spending depends on style of retirement. The more money you have for retirement, the lower the fraction of it you are likely to spend. The wealthy can diversify their assets more easily than the not-quite-rich. Diversification lowers their risk in any one investment and increases their chances of their fortunes growing larger.
Controlling expenses in Retirement
If you find expenses are greater than you had foreseen, you hae to cut discretionary spending (travel, entertainment, etc). With more time to spend, you can try thinking of value for each dollar (get bargain sales/careful shopping/looks for best deals).
Emergency funds
Having a cash reserve make a differnce between living as one planned. 3 to 6 months income for emergencies to avoid borrowing to pay unexpected bills.
Review and Sensitivity
Good plans have to be changeable. Sensitivity component to review:
1) Give up driving
2) Downsize of shelter
Chapter 5-6: Where will the Money come from?
1) Public pensions - OAS, GIS, CPP, QPP
2) Employment-based pension - defined benefit and defined contribution plans
3) Individual saving plans - RRSP, LIF, LIRA, LIRIF
4) Insurance-based pension - life policy
5) Tax-free savings account
Chapter 7: Managing Retirement Assets
One Basic Fact - If it goes wrong, there is less time to make up for losses
Assets management is really a form of risk control. As you grow older, the value of risk reduction becomes apparent. The reason - there is less time to make up losses if an investment sours. One cannot predict how any stock or even any sector may perform in a certain time period, so diversification among many stocks, sectors, and assets types is essential. A well-diversified portfolio may have stocks, bonds, and perhaps some real estate. As well, the investor has to be aware of tax issues that affect cash flow.
Chapter 8: What are you going to do with all those years?
Retirement at any age requires 3 things - 3M
1) Money - enough of it
2) Motive - a reason for retiring; and
3) Meaning - a sense of fulfillment in the time away from work
Useful retirement plan should be:
1) Fulfilling - you need a desire to do things and a plan to do them in succession as you age
2) Affordable - a life of cruising works only if there is a budget to support it
3) Engaging - the retirement plan should provide a way to make meaningful use of the free time you will have on your hands
4) Adaptable - if one plan does not work out, there should be another to take its place
Another option is to live outside Canada.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Rags to Retirement
Rags to Retirement - Gail Liberman and Alan Lavine
Stories from people who retired well on much less than you'd think!
1. Living it Up South of the Border - The retired couple moved to Mexico. It is a new language and a new culture but they can be just themselves. The cost of living is cheaper but there are some other challenges. The lifestyle has improved with less money. Few things to consider:
i) If possible, learn the language before you move
ii) Understand the tax situation of the country
iii) Evaluate the climate and activities of the area
iv) Research how widespread crime is
v) Evaluate a country's health care system
Other criteria to pick a place to retire:
i) weather
ii) cost of living
iii) affordable housing
iv) cultural programs
v) health care
vi) health care
vii) leisure
viii) pollution
ix) crime
x) transportation
xi) political stability
xii) health hazards
xiii) access to technology
2. Another one living in a boat as owning a house is too expensive
3. Another bachelor lived in Florida. He lived within his means and never run up a credit card. He does not drive and take public transportation. He lives in federally subsidized housing, restricted to senior citizens on limited income.
4. To prepare for retirement, it is important to shift to low-risk investments that are sure to pay you monthly income. Low risk options to consider:
i) Treasury securities
ii) Bank deposits
iii) Money market mutual fund
iv) Short-term government bonds and bond funds
v) Insured Municipal bonds
vi) Fixed annuities
5. Another couple live in RV and get the money for retirement by selling their house. They paid cash for their truck and trailer, they have no debt.
6. Always buy a house and don't rent.
7. The younger you are when you start planning for your retirement, the more money you'll have and the earlier you can retire. Those who are motivated, who apply good discipline to savings. They can retire young. They have not given up work entirely. They do little work they choose. They have more free time to manage their investment and they believe bear market happen every 5 years on average. They avoid difficult bear market and money still grows. They try to stay in good health, getting in at least two hours of physical activity daily. They goal to find the city to live is a city of less than 50,000 people that was clean and that had low crime and no snow. They wanted a good public library, discount movie theaters, bowling, tennis, hiking, cultural activities, and beautiful scenery. They also aimed to be relatively close to a large city.
"One huge mistake people make is they spend an inordinate amount of time figuring how much money they're going to need," says retirement planning expert John F. Wasik. "You can make one or two decisions to make it affordable at an earlier age - like relocate your home"
8. Getting good health
i) Don't smoke
ii) Don't drink alcohol excessively
iii) Keep your body weight, lose the extra weight
iv) Exercise regularly
v) Brush and floss your teeth daily
vi) Get an annual physical check-up
vii) Use sun block
viii) Check out services at dental and medical schools
ix) Buy generic drugs
x) Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, as well as foods that are high in fiber
xi) Avoid eating junk food that is high in fat and cholesterol
xii) Get a good night's sleep
xiii) Be spiritual healthy too
SUMMARY
1. Find a cheaper way to live - sailboat, RV, lower cost countries
2. Cut your medical expenses - exercise and eat properly, or live in lower medical cost countries
3. Plan for your retirement at a young age - have longer time to save and grow your money
4. Obtain a job with great retirement and/or medical benefits
5. Set goals for yourself - have meaning
6. Become more social - getting together with friends and family is a cheap, yet extremely fulfilling form of entertainment
7. Taking advantage of free or low-cost sources of entertainment - Libraries, museums
8. Make the most of federal benefits to which you might be entitled - federal subsidized housing, social security, suplemental income
9. Do it yourself - repairs, meals, etc
10. As you near retirement, invest conservatively - not to lose money
11. Cut taxes as much as possible
12. Get rid of your car
13. Consider downsize your house or reverse mortgage - get extra money for retirement
14. Maintain a positive attitude - thinking postively can get you through the worst of times
Stories from people who retired well on much less than you'd think!
1. Living it Up South of the Border - The retired couple moved to Mexico. It is a new language and a new culture but they can be just themselves. The cost of living is cheaper but there are some other challenges. The lifestyle has improved with less money. Few things to consider:
i) If possible, learn the language before you move
ii) Understand the tax situation of the country
iii) Evaluate the climate and activities of the area
iv) Research how widespread crime is
v) Evaluate a country's health care system
Other criteria to pick a place to retire:
i) weather
ii) cost of living
iii) affordable housing
iv) cultural programs
v) health care
vi) health care
vii) leisure
viii) pollution
ix) crime
x) transportation
xi) political stability
xii) health hazards
xiii) access to technology
2. Another one living in a boat as owning a house is too expensive
3. Another bachelor lived in Florida. He lived within his means and never run up a credit card. He does not drive and take public transportation. He lives in federally subsidized housing, restricted to senior citizens on limited income.
4. To prepare for retirement, it is important to shift to low-risk investments that are sure to pay you monthly income. Low risk options to consider:
i) Treasury securities
ii) Bank deposits
iii) Money market mutual fund
iv) Short-term government bonds and bond funds
v) Insured Municipal bonds
vi) Fixed annuities
5. Another couple live in RV and get the money for retirement by selling their house. They paid cash for their truck and trailer, they have no debt.
6. Always buy a house and don't rent.
7. The younger you are when you start planning for your retirement, the more money you'll have and the earlier you can retire. Those who are motivated, who apply good discipline to savings. They can retire young. They have not given up work entirely. They do little work they choose. They have more free time to manage their investment and they believe bear market happen every 5 years on average. They avoid difficult bear market and money still grows. They try to stay in good health, getting in at least two hours of physical activity daily. They goal to find the city to live is a city of less than 50,000 people that was clean and that had low crime and no snow. They wanted a good public library, discount movie theaters, bowling, tennis, hiking, cultural activities, and beautiful scenery. They also aimed to be relatively close to a large city.
"One huge mistake people make is they spend an inordinate amount of time figuring how much money they're going to need," says retirement planning expert John F. Wasik. "You can make one or two decisions to make it affordable at an earlier age - like relocate your home"
8. Getting good health
i) Don't smoke
ii) Don't drink alcohol excessively
iii) Keep your body weight, lose the extra weight
iv) Exercise regularly
v) Brush and floss your teeth daily
vi) Get an annual physical check-up
vii) Use sun block
viii) Check out services at dental and medical schools
ix) Buy generic drugs
x) Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables, as well as foods that are high in fiber
xi) Avoid eating junk food that is high in fat and cholesterol
xii) Get a good night's sleep
xiii) Be spiritual healthy too
SUMMARY
1. Find a cheaper way to live - sailboat, RV, lower cost countries
2. Cut your medical expenses - exercise and eat properly, or live in lower medical cost countries
3. Plan for your retirement at a young age - have longer time to save and grow your money
4. Obtain a job with great retirement and/or medical benefits
5. Set goals for yourself - have meaning
6. Become more social - getting together with friends and family is a cheap, yet extremely fulfilling form of entertainment
7. Taking advantage of free or low-cost sources of entertainment - Libraries, museums
8. Make the most of federal benefits to which you might be entitled - federal subsidized housing, social security, suplemental income
9. Do it yourself - repairs, meals, etc
10. As you near retirement, invest conservatively - not to lose money
11. Cut taxes as much as possible
12. Get rid of your car
13. Consider downsize your house or reverse mortgage - get extra money for retirement
14. Maintain a positive attitude - thinking postively can get you through the worst of times
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The Present
The Present - Spencer Johnson (The Gift that makes you Happy and Successful at Work and in Life)
Success is progressing toward whatever you think is important. It may be good grades in school, doing well in sports, having a good relationship with parents, getting a good part time job after school, and then getting a raise in job, enjoy life and appreciate what you have.
Success is something we all define for ourselves at different stages of our lives.
I feel good when I loved what I was doing and I keep focus on what I am doing.
The Present is a gift you give to yourself. Only you have the power to discover what it is. No one can find the Present for someone else.
In order to find The Present for yourself, think of the times when you were the happiest, and most successful.
The Present is not the Past and it is not the Future. The Present is The Present Moment! The Present is NOW!
Being in the Present means focusing on what is happening right now! It means appreciating the gifts you are offered every day. You are aware and focus on whatever you are doing. When you are in the Present, you feel happy and successful.
Even in the Most difficult situations, when you focus on what is Right. In the Present Moment, it makes you Happier, and gives you the Needed energy and confidence to deal with what is wrong.
Most situations are a mix of good and bad, right and wrong. It depends on how you look at them. The more you look at what is wrong, the less energy and confidence you have. That's why when you find yourself in a 'bad' situation, it is important to look for what is right, even if it is hard to find. Then appreciate it and build on it. The more you appreciate what is right at the moment, the happier you are. You become more relaxed, and it is easier then to stay in The Present.
What if the Present is very painful, like experiencing the loss of a loved one? Pain is the difference between what is, and what you want it to be. Pain in the Present, like everything else, is constantly changing. It will come and go. When you stay fully in the Present and have felt the pain, and feel drained by it, you can begin to look for what is right, and build on it.
It is important to experience painful situations and learn from them rather than try to distract yourself with something else. Even in difficult situations, I need to tune out the unimportant distractions that keep me from being in The Present.
In a relationship, you need to focus on the whole person. By being more aware of their 'good' or 'bad' qualities, you can address potential problems, instead of being side-tracked by them.
Focus on what is happening at the moment. Appreciate what is right about the situation, and build on it. Pay attention to what is important NOW.
It is Hard to Let go of the Past if you have not learned from the Past. As soon as you learn and let go, you improve the Present. You must not live in the Past but it is important to use the Past to learn from your mistakes.
Anytime you are unhappy in the Present or feeling unsuccessful, it is time to learn from the Past or Plan for the Future.
There are tow things can rob you of the joy of the Present: your negative thoughts about the Past, or your negative thoughts about the Future.
Learn from the Past:
- What happened in the past?
- What did I learn from it?
- What can I do differently now (to have better result)?
Use what you learn to improve the Present.
If you behave in the same way, you get the same results. But when you behave differently, you get different results. The more you learn from the Past, the fewer regrets you have. And the more time you have in the Present.
You cannot change the Past, but you can learn from it. When the same situation arises, you can do things differently and enjoy a more successful Present.
Living in the Future makes us anxious because we are not sure what will happen. The only way to make the Future better than the Present, other than to get lucky, is to plan for it. Planning for the Future reduces fear and uncertainty, because you are actively taking steps toward future success. You know what you are doing and why you are doing it. Once you have prepared for the Future, you can enjoy the Present with less anxiety.
Planning takes much of the guesswork out of what you need to do each day. You have a road map. It lets you focus on what you need to do in the Present to help bring about the Future you want.
No one can predict accurately or have a full control the Future. However, the more you Plan for what you want to see happen, the less anxious you are in the Present, and the more the Future is know to you. A lack of planning, both at work and in our lives, is the most common reason we fall short of our dreams and our goals.
3 best ways to think about the Future:
1. What would a wonderful future be like?
2. What are my plans to make it happen?
3. What am I doing today to make it happen?
The more you visualize your future, and believe it is possible to achieve, the easier it is for you to create your plan. And once you have a plan, you need to continually revise it as you gather more information and experience, so that the plan becomes more realistic. The next step is to do something every day to help make the wonderful future happen.
Living in the Present, learning from the Past, and planning for the Future. It is only when you Live with Purpose and respond to what's important about the Present, Past and Future, that it all has meaning.
Living with Purpose means not just knowing what to do, but why. Working and living with purpose is not some grand scheme or life plan. It is a practical approach for everyday life. It means rising each day and seeing what meaning it will hold for you and others as a result of your actions.
How you respond depends upon your Purpose (Value). When you want to be happy and more successful, it is time to be in the Present Moment. When you want the Present to be better than the Past, it is time to learn from the Past. When you want the Future to be better than the Present, it is time to plan for the Future.
When you live and work with Purpose, and respond to what is important NOW, you are more able to lead, manage, support, befriend and love.
Success is becoming who you are capable of being and progressing towards worthwhile goals. Each of us defines for ourselves what it means to be successful.
THREE WAYS TO USE YOUR PRESENT MOMENTS
Be in the Present
When you want to be happy and successful
Focus on what is right NOW
Use your Purpose to respond
to what is important NOW
Learn from the Past
when you want to make the present better than the Past
Look at what happened in the Past
Learn something valuable from it
Do things differently in the Present
Plan for the Future
when you want to make the Future better than the Present
See what a wonderful Future would look like
make Plans to help it happen
Put your plan into action in the Present.
Success is progressing toward whatever you think is important. It may be good grades in school, doing well in sports, having a good relationship with parents, getting a good part time job after school, and then getting a raise in job, enjoy life and appreciate what you have.
Success is something we all define for ourselves at different stages of our lives.
I feel good when I loved what I was doing and I keep focus on what I am doing.
The Present is a gift you give to yourself. Only you have the power to discover what it is. No one can find the Present for someone else.
In order to find The Present for yourself, think of the times when you were the happiest, and most successful.
The Present is not the Past and it is not the Future. The Present is The Present Moment! The Present is NOW!
Being in the Present means focusing on what is happening right now! It means appreciating the gifts you are offered every day. You are aware and focus on whatever you are doing. When you are in the Present, you feel happy and successful.
Even in the Most difficult situations, when you focus on what is Right. In the Present Moment, it makes you Happier, and gives you the Needed energy and confidence to deal with what is wrong.
Most situations are a mix of good and bad, right and wrong. It depends on how you look at them. The more you look at what is wrong, the less energy and confidence you have. That's why when you find yourself in a 'bad' situation, it is important to look for what is right, even if it is hard to find. Then appreciate it and build on it. The more you appreciate what is right at the moment, the happier you are. You become more relaxed, and it is easier then to stay in The Present.
What if the Present is very painful, like experiencing the loss of a loved one? Pain is the difference between what is, and what you want it to be. Pain in the Present, like everything else, is constantly changing. It will come and go. When you stay fully in the Present and have felt the pain, and feel drained by it, you can begin to look for what is right, and build on it.
It is important to experience painful situations and learn from them rather than try to distract yourself with something else. Even in difficult situations, I need to tune out the unimportant distractions that keep me from being in The Present.
In a relationship, you need to focus on the whole person. By being more aware of their 'good' or 'bad' qualities, you can address potential problems, instead of being side-tracked by them.
Focus on what is happening at the moment. Appreciate what is right about the situation, and build on it. Pay attention to what is important NOW.
It is Hard to Let go of the Past if you have not learned from the Past. As soon as you learn and let go, you improve the Present. You must not live in the Past but it is important to use the Past to learn from your mistakes.
Anytime you are unhappy in the Present or feeling unsuccessful, it is time to learn from the Past or Plan for the Future.
There are tow things can rob you of the joy of the Present: your negative thoughts about the Past, or your negative thoughts about the Future.
Learn from the Past:
- What happened in the past?
- What did I learn from it?
- What can I do differently now (to have better result)?
Use what you learn to improve the Present.
If you behave in the same way, you get the same results. But when you behave differently, you get different results. The more you learn from the Past, the fewer regrets you have. And the more time you have in the Present.
You cannot change the Past, but you can learn from it. When the same situation arises, you can do things differently and enjoy a more successful Present.
Living in the Future makes us anxious because we are not sure what will happen. The only way to make the Future better than the Present, other than to get lucky, is to plan for it. Planning for the Future reduces fear and uncertainty, because you are actively taking steps toward future success. You know what you are doing and why you are doing it. Once you have prepared for the Future, you can enjoy the Present with less anxiety.
Planning takes much of the guesswork out of what you need to do each day. You have a road map. It lets you focus on what you need to do in the Present to help bring about the Future you want.
No one can predict accurately or have a full control the Future. However, the more you Plan for what you want to see happen, the less anxious you are in the Present, and the more the Future is know to you. A lack of planning, both at work and in our lives, is the most common reason we fall short of our dreams and our goals.
3 best ways to think about the Future:
1. What would a wonderful future be like?
2. What are my plans to make it happen?
3. What am I doing today to make it happen?
The more you visualize your future, and believe it is possible to achieve, the easier it is for you to create your plan. And once you have a plan, you need to continually revise it as you gather more information and experience, so that the plan becomes more realistic. The next step is to do something every day to help make the wonderful future happen.
Living in the Present, learning from the Past, and planning for the Future. It is only when you Live with Purpose and respond to what's important about the Present, Past and Future, that it all has meaning.
Living with Purpose means not just knowing what to do, but why. Working and living with purpose is not some grand scheme or life plan. It is a practical approach for everyday life. It means rising each day and seeing what meaning it will hold for you and others as a result of your actions.
How you respond depends upon your Purpose (Value). When you want to be happy and more successful, it is time to be in the Present Moment. When you want the Present to be better than the Past, it is time to learn from the Past. When you want the Future to be better than the Present, it is time to plan for the Future.
When you live and work with Purpose, and respond to what is important NOW, you are more able to lead, manage, support, befriend and love.
Success is becoming who you are capable of being and progressing towards worthwhile goals. Each of us defines for ourselves what it means to be successful.
THREE WAYS TO USE YOUR PRESENT MOMENTS
Be in the Present
When you want to be happy and successful
Focus on what is right NOW
Use your Purpose to respond
to what is important NOW
Learn from the Past
when you want to make the present better than the Past
Look at what happened in the Past
Learn something valuable from it
Do things differently in the Present
Plan for the Future
when you want to make the Future better than the Present
See what a wonderful Future would look like
make Plans to help it happen
Put your plan into action in the Present.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Live well, Retire well
Live well, Retire well - Patricia Lovett-Reid
PATH is 4 step guide to a successful and financially predictable retirement:
1. Picture yourself in retirement
2. Arm yourself with the right financial and planning tools
3. Transition into retirement with style
4. Harmony: Put it all together and well balanced
PICTURE YOURSELF - Ask yourself questions:
1. How old will you be when you retire?
2. What kind of leisure activities do you see yourself doing?
3. What kind of, and how much travel do you see yourself doing?
4. How big a role will family activities play in your week-to-week activities?
5. How big a role will friends and social activities play in your week-to-week activities?
6. Do you see yourself mostly alone?
7. Do you see yourself and your spouse mostly alone?
8. Do you see a full slate of social activities?
9. What kind of work - volunteer or paid - do you see yourself doing?
10. Where do you see yourself doing all the above? Where you are now or in some other geographic location?
11. If you see yourself in some other place, where do you think it will be?
12. Will you live there full-time, part of the time, or will you try to evenly split your time between two or more places?
Your pre-retirement planning strategy
1. Attitude - Make sure you begin with a positive attitude; at the very least have an open mind. The more open you are in the process, the faster it will take hold and become easily achieveable in your mind.
2. Set realistic goals. Be specific about what you want to accomplish, whether it's keeping the exact same lifestyle you have now, downsizing or even upsizing.
3. Picture your retirement. Find a quiet place and begin a dream about what would make you and your spouse happy. Visualize the result over and over so it starts to feel like a comfortable reality. If you haven't talked to your spouse about your picture, or learned what his or her retirement picture is, now is most definitely the time.
4. Calculate your retirement number. Focus on the contribution number that makes the picture achievable.
5. Establish a strategy. Develop a financial and lifestyle plan to achieve the number
6. Arm yourself. Learn about your investment options and then choose the investment, savings and protection tools you need.
Your at-retirement strategy
1. Pre-planning. Cover all contingencies. Make the transition a smooth one.
2. Tax strategies. Convert RRSP and investment income to annuities and RRIFs.
3. Portfolio composition. Remember to apply the concepts of asset allocation and diversification.
4. Creative options. Reverse mortgages, part-time work, expectation adjustment, tax planning
5. Structure. Structure you days and weeks and make your attitude adjustment a reality
6. Close to home? Do you want to live close to friends and family or move to your dream location?
Your in-retirement strategy
1. Budgets. Simplify your life: Map out monthly budget that works for you
2. Integration of income. CPP, OAS, RRIFs, and so on.
3. Taxes. Not just income taxes but gifts and investments
4. Estate Planning. Leave a legacy without leaving half to the taxman
5. Work. To work or not to work
ARM YOURSELF WITH THE INVESTMENT KNOWLEDGE YOU NEED
Accumulate, grow, protect and enjoy
1. Pay yourself first - Saving for your investments (Accumulate)
2. Investments (Grow) - 4 Pillars to investing:
i) Risk
ii) Return
iii) Cost
iv) Time
3. Assets allocation and Diversification - Periodic rebalancing of portfolio
4. Insurance (Protect)
5. Understand the Tax implication (Optimize your return)
Top 10 investment mistakes:
1. Putting all eggs in one basket (Risk with diversification)
2. Putting all your money in safe, incoming-generating investments (Return to low)
3. Chasing performance
4. Procrastinating (Time to grow)
5. Failure to adopt asset allocation (Risk)
6. Misjudging your risk tolerance (Risk)
7. Timing the market (Time to grow)
8. Not knowing what you own (Knowledge)
9. Understanding the impact of compounding, taxes and inflation
10. Not setting quantifiable, realistic goals
10 Strategies to save tax dollars
1. "Buy and hold" - defer tax
2. Maximize RRSP - defer tax
3. Split your income with your family members - lower tax
4. Invest in your home - tax free
5. Dividends - lower tax rate
6. Borrow to invest - deductible tax expenses
7. Maximize RESP - tax at lower rate and receive grant from government
8. Maximize tax deduction - lower tax
9. Maximize employee benefit
10. Employ yourself - more tax deduction
TRANSITION TO RETIREMENT
Prepare a to-do list: travel, music, education, etc
1. Keep your option open - phased in retirement by doing less hours, part time work
2. Reinvent yourself - move to other job or work that is different
3. Take the plunge - start your own business
4. Open your mind - continue education, learn something you like to
5. Help those in need - volunteer to help people
6. Live it up - build a social network and meet new people
7. Delay retirement
HARMONY
1. Estate Planning - begins and ends in a Will
Life is an open road. It is the best story never told. Secret to a happy retirement is to make a big deal out of everything in your life.
To retire well,
1. Invest in making friends.
2. Invest in your health.
3. Invest in safe investment (minimize your risk)
The Rich are different from us
1. They save regularly
2. They live frugally
3. They know where their money is going
4. They avoid debt
5. They maximize income
6. They own appreciating assets
7. They get professional advice
PATH is 4 step guide to a successful and financially predictable retirement:
1. Picture yourself in retirement
2. Arm yourself with the right financial and planning tools
3. Transition into retirement with style
4. Harmony: Put it all together and well balanced
PICTURE YOURSELF - Ask yourself questions:
1. How old will you be when you retire?
2. What kind of leisure activities do you see yourself doing?
3. What kind of, and how much travel do you see yourself doing?
4. How big a role will family activities play in your week-to-week activities?
5. How big a role will friends and social activities play in your week-to-week activities?
6. Do you see yourself mostly alone?
7. Do you see yourself and your spouse mostly alone?
8. Do you see a full slate of social activities?
9. What kind of work - volunteer or paid - do you see yourself doing?
10. Where do you see yourself doing all the above? Where you are now or in some other geographic location?
11. If you see yourself in some other place, where do you think it will be?
12. Will you live there full-time, part of the time, or will you try to evenly split your time between two or more places?
Your pre-retirement planning strategy
1. Attitude - Make sure you begin with a positive attitude; at the very least have an open mind. The more open you are in the process, the faster it will take hold and become easily achieveable in your mind.
2. Set realistic goals. Be specific about what you want to accomplish, whether it's keeping the exact same lifestyle you have now, downsizing or even upsizing.
3. Picture your retirement. Find a quiet place and begin a dream about what would make you and your spouse happy. Visualize the result over and over so it starts to feel like a comfortable reality. If you haven't talked to your spouse about your picture, or learned what his or her retirement picture is, now is most definitely the time.
4. Calculate your retirement number. Focus on the contribution number that makes the picture achievable.
5. Establish a strategy. Develop a financial and lifestyle plan to achieve the number
6. Arm yourself. Learn about your investment options and then choose the investment, savings and protection tools you need.
Your at-retirement strategy
1. Pre-planning. Cover all contingencies. Make the transition a smooth one.
2. Tax strategies. Convert RRSP and investment income to annuities and RRIFs.
3. Portfolio composition. Remember to apply the concepts of asset allocation and diversification.
4. Creative options. Reverse mortgages, part-time work, expectation adjustment, tax planning
5. Structure. Structure you days and weeks and make your attitude adjustment a reality
6. Close to home? Do you want to live close to friends and family or move to your dream location?
Your in-retirement strategy
1. Budgets. Simplify your life: Map out monthly budget that works for you
2. Integration of income. CPP, OAS, RRIFs, and so on.
3. Taxes. Not just income taxes but gifts and investments
4. Estate Planning. Leave a legacy without leaving half to the taxman
5. Work. To work or not to work
ARM YOURSELF WITH THE INVESTMENT KNOWLEDGE YOU NEED
Accumulate, grow, protect and enjoy
1. Pay yourself first - Saving for your investments (Accumulate)
2. Investments (Grow) - 4 Pillars to investing:
i) Risk
ii) Return
iii) Cost
iv) Time
3. Assets allocation and Diversification - Periodic rebalancing of portfolio
4. Insurance (Protect)
5. Understand the Tax implication (Optimize your return)
Top 10 investment mistakes:
1. Putting all eggs in one basket (Risk with diversification)
2. Putting all your money in safe, incoming-generating investments (Return to low)
3. Chasing performance
4. Procrastinating (Time to grow)
5. Failure to adopt asset allocation (Risk)
6. Misjudging your risk tolerance (Risk)
7. Timing the market (Time to grow)
8. Not knowing what you own (Knowledge)
9. Understanding the impact of compounding, taxes and inflation
10. Not setting quantifiable, realistic goals
10 Strategies to save tax dollars
1. "Buy and hold" - defer tax
2. Maximize RRSP - defer tax
3. Split your income with your family members - lower tax
4. Invest in your home - tax free
5. Dividends - lower tax rate
6. Borrow to invest - deductible tax expenses
7. Maximize RESP - tax at lower rate and receive grant from government
8. Maximize tax deduction - lower tax
9. Maximize employee benefit
10. Employ yourself - more tax deduction
TRANSITION TO RETIREMENT
Prepare a to-do list: travel, music, education, etc
1. Keep your option open - phased in retirement by doing less hours, part time work
2. Reinvent yourself - move to other job or work that is different
3. Take the plunge - start your own business
4. Open your mind - continue education, learn something you like to
5. Help those in need - volunteer to help people
6. Live it up - build a social network and meet new people
7. Delay retirement
HARMONY
1. Estate Planning - begins and ends in a Will
Life is an open road. It is the best story never told. Secret to a happy retirement is to make a big deal out of everything in your life.
To retire well,
1. Invest in making friends.
2. Invest in your health.
3. Invest in safe investment (minimize your risk)
The Rich are different from us
1. They save regularly
2. They live frugally
3. They know where their money is going
4. They avoid debt
5. They maximize income
6. They own appreciating assets
7. They get professional advice
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
The New Retire-Mentality
Planning Your Life and Living your Dreams ... at any age you want - Mitch Anthony
Traditional view of Retirement - we should do what we don't enjoy to accumulate the money we need someday do what we want.
"Once we become adults, we often lose track of life's simple pleasures and of our own personal goals. We take a wrong turn or two, then spend a good part of our lives doing things we'd rather not - while not doing many things we'd enjoy. While we may obsess about how unhappy we are, we don't focus clearly on what we can do to change the situation: on how we can invest our time, energy and, yes, our money to consciously create the life we want." - Marc Eisenson, author, Invest in Yourself: Six Secrets to a Rich Life.
But we should be living the life we want and don't put the money cart ahead of the life horse. Be creative and a new mind set, you can both find and fund the life you really want.
People think retirement is a spectator sport and watching from the sideline. Life is more exciting if you are in the game! Liberty is about do what you want when you want to. Because I value freedom so much, I exercise the necessary discipline to maintain it.
Traditional retirement is unnatural. Even if you can afford to retire, the worst thing you can do is withdraw completely from the race. People are happier if they are busy doing what they love. Rethink what Retirement mean to you.
Recent study conducted by Gallup and Paine Webber - Retirement Revisited reveals details of what investors want to do after they retire. 85% said they want to continue work in some for. Respondents' answer fell into the following 5 categories:
1. I want to work as long as I can (doing what I do now) - 15%
2. I want to become an entrepreneur - 26%
3. I want to find a new job - 34%
4. I want to find some balance between work and life - 10%
5. I want the "traditional" retirement - 15%
"Retirement is changing. Many individuals are retiring from their career professions only to take on new work. These changes point to the need for reshaping our ideas and institutions associated with retirement and developing new perspectives on the nature of work." - Dr. Phyllis Moen, Bronfenbrenner Life Course Center.
If there is no finish line, we will begin to focus on doing working today that capitalizes on our gifts and gives expression to our deepest-felt desire. Instead, we can begin to make choices that are not based on money but on doing work that brings us a sense of purpose and satisfaction.
Work may always be a part of your Life. Work provide great intangible rewards to our mind and spirit, etc.
How one ages successfully
"No one but me will define what my life will be" - Paige. An attitude to help to live longer.
A sense of Mastery to describe how individuals must believe in their ability to influence events and control their outcomes to be positive and productive in their later years. A person who takes a passive approach to life and lacks the ability to take action will experience a lack of productivity at any age. If people are willing to try new things in their mature years, their self-reliance and effectiveness can flourish to all-time highs.
"I've noticed an interesting phenomenon with my retired friends who have become ill and/or died a short time into their retirement. The physical malady almost always seemed to be preceded by a mental one - boredom. They are disengaged from the part of their being that gave them satisfaction their entire life. They'd try to fulfill themselves on the golf course or through some exotic travel but kept coming back to the same problem. They felt too young and useful to be 'goofing off' all the time. If they didn't respond to this problem with some meaningful pursuit, they just seemed to get sick, and sometimes they died. For these people, a life of ease was really one step from a life of disease." - Art, retired attorney, 70
"The only thing that has ever made me feel old is those few times where I allow myself to be predictable. Routine is death." - Carlos Santana.
"I am long on ideas but short on time. I expect to live to be only about a hundred" - Thomsas Edison
One way to keep these powerful internal forces alive in our life is to continue being engaged in work and activities that place a demand on our physical, mental, and creative resources.
It is only when we start looking backward and talking about life in the past tense that we know the process of old has begun in our life. "I don't ever look back; he might be gaining on me."
3 indicators of successful aging are:
1. Avoiding disease and disability
2. Maintaining mental and physical function
3. Continuing engagement with life.
First key to aging successfully is to take an interest in yourself. Those who succeed are self-respecting enough to keep their bodies fit, their minds challenged, and their hearts engaged. There are many paths one can :
1. Maintaining a social network of friends and associates
2. Continuing education and mental challenge
3. Exercising your body
4. Giving to others and being needed
Researchers concluded that new retirees need a social network more than they did when they are working.
"Much of whatwe think of as aging is really just a by-product of inactivity and poor nutrition, and it's not hard to change that." - Miriam Nelson
You don't have to be 65 do do what you want to do
" A wealthy businessesman was horrified to see a fisherman sitting beside his boat, playing with a small child. "Why aren't you out fishing?" asked the businessman. "Because I caught enough fish for one day," replied the fisherman. "Why don't you catch some more?" "What would I do with them?" "You could earn extra money," said the businessman, "then with the extra money, you could buy a bigger boat, go into deeper waters, and catch more fish. Then you would make enough money to buy nylon nets. With the nets, you could catch even more fish and make more money. With that money you could own two boats, may be three boats. Eventually you could have a whole fleet of boats and be rich like me." "Then what would I do?" asked the fisherman. "Then," said the businessman, "you could really enjoy life." The fisherman looked at the businessman quizzically and asked, "What do you think I am doing now?"
"It's not important to run on the fast track but on your track. Pretend you only have 6 months to live, and make 3 lists. Things you have to do, things you want to do, and things you neither have to do nor want to do. Then for the rest of your life, forget everything on the third list." - Robert Elliot
Boxes of Life
1. Up to age 22 or so - Education
2. Age 22 to 62 - Work
3. 62 to death - Leisure
The desired life course is one integrates all of these aspects of life into a balanced approach to everyday living. A great life is one in which we are constantly learning something new, engaging in work that challenges and fulfills us, and reserving time for rest and relaxation. It is a most unnatural life that tries to squeeze these 3 activities into one box of the lifeline. Happiness and fulfillment for a lifetime come when we learn to fluidly integrate all three.
"Fear not that your life will come to an end but that it will never have a beginning." - John Henry Newman.
"One day my daughter asked me to come out and play. I said, 'No, Honey, Dad's too busy.' My daughter said, 'You're always too busy' and went out to play. That night I kept turning it over in my head. Why do I work hard? Answer: to get freedom. Why do I want freedom? Answer: to spend time with those I love. When am I going to have this freedom or make getting it a priority? Answer: probably about the time my kids are gone. I realized I had put myself in a vicious cycle of motion and money and had everything turned upside down." - Ted
Meaningful life - a life full of meaning. There are many aspects of our life that give us a sense of fulfillment - family, achievement, exploration, freedom.
7 intangibles
1. Happiness is wanting what you already have - things won't make us happier. "Money won't make you happy, but neither will poverty." Happiness is a state of mind and not a state of material ownership.
2. Fulfillment is optimizing the use of your abilities - doing things that you love to do.
3. Balance is walking the tightrope between too much and not enough - work, family and leisure - when we get them in balance we enjoy life. There is a fine balance to be achieved in attending to the physical, emotional, social and spiritual sides of our being.
4. Satisfaction is improving the quality of our efforts and relationships - constantly striving to improve key relationships in our life, and if we are living in a thoughtful, self-examined life, we will feel a sense of satisfaction
5. Security is possessing the freedom to pursue our goals - a sense of security when we know we will have the freedom to continuing pursuing those goals in work, family and leisure.
6. Significance is making the best use of time - to feel they are making contribution that is signficant.
7. Success is the satisfaction of reaching our goals - a sense of success start with first having a goal.
Your life is not about making money - your money is about making a life. These 7 intangibles cannot be bought, but you can easily sell them out.
You can adjust your current situation to make a more balanced life. Being willing to shift circumstances if it can help you procure a more balanced lifestyle (trading the amount of money make to a balanced lifestyle). Living within or below your means to move faster to make it financially vitable. Forming a plan to use the money you have to purchase the life you want.
"I have come to the conclusion that more retirements will fail for non-financial reasons rather than for financial reasons" - Michael Stein, author, The Prosperous Retirement
The Prosperous retirement wheel - money is at the hub of Stein's wheel, but eight spokes come out from this center - physical health, mental health, diet, exercise, social relations, personal relations, intellectual stimulation, and spiritual balance.
"Many people are so occupied with getting out of a career trap that they seem to care little about what happens after they leave their jobs. Despite the fact they have planned other aspects of their lives, they seem to feel retirement will take care of itself. The opposite is often true." - Edwood Chapman
Future retirees need to be asking what they want to do with their life during retirement, and what the personal implications of retirement are for them. Baby boomers are looking for a meaningful role in their later adulthood. Money is important to them, but so is the quality of life in their retirement. People have to make plans to occupy their mind, time, and energies in retirement.
In all stages of our life, we need to understand what matters most to us and create strategies so we can concentrate most of our time in the areas we care about.
Traditional view of Retirement - we should do what we don't enjoy to accumulate the money we need someday do what we want.
"Once we become adults, we often lose track of life's simple pleasures and of our own personal goals. We take a wrong turn or two, then spend a good part of our lives doing things we'd rather not - while not doing many things we'd enjoy. While we may obsess about how unhappy we are, we don't focus clearly on what we can do to change the situation: on how we can invest our time, energy and, yes, our money to consciously create the life we want." - Marc Eisenson, author, Invest in Yourself: Six Secrets to a Rich Life.
But we should be living the life we want and don't put the money cart ahead of the life horse. Be creative and a new mind set, you can both find and fund the life you really want.
People think retirement is a spectator sport and watching from the sideline. Life is more exciting if you are in the game! Liberty is about do what you want when you want to. Because I value freedom so much, I exercise the necessary discipline to maintain it.
Traditional retirement is unnatural. Even if you can afford to retire, the worst thing you can do is withdraw completely from the race. People are happier if they are busy doing what they love. Rethink what Retirement mean to you.
Recent study conducted by Gallup and Paine Webber - Retirement Revisited reveals details of what investors want to do after they retire. 85% said they want to continue work in some for. Respondents' answer fell into the following 5 categories:
1. I want to work as long as I can (doing what I do now) - 15%
2. I want to become an entrepreneur - 26%
3. I want to find a new job - 34%
4. I want to find some balance between work and life - 10%
5. I want the "traditional" retirement - 15%
"Retirement is changing. Many individuals are retiring from their career professions only to take on new work. These changes point to the need for reshaping our ideas and institutions associated with retirement and developing new perspectives on the nature of work." - Dr. Phyllis Moen, Bronfenbrenner Life Course Center.
If there is no finish line, we will begin to focus on doing working today that capitalizes on our gifts and gives expression to our deepest-felt desire. Instead, we can begin to make choices that are not based on money but on doing work that brings us a sense of purpose and satisfaction.
Work may always be a part of your Life. Work provide great intangible rewards to our mind and spirit, etc.
How one ages successfully
"No one but me will define what my life will be" - Paige. An attitude to help to live longer.
A sense of Mastery to describe how individuals must believe in their ability to influence events and control their outcomes to be positive and productive in their later years. A person who takes a passive approach to life and lacks the ability to take action will experience a lack of productivity at any age. If people are willing to try new things in their mature years, their self-reliance and effectiveness can flourish to all-time highs.
"I've noticed an interesting phenomenon with my retired friends who have become ill and/or died a short time into their retirement. The physical malady almost always seemed to be preceded by a mental one - boredom. They are disengaged from the part of their being that gave them satisfaction their entire life. They'd try to fulfill themselves on the golf course or through some exotic travel but kept coming back to the same problem. They felt too young and useful to be 'goofing off' all the time. If they didn't respond to this problem with some meaningful pursuit, they just seemed to get sick, and sometimes they died. For these people, a life of ease was really one step from a life of disease." - Art, retired attorney, 70
"The only thing that has ever made me feel old is those few times where I allow myself to be predictable. Routine is death." - Carlos Santana.
"I am long on ideas but short on time. I expect to live to be only about a hundred" - Thomsas Edison
One way to keep these powerful internal forces alive in our life is to continue being engaged in work and activities that place a demand on our physical, mental, and creative resources.
It is only when we start looking backward and talking about life in the past tense that we know the process of old has begun in our life. "I don't ever look back; he might be gaining on me."
3 indicators of successful aging are:
1. Avoiding disease and disability
2. Maintaining mental and physical function
3. Continuing engagement with life.
First key to aging successfully is to take an interest in yourself. Those who succeed are self-respecting enough to keep their bodies fit, their minds challenged, and their hearts engaged. There are many paths one can :
1. Maintaining a social network of friends and associates
2. Continuing education and mental challenge
3. Exercising your body
4. Giving to others and being needed
Researchers concluded that new retirees need a social network more than they did when they are working.
"Much of whatwe think of as aging is really just a by-product of inactivity and poor nutrition, and it's not hard to change that." - Miriam Nelson
You don't have to be 65 do do what you want to do
" A wealthy businessesman was horrified to see a fisherman sitting beside his boat, playing with a small child. "Why aren't you out fishing?" asked the businessman. "Because I caught enough fish for one day," replied the fisherman. "Why don't you catch some more?" "What would I do with them?" "You could earn extra money," said the businessman, "then with the extra money, you could buy a bigger boat, go into deeper waters, and catch more fish. Then you would make enough money to buy nylon nets. With the nets, you could catch even more fish and make more money. With that money you could own two boats, may be three boats. Eventually you could have a whole fleet of boats and be rich like me." "Then what would I do?" asked the fisherman. "Then," said the businessman, "you could really enjoy life." The fisherman looked at the businessman quizzically and asked, "What do you think I am doing now?"
"It's not important to run on the fast track but on your track. Pretend you only have 6 months to live, and make 3 lists. Things you have to do, things you want to do, and things you neither have to do nor want to do. Then for the rest of your life, forget everything on the third list." - Robert Elliot
Boxes of Life
1. Up to age 22 or so - Education
2. Age 22 to 62 - Work
3. 62 to death - Leisure
The desired life course is one integrates all of these aspects of life into a balanced approach to everyday living. A great life is one in which we are constantly learning something new, engaging in work that challenges and fulfills us, and reserving time for rest and relaxation. It is a most unnatural life that tries to squeeze these 3 activities into one box of the lifeline. Happiness and fulfillment for a lifetime come when we learn to fluidly integrate all three.
"Fear not that your life will come to an end but that it will never have a beginning." - John Henry Newman.
"One day my daughter asked me to come out and play. I said, 'No, Honey, Dad's too busy.' My daughter said, 'You're always too busy' and went out to play. That night I kept turning it over in my head. Why do I work hard? Answer: to get freedom. Why do I want freedom? Answer: to spend time with those I love. When am I going to have this freedom or make getting it a priority? Answer: probably about the time my kids are gone. I realized I had put myself in a vicious cycle of motion and money and had everything turned upside down." - Ted
Meaningful life - a life full of meaning. There are many aspects of our life that give us a sense of fulfillment - family, achievement, exploration, freedom.
7 intangibles
1. Happiness is wanting what you already have - things won't make us happier. "Money won't make you happy, but neither will poverty." Happiness is a state of mind and not a state of material ownership.
2. Fulfillment is optimizing the use of your abilities - doing things that you love to do.
3. Balance is walking the tightrope between too much and not enough - work, family and leisure - when we get them in balance we enjoy life. There is a fine balance to be achieved in attending to the physical, emotional, social and spiritual sides of our being.
4. Satisfaction is improving the quality of our efforts and relationships - constantly striving to improve key relationships in our life, and if we are living in a thoughtful, self-examined life, we will feel a sense of satisfaction
5. Security is possessing the freedom to pursue our goals - a sense of security when we know we will have the freedom to continuing pursuing those goals in work, family and leisure.
6. Significance is making the best use of time - to feel they are making contribution that is signficant.
7. Success is the satisfaction of reaching our goals - a sense of success start with first having a goal.
Your life is not about making money - your money is about making a life. These 7 intangibles cannot be bought, but you can easily sell them out.
You can adjust your current situation to make a more balanced life. Being willing to shift circumstances if it can help you procure a more balanced lifestyle (trading the amount of money make to a balanced lifestyle). Living within or below your means to move faster to make it financially vitable. Forming a plan to use the money you have to purchase the life you want.
"I have come to the conclusion that more retirements will fail for non-financial reasons rather than for financial reasons" - Michael Stein, author, The Prosperous Retirement
The Prosperous retirement wheel - money is at the hub of Stein's wheel, but eight spokes come out from this center - physical health, mental health, diet, exercise, social relations, personal relations, intellectual stimulation, and spiritual balance.
"Many people are so occupied with getting out of a career trap that they seem to care little about what happens after they leave their jobs. Despite the fact they have planned other aspects of their lives, they seem to feel retirement will take care of itself. The opposite is often true." - Edwood Chapman
Future retirees need to be asking what they want to do with their life during retirement, and what the personal implications of retirement are for them. Baby boomers are looking for a meaningful role in their later adulthood. Money is important to them, but so is the quality of life in their retirement. People have to make plans to occupy their mind, time, and energies in retirement.
In all stages of our life, we need to understand what matters most to us and create strategies so we can concentrate most of our time in the areas we care about.
Future Retirement Strategies
Future Retirement Strategies for Productive People - David Bond & Diane Bond
It is important to plan for your retirement as retirement is not short. You still have another 15 - 35 years to go. It is much better to stay physically and mentally active. It can be done through learning new skills, exploding new areas, and do something meaningful. You still have a lot in your tank to contribute.
In order the transition for full-time work into a new phase, a good plan will be helpful.
1) Self assess : what skills, talents, experiences you have and what kind of interest, hobbies you like to explode or develop; what things you likes or dislikes. After the self assessment, you should validate those with some good friends.
2) Answer some big questions :
i) what role does work play in your vision of an ideal life after retirement?
ii) how much leisure time do you really want, and how do you want to spend it?
iii) are you going to move to other city, country?
3) Exploding the options and make your choice : detail the goal from the above and decide what to do next. Draw your own time line and work on it.
It is important to have a plan. This plan concerns what you want to do and how you want to live. It creates a roadmap for the future. As future is uncertain, it is important that it should be flexible and adjust when necessary. It is a personal plan that requires thought, honesty with yourself and trust in those who know you best. Also, this plan allows you to prepare ahead.
Develop your hobbies or volunteer interest you think will bring you satisfaction.
It is important to plan for your retirement as retirement is not short. You still have another 15 - 35 years to go. It is much better to stay physically and mentally active. It can be done through learning new skills, exploding new areas, and do something meaningful. You still have a lot in your tank to contribute.
In order the transition for full-time work into a new phase, a good plan will be helpful.
1) Self assess : what skills, talents, experiences you have and what kind of interest, hobbies you like to explode or develop; what things you likes or dislikes. After the self assessment, you should validate those with some good friends.
2) Answer some big questions :
i) what role does work play in your vision of an ideal life after retirement?
ii) how much leisure time do you really want, and how do you want to spend it?
iii) are you going to move to other city, country?
3) Exploding the options and make your choice : detail the goal from the above and decide what to do next. Draw your own time line and work on it.
It is important to have a plan. This plan concerns what you want to do and how you want to live. It creates a roadmap for the future. As future is uncertain, it is important that it should be flexible and adjust when necessary. It is a personal plan that requires thought, honesty with yourself and trust in those who know you best. Also, this plan allows you to prepare ahead.
Develop your hobbies or volunteer interest you think will bring you satisfaction.
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