Your Next Vacation – Retirement
Think back to the last time you took a vacation. Do you recall how much time you spent deciding your destination, where you would stay, transportation, dining, and activities for your trip?
It may surprise you to know that travelers typically spend an average of 303 minutes (over 5 hours) PER DAY on travel content during the 45 days leading up to booking a vacation.1 This is just to get to the point of booking the vacation. This accumulates to more than 227 hours in total. In terms of a 40-hour work week—that equates to more than 5 and 1/2 weeks!
Now…how much time have you dedicated to planning for retirement?
If I were a betting gal, I would wager that most people have spent little to none, significantly less than what they devoted to planning that last vacation.
If you think about it, isn’t that a little ironic. A vacation lasts a week or two, while retirement could extend for thirty or forty years…more or less.
Most of our efforts involve assisting individuals build plans for retiring in the next five years or less. In fact, we spend a lot of time helping people who are retiring in the next year, have just retired, or just received a contract on selling their business. We seldom have the opportunity to assist a family prepare years in advance.
Truth be told, this is rather disheartening. It’s disheartening because usually the plan involves this statement…
Something has to give…
When you postpone, it often becomes too late to optimize your retirement. You might not achieve the retirement you had anticipated. There may be limited flexibility to navigate. You lack the time to work on your budget and plans, save more, or allow your money work to your advantage. Tax planning options are thin and finding hidden dollars is sometimes impossible.
We recorded a podcast this year with a man by the name of Rich Hall. He assists business owners in preparing their business to be “ready and attractive” in order to entice the best buyers. Rich emphasized that starting this process as early as possible is essential…5 years at a minimum!
So, here’s a thought for you. What if you dubbed your next vacation “Retirement?” What if you truly set aside 227 hours this year to plan it?
As that betting gal, I’m wagering that this is the only vacation planning that you will ever undertake that will not cost you any money. In fact, it might even provide you with some!