Читать книгу The New Retirement - Jan Cullinane - Страница 24

Ah, yes … money! For many retirement books, finance is the dominant or only topic. It's tremendously important, which is why three chapters are devoted to this “Secret.” A few stories and studies about money and retirement that are worth mentioning:

 Most of us want to project a confident, got-it-together façade. So, it's very concerning that two-thirds of those in a 2021 Retirement Risk Readiness Study by Allianz Life reported they were concerned about healthcare costs, the rising cost of living, and not having enough money to do what they want in retirement, but they were not bringing up these issues with their financial professionals. Yet, the survey takers also said they would like to discuss them with their advisor. Ironic that the people who could help them may not know what is really bothering their clients. Kind of like when we go to a doctor's appointment and we are not really forthcoming on what's troubling us or symptoms we may have. So, speak up! And financial professionals … be proactive in your questions.

 Does money bring happiness? Recall the ancient fable “The Golden Touch.” A king named Midas performed a good deed and was granted a wish by a god. Midas wanted everything he touched to turn into gold. The god warned him this was not a good wish, but Midas persisted, and his wish was reluctantly granted. At first Midas was thrilled with his new power, but then when he became hungry and his food turned into gold and he could not eat it, he realized he had made a BIG mistake. His beloved daughter, trying to comfort him, also turned into gold. Not scientific, but a good message that money isn't everything. (But, let's face it – it is important.)

 A 2020 study in Social Psychology and Personality Science involved almost 1,300 adults who reported their income as well as how frequently, on average, they felt happy and how intensely happy they felt. The results found a higher income was related to feeling happy slightly more often, but there was no relationship to the intensity. So, money itself did not bring a giant boost in happiness, but may allow people to experience happiness more often.

 “Keeping up with the Joneses.” Sarah Newcomb, PhD, a behavioral economist at Morningstar, cites three studies that found that “where a person believes they stand relative to others has a much larger effect on happiness than absolute income.” The power of social comparisons is huge; even those participants in the study making large salaries felt bad about themselves when they made upward comparisons to others. Advice: Compare yourself to those who make the same or less. Or think about how far you've advanced financially compared to your younger self – use your younger self as a reference rather than others. You'll be a lot happier than obsessing about the rich guy or gal down the block.Best view of money? It's valuable because it can buy time, freedom, and choices (although too many choices can be a negative). And, as my CPA friend says, “Retirement planning doesn't have to be hard, complicated, or stressful.” You'll agree when you read the financial chapters.