WEBVTT 00:00:00.110 --> 00:00:03.330 Do you ever feel that you're just not ready? 00:00:04.110 --> 00:00:08.310 Not ready to make that big decision. Not ready 00:00:08.310 --> 00:00:13.810 to take that leap. Not ready to retire. You know, 00:00:13.810 --> 00:00:16.890 it's a feeling that can stop us in our tracks. 00:00:17.010 --> 00:00:19.850 And for many, it's actually the biggest obstacle 00:00:19.850 --> 00:00:23.129 to a happy and timely retirement here in the 00:00:23.129 --> 00:00:27.350 UK. I was recently chatting with, well, let's 00:00:27.350 --> 00:00:32.909 call him Alex. had been saving diligently for 00:00:32.909 --> 00:00:37.229 years, making regular contributions to his workplace 00:00:37.229 --> 00:00:41.549 pension. He had also paid enough National Insurance 00:00:41.549 --> 00:00:45.549 contributions to qualify for the full -stake 00:00:45.549 --> 00:00:51.469 pension. Now on paper, he was financially ready 00:00:51.469 --> 00:00:55.549 to retire, but every time he thought about it, 00:00:55.850 --> 00:01:00.240 our stomach just dropped. He said, I just don't 00:01:00.240 --> 00:01:03.500 know. He said, is the state pensioning off and 00:01:03.500 --> 00:01:07.939 what if the markets take a hit? What if I need 00:01:07.939 --> 00:01:12.980 more than that 25 % tax free lump sum? I feel 00:01:12.980 --> 00:01:16.219 like another, I need another five years just 00:01:16.219 --> 00:01:19.920 to be safe. But Hallux had gone over the numbers 00:01:19.920 --> 00:01:23.739 with his independent financial advisor. And he 00:01:23.739 --> 00:01:27.090 told him, that his defiant contribution part 00:01:27.090 --> 00:01:30.170 was looking really healthy. You know, they both 00:01:30.170 --> 00:01:34.890 factored in the expected state pension and they 00:01:34.890 --> 00:01:41.689 knew that he was in a strong position. So as 00:01:41.689 --> 00:01:45.269 we agreed that the problem isn't the maths at 00:01:45.269 --> 00:01:48.870 all, it's probably a problem with confidence. 00:01:49.450 --> 00:01:52.969 So the fear of the unknown of what might go wrong, 00:01:53.269 --> 00:01:57.040 it's so, powerful that it overshadows reality 00:01:57.040 --> 00:02:02.299 of what's gone right. This lack of confidence 00:02:02.299 --> 00:02:06.439 keeps people tied to a desk long after they've 00:02:06.439 --> 00:02:09.960 earned their retirement freedom. We often talk 00:02:09.960 --> 00:02:14.000 about the financial cost of retirement, but what 00:02:14.000 --> 00:02:21.780 about the cost of time? Time is one asset. you 00:02:21.780 --> 00:02:25.219 can never earn back every extra year you work 00:02:25.219 --> 00:02:29.300 just in case is it a year that you don't spend 00:02:29.300 --> 00:02:33.439 traveling or learning a new skill or simply being 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:37.759 present with the people that you love think of 00:02:37.759 --> 00:02:42.740 it this way your pension pot can grow but your 00:02:42.740 --> 00:02:46.939 time is only ever ticking down now the minute 00:02:46.939 --> 00:02:51.080 you spend worrying about a future problem that 00:02:51.080 --> 00:02:55.030 might never actually occur are minutes that are 00:02:55.030 --> 00:02:58.409 stolen from the present that you could be enjoying. 00:03:00.330 --> 00:03:06.330 You spend time alone with a partner or with other 00:03:06.330 --> 00:03:11.530 people. And as we age, the ratio between the 00:03:11.530 --> 00:03:18.330 time you spend with them changes. So in our twenties, 00:03:19.189 --> 00:03:22.419 we can see here, that we spend lots and lots 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:26.580 of time with other people. We spend very little 00:03:26.580 --> 00:03:31.300 time alone and very little time with our partners. 00:03:32.939 --> 00:03:37.400 By the time we hit 45, you can see that we spend 00:03:37.400 --> 00:03:42.300 more time with our partners. Now this is on average. 00:03:43.520 --> 00:03:48.560 We spend less time alone and even less time. 00:03:48.879 --> 00:03:54.099 with others. Now let's move on to when we're 00:03:54.099 --> 00:03:59.319 70. Now this is the time we spend most time with 00:03:59.319 --> 00:04:05.460 our partners on average. Some time alone, but 00:04:05.460 --> 00:04:09.960 very little time with others. We can become isolated. 00:04:11.039 --> 00:04:17.189 Now sadly, when we hit 90, we are... spending 00:04:17.189 --> 00:04:21.649 a huge amount of our time on our own. And that's 00:04:21.649 --> 00:04:25.509 on average because many relationships will have 00:04:25.509 --> 00:04:28.970 lost one of their partners by the time they get 00:04:28.970 --> 00:04:33.290 to 90. And you can see that they are spending 00:04:33.290 --> 00:04:38.329 very little time with others as well. And that's 00:04:38.329 --> 00:04:44.730 where loneliness creeps in. In this chart, we 00:04:44.730 --> 00:04:48.970 look at money, health and time. And at different 00:04:48.970 --> 00:04:54.009 ages in our lives, what percentage of these we 00:04:54.009 --> 00:04:59.230 have overall. So we can see here that in our 00:04:59.230 --> 00:05:04.129 twenties, again on average, we have quite a small 00:05:04.129 --> 00:05:10.769 amount of money. Whereas our time is extensive. 00:05:10.990 --> 00:05:15.540 We have a lot of time left. Now, when we reach 00:05:15.540 --> 00:05:21.779 50, we've usually accumulated quite a bit more 00:05:21.779 --> 00:05:25.319 assets and money. So as you can see, that money 00:05:25.319 --> 00:05:30.220 is our largest percentage split here, but our 00:05:30.220 --> 00:05:36.399 time has reduced significantly. Now, by the time 00:05:36.399 --> 00:05:41.319 we reach 70, quite often on average again, we 00:05:41.319 --> 00:05:45.810 will have accumulated quite a lot. of cash due 00:05:45.810 --> 00:05:51.329 to having pension savings, but our health will 00:05:51.329 --> 00:05:56.389 have significantly reduced and our time has almost 00:05:56.389 --> 00:06:02.810 run out. So we really need to start to build 00:06:02.810 --> 00:06:07.930 our confidence to enable us to make the right 00:06:07.930 --> 00:06:14.389 decision to retire at the right time. So how 00:06:14.389 --> 00:06:18.889 do you bridge this confidence gap? If you haven't 00:06:18.889 --> 00:06:25.310 already, revisit your plan. Sit down with a pensions 00:06:25.310 --> 00:06:29.509 professional advisor or an IFA and see the numbers 00:06:29.509 --> 00:06:33.170 in black and white. Don't rely on gut feelings. 00:06:33.689 --> 00:06:37.649 I mean, seeing your solid plan, including any 00:06:37.649 --> 00:06:40.230 private pensions and the state pension actually 00:06:40.230 --> 00:06:45.839 laid out can be incredibly reassuring. And once 00:06:45.839 --> 00:06:49.579 you are convinced on the numbers then put them 00:06:49.579 --> 00:06:53.959 to one side and then try and visualize your life. 00:06:54.240 --> 00:06:58.579 Like not just the abstract idea, but the tangible 00:06:58.579 --> 00:07:02.620 details, where you go for walks, what books you'll 00:07:02.620 --> 00:07:06.519 read, who you'll have lunch with, you know, make 00:07:06.519 --> 00:07:11.779 it real and maybe start small. How about practicing 00:07:11.779 --> 00:07:15.879 retired life on a smaller scale? Skip to holidays 00:07:15.879 --> 00:07:19.519 this year maybe, instead take a few weeks off 00:07:19.519 --> 00:07:23.060 and see what it feels like to live on your own 00:07:23.060 --> 00:07:26.500 terms. I mean, it's a powerful rehearsal. When 00:07:26.500 --> 00:07:30.379 you are retired, not every day can be a holiday. 00:07:31.139 --> 00:07:34.899 So practice not being on holiday and not being 00:07:34.899 --> 00:07:39.259 at work. You've probably spent so much time being 00:07:39.259 --> 00:07:43.439 in one or the other that without planning it 00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:48.079 this can feel strange the goal isn't just to 00:07:48.079 --> 00:07:51.680 have enough money it's to have the courage to 00:07:51.680 --> 00:07:56.439 use that money so don't let a lack of confidence 00:07:56.439 --> 00:08:01.699 rob you of the most precious resource you have 00:08:01.699 --> 00:08:06.500 yeah time is precious don't waste it worrying 00:08:06.500 --> 00:08:10.449 retirement isn't an ending, it's a beginning. 00:08:11.389 --> 00:08:16.069 Don't let fear keep you from it. Thanks for listening 00:08:16.069 --> 00:08:18.850 to the end and I'll see you on the next one.