The Plan by Investors Group^TM

Plan to retire right

Most people would agree that retirement should be all about freedom from financial worries and freedom to do what you want with your time. Canadians are doing increasingly well at the dollars and cents of retirement – saving and investing enough to ensure the freedom of a financially secure retirement. But planning a successful and happy retirement reaches well beyond financial matters.

In the press of daily life, it’s easy to focus on what needs to be done today and to worry about tomorrow when it comes. But when it comes to retirement, you’ll be selling yourself short if you don’t start planning for it sooner rather than later. That’s especially true if you’re so heavily engaged in your work you’ve neglected other aspects of your life. What happens when that huge chunk of your life that is work suddenly disappears? If you’ve let your social network languish and lost your sense of connection with your community, you’ll have a huge void to fill when you retire – unless you start renewing those connections now.

To get you started, here are six key factors to a successful retirement abbreviated from extensive research by the Retirement Lifestyle Centre Inc., a North American research and education company focusing on retirement issues:

Have a clear vision of the future. Most successful retirees will tell you they have created a structure for their retirement life that replaces the structure they left behind with their workplace.
Practice good health and wellness. Look for ways to keep yourself both physically and mentally stimulated through all the years of your retirement.
Be positive about making your retirement ‘work’. Once, retirement was viewed as ‘freedom from work’; now it’s seen as ‘freedom to work’ at something your truly enjoy.
Take a balanced approach to leisure. Cast a wide net, be adventurous and find a happy ‘life balance’.
Enjoy personal relationships. Work on maintaining and developing your social networks – and don’t wait to the last minute; it takes time to develop networks of friends and personal interests that will support a fulfilling retirement.
Feel financially comfortable. Get the maximum amount of joy out of all your retirement years by making sure right now that your financial plan will support your personal retirement vision.

Take the time to become retirement ready by establishing and nurturing the non-financial elements of your life including friends, family and activities that will yield substantial quality-of-life dividends through all your retirement years.

Get a handle on your retirement readiness

The Retirement Readiness Quiz provides an opportunity for you to assess how prepared you are for retirement -- financially, emotionally, socially and physically. The quiz also lets you compare your retirement readiness with other Canadians.

After taking the quiz, you will receive your retirement readiness score, as well as an evaluation of how you compare to other Canadians as well as advice on the steps you can take now to prepare for your retirement.

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This article, written and published by Investors Group Financial Services Inc., (in Quebec – a Financial Services Firm), presents general information only and is not a solicitation to buy or sell any investments. For more information on this topic please contact your Investors Group Consultant.