The post-career period

What a wonderful phrase that is. It was used by a journalist who wished me to write an article about retirement. Sounds so much nicer doesn't it. After all, retirement has connotations of old age and waiting to die for many people.

Of course, that does not have to be the case providing you follow all the good advice with regard to saving that I have given you in this column over the past 20 months. I am sure you have heard most of the same advice over the years from many other people and many other sources and yet how many people actually act on it? Very few, I promise you, in my experience. It is like a person who is told that they are at high risk to develop lung cancer and yet refuse to give up smoking. It makes no logical sense.

It is usually around the age of 50 that people wake up to the fact that they probably have at most 10 years and at least until tomorrow, when they will be able to continue working, depending on the generosity and well-being of their employers and also, their own health.

Then they start worrying about how much they have got and how much they will need. They also start rationalising as to the reasons why they have not been able to save until now. Usually, it is the children's fault as they have had to be schooled, fed, clothed, etc. What a terrible burden to put on ones so young to start out life being blamed for your parents' penury.

The interesting thing, I find, is that many of these people also have expensive holidays and very active social lives.

I realise that everyone has a choice in life as to how and when they spend their money. 'Living for today' is an axiom that a lot of people say they believe in and it is fine when you are young. How-ever, remember, as people are living longer now and will live even longer in the future as medical science advances, there are likely to be a lot of 'todays' later on in your life. I was listening to an insurance company actuary not so long ago who told me that we could expect people born today to live to well over a hundred.

Working on that basis there are 14,600 'todays' between the ages of 60 and 100.

Maybe, you will not live quite that long but, certainly, half that period is a likely expectation for most of us. So that is 7,300 days to cater for, assuming you retired at 60.

Well, we all know that the first few years of retirement are the most expensive, because you finally get to do the things that you always wanted. In addition, you have an additional 12 hours a day to spend money, i.e. the time you used to spend at work. So, they could be exciting and expensive 'todays'.

Alternatively, you may be planning to spend these 12 hours listening to the radio or watching television in your unheated/air-conditioned apartment. Not so expensive 'todays'.

Never mind, it is another fact that as most of us get into our late 70s and 80s, we do not want to do much so that is cheap. Unfortun-ately, there is yet another fact that states that although we are living longer it is not in good health, and so more and more funds are required for medical reasons and long-term care.

Of course, as I said, everyone has a choice so 'Live for Today', after all I am sure your children will thank you for all the sacrifices that you have made for them and keep you in the style to which you have become accustomed in your 'post-career period'.


The author is the Head of Reti-rement and Relocation, Towry Law International, Dubai.