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Have Open Talks About Retirement Planning

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airport wall sign it only gets easier from here when retirement planning

I love reading the news. As I get older, I’m coming to appreciate well curated sources for news. One of them is Morning Brew. It’s a FREE daily news recap written in a very casual conversational tone.

Well, the Morning Brew team have launched a twice-weekly newsletter focused on money matters called “Money Scoop”. It’s a nice blend of proven money strategies and new money trends (like cryptocurrency). One of their recent articles caught my eye, “3 Questions to Ask Your Parents Before Retirement”. The article was focused on the conversation that younger people should have with their parents to make sure their parents are prepared for retirement.

As I was reading the article, I was reminded that conversations go both ways. So yes, if you’re a younger person worried about how your parents are preparing for retirement, then by all means – ask them. But if you’re an older person preparing for retirement, have you started sharing information with your loved ones?

We’ve talked before about estate planning and making sure that loved ones know your final wishes, but I think this is something different. Do you have enough money to sustain your retirement?

If the answer is YES, then great! That’s quite the achievement. Saving for retirement isn’t easy.

It does raise the question about how much you expect to pass on in terms of inheritance. And do your loved ones know? I mean, are they expecting an inheritance? I know individuals who will need an inheritance to buy their own home. If they don’t get it…well, they will be surprised. And possibly upset. Does it make some sense to have conversations about what you expect to pass on to heirs?

If the answer to the “have enough money” question is NO, well…then do you need to talk with loved ones about how you’re going to manage?

This is nothing to be ashamed of – not having enough money to retire. According to Synchrony Bank, the average American in their 60s should have 8-10 times their annual salary in retirement savings. That’s a lot! There are many reasons that individuals do not reach that goal including housing expenses, health care expenses, and education expenses. But it doesn’t change the fact that a person might need help. Waiting until the last minute to ask for money or resources isn’t helpful to anyone. Start thinking about how you’re going to approach that conversation.

Regardless of the answer to the retirement planning question, I realize this is a difficult conversation. It’s possible we don’t have all the answers. On some level, retirement is an unknown for many of us. We might not have the answers for a long time.

But talking with loved ones about our plans could help to put our minds at ease. The people around us know we’re okay. They know we’re thinking about our plans and taking all the right steps. And if we need help or guidance, that we’re comfortable asking for it. Better to start those conversations now.   

You Can Always Unretire

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airport sign change is in the air to show you can unretire

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes

I saw an article on NPR titled “These Older Workers Hadn’t Planned to Retire So Soon. The Pandemic Sped Things Up.” It’s a good read about the question that some individuals faced during the pandemic – is it time for me to retire?

My takeaway from the article was that there are many factors that go into the retirement decision. It could be our health. Maybe money. Or it’s possible we’re just tired. And all those reasons are fine. But just because we made the decision to retire, doesn’t mean we can’t ever unretire. Athletes do it all the time. In fact, that’s where the name of this blog comes from. We don’t have to officially retire unless we want to.

While being retired right now could be perfect, a moment could arise when you might want to think about unretiring.

Your old boss might ask you to come back. It’s no secret that organizations are having recruitment challenges. A common strategy to finding candidates is to start calling former employees to see if they’d like to return. Keep in mind that the opportunity might not be at your same job with the same pay and benefits. And on some level that could be perfect.

Oh, and if the boss doesn’t call, no worries. You can apply if you’d like to be reconsidered. Of course, the organization will check your personnel file to see if you’re eligible for rehire. But there’s nothing wrong with expressing an interest to return. If your old company isn’t hiring, you can look at other organizations. Bottom line – there’s nothing wrong with going back to work.

Maybe you’d like to turn a hobby into a side hustle. There are very talented people who bake cakes, make jewelry, clean driveways, etc. They don’t want to go back to a “regular” job. They’re happy doing their hobby. But maybe it’s crossed their mind that it would be nice to make a little money on the side. Possibly just enough to cover their expenses.

If you’re planning to start a side hustle, make sure that you’re set up to run a business and accept payments. The last thing you want is for your hobby to turn into a hinderance. The good news is there are often local resources or online resources that can assist at little or no cost.

A volunteer gig turns into part-time work. We’ve talked before about how volunteerism can be a great way to give back during retirement. Well, not-for-profit entities need employees too. The organization already sees the great work you’re doing as a volunteer, and they might ask you to consider full- or part-time employment.

This could be wonderful way to combine your passion with getting paid. But I can also see the opposite happening. Some people might find getting paid for something they did previously as a volunteer to be less fulfilling. Ultimately, you know you and will have to make that decision.

As a human resources professional, I am wondering how many people who retired over the past year or so will entertain the idea of returning to the working world. And what that “work” will look like. The important thing to remember is that unretiring is perfectly acceptable. Make it what you want it to be.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of New York, NY

Consider Having a Side Hustle In Your Unretirement

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airport sign showing that forward thinkers consider a side hustle in retirement

A key aspect to unretirement is work. When we think of being retired, we think of “not working”. Many individuals are finding that they like work. They like the challenge of work. They like the camaraderie of work. And they even like the financial rewards of work.

But that doesn’t mean that our work has to remain the same.

It might make sense to transition from full-time to part-time. Or maybe have an encore career, also referred to as a second career. You could also have a portfolio career, where you do a few smaller jobs instead of one big one. Then of course, there’s the option of being a freelancer, contractor, or consultant (aka creating a side hustle as part of the gig economy).

The reason I’m bringing this up is because I just read an article on The Hustle that LinkedIn is building a gig marketplace. The idea is that the “Marketplace” will be similar to Fiverr and Upwork, which are sites that host freelance work. If having a side hustle is part of your unretirement strategy, then it could make some sense to watch what LinkedIn is doing. Here are also a few other things to consider.

Keep your LinkedIn profile current. Most of us do not have career events happen that justify changing our LinkedIn profile on a weekly or monthly basis. But that doesn’t mean you can simply set it and forget it. Make a note to yourself to check your LinkedIn profile every six months or so to ensure it looks the way you want it to. If you feel your profile needs a good overhaul, Hannah Morgan (aka Career Sherpa) has a reasonably priced LinkedIn eGuide that can help.

Start posting news and paying attention to others. With your LinkedIn profile in order, now it’s time to start creating engagement. You can do that by posting articles of interest, giving endorsements, and writing recommendations. You can also do it by commenting on other people’s posts. It’s not hard, but it does take having a plan. If you’re thinking about a side hustle in unretirement, then you need for others to remember you. Being engaged helps people remember you.

Think about how you would display your side hustle on your profile. Lots of people have a side hustle. This isn’t anything to hide. What you have to do is find a way to share it so it looks cohesive with the rest of your profile. A few years ago, an HR Bartender reader asked about displaying side hustles on their resume and LinkedIn. A couple of recruiters shared their thoughts. Check it out when you have a moment. It might give you some creative inspiration on how to let others know about your side hustle.

Test drive the Marketplace feature. As I mentioned earlier, LinkedIn’s new feature will resemble other freelance marketplaces. At some point, you will want to test out these sites to see how they work. You’ll want to know their terms and conditions. Are there any other things you will need to create to participate (like a PayPal or Venmo account). You’ll also want to see if others are doing the same type of work you’re doing. On one hand that can be a good thing – because the site might have a reputation or attracting customers looking for a specific product or service. It could also be a negative if there’s too much competition. 

Set a date to evaluate your progress. I’m thinking of this activity as a way to learn more about side hustles. I do believe the best time to do that is when you’re still employed. The goal isn’t to start working two jobs, although you might find that adding the side gig now makes perfect sense. Just be prepared to regularly look at the effort you’re putting into your freelance work and the return you’re getting from it.

Freelancing work is a common way to transition from regular full-time status. It offers individuals freedom and some income. But make no mistake freelancing doesn’t just happen. It takes time to build a side hustle. If you’re thinking this might be for you, try it out before you need to make a final decision.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, GA

Retirement Planning: It’s About More Than Just Not Working Anymore

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wall art everything is figuroutable like retirement planning

The COVID-19 pandemic is forcing older workers to examine their job options. In an article on CNN.com, an economist mentions that young workers’ participation in the labor force has almost fully recovered, while older workers and women are recovering more slowly. I’m sure this has prompted individuals to say to themselves, “Am I ready for retirement?”.

Making the decision to retire involves more than simply deciding not to work anymore. It includes financial planning (Do I have enough money?), healthcare planning (Can I take care of my medical needs?), and emotional planning (Am I emotionally ready?). Over the past year, we’ve written about some of these topics and we thought it might be helpful to have them as a reference in one place.

Retirement Planning: 5 Reasons to Have a Stop Working Date

It’s very easy to simply pick the government’s age for collecting Social Security as your retirement date. But if I had a dollar for every person who turned 62 or 65 and said, “I’m not ready yet.” I would be retired right now. LOL! No one is holding you to that date. It’s simply a placeholder for planning. And retirement planning is important.

Retirement Success: We Need to Learn About Happiness

Happiness means knowing what will make us happy. In our retirement life, we will often have to deal with trade-offs. For example, we can travel often but our accommodations might be economy. Versus traveling less but more luxuriously. Or we can retire earlier but it means downsizing and paying off a mortgage. Or we can work longer, but it means becoming a freelancer or contractor without corporate healthcare insurance. For us to make good decisions, we need to truly understand what makes us happy. 

5 Ways We Can Bridge Our Retirement Gap

Statistically, we know that people are living longer. The challenge is that we’re not financially preparing to live longer. The financial shortfall between how much we need for retirement and how much we have has been labeled “the retirement gap”. The retirement gap is a global retirement planning issue and it’s growing, especially in the United States. The bottom-line is that individuals need to prepare for retirement because Social Security wasn’t designed to cover 100% of our retirement expenses. 

Is It Possible to Flunk Retirement

In today’s business world, we appear to be much more accepting of failure than ever. Billionaires like Sir Richard Branson and Spanx founder Sara Blakely remind us that it’s okay to make mistakes. But I can see how people could feel different about flunking at 20 than flunking at 60. We have to view our unretirement and retirement as a journey. A journey that starts early in life. Will there be stumbling blocks and changes along the way? Absolutely. But that doesn’t mean we’ve flunked life or our retirement. It does mean that we need to find ways to adjust.

The Pros and Cons of Being a One Car Household

One of the things to consider in retirement planning is transportation as in, “How much do you want to drive?” The answer might prompt you to take some action like moving from the suburbs to a more walkable community. Or maybe downsize vehicles to something smaller and/or more fuel efficient. Or you might do what we did and simply become a one-car household.


Should You Keep “To-Do” Lists After You Retire

As a person who likes to plan, I make lists. Granted, all of my lists aren’t created equal. For example, I plan our meals using lists. It helps us save money on groceries and we don’t waste food. I also have a list of small tasks that I need to complete during the day like “buy tickets to see Bohemian Rhapsody on Friday”. I can’t imagine when I retire that I would stop making those types of lists.

Regardless of where you are in your retirement planning process, making sure to think about all of the aspects involved in retirement is important. I’d like to think that anyone considering retirement wants to know they’re as ready as they can possibly be for the future. 

6 Tips For a Successful Video Interview

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artwork showing blank cutout of a person in business clothing to imply a video interview

I wrote an article recently that featured a few tips for a successful phone interview. In it, I mentioned video and realized it might be a good idea to share some tips for a successful video interview. Like phone interviews, video is becoming increasingly popular given the pandemic. And I don’t see it going away anytime in the near future because employers are finding it to be very cost effective.

Like phone interviews, it’s absolutely essential to plan before a video interview. Here are a few things to consider:

  1. Confirm your technology. Generally, phone interviews are shorter and well, they’re on your phone. A video interview could be longer so you might not want to use technology that you’re going to have to hold the entire time. Make sure whatever tech you’re using is charged and ready to go. Test whatever software you’re using for the call in advance and make sure you know what to do if the technology doesn’t work during the interview. The recruiter should give you this information in advance. If they don’t, you should ask.
  1. Plan your background. I recently conducted a poll over on HR Bartender about video backgrounds. They do matter and people pay attention to them. As you’re testing out your technology (see number one above), look at the video background. Make sure that anything you see in the background you want a recruiter to see. As an HR pro, I’m going to tell you that candidates do not take enough time in this area and the number of NSFW items in video backgrounds…yowza!
  1. Think about your wardrobe. I’m not mentioning clothing because you need to dress hip or flashy. You be you. But video cameras can distort your clothing. For example, if I went to an in-person interview, I could wear a striped blouse, and no one would pause. It’s totally fine. A striped shirt on video can be distracting. You want the recruiter to be focused on your experience and strengths, not the pattern on your clothing. So, look at what you plan to wear on video to make sure it’s camera-friendly. And I shouldn’t have to say this, but just in case…wear pants.
  1. Have a pen and paper handy. You might want to take notes during the interview. A question might pop into your head during the conversation. Or you might think of something you want to share. Trying to remember this information will be reflected in your facial expression. Just jot a note – maybe a couple of words to prompt your memory – and stay focused on the conversation.
  1. Prepare your questions. Given what’s going on right now, it’s possible that you might have a phone interview and then a video interview. You will want to have some questions prepared for each. In fact, you might start with, “Last time we spoke, we talked about XYZ, I’d like to hear more.” It’s always good to ask what next steps will be in the interview process. Oh, and don’t be surprised if you’re asked multiple times about your salary requirements. Especially, if the position you’re applying for pays less than what you’ve been paid in the past.
  1. Check your security settings after the call. Many times, you will have to “allow or permit” your technology device to use the video and microphone to conduct the interview. It’s totally up to you, but you might want to turn those permissions off once the interview is over. The downside is that you have to remember to turn them on every time. The upside is you don’t have to worry about security risks.

While the format for interviews is evolving, the purpose of the interview hasn’t changed. It’s for the organization to learn about your skills and experience. It’s also for you to learn about the company. Don’t lose sight of that. This is an opportunity to demonstrate your ability to be flexible and resilient, two qualities that employers everywhere are looking for.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby off the coast of Nassau, Bahamas

Entrepreneurship and Retirement: Your Next Adventure

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adventure in entrepreneurship is waiting, build yours

I’ve mentioned before how Keith and I schedule time every year to talk about our life. We discuss our business, personal stuff, and finances. One of the reasons that we started doing this is because we own a company, ITM Group. We thought it was important to talk about what our retirement would look like as entrepreneurs.

Freelancing, contracting, consulting or entrepreneurship…whatever you want to call it, is far more popular today than it was almost 20 years ago when we started our company. Many individuals have side hustles in addition to regular full-time or part-time jobs. Which is why it’s so important to think about retirement (and unretirement) in the context of both regular work and freelance work. Because the transition could be different. 

That’s not to say that the transition would be bad or difficult. Frankly, having a side gig while transitioning to retirement could be fantastic. It could offer a huge about of flexibility while at the same time provide some financial security.

In the book, “Your Next Adventure: Planning for Life After the Sale of Your Business”, the authors take the time to talk about five elements to consider when you have a business and you’re planning entrepreneurship in retirement. And as a side note: if you’re saying to yourself “I’m not really a business owner. I just do some speaking on the side. Make a few bucks each year.” Let me tell you – you’re a business. And you need to think about how you will manage that freelancing work during your unretirement journey. Here are the five elements to consider:

  1. Your social circles. When you own your own business or you have a side gig, you spend time networking and building relationships. At the point you start transitioning away from work, your social circles are going to change. Maybe not completely, but they will change. Are you ready to transition those friendships and build new ones? 
  1. Your family. Making the decision to work less, sell the business, or transition to doing different work is one that is best discussed with family and close friends. Especially if you have family members or really close friends who help out in the business. Keeping them out of the loop could create some unfortunate surprises.
  1. Your purpose. As a consultant, I spend a lot of time working. And I’m okay with that. But I’ve always been a person who likes a full plate. I honestly have no clue how I would spend my time if I was a full-time retiree. And it scares me a little. At some point, I will need to figure out how to provide purpose without owning a business. 
  1. Your wellbeing. A contributing factor to entrepreneurship is being physically and emotionally well. There are often long hours and sometimes sleepless nights. The last thing that anyone wants is for our failing health to drive our retirement plans. Finding time to take care of ourselves is important. 
  1. Your finances. Last and certainly not least, we have to think about our financial position. When you work on your own, there’s no pension plan. You have to finance your own retirement. Individuals will want to start planning for how their finances will be changing as the nature of their work changes. 

I think these five elements are great topics to keep in mind as you’re planning your transition toward retirement. Even if you don’t own a business or have a side hustle. But of course, we’re talking about entrepreneurship today. 

Even though the book didn’t mention it, that was one of the big takeaways for me. The things we need to consider for our transition to retirement are very similar regardless of our employment status.

Image captured by Sharlyn Lauby while exploring the streets of Chicago, IL

Estate Planning: Remember Your Digital Life

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artwork surreal facial features representing digital life

We recently wrote about estate planning, discussing what an estate is and our important takeaways from the planning process. If you are new to estate planning or want a refresher on some of the key aspects, be sure to check it out. We definitely had some eye-opening moments and many others that required some serious and informed discussion.

I mentioned previously that we are working with an attorney to create our estate documents. One of the things that struck me when reading the drafts was the volume of legal wording that covers your digital life. You know, Facebook and Twitter accounts, registered web addresses, and even just your Amazon account to name a few. And what about your Apple ID and password managers?

The point is, most of us can readily think of bank accounts, investments, and insurance when estate planning. But we tend to overlook who should be responsible for our digital streaming accounts when we can no longer Netflix and chill. Take a moment to think of the things you send to cloud storage and you will see why planning for your digital estate is just as important as who gets your home or car when you’re gone.

Good news – just about every web-based operation has already considered this and address it in their FAQ, help section or forums. In fact, many digital suppliers even include ownership information in their end user license agreements (EULA) or Terms of Service (TOS). You have carefully read all those, right?

It shouldn’t be a surprise that entire industries have cropped up around digital estate planning. Companies like AfterVault, Clocr and Everplans offer one-stop estate planning for your digital assets. Most of these are fee-based services which can help you sort through your digital life and document your plans in one place. Keep in mind that this will really be a separate place, different from where you document the rest of your worldly goods.

Which brings me back to our original estate planning process. We ultimately wanted a single place where we could document all of our financial, physical and digital holdings and plan for them when we’re gone. And we wanted to make sure all of that aligned with state and federal laws so that our heirs weren’t burdened with probate dispositions. For us, that meant working with an attorney who knew all about these things.

Digital estate planning has become so important that AARP wrote about it last year. The article is a great place to start to plan for after your digital life because they include a very helpful do and don’t section for crafting your digital estate plan. From there, you can decide if a digital vault is a good option or maybe research the pros and cons of online wills on Consumer Reports.

If you choose to look for an estate attorney, check out this Investopedia article with 10 questions to ask before engaging their services. They also include a few questions you should ask yourself after you have an initial conversation. Estate planning can be legally complex and emotionally challenging for you and your loved ones. Put in a little time researching your options and remember to include your digital life. Making informed decisions now will lead to peace of mind.