| But there is a way to take it to the next level and | | | | taking off for the most scenic spots within driving |
| that is to actually start putting some flesh and bones | | | | distance to kick back and enjoy the fishing. So include |
| on your vision of your retirement and get a feel not | | | | the physical and financial needs for that lifestyle in |
| only for the fact that you will retire but how you | | | | this "detail" step of retirement planning. |
| expect to live in retirement. Very often, we have | | | | You can complete the exercise by getting to such a |
| idealistic visions of retirement life based on media | | | | level of detail that you could go out and price the |
| images or the fantasy life of living in luxury and | | | | dream in today's dollars. Then when you take your |
| having little to do but golf in the morning and drink | | | | "dream retirement shopping list" out into the open |
| campaign and eat caviar all afternoon. So if you can | | | | markets and use retail locations, catalogs and internet |
| get a realistic view of what you have as your | | | | sites to actually find out how much it would cost to |
| expectations for retirement, you can start making | | | | have that retirement today, that will shed a lot of |
| adjustments to your retirement planning package | | | | light on your retirement preparations that you are |
| right now. | | | | doing. |
| Start with how you see your retirement lifestyle | | | | Now, the actual cost of those different components |
| working. If you want little more than a manageable | | | | will be much higher when you actually get to the |
| retirement apartment, a cat and the chance to knit | | | | point of retirement. You could try to factor in |
| or watch ESPN without interruption, that is a fairly | | | | inflation and make those kinds of adjustments but |
| modest retirement lifestyle to prepare for. But other | | | | don't play with the formula so much that you get the |
| people have adventure and high living in their | | | | idea that it's impossible and give up. However, |
| retirement dreams. So if world travel or living in a | | | | another factor that offsets the inflation factor is that |
| luxury setting is part of that dream, only one person | | | | your retirement life will be less expensive then your |
| is going to make that dream a reality and that is you. | | | | current lifestyle. Your daily needs may not be as |
| An exercise that is fun and eye opening is to detail | | | | demanding. If you sell your house after paying off |
| every aspect of your dream life in retirement. Start | | | | the mortgage, your monthly expenses will go way |
| by picturing your living conditions. Include your diet | | | | down and you will have a significant surge of |
| needs and wants as well as any entertainment and | | | | retirement capital that will come from the sale of the |
| recreational needs you expect to be a part of | | | | house. And you are not raising kids, putting them |
| retirement. For example, if you know you will want | | | | through college or having to support the lifestyle and |
| to go on long fishing adventures several times a | | | | wardrobe of a working person. All of these things |
| year, you will need a RV and the finances to support | | | | offset the inflation issue. |