Retired What To Do Now

Keep Up With Technology

The millennial generation is the first to grow up in a world where the internet has always been around to some degree. Older generations had a lot of life experience without it, or any of the usual gadgets. And sometimes technology is quite confusing.

Keeping up with technology throughout retirement gives you a lot of freedom, and it also helps you enjoy more of the benefits of living in a rapidly advancing era. So be afraid of it. Embrace technology, and keep on learning.

Update Your Titling Beneficiaries And Will

Did you know titling and beneficiary designations can override instructions in a will or trust? For example, if you title a home as “joint tenants with rights of survivorship”let’s say, for you and your spouseit will usually pass directly to the surviving owner.

“Check titling and beneficiaries on your bank, brokerage, and retirement accounts, as well as on insurance policies at least every two years,” says Rob. “Keeping them up-to-date will help ensure your assets are distributed according to your wishes.” It may also make things easier for loved ones by minimizing probate, the legal process used to settle your estate.

• Account titling applies to assets, such as stocks, bonds, real estate, annuities, and life insurance. It allows you to specify details of ownershipfor example, in your name, owned jointly with another person, or in a trust.
• Beneficiary designations on accounts, such as your IRA, 401, bank, and brokerage accounts, allow you to name people or entities who will inherit your assets. In most cases, you can name multiple beneficiaries and specify the percentage you want each one to receive.

Lastly, make sure your will is up-to-dateand consider reviewing all estate documents with an attorney who knows the laws in your area. Even if you don’t have direct heirs, you can lay out a clear plan for your legacy, rather than let the court or state decide.

How Confident Do You Want To Be That Your Money Will Last

Think of a confidence level as the percentage of times in which the hypothetical portfolio did not run out of money, based on a variety of assumptions and projections regarding potential future market performance. For example, a 90% confidence level means that, after projecting 1,000 scenarios using varying returns for stocks and bonds, 900 of the hypothetical portfolios were left with money at the end of the designated time periodanywhere from one cent to an amount more than the portfolio started with.

We think aiming for a 75% to 90% confidence level is appropriate for most people, and sets a more comfortable spending limit, if you’re able to remain flexible and adjust if needed. Targeting a 90% confidence level means you will be spending less in retirement, with the trade-off that you are less likely to run out of money. If you regularly revisit your plan and are flexible if conditions change, 75% provides a reasonable confidence level between overspending and underspending.

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Get Involved In Real Estate

Everyones journey will be different, my Dads definitely was. While my father took the long way around, he did eventually find a profession that worked for him. He realized that the perfect job for him was actually getting involved in real estate.

While some individuals might consider working part-time as an agent, he decided to become an investor. Starting with a small house in South Carolina, he added a kitchen and bathroom to the basement. He researched property management and found a company that advertised his home as a vacation rental. Within months of his property going live, he was earning thousands of dollars.

We have relatives all over the country, so he saved his money and decided to invest in single-family properties in Arizona and Minnesota. He uses these properties not only as extra income but also as a holiday home when he visits family. Now he continues to live in South Carolina, and he plans to purchase his next property this summer.

I think that he found out real estate investing was his passion because he loves working with his hands. He was a handyman his whole life, so renovating and flipping properties is enjoyable for him. There are many other options around real estate though. You could become a real estate agent or you could invest in real estate using programs such as FundRise or othercrowdfunded and syndicated real estate investments.

Federal Insurance For Private Pensions

If your company runs into financial problems, you’re likely to still get your pension.

• Insures most private-sector defined-benefit pensions. These are plans that typically pay a certain amount each month after you retire. These are single-employer plans. Multi-employer plans have different coverage.

• Covers most cash-balance plans. Those are defined-benefit pensions that allow you to take a lump-sum distribution.

• Does not cover government and military pensions, 401k plans, IRAs, and certain others.

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What To Do After Retirement Become A Teacher

Some brand new teachers enter the arena as a second career. Is this something youd like to consider? If you want to teach in a traditional setting, whether public or private schools or colleges, youll probably need additional education. Learn more about certification, salaries and more here. And, if you really want to make a difference, the U.S. Department of Education publishes a list of which areas of the country have teacher shortages.

But the traditional classroom is not the only way to earn a living as a teacher:

Stop Trying To Keep Up With Your Competition

I had a habit of comparing myself with coworkers and people in the industry. This led to a lot of jealousy: “Ugh, that person landed a promotion and raise! Not fair.””Wow, she got ‘Employee of the Month’ twice? I must be doing something wrong.”

It was a very unproductive way of thinking.

Eventually, I realized I needed to go at my own pace. I may not have been the smartest person in the office, but I was dedicated and I worked hard. I came in early every morning and got to know my managers.

Once I stopped caring about what everyone else was doing, I had more time to focus on what I was good at. I started to feel more capable and confident.

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Dont Retire Take A Sabbatical Instead

What to do after retirement? Go back to work! More and more people in their 50s and 60s are taking anywhere from a few months to a year off from work. The sabbatical or temporary break from work could give you the chance to enjoy the benefits of retirement without taking the official plunge.

A sabbatical could be a week, a month, three months, a year, or it could be longer.

How much time you take off for your mini retirement might be dependent on your goals for the sabbatical. The length of time might also be determined by your finances and the needs of your employer.

Learn more about this sneaky way to get an early retirement.

Consider The Benefits Of Giving In Retirement

Depending on your goals, passing assets on during your lifetime may make more sense than leaving inheritances. For starters, giving today allows loved ones to enjoy gifts sooner. It also allows you to see them doing itand there may be tax benefits.

“Assets you give now can potentially gain value in the hands of loved ones or charitiesand not in your hands, which can help reduce your taxable estate,” says Hayden.

Currently, the annual gift tax exclusion lets you give any number of people up to $16,000 each in a single year without incurring a taxable gift. That typically means no tax implication for you or the recipient, unless the gift comes from a foreign source. You can also make unlimited payments directly to medical providers or educational institutions for others without incurring a taxable gift or reducing your $16,000 gift exclusion.

In addition, the “lifetime gift and estate tax exemption” lets you give up to $12.06 million over your lifetime , with no gift or estate tax for you or your heirs. This amount is separate from your annual gift tax exclusion. But it’s set to go down to around $5.49 million after 2025, unless Congress extends the higher amount.

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Grow Your Friendship Group

Youve now got time to get to know the people around you a little better. Rather than just sticking to friends in your own age group, making friends with people of all ages exposes you to new experiences and different points of view, which will help you stay young at heart. Younger friends will also benefit from your life experience. You could even sign up for a pen pal scheme such as Postpals, which links you up with seriously ill children so you can send them letters, cards and gifts to make them smile during a difficult time.

Become A Garden Consultant

Have you built knowledge of gardening over the years? Your experience will be welcomed by novices wanting to create a serene but lower-maintenance space in their yards. Consider offering your services. You can start by posting an ad on a community Facebook page. Then, your consultation service could be a walk through of the clients garden to offer guidance and answer questions.

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The Benchmarks For Those Closer To Retirement

The range gets wider as you get older, so we also provide more detailed estimates for people approaching retirement. This helps someone find a realistic target based on income and marital status, which affect Social Security benefits.

A Closer Look at Savings Benchmarks Later in Your Career

Assumptions: See Savings Benchmarks by AgeAs a Multiple of Income above. Dual income means that one spouse generates 75% of the income that the other spouse earns.

Active Hobbies For Retired People

Want to stay physically active during retirement? Heres a few ideas of what to do when youre retired and bored:

• Babysit:Spend more time with your grandchildren and give your children a break from the kids by babysitting!
• Pick Up Tennis, Softball :What sport would you like to take up, or what sport do you wish you had more time to dedicate to before retirement? Whether you take up a new sport or want to get back in to a sport you love, retirement gives you that opportunity.
• Start a Blog/Write a Book:Have you always wanted to write? Maybe you dreamed of writing the great American novel? Or you just want to put down your thoughts into an online journal.

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Maintain Your Retirement Plan

No matter what else you are doing on this list, maintaining your retirement plan is something that all of us must do.

It is important to assess your financial situation every 3-6 months. You need to know if you are going to have enough money to do what you want to do in retirement for as long as you live .

A good retirement planning tool not just a simple retirement calculator can help you with these assessments. The NewRetirement Planneris a detailed and highly personalized tool that saves your information so it is easy to update. Best of all, the planner gives you immediate feedback on the impact of any updates on your overall financial health.

Create An Online Course:

Create an online video course and earn money by teaching people around the world. On Udemy, You decide what to teach, create the curriculum using their software, and they help students find you. Maybe your familys cooking is the best on Earth, or maybe youre an expert-level knitter. In whatever youre an expert, you can be a teacher.

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Take The Right Steps To Your Retirement Dream

Knowing how to retire is just as important as when you retire. Completing these tasks will save you a lot of heartacheand potentially a lot of money. Play it smart, do your homework, and take the steps to put yourself in the best position as you enter these years. After all, you want to live the retirement of your dreams! A qualified investment professional like those in our SmartVestor program can help you whether you’re 10 years out or 10 months out.

Tip : Manage Stress Anxiety And Depression

After retirement, the commute, the deadlines, the demanding boss, and the nine-to-five monotony may be over, but that doesnt mean your life will automatically be stress- and anxiety-free. While workplace stress can take a serious toll on your health, especially if you lack job satisfaction, damaging stressors can also follow you into retirement.

You may worry about managing financially on a fixed income, coping with declining health, or adapting to a different relationship with your spouse now that youre at home all day. The loss of identity, routine, and goals can impact your sense of self-worth, leave you feeling rudderless, or even lead to depression.

Whatever challenges youre facing, though, there are healthy ways to ease stress and anxiety, better cope with change, and improve your mood, outlook, and overall well-being.

Adopt a relaxation practice. Regularly practicing a relaxation technique such as meditation, progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, yoga, or tai chi can help ease anxiety and stress, lower your blood pressure, and improve your overall sense of well-being.

Get active. Physical exercise is a very effective way to boost your mood, relieve tension and stress, and help you feel more relaxed and positive as you get older. No matter your age or limitations in mobility, there are still ways for you to reap the benefits of regular exercise. Aim for 30 minutes of activity on most days.

But dont take it too easy

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Common Goals Of Retirees

Without the restrictions of full-time work, how do you envision spending your hours? In the Merrill Lynch survey of adults over age 50, 95 percent of respondents said they would rather focus on having more enjoyable experiences than on buying more stuff. And financial constraints had little impact on most retirees’ ability to enjoy life. In fact, more than 88 percent of retirees across all income levels said they had increased flexibility and freedom to do the things they wanted to do.

Here’s what the Merrill Lynch survey respondents were looking to accomplish through their everyday activities:

• Get or stay health: 83 percent
• Relax: 72 percent
• Connect with family: 58 percent
• Have fun: 57 percent
• Make or expand social connections: 56 percent
• Learn: 47 percent
• Give back: 41 percent

The Retirement Problem: What Will You Do With All That Time

You’ve anticipated and planned your retirement for years. What if it’s not as you pictured? The question isnt only about money, experts say planning how to stay happily occupied is equally critical.

Knowledge at Wharton Staff

Youre excited about retirement, right? Youve worked hard for, what, four or five decades now? Youre due. No more early alarm. No more meetings. No more deadlines. No more office politics. Can you believe it? Its just you out on the links puttering in the garden taking care of your grand kids. Its going to be great.

Except, what if its not as you pictured? What if those things youve looked forward to all these years more time for your hobbies, more time to travel and more time to relax arent enough to sustain you? What then?

Even soon-to-be retirees with big plans for the next chapter of their lives often harbor big doubts about what comes next, according Stewart Friedman, practice professor of management at Wharton and founding director of the Wharton Work/Life Integration Project. The questions people ask at earlier stages of life become more profound at these later stages, he says. Am I living the life I want to live? What is most important to me? Who is most important to me? You see the end, and so you think about what you want to do with the time that you have remaining. There is the question of: now what?

Money Is Not the Panacea

Its Useful to Know Yourself

New Challenges, New Domains

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Become An Online Gamer

Its well known that any kind of puzzle activity is good for keeping your mind agile, but why not step it up a gear? Online gaming is proving popular with people aged 50 and over. As well as playing a range of puzzles and games, it gives you the chance to connect with people from all over the world from the comfort of your armchair. Free websites to investigate include: Chess.com, TheJigsawPuzzles.com, Lexulous.com and . But you dont necessarily have to settle for the traditional ones. Theres no reason why a pensioner cant kick ass in World of Warcraft or Fortnite and teach the young uns a few lessons.

Start A Small Business

If youve got a hobby or skill that has the potential to earn you some money, why not turn it into a business? For example, if youre skilled in arts and crafts, you could make items to sell at marketplaces or online. If you love animals, you could become a dog walker, dog groomer or pet sitter. If youre an ace at baking, you could start your own cupcake business. Get some top tips by checking out the Governments expert advice on starting a business.

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