Your Personalized Retirement Plan

In Articles, Articles: Kansas City Office, Articles: Salt Lake City Office by Scott Dougan

Your Personalized Retirement Plan: Matching Your Money with Your Mindset

When shopping for a new car or appliance, most people turn to a buyer’s guide to compare features, evaluate options, and feel more confident about their decision. So why shouldn’t retirement planning work the same way? While there’s no official guidebook for converting your life savings into lasting retirement income, we can certainly create a simplified version to help you narrow your choices based on your income needs, market comfort level, and lifestyle goals.

Choose your Personalized Retirement Plan, built around three common retiree profiles:

Scenario 1: “We’ve Got Strong Guaranteed Income and Aren’t Worried About the Markets.”

If you’re fortunate enough to have most of your essential income needs covered through reliable sources like pensions and Social Security, congratulations – you’re in a strong position. In this case, your investments don’t need to carry the burden of day-to-day expenses, which means you can afford to be more aggressive with how you invest your nest egg.

Your Plan: A growth-oriented strategy with a heavy emphasis on stocks.

  • Since your lifestyle won’t be significantly impacted by short-term market fluctuations, you can focus on long-term appreciation.
  • If you need to take Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) after age 73, consider using dividend-paying stocks to generate income while maintaining principal growth potential.
  • Blue-chip companies with a solid dividend history can offer peace of mind along with cash flow.

This approach allows you to participate in market gains while riding out the dips without losing sleep.

Scenario 2: “We Need Steady Income but Still Want Some Growth Potential.”

If you don’t have a large pension and are counting on your investments to provide predictable monthly income, but you’re wary of too much market exposure, a hybrid income strategy could be the right fit.

Your Plan: A blend of guaranteed income and market-based growth – a true “his-and-hers” model for couples with different risk tolerances.

  • Use income annuities to provide a steady, guaranteed paycheck for life or a set period. This gives you a baseline of security.
  • The rest of your savings can be invested in a balanced mix of stocks and bonds to pursue growth over time.
  • This combination allows one partner to feel safe with guaranteed income while the other enjoys the opportunity for market-driven growth.

Annuity providers can often offer more income than you could safely generate on your own, thanks to risk pooling and longevity credits. That efficiency can free up more of your portfolio to invest for the long term, potentially offsetting inflation and providing a legacy.

Scenario 3: “The Market Scares Us. We Just Want Safety.”

If you’ve been burned by market downturns – like the crash of 2008 or during COVID – and you’re not interested in taking on any investment risk, that’s okay. Some people simply prefer certainty over the chance for higher returns.

Your Plan: A principal-protection strategy that prioritizes safety above all.

  • This might include fixed annuities, bank CDs, and cash reserves.
  • Rather than focusing on growth, your strategy will emphasize drawing income from a combination of interest and principal.
  • This approach means your savings may not grow much, and may even shrink slowly over time, but your peace of mind is intact.

Just keep in mind that avoiding all risk means you may need to live more frugally. You’ll also miss out on big market gains when they occur- but you’ll feel like a genius when markets drop and your portfolio doesn’t budge.

The Bottom Line

Retirement planning isn’t one-size-fits-all. Like shopping for a car, your final decision should reflect your lifestyle, preferences, and comfort level. Some retirees want performance and growth. Others want a smooth, predictable ride. And many want a bit of both.

There’s no perfect plan, only the plan that’s right for you. This guide won’t replace personalized advice, but it’s a great place to begin thinking critically about the kind of retirement you want and how to structure your savings to support it.

Because while picking the wrong car may cost you some convenience, picking the wrong retirement plan could cost you peace of mind, and thousands of dollars. Choose wisely.