Become financially fit

But just like that initial trip to the gym, once you’ve made a plan, you’ll feel better because, whether you’re 52 or 82, making plans to secure your future always goes a long way toward giving you peace of mind. It also gives you something concrete to fall back on if you start feeling panicky about the ups and downs of the stock market.

Set out your goals
To embark on your financial fitness plan, you must first establish goals. It may seem like putting the cart before the horse, but think about it: if your physical fitness goal were to feel healthier and lose some weight, you wouldn’t train like an Olympic weightlifter because the chances of your ever needing to lift 400 pounds are remote. The same thinking applies to financial planning -- you should tailor your fitness plan to your goal.

Naturally, everyone’s goal is to live comfortably during retirement, but you have to be more specific than that because your retirement needs may be very different from the needs of your friends or neighbours, according to Thie Convery, a financial adviser in Hamilton. “I’m often asked, ‘How are we doing relative to everyone else?’” says Convery. “It’s irrelevant because if you’ve got twice as much money as everyone else but you’re going to spend twice as much in retirement, then we have more work to do.” So, you have to figure out how you plan to spend your retirement. “This is the most important step because only then can we back up and say, ‘Here are the price tags associated with those activities,’” explains Convery.^

How will you spend your time?
Making the transition from working 40 hours a week to being retired can be a challenge, especially for men, whose jobs are often a big part of their identity. Convery says women have an easier time because they’re used to wearing a variety of hats in their lives -- nurse, mother, wife -- whereas men often define themselves solely by what they do between 9 and 5.