In her book Effortless Frugality: 25 Tips to Save Money and Maximize Efficiency, Jenny Koo’s goal was to provide “a practical guide for anyone looking to incorporate frugal living into their daily routine.”

“Adopting a frugal lifestyle doesn’t mean compromising on quality or comfort; rather, it emphasizes making smart, sustainable choices that enhance our lives and reduce waste,” she continues.

And then, this slim but information-packed book launches into details on 25 money-saving and often environmentally friendly frugality tips.

There’s the idea of turning old sheets into curtains, “an excellent way to save money on home décor while reducing waste.” All you need, the book advises, are some old sheets, scissors, a sewing machine (or fabric glue) and a curtain rod and hooks.

Our first apartment featured curtains that were made out of an old Halloween costume – a Scotsman’s kilt – that we still had lying around a few years later! A fine tartan design touch.

There’s the idea of converting old jeans into cut-off shorts, as well as a section on how to braid old clothes into braided rugs. “Karen, a retiree looking for a new hobby, created a beautiful, braided rug from her old clothes. Not only did she enjoy the creative process, but she also produced a durable rug that added charm to her living room,” Koo writes.

There’s an idea our parents used to employ – saving old jars from things like pasta sauce “for pantry organization,” a move that “not only saved money, but also made (the) pantry more visually appealing and easier to navigate.”

Each of these ideas is accompanied by clear, easy-to-follow instructions.

There’s the idea of ditching your disposable razor and picking up an old-style “safety razor” like your dad or granddad used to use. That keeps the disposable razors out of landfills and provides “a more durable and cost-efficient” shave over time, Koo writes.

Avoid using disposable plastic “single use” plastic wraps by using “beeswax wraps, silicone wraps, and fabric bowl covers,” Koo suggests. This is how we used to roll in the 1960s, before plastic wrap was rolled out. Reusable non-plastic wraps save on waste and save you money, she explains.

Getting a rain barrel and attaching it to your downspout gives you a nice, free supply of water for “non-potable uses, such as watering plants or cleaning.” Our neighbour does this, and it is surprising how strong a flow of water is delivered via the tap on his rain barrel.

There’s the idea of an indoor drying rack to save using a dryer, and another one we often do, to “bake multiple items in the oven at once to save energy.” Both take some money off your gas or electric bill.

There’s a bit on making your own apple cider vinegar, and on using leftover veggie scraps to make your own vegetable stock powder. There’s a recipe for a homemade herbicide (based on vinegar, salt, and dish soap) that Koo says can help control garden weeds without the use of “harmful chemicals.”

There’s a section extolling the value of shopping thrift stores for clothes, housewares, and books and media. “Donate any unused items back to the thrift store to continue the cycle,” advises Koo.

Final ideas include preserving fruits with a dehydrator, and making gifts, such as “knitted or crocheted items, homemade candles or soaps, or personalized photo albums or scrapbooks.”

“Adopting frugal living and productive habits may seem challenging at first, but remember that every small step counts,” advises Koo. “Start with one or two tips that resonate with you and gradually incorporate more into your daily routine. The journey to a more frugal and sustainable lifestyle is ongoing, and the benefits you reap will grow over time.”

Money saved in the short-term can often benefit you in the long term. How? By directing some of your savings to your retirement savings plan, your future you will benefit from today’s frugality. Consider the Saskatchewan Pension Plan when choosing a retirement savings partner.

Open to all Canadians with unused registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) room, SPP lets you contribute at your own pace to your plan. We do the heavy lifting of investing your hard-saved loonies in a pooled, low-cost, professionally managed fund. At retirement, you can select a lifetime monthly annuity payment, or other options such as the more flexible Variable Benefit.

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Whether it’s money problems, weirdness at work, relationships going wonky or what have you, other people can bring you down.

In her book Let Them, author Mel Robbins provides a seemingly simple way to turn the situation around.

She begins by discussing the “5 second rule,” a coping strategy she developed during tough times with employment and money. “I was paralyzed by my own thoughts, and the last thing I wanted to do was get up and face another day,” she writes. But, she thought, why not try a NASA-style countdown – 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 – and then “launch myself out of bed.”

This little trigger helps you “take action before hesitation kicks in.”

And while the “5 second rule” helps trigger you to take action, Robbins searched for a way to address things like fear of failing, being “nervous about taking a risk… why do I have a hard time asking for what I need? What exactly is in my way?”

Her research found that for most of us, “struggling to change your life, achieve your goals, or feel happier… the problem isn’t you. The problem is the power you unknowingly give other people.”

“You make the mistake of thinking that if you say the right thing, everyone will be satisfied. If you bend over backward, maybe your partner won’t be disappointed. If you keep the peace, maybe your family will stop judging your choices,” she rights.

The solution, she says, to “driving yourself crazy trying to manage or please other people,” is “Let Them.”

“Let Them be grumpy. It’s not your problem,” she writes, Let Them “have their opinions… they don’t change who you are.”

“The more you let other people live their lives, the better your life gets,” she explains.

The book is filled with anecdotes to illustrate how simple idea works, and how liberating it is. “Let my family be late to absolutely everything we go to,” she writes. “Let Them leave dishes in the sink. Let my mother-in-law disagree with my parenting.” The list is exhaustive.

But “Let Them” is just half of the toolkit, she writes. “There is a second, critical part to the theory – Let Me.”

“That’s why the theory only works if you say both parts. When you say Let Them, you make a conscious decision not to allow other people’s behaviour to bother you. When you say Let Me, you take responsibility for what YOU do next,” she explains.

“Let Me immediately shows you what you can control…. your attitude, your behaviour… your values, your needs, your desires, and what YOU want to do in response to what just happened,” she writes.

In a chapter on stress, the book explains how the Let Them/Let Me tool can help you overcome it. “Stress causes you to doubt yourself, procrastinate, burn out, doom scroll, and struggle with comparison,” she warns.

In a chapter on dealing with difficult people – those who have negative opinions about you or your work, for example – the Let Them tool reasserts the idea that “adults are allowed to think whatever they want,” so fearing that sort of criticism “is a complete waste of time.”

“Let Them go silent. Let Them erupt. Let Them play the victim. Let Them sulk. Let Them deny that it happened. Let Them make it all about them,” she writes.

“Then, Let Me…. be the mature, wise, and loving adult in this situation. Let Me decide if I want to address them directly or not at all,” she advises.

It can help with “comparison” issues, where we feel inferior in appearance, wealth, or athleticism.

“There are two different types of comparison that people engage in – torture or teacher,” she explains. “Torture… is when you find yourself obsessed over, caught up in, or beating yourself up over something that you will never be able to change.”

Instead, “use comparison to your advantage” and learn from what others have done right. “Let it fuel your own journey. Other people’s success is evidence that you can do it too…. And build the extraordinary life you deserve.”

Closing chapters of the book use the techniques for such topics as restoring old friendships, creating new ones, embracing change, and helping others heal from downturns in life.

Robbins concludes by noting “you’ve always been in charge. You’ve always had the power. Now, it’s time to take it back.”

This is a well-written, well-researched book that is fun to read and even a little empowering. A good addition to your personal library, as we all go through periods of self-doubt and need to re-ignite our energy.

The Saskatchewan Pension Plan is a great savings partner in your dream of building up a retirement nest egg. If you aren’t sure how to invest in today’s turbulent markets, let them do the heavy lifting for you. SPP’s investments are professionally managed in a low-cost, pooled fund – and at retirement, you’ll choose among options such as a lifetime monthly annuity cheque, or the more flexible Variable Benefit.

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The book Retirement Reimagined by A. Cameron Strong is a fact-filled, well-written and clear walkthrough of all facets of retirement – from saving up, to living off the savings, and even on to the tricky phase of estate planning, wills and executor duties.

To answer the classic question of how much to save for retirement, the author first explains how you need to know what you are spending now (before retirement) as well as what you expect you’ll spend once retired.

He provides a handy checklist of fixed, discretionary and unexpected expenses you may be facing. Then, you need to think ahead to what income you’ll get in retirement – money from registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs), registered retirement income funds (RRIFs) and their locked-in cousin, the Life Income Fund (LIF), insurance, annuity income, and maybe rent from a rental property.

There will also be money coming in from the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), Old Age Security (OAS) and for some the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS); others may receive workplace pension benefits.

Subtract future expenses from future income, he suggests.

“If this number is a positive, congratulations! You now know what your income number must be to cover off your expenses in retirement and you have a plan or have already reached your savings and retirement goals,” he writes. But if the number is negative, “you are not living within your means. You will need to find ways to cut your expenses or boost your income to avoid going further into debt before you retire,” he warns.

Ways to cut costs during your working years include “downsizing to a smaller dwelling or moving to a more affordable province or country,” or going to one car from two, and “paying off credit card debt immediately to save on high interest charges,” he writes.

Knowing what you need to cover your expenses is key to establishing a savings target, writes Strong. Many financial institutions suggest you need to save eight to 10 times what your last annual income was, he says – so for a family “with a combined family income of $130,000 per year,” the savings target would be $1.04-$1.3 million, he explains.

The book covers investments, ranging from low-risk, interest-bearing investments like bonds and guaranteed investment certificates and precious metals, like gold and silver, on to higher-risk categories.

Strong notes that gold and silver can be good investments in challenging economic times.

“Gold has an important economic role as a means of exchange should current collapse,” he explains. Gold and silver can be bought physically – apparently even at Costco – or via stocks in gold mining companies or exchange-traded funds that own precious metals. He calls these “paper gold and silver,” and says they are easier to buy and sell on the stock exchange and don’t require secure storage.

Higher risk investments (and the author recommends you get professional advice before entering into this category) include crypto, currency trading, real estate investment trusts (REITs), junk bonds, venture capital, penny stock and options.

Bitcoin, he warns, has had a wild ride in pricing. “In 2017 bitcoin was trading at around $3,000 U.S. Then it went as high as $60,000 U.S. in 2021 before `crashing’ down to close at $17,000 U.S. in 2022.” He adds that central banks remain on the fence about crypto, and some countries have even banned it.

He spends some time on do-it-yourself investing and its pros and cons.

“Do you have enough skills and knowledge to make sound decisions,” he asks. Are you being too conservative (losing out to inflation) or “not conservative enough?”

Is DIY your best long-term option, and what will you do “if you are no longer able to manage your own investments due to health issues.”

An option for DIY investors, he writes, is to go “hybrid” and have some of your investments managed professionally by a third party.

“Good investing is about the long-term experience and trying to avoid mistakes along the way that could damage your investment portfolio. It is vital to keep learning, researching and trying new strategies. But do so carefully and with knowledge and professional help!”

In a chapter on investing for retirement, he talks about borrowing to contribute to an RRSP.

“Who should be taking advantage of the RRSP loan strategy? Anyone who wants to make an RRSP contribution for the previous year in the first 60 days of the new year, has less cash on hand than they’d like to contribute, and has sufficient RRSP contribution room. And this is crucial: you are disciplined enough not to spend the refund.”

In a chapter about RRSPs and RRIFs, he makes another good strategic point.

There is an annual minimum withdrawal amount that kicks in a couple of years after you start your RRIF. If you don’t need that income, “you can deposit any excess cash or securities in-kind to a non-registered account.” From there you can consider moving the funds to a TFSA “to benefit from tax free growth.”

On annuities, Strong writes that an annuity “provides some income stability for the retiree when stock markets and other investments are volatile. It pays out the same amount no matter what is happening in the capital markets.” He says most financial advisors suggests an annuity should provide 30 per cent of your retirement income.

There’s a great chapter on wills, and a checklist showing the duties of an executor that sadly is becoming something more and more frequently needed as this writer leaves his mid-60s behind. Trust us, when a loved one passes, there is a lot of paperwork required.

Strong notes that “if a parent, relative, or spouse passes away the spouse or child of that person is not responsible for any debt held by that individual if it is not joint or co-signed.”

At the end of this excellent book Strong focuses on the need to stay healthy and focused in retirement. “You need a goal or a series of goals, something with purpose because that’s what makes life meaningful,” he advises. “Explore and find your niche!”

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“History never repeats itself; man always does.”

This quote from Voltaire kicks off Morgan Housel’s thought-provoking and well-researched look at how our past behaviour and actions, as a society, can help us try and prepare for what’s ahead.

Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, the book tells us, is often asked “what’s going to change in the next 10 years,” but rarely is asked “what’s not going to change in the next 10 years…. And I submit to you, that the second question is actually the more important of the two.”

“Things that never change,” explains Houssel, “are important because you can put so much confidence in knowing how they shape the future… the same philosophy works in almost all areas of life.”

And while we are pretty good at predicting the future, it’s surprises that throw us, he continues.

No one predicted The Great Depression, he explains. Why?

“Either everyone in the past was blinded by delusion,” he posits, meaning they didn’t want to see the crash coming, or “everyone in the present is fooled by hindsight.”

“The biggest news, the biggest risks, the most consequential events are always what you don’t see coming,” he explains.

Another category Housel talks about is overall happiness.

A problem that works against us is the tendency to “compare yourself to your peers,” he writes. We want the same things that the super-rich purport to have, at least according to social media.

“You see the cars the other people drive, the homes they live in, the expensive schools they go to… The ability to say `I want that, why don’t I have that? Why does he get it but I don’t,’ is so much greater than it was just a few generations ago,” he explains.

Indeed, he points out, in the 1950s people earned less, but were okay with living in smaller homes, not having healthcare, wearing hand-me-downs and camping instead of staying in hotels because everyone else was in the same boat, doing the same things.

“Economic growth accrued straight to happiness. People weren’t just better off, they felt better off,” he explains of the 1950s.

In a later chapter, he stresses the importance of “the story,” versus the numbers.

He notes that Jeff Bezos once said “the thing I have noticed is when the anecdotes and the data disagree, the anecdotes are usually right. There’s something wrong with the way you are measuring it.”

It’s not easy to measure things like “feelings, emotions, and fears, all of which regulate what we’re capable of,” he explains.

As an example of data versus “the story,” he quotes investor Jim Grant:

“To suppose that the value of a common stock is determined purely by a corporation’s earnings discounted by the relevant interest rates and adjusted for the marginal tax rate is to forget that people have burned witches, gone to war on a whim, risen to the defence of Joseph Stalin and believed Orson Welles when he told them over the radio that the Martians had landed.”

“Every investment price,” writes Housel, “every market valuation, is just a number from today multiplied by a story about tomorrow.”

Near the end of the book, he makes three interesting points about navigating the future:

• “When good and honest people can be incentivized into crazy behaviour, it’s easy to underestimate the odds of the world going off the rails.”
• “Unsustainable things can last longer than you anticipate.”
• “A good question to ask is `which of my current views would change if my incentives were different.’”

A final bit of advice, in the chapter “Wounds Heal, Scars Last,” is that “people tend to have short memories. Most of the time they can forget about bad experiences and fail to heed lessons previously learned. But hard-core stress leaves a scar.”

This is a book that makes you think. There’s a lot of great ideas and stories in this book that a short review can’t fully explore – it’s definitely worth adding to your home library.

These days, the idea of working at one place for decades seems unlikely, a fate only a few of us get. You’re more likely to work at many different jobs in your career. All those career changes don’t have to impact your retirement saving.

Since the Saskatchewan Pension Plan is open to individuals (as well as organizations), changing jobs won’t affect the progress of your retirement savings with SPP. That’s because we collect pension contributions directly from you, rather than going through your employer. Find out about Canada’s made-in-Saskatchewan retirement savings solution!

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Our folks might have been more successful about teaching us kids about money had they had a copy of The Wisest Investment by Robin Taub.

She begins by noting that “to have money you have to earn it. Then… there are just four things to do with it – save, spend, share, invest.”

The book has chapters (along with worksheets and handy charts) aimed at kids aged five to eight, nine to 12, 13 to 17 and young adults aged 18 to 21.

Early on, Taub talks about “the 11 healthy habits of financial management.”

The include the idea that you need to “know where you stand financially,” or figuring out one’s net worth; that you need to “live within your means” and “save, or pay yourself first;” that you need to understand “the difference between good debt and bad debt,” to “set up a financial safety net,” and “know the difference between needs and wants.”

As well, the list of 11 includes the need to “teach delayed gratification and set financial goals,” to “track your spending,” to “save now for your children’s education” and for parents to “present a united money front” to the kids. Lastly, be sure to “prepare a will and powers of attorney” to, in effect, set a good course to be followed for after you are gone.

She advises that when talking to very young kids about money, start with cash.

“If you’re comfortable letting your kids handle money (after sanitizing, perhaps) they can start to develop an understanding of Canadian currency…. You can show them the different coins and bills and talk to them about what they’re worth. You can point out the different images on the `heads’ and `tails’ sides of the coins and discuss how each of them is a very special and important image of Canada: the beaver, the moose, the loon and the polar bear, to name a few,” she writes.

She discusses the sometimes-controversial topic of giving kids an allowance.

“Some parents firmly believe that their kids need to `earn’ their allowance, perhaps by doing household chores or by getting good grades,” she writes. “Others believe just as strongly that their kids should help out around the house without getting paid because it’s their responsibility as a member of the family to contribute.” For this group, she continues, paying the kid “sends the wrong message, i.e., that they should expect compensation for everything they do.” Two schools of thought, she concludes, but “there is no right or wrong answer. As always, you have to do what works for your child and your family.”

And, she adds later, “once your child receives his allowance, try to resist the urge to get overly involved in what he does with it. Explain that he should allocate his allowance to the different categories of save, spend, share and invest…. Allow him to make his own spending choices and to live with the consequences of his own decisions,” she notes. You can go over his budget and see if he is staying within it, however, Taub writes.

Later on, when your child is a teenager, you will have reached “a crucial time for your teen to develop sound money management skills” and you, as the parents, “must lead by example” as “financial role models.”

“It can be difficult to communicate with your teenager about anything at this age, but when it comes to money, try not to make it a taboo subject in your home,” she writes.

When your teen finally gets a “real” job, you need to make sure they understand “gross and net pay… explain that employers are required by law to make certain deductions or `withholdings’ from gross pay… and send these amounts straight to the government.”

Income tax, employment insurance and Canada Pension Plan-related deductions/contributions can make the kid’s “take-home pay…. quite a bit lower than they were expecting.”

Budgeting is important once the child has moved from allowance to earned income. Taub recommends develop a budget that takes into account fixed expenses (cell phone, transportation and clothing) that are “needs versus wants,” but to leave room in the budget for entertainment. “Have your kid save receipts so they can keep track of what they spend and you can review the details,” Taub advises.

It’s not too early when they are in their late teens or early 20s to get your kids going on retirement savings, Taub notes.

“If your kid’s income doesn’t all have to go toward college or university expenses, starting a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) can be a good idea,” she says. Explain to the kid how RRSPs work – “the funds inside an RRSP are invested, and the investment income earned inside an RRSP isn’t subject to tax. This means the investments can grow more quickly to help (the kid) reach (their) long-term goals.”

On credit cards, “the best way to teach your kids to use credit cards responsibly is to model this behaviour yourself. Let them know that you pay off your credit card balance each month. Explain to them that the credit card is used for convenience, but that it’s a very expensive way to buy things you can’t afford.”

This great book is loaded with worksheets, charts, and illustrative anecdotes to make teaching your kids an enjoyable experience! It’s highly recommended.

Somewhere in our basement is an old pay slip from our days selling curtain rods at an Ottawa hardware store in the mid-1970s. The CPP contribution shown on the slip – we made a robust $3.20 per hour then – was a single dollar. We told our teenaged granddaughter that even tiny amounts contributed in the past have added up to a more consequential CPP payment that we get each month today!

Anyone with available RRSP room can be a member of the Saskatchewan Pension Plan. Find out how SPP has been helping Canadians save for retirement for over 35 years. SPP does all the hard work for you – investing your retirement savings in a professionally managed, low-cost pooled fund. When you retire, your options for turning savings into income include having a monthly lifetime annuity payment or the more flexible Variable Benefit option.

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In his practical, clear and helpful book – Everything You Need to Know About Saving for Retirement – author Ben Carlson identifies the problem of low savings rates and offers up a clear approach to get going on saving.

He begins by noting that “four million people (are) reaching retirement age annually in the United States,” and that “the vast majority of them are ill-prepared for this next stage of their financial lives.” Half of those aged 55-61 in the U.S., he writes, have saved less than $21,000 for retirement; half of those aged 50-55 have less than $11,000 in savings.

Yet, retirees can expect to live more than 20 years, on average, in retirement, he notes.

While building wealth is “simple… just live below your means, save the difference, and invest for the long term,” Carlson makes the point that because something is simple does not mean it is easy. “Getting your finances in order is more difficult than it seems because money impacts so many different aspects of your life,” he writes.

Nevertheless, Carlson identifies three things “you need to get right to give yourself a chance at financial independence one day,” specifically:

• “Save at least 10 per cent of your income (preferably 15 to 20 per cent).”
• “Make your saving and investing automatic.”
• “Think and act for the long term.”

“Saving money provides a margin of safety when life inevitably gets in the way of your best-laid plans,” he writes. “The last thing you want to worry about when life throws you a curve ball is money. Money issues amplify stressful situations.”

So, you want to start small, he explains. Small wins. He started with just $50 a month in his first job, and over time “I slowly increased the amount saved. Every time I received a raise, I would bump up my savings rate.”

He gives the example of famed investor Warren Buffett, who at age 60 had a fortune valued at $4 billion, but turned 90 in 2020 with a net worth of $70 billion.

“Real wealth for normal retirement savers comes from a combination of saving, compounding, and sitting on your hands. It takes time and it’s not easy. It could take decades to see extraordinary results,” he explains.

Another tip is to start young, he writes. “Starting at a young age not only helps you take advantage of compound interest, it can also save you stress and financial strain later in life,” he continues. All is not lost, he adds, if you are older, but it will take “some more planning and a higher savings rate.”

Talking about investing, he says you have to be comfortable with risk – what goes up can go down. “If there is an ironclad rule in the world of investing, it’s that risk and reward are always and forever attached at the hip,” he explains.

He suggests that putting your budget on “autopilot,” or automating “as much of your spending and saving as humanly possible” and spending only “what is left over” is an effort that “requires more work up front but the benefits can last a lifetime.”

Near the end of the book, he advocates paying yourself first. “Saving is more important than investing,” he writes. “Pay yourself first is such simple advice, but so few people do this. The best investment decision you can make is setting a high savings rate because it gives you a huge margin of safety.” As well, he concludes, the savings rate is something you have control over.

While this book is intended for a U.S. audience and has chapters on American retirement savings plans and government benefits, the core of the book offers sound advice for any reader – it is highly recommended!

The Saskatchewan Pension Plan allows its members to use an auto-pilot approach. You can set up pre-authorized contributions to SPP from your bank account, so the money goes into your retirement nest egg before you have a chance to spend it. And, as the book suggests, you can up your contributions any time you get a raise. It’s a “set it and forget it” way to build your future retirement security.

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Christine Benz uses an interview approach in her fine book, How to Retire, to really dig into some retirement-related dos and don’t.

And while there are a few sections that focus chiefly on U.S. tax rules, the bulk of the book is still very helpful for a Canadian reader.

The book begins by asking Michael Finke about what people should be thinking about when it’s time to contemplate retirement. Being happy, he explains, is crucial – it’s not just a math problem. “Of course that’s a very important part of living well in retirement – not feeling like money is a barrier to doing the kind of things that actually make us happy,” he begins. “But you also have to develop the skills to figure out how to be happy in a time of leisure, if that’s what you’re doing. And that’s a big question. Is this just a long weekend? Is this just a big vacation? And are you set up to be able to live?”

On how to pick a retirement date, Fritz Gilbert tells Benz “what I encourage people to do is take that last year (of work) and think about all the non-financial aspects of retirement, to make sure you’re emotionally and mentally ready for the transition as well. If you get the financial piece in order, and you’ve spent some time thinking about the non-financial piece, the “when” is going to become fairly obvious between the two of those combined.”

Laura Carstensen talks about the important of keeping up social connections – different than those you had at work. Recalling vacations when she was constantly in touch with the office via her mobile phone, she said you can’t completely disconnect when you retire.

“Going from that to a complete sense of `Nobody wants me. I’m not obliged to do anything,” is just as bad. People think about retirement as a way to break out of that pressure. What we really need is to change the way we work throughout our working lives. But certainly, as you get older and you start to have some ability to work less and to be more flexible in your work, keep in mind that doing some work is good for most people.”

David Blanchett talks about buying annuities, the “a” word. “If you want more guaranteed income, you want to first exhaust your options with respect to (government benefits).” He suggests claiming your government benefits as late as possible so that you get more. “After that, it might be worth considering annuities, given the potential economic benefits, which is something I’ve focused on for most of my career.”

Another important thing for retirees to think about is “spending money meaningfully” suggests financial author Ramit Sethi. You also need to talk about death benefits. “So many of us are afraid to talk about death. I told my wife, “Here are the conditions under which I don’t want to live anymore. Here’s what going to happen one day if I get hit by a bus. Let’s talk about it.

“There’s no virtue in hiding from something that’s going to happen to all of us. We might as well be open about it, When we acknowledge that eh average person like us lives to X age, suddenly we get very honest with ourselves. `Wow, I have a limited time window to actually use this money. What am I going to do with it?’”

Wade Pfau talks about investing strategies for retirees, including the “4 per cent” withdrawal rule, and the danger of “sequence of returns risks,” which is the danger of taking out investment money before the big returns start to hit.

He suggests four steps to mitigate sequence risk – “the first is to spend conservatively. That’s the logic of the four per cent rule.” Alternatively, spend flexibly. “If I can adjust spending along with market performance, that manages the sequence of returns risk because I’m not having to sell as much from a declining portfolio.” Other tactics include mitigating volatility by diversifying into less risky assets, like bonds, and having “buffer assets,” something outside the portfolio that you treat as a temporary spending resource to spend from after market downturns, to help avoid selling from the portfolio at a loss.”

In a chapter on choosing where to live after retirement, Mark Miller notes that “most people don’t move when they retire. That’s a media myth. And when people do move, they generally don’t move very far.” But if you are considering a bigger move, he recommends that you see what the healthcare services in your new area are like, as well as “transportation, walkability, and the like.”

Carolyn McClanahan suggests you need to “make certain your home is aging friendly. If it’s not, then figure out how you’re going to make it aging friendly, or where you’re going to move so you can live at home.”

This is a very well-thought-out book that covers off most aspect of retirement in a factual, friendly way. It’s well worth being an addition to your retirement library.

Annuities are a way to turn some of your retirement savings into a lifetime income stream. The Saskatchewan Pension Plan offers a full range of annuities. Be sure to check out this option when the day comes to convert your savings into retirement income. There’s also the flexibility of the Variable Benefit option to look at!

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In her excellent book The Pink Tax, author Janine Rogan contends that we are living with a financial system that is “designed to keep women broke.” Her book walks us through the situation and offers sage advice and strategies for women to use to fight back.

She defines the Pink Tax as a system where women are paid less for the same work but are expected to pay more for goods and services. “I’ve seen pink-branded calculators, earplugs, kids’ helmets and clothing that cost more – it’s everywhere. Although it may seem like a few dollars and cents don’t make a big difference, it adds up. The Pink Tax costs women $82,000 by the time they are 60, and that figure only includes the things the researchers were measuring.”

Rogan advises us to “demand financial equality,” to “build wealth for self-care,” to “support new moms” and to “vote for your daughters.”

Pay gap: Speaking about the pay gap, Rogan notes that it wasn’t “until 1963 that employers (in the U.S.) were required to pay women equally for jobs that entailed the same skill effort and responsibility.”

Expanding the discussion of the wage gap, Rogan notes that not only are women paid “83 cents on the dollar” versus men, but they are “twice as likely to be in part-time jobs… (and) miss out on advantages such as health benefits or retirement contributions, which full-time positions offer.”

She recalls finding out that a man with equal standing and the same role at her company “was making $13,000 more than I was.” Lower wages mean “less money to save and to invest. The wage gap turns into a savings and investing gap, fuelling the wealth gap.”

Wealth gap: A career-long pay gap translates to a wealth gap, she explains. “Even women in the top one per cent have disproportionately lower incomes than their male counterparts, earing on average $362,000 per year while men in the top one per cent earn $392,000.”

Rogan feels that it is time for women “to take back the fight… to take the power of your money into your own hands so that together we can remedy women’s financial undereducation and all of the other inequities… let’s demolish that gap entirely!”

Noting that only 30 per cent of the world’s wealth is held by women, Rogan suggests that the “travesty on unpaid caregiving work… compounds the wealth gap. Globally, women and girls put in 12.5 billion hours per day of unpaid care work. We would add $12 trillion to the global economy per year if we began paying women and wage minimum wage for their unpaid caregiving work.”

Building wealth for self-care: “Building your wealth is a form of self-care,” writes Rogan. “Building wealth means having a financial cushion to rely on if life takes a turn for the worse.”

She walks us through a way to manage your money by aligning finances with your values.

“My top three values are spending time with the people I love and care about most (my baby and my hubby), exploring the world, and feeling financially secure,” she explains.

“Knowing what’s important to you helps you define where to allocate your money, which is a basic premise of budgeting… a spending plan for your hard-earned dollars,” she continues.

Noting that women face “up to 35,000 decisions” per day, a key to managing financial decisions is to automate things as much as possible, particularly bill payments.

“Because we are paid on the 15^th and 30^th of each month, we set up our money transfers – from chequing to savings, chequing to investing accounts, and chequing to bills – for the 16^th and the first.” Taking basic financial transactions off the constant list will “lighten your mental load,” she suggests.

She uses the same approach to automate savings for large, planned expenses – a monthly contribution to a planned Hawaii trip, another one for the child’s education, for TFSA saving and “long term savings goals, such as retirement.”

Even if you go the automation route, Rogan recommends you set up a “money date” once or twice a month to review your progress on savings and expenditures, a chance to “identify any bills you could potentially lower or subscriptions you could cancel.”

Be sure you and your partner “talk about money early and often,” discuss “your values and spending styles,” and “manage the household finances together.”

At work, she writes, don’t be afraid to ask for a raise – 68 per cent of women don’t.

While there is still much work to do to achieve gender equity, Rogan notes that “we don’t have to look far to find amazing examples of countries advancing gender equality every year.”

“Personally,” she concludes, “I’d like to see us get there in my lifetime.”

Automation is available for members of the Saskatchewan Pension Plan. You can set up pre-authorized contributions to SPP from your bank account, and you can pick the dates to coordinate with your pay dates so you are paying yourself first. You can also automate payments by setting up SPP as a bill, and using online banking. This “set it and forget it” approach is a way to build your retirement nest egg easily and automatically.

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In Live Your Best Retirement, author Ramon Reid begins by expressing concern for those who are not happy in their so-called golden years. The book then provides ways to turn things around for that group.

As he began his own retirement, he noticed “a worrying trend in people who had retired. A lot were lost and unfocussed or even worse – they seemed angry that retirement hadn’t delivered the goods.” Worse, he continues, they didn’t know what to do about it.

He and his wife, on the other hand, had a plan when they retired early. “We (had) a number of key projects in mind, are active physically as keen gardeners, cyclists and kayakers, are emotionally centred with regular meetups with friends and family and are intellectually stimulated as part-time business and management consultants.”

In other words, he writes, “we made purposeful decisions about how we wanted to live our third age.”

Those on the verge of retiring, he advises, don’t “want to drift aimlessly in a sea of indecision” about the years ahead. They instead need to be “prepared for more than one option,” and to be able to “learn fast or adapt.” Having a plan for the years ahead allows you to “look forward to the future with excitement and not look back in grief.”

The book gives dozens of real-life examples of how individuals and couples coped with retirement and its precursor processes, like planning.

The transition to retirement “can be tough,” he writes. “For some retirees, the reality of retirement is a far cry from their expectations and often leads to disillusionment and deep unhappiness.” Further, he continues, a surprising 40 per cent of Americans reverse their decision to retire.

That’s because they don’t have a purpose for retirement. “Finding purpose in life means different things to people. The quest assumes an even greater urgency once you enter the third age of your life,” he writes. “For some, it is about fulfilling a passion; for others, it is unearthing a passion they did not know they had.” He suggests that volunteering in retirement is a “transformative” action for retirees seeing purpose.

In a chapter on personal growth and learning, he notes that “retirement is not the end but the beginning of a new appreciation of the wonders of life.”

“The trick,” he writes, “is teasing out the reward of a hobby, or learning a new skill, even a language, that occupies your mind 100 per cent. Take comfort in the research that shows, time and again, that your growth is achieved by challenging yourself.”

Examples of things to learn in retirement, he writes, include a new language, music, strategic game playing, dancing, acting, cycling and pottery.

“Be curious, be active,” he advises. “You have as much to offer the community as the community has to offer you.”

He concludes his optimistic book by advising retirees to find “like minded others” by joining classes or groups. “Start small and build on your options,” he suggests. “Do something positive at the start of every day.” Be careful what you are eating – cut back on processed foods, sugar and alcohol, he advises.

“Just do it, start doing something, anything, today. Take the first step, the others will follow. Stepping out will become easier each day, just as your confidence and capability does.”

This is a fantastic and motivating book. The move from work to retirement can be jarring and sad if you haven’t thought about what to do with all that time, and while the focus with pre-retirement seems to always be on money, it’s really more important to be active and to try new things, as Ramon Reid says so well.

Changing jobs? Your SPP account is ready to make the move with you. Since you can join SPP as an individual, changing employers doesn’t affect your eligibility to continue contributions – you can keep going on your retirement savings no matter where you’re working. And, once those contributions have been professionally invested in SPP’s low-cost pooled fund, you’ll enjoy – at retirement – options that include a lifetime monthly annuity payment or the more flexible Variable Benefit option.

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Retirement is about “much more than money,” authors of Retiring? say

When friends Ted Kaufman and Bruce Hiland compared notes about their transition from work to retirement, they felt there was a book in there. The result, Retiring?, is a great little reference work that provides key things to consider as you transition away from the workplace.

As a starting point, the authors note that “retirement has changed enormously in the last few decades in its duration, the circumstances giving rise to it, and decisions the individual has to make.”

As well, they note that most retirees they spoke to “were unprepared for the profound personal and life changes retirement brings. Addressing these non-financial issues seemed to hold the key to a satisfying and fulfilling retirement, but only financial matters had gotten the necessary attention.”

In short, people “are living longer” and “the onset of age-related health problems has slowed.” So we live longer and are more healthy, yet “a career with a single employer is now virtually unheard of,” and “ageism is alive and well,” with successful people still being shuffled off to retirement because they are deemed to be too old, the authors write.

In retirement, you have to move on from the old reality that your work “defines you,” the authors point out. You will need new social connections. But, retirement will bring change that you can embrace – “you’ll have more choices than ever before,” the authors say.

To set sail on retirement, the authors suggest (worksheets and a quiz are in the book to help you) that you define “what I value” as well as a “never again” list. This useful pros and cons list may help you decide whether or not to retire, or more possibly, when, the authors maintain.

Activities are crucial in retirement – things like “teaching, writing, starting a business, exploring a new talent, or fully developing one you already have, such as art, gardening, or photography.” Having one activity is good. “Two is not uncommon, but three seems to be pushing it. The core idea is to define your anchor so you can fit other interesting, satisfying activities around it, like filling in the smaller stores in the mall,” the authors explain.

In a chapter on relocation after retirement, the authors suggest making a test run before the big move. “Give it a serious tryout before making a decision. The same advice applies to a move back to someplace once familiar but where you haven’t lived for many years. Renting – ideally for a year – offers the most realistic experience against which to test your expectations,” the authors advise.

In the section about physical health and fitness, there is a nice worksheet section that considers such factors as your age, family history, stress level (and sources), chronic issues, and other factors to help you design a suitable health plan.

Be active and watch the drinking, the authors warn. “Exercise. Eat and drink in moderation. Develop a sensible plan, and then stick to it!”

After helpful chapters on mental health and spirituality, the authors conclude this fact-laden, thoughtful book by advising that “the new retirement will bring many changes. The one constant is that those who enjoy a satisfying and meaningful retirement are those who applied their thinking and planning talents to the challenge.”

Living after work is over will still require money. If you are lucky enough to have a retirement program at work, be sure to contribute to the max. If you are saving on your own for retirement, considering partnering up with the Saskatchewan Pension Plan, who have been helping Canadians build retirement security for more than 35 years.

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