One of the trickiest parts of personal finance is managing the transitions.
Like the transition from:
* Spending everything to saving regularly as you start making progress in your career and start thinking more seriously about your long-term future
* Doing everything as an individual and thinking only about your own needs to working together with a partner and planning your future together
* Working together as a couple to including your kids’ futures in your plan
* Accumulating money during your working years to spending down your money in retirement
Transitions are tricky because they often require a shift in mindset, a change in how you behave, and the need to set up new defaults.
It’s not easy to get serious about your future. It’s not easy to include someone else in all of your financial decisions when you’re used to doing everything on your own.
And it’s easy to underestimate how challenging it can be. Lots of people find it hard to believe that spending money in retirement can be difficult. But when you’ve spent the past three or four decades saving, it really can be hard.
This is one area where working with an advisor can be really valuable. I help clients make these transitions all the time, which means figuring out what actually needs to be done, talking about what changes actually need to happen, and updating their plan accordingly.
Life changes, things happen, and your financial plan needs to keep up. Lots of these transitions are difficult enough psychologically without the addition of financial stress.