Purpose-driven retirement planning

THIS is the eighth instalment of our retirement series. In my previous writings, I shared how I used our proprietary tool "RetireWell" to give our client David (aged 59), a reliable income stream throughout his retiring years. (The unedited earlier articles are at www.providend.com/articles/).

But holistic retirement planning is beyond just planning the wealth aspect. It is also about taking care of the retiree's health so he can enjoy his retirement, and planning for his estate should death occur. There is also a need to consider the "in-betweens": insurance, when retirees are not healthy and need money for medical expenses; mental incapacity, when they are between living and dying, and need someone to take care of their daily affairs; and legacy planning after death. But how does one make these delicate decisions? I strongly believe that retirees should make these decisions based on their life's purpose.

It was Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl who once said that "ever more people today have the means to live, but no meaning to live for". And borrowing his phrase, in retirement without a life's purpose, you might have the means to retire but no meaning in retirement.