What COVID-19's Volatile Job Security Has Taught Us about Preparing For Retirement - Pension Guaranteed Plan

The Covid -19 pandemic has taught us to expect the unexpected. For many the year 2020 has been one of the most challenging one in terms of finances and career. We have seen jobs being lost, companies down shutters and the economy in despair. The New Year is beginning of another uncertain period which promises little respite. It will take time for vaccination programs to tame the corona virus. Until then we will continue to face the health risks, pressure on economy and disruption to our natural day to day living. But all is not gloomy; the pandemic has taught us some valuable life and finance lessons. First is the fact that we need to factor in uncertainty and be flexible in our plans. People who thought that they have the leisure of time and resources to plan their retirement are in for a rude shock. Even before the pandemic hit, experts recommended that it is always advisable to start caring and planning about retirement early in one’s working life. As the years pass it's all but commonsense to prepare for it more actively. Most people start to think about their retirement rather late in their careers and by then the new stage in their lives is upon them. The transition to retirement is a decisive step and preparation is necessary. 

Preparing For Retirement 

The first thing to do is plan and set goals. All projects, financial or not, start here. It is with a specific goal that we motivate ourselves to take action. Determining one's need takes a bit of work. One should know their expenses, expenditures, assets and liabilities in depth to start preparing. One's current lifestyle will help determine how much one will need in retirement. Other than that what one plans to do after retirement like follow their passions, travel and more will have financial consequences and has to be factored in. One may also seek the expertise of a professional in the matter such as that of a personal finance advisor. Next up is to make an action plan, one should research and workout what will be the requirements for them to be as comfortable as possible in retirement. One should just not be dependent on one source of income, diversification of investments is highly recommended. It is only natural to wonder about saving for retirement. Whether one is preparing to retire, already enjoying it, or putting together a longer-term retirement plan, the stock or equity markets seems to be a lucrative option. But Covid-19 period has taught us that one needs to factor in market volatility in their plans as well.          

Best Practices and thinks to keep in mind when preparing for Retirement 

Retirement planning is the key to living the kind of retirement you've dreamed of. This is especially true for self-employed professionals and for employees whose employers do not offer a pension fund, here it is up to oneself to save and set aside money for the same. One cannot repeat it enough: a great retirement is prepared for when one is young. So, like any foresighted person, one has to start to set up a retirement budget with wise investments. It's an excellent strategy that will pay off in the long term, and will allow one to maintain your pace of life once the time comes for retirement. The best thing for you to do is therefore to continue to contribute and to see your capital grow over time. One must consider the growth of your retirement savings over the long term which may be several years or even decades.   

Pension Guaranteed Plan

The first and foremost requirement to maintain a comfortable lifestyle even after retirement is regular income. A pension guaranteed plan is a program in which one contributes during the working life so that he or she can draw a stable income or a pension from it after retirement. A pension guaranteed plan is a tool that can help elevate one’s level of preparation for retirement many a folds. With pension guaranteed plan one may invest just once and receive a regular income stream post retirement. After investing in a pension guaranteed plan one may choose to start receiving payouts Immediate or may choose the option of deferred annuity wherein they would receive the advantage of compounding of interest and funds and better payouts. One may choose to receive payouts on a monthly, quarterly, half-yearly, or yearly basis. It's never too late to start planning and saving for retirement, but there is no silver bullet. Better to start as early as possible.