As you approach retirement there will be no shortage of people wanting to give you “advice.” Retirement planners, financial planners, fee-only advisors, stock brokers and more all hoping to help you invest your money for retirement. One growing group of “advisors” are retirement coaches. Like fee-only planners, coaches get paid for their time but they make no purchases on their own. Instead, they coach you and help answer your questions. Because there are no hidden commission, retirement coaches can be the best source of information you can get. The only real downside is that a “coach” doesn’t have the same stringent requirements that financial advisors have.
Getting a retirement coach can prove to be life-changing, which is why it is an investment you should make. A retirement coach is beneficial in the following ways.
1. Helps you re-discover yourself:
If you have been in love with your work all your life, then you might face an identity crisis after retirement. A retirement coach will help you figure out your priorities again. If you want to make the last phase of your life fruitful, then you will have to let the retirement coach help you divide your time accordingly. Because the coach is more interested in you living a full life than a commission they are able to bring up things like time management as opposed to the latest annuity.
2. Allows you to achieve success:
Some people thrive on success in the workplace and retirement takes that away. Retirement coaches work with people in their retirement. This sounds like an obvious statement but it means that they’ve helped people do what you’re now faced with doing. Your retirement coach will help you find your passion and continue giving you goals to reach. Working towards them will give you a sense of achievement.
3. Diversified Advice
Again because a retirement coach won’t be talking to you with commission breath they can advise on all aspects of retirement. For example, if you’re thinking that you want to retire to Texas because it’s a state without an income tax a retirement coach might be able to show you that you can live anywhere since your retirement income isn’t counted as income in any state. In addition, a retirement coach could give you retirement advice around real estate, stocks, annuities, 401ks, 403B and IRAs.
4. Plans for your long-term health:
Retirement coaches tend to be more holistic than their strictly financial counterparts. It’s not uncommon for retirement coaches to offer health coaching “lite” and check in on your activities.
5. Advice For Every Stage Of Retirement
Retirement marks a new chapter for a retiree’s life, but even retirement is a multi-stage process. In the beginning, it’s likely that you may want to continue to work. However as you age, how you take care of your health and eventually who will care for you are important aspects of retirement. The retirement coach has a unique position because they are only tied to your success in retirement and not to products. In the beginning, it’s not uncommon for retirement coaches to help retirees with real estate investments or other endeavors. As their clients grow older, a retirement coach will often recommend appropriate investment or insurance vehicles for that stage.
