Webinar Recap: Designing Retirement With Purpose

Retirement planning is about far more than hitting a number in an account. It is about creating reliable income, protecting against risks, and building the confidence to enjoy the life you have worked hard to create.

In our recent Real Secrets of Money™ session, Designing Retirement With Purpose, we explored the key risks people face in retirement and how intentional planning can help address them. This workshop was designed for individuals at every stage of their journey, whether retirement is approaching or still years away.

If you prefer to watch the full conversation, the complete workshop recording is available on our YouTube channel and linked HERE.

Why Retirement Planning Requires a Different Mindset

Many people approach retirement planning with a single question in mind: “Will I have enough?” While important, that question alone does not fully capture what retirement demands.

A well-designed retirement plan must address income needs, inflation, market volatility, healthcare costs, and longevity. These factors are interconnected, and overlooking even one can place unnecessary stress on the plan later.

This session focused on helping participants shift from simply accumulating savings to intentionally designing a retirement strategy that supports stability, flexibility, and peace of mind.

The Four Major Risks to Consider in Retirement

One of the core takeaways from the workshop was understanding the four primary risks that impact nearly every retirement plan.

Longevity risk reflects the reality that people are living longer than previous generations. While longer life expectancy is a positive development, it also means retirement income may need to last 25 to 30 years or more. Without proper planning, this increases the risk of outliving savings.

Inflation risk is often underestimated. Over time, rising costs reduce purchasing power, meaning the income that feels sufficient today may not support the same lifestyle in the future. Planning only in today’s dollars can create significant shortfalls later.

Distribution and sequence of returns risk refers to the timing of market returns while withdrawing income. Even portfolios with similar long-term returns can experience very different outcomes depending on when withdrawals begin and how markets perform early in retirement.

Medical and healthcare risk continues to be one of the largest and most unpredictable expenses in retirement. Healthcare costs tend to rise with age and inflation, making proactive planning essential to avoid financial strain later in life.

Understanding how these risks interact is a critical step in designing a retirement plan that can adapt over time.

Rethinking Income in Retirement

Another major theme of the workshop was reframing how retirement income is viewed. Retirement income is not a single source. It is typically a combination of multiple tools working together.

Income may come from sources such as Social Security, pensions where available, retirement accounts like IRAs and 401(k)s, personal savings, brokerage accounts, real estate income, or part-time work. Each plays a different role and carries different levels of reliability and flexibility.

A key planning concept discussed was aligning dependable income sources with essential living expenses. When basic needs are covered by reliable income, other assets can be used more strategically for discretionary spending, growth, or legacy goals.

Moving Beyond the One-Size-Fits-All Approach

Traditional retirement rules of thumb, such as relying solely on a fixed withdrawal percentage, do not account for real-life variables like market timing, healthcare costs, or changing goals.

Instead, the workshop emphasized the importance of clarity. Knowing what expenses are essential, which are discretionary, and how income sources work together allows for more thoughtful decisions and greater confidence.

Retirement planning is not a one-time event. It is an ongoing process that benefits from regular review and adjustment as life changes.

Designing Retirement With Intention

At its core, this session reinforced that retirement planning is about creating options. When income is intentionally designed, people gain flexibility. They are less likely to feel forced into decisions based on market conditions and more likely to enjoy retirement on their own terms.

Designing retirement with purpose means understanding your needs, acknowledging risks, and building a strategy that evolves with you.

Watch the Full Workshop Recording

The complete Designing Retirement With Purpose workshop is available on our YouTube channel.

We invite you to watch the full session to explore these concepts in greater depth and to check out additional Real Secrets of Money™ workshops covering a wide range of financial education topics.

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Continue the Conversation

If you would like to talk through your own retirement plan, explore income strategies, or better understand how these risks apply to your situation, we invite you to start a conversation with our team.

Whether you are early in your career or approaching retirement, clarity today can help create confidence tomorrow.

Final Thought

Retirement planning is not just about numbers on a statement. It is about creating the freedom to enjoy the life you have worked to build. With the right education and intentional planning, retirement can be approached with confidence instead of uncertainty.

Stay tuned for upcoming Real Secrets of Money™ sessions and continue learning with us.

[CLICK HERE FOR THE UPCOMING SESSION]

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