{"id":36,"date":"2016-06-30T20:37:41","date_gmt":"2016-06-30T20:37:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/?p=36"},"modified":"2016-06-30T20:38:15","modified_gmt":"2016-06-30T20:38:15","slug":"4-ways-to-get-financially-fit-in-your-40s-missouri-employee-benefits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/2016\/06\/30\/4-ways-to-get-financially-fit-in-your-40s-missouri-employee-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Ways to Get Financially Fit in Your 40s | Missouri Employee Benefits"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Family<\/p>\n

Many people in their 40s are facing an uncomfortable fact: They simply aren\u2019t where they\u2019d hoped to be financially. Fortunately, all their life experience can help correct for past mistakes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a different trigger moment for everybody,\u201d says Jay Howard, financial advisor and partner at MHD Financial in San Antonio, Texas. \u201cBut regardless of when it comes, people find themselves looking down the barrel of a gun as they consider retirement.\u201d<\/p>\n

One challenge is that it\u2019s impossible to advise 40-somethings based on tidy \u201clife stage\u201d demographics. Some are just starting families, while others are sending offspring to college. They\u2019re married, single, divorced, and just about everything in between.<\/p>\n

But for those still grappling with financial instability, these four principles can help in moving forward with confidence:<\/p>\n

1. Acknowledge what you\u2019ve done right. <\/strong>
\nIt could be one great decision sandwiched in between some fails, or just a single good habit that can mitigate the impact of a host of wrongs.<\/p>\n

Take the example of Kiera Starboard, a 46-year-old controller at a San Diego software firm. A mom to two adult sons and a teenage stepson, she always made having sufficient life insurance\u2014both term and permanent\u2014a priority, the result of her previous training as a financial advisor. \u201cEven if it was tight, I made the payments,\u201d she says. \u201cIt was a priority for my family\u2019s sake, and for my own peace of mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Unlike the 40% of Americans who have no life insurance, Starboard was protected when the unthinkable happened last August. Less than two years into her marriage, her husband, Steve, was killed while riding his motorcycle to work\u2014one month after they purchased a small, additional life insurance policy to supplement his employer coverage.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo have had to deal with financial stress on top of everything else, it would have been unbearable, incapacitating,\u201d says Starboard. \u201cMy stepson and I are certainly in a much better position today than we would have been, had Steve and I not followed the advice I used to give to others.\u201d<\/p>\n

2. Take action to shore up the decades ahead. <\/strong>
\nFor many, the hardest part can be learning to put your own long-term future first\u2014sometimes for the first time in your life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see people focusing on their kids\u2019 college savings, and not enough on retirement or an emergency fund for themselves,\u201d says Starboard. Many advisors point out that kids can borrow for college if necessary, but no one can borrow for retirement.<\/p>\n

The most important step is clear, says Howard: \u201cYou must have a written financial plan, period. Because that plan will dictate what you must do to be successful for the entirely of your life.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe financial plan is your road map,\u201d he continues. \u201cIn it will be your portfolio requirements, your savings goals, and your insurance-related needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Finally, make sure your plan takes inflation into account, commonly estimated at 3% a year. Says Howard, \u201cInflation is the silent assassin that eats away at your nest egg.\u201d<\/p>\n

3. Apply the hard-fought wisdom you\u2019ve gained.<\/strong>
\n\u201cTreat the numbers determined by your plan\u2014such as monthly savings\u2014as bills that need to be paid,\u201d advises Howard. When money comes in, it\u2019s easy to start thinking of a new kitchen or a trip to Tulum. \u201cJust be patient and keep the bills paid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Using that wisdom also applies to the big stuff. As the executor to her husband\u2019s estate, Starboard has held back making any major decisions. \u201cIn a prior loss, I committed to real estate transactions and other things prematurely. At the time, it really felt like the right thing to do but my grief clouded my perception. I had a painful, expensive learning lesson.\u201d<\/p>\n

4. Focus on your shining future\u2014really.<\/strong>
\nForward thinking is an essential part of your financial plan, says Howard. \u201cGet help really envisioning what kind of retirement you want. For each aspect, really drill down. For instance, where do you want to live? Do you want to be near your grandkids? Will you have the money to go see them? How often? It\u2019s not just financial planning, it\u2019s life planning.\u201d<\/p>\n

If all that forward thinking feels presumptuous, Howard recalls the eminently quotable Yogi Berra, who once said, \u201cIf you don\u2019t know where you\u2019re going, you might not get there.\u201d<\/p>\n

And finally, remember the simple refrain: it\u2019s never too late.<\/p>\n

Originally published by LifeHappens – Read More<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many people in their 40s are facing an uncomfortable fact: They simply aren\u2019t where they\u2019d hoped to be financially. Fortunately, all their life experience can help correct for past mistakes. \u201cThere\u2019s a different trigger moment for everybody,\u201d says Jay Howard, financial advisor and partner at MHD Financial in San Antonio, Texas. \u201cBut regardless of when … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,28],"tags":[10,11,30,29,6,31],"class_list":["post-36","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","category-financial-planning","tag-blog","tag-employee-benefits","tag-financial-advisors","tag-financial-planning","tag-missouri-employee-benefits","tag-saving"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36\/revisions\/39"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/myebdbenefits.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}