“A million bucks won’t get you much these days”.

I was taken aback by the comment. 

We tend to use that number to decide who is rich and who isn't.  “Oh, he’s a millionaire, he can afford it”.

A third of marriages end in divorce*. Relationship breakdown is an emotionally difficult time, that can have a significant financial impact as well, This impact can continue well into later life.  For example, households with men and women aged 55–64 years who haven't divorced earn around $10,000 a year more than those households headed by divorcees**of the same age.

​An old Darwin connection tracked me down during the week.  Man, did we have some laughs. In between tall stories, (let's call him Bill) reminded me of a casual conversation we had about wealth creation nearly 20 years earlier. I can’t remember it, but in the end he went with a conflicting approach from a competitor. It went a bit like this:

At 50, financial questions begin to shift from “what are my goals for the future?” to “where have my past decisions led me?” Financial adviser Tony Sandercock explains.

This blog was originally posted in "Slice of Life".

"Do you want to be able to maintain your standard of living in your golden years? Do you want to make sure you don’t run out of money before you run out of time? Do you want to know how much money you’ll need to make that happen?” .  If you answered yes to these questions, then the only way you can find the answers is to calculate the number.  Anything less is a guess!!

Imagine if you could see the future - your future. Imagine fast forwarding 20 years from now, what financial advice would you give yourself today.  

Your words of wisdom might sound like this:

Picture your first years in retirement.  Things are going great.  Days spent playing with the grandkids, sunny mornings on the golf course and leisurely walks on the beach - your very own version of nirvana!  Before you completely relax into your golden years though, you should be aware of a potential financial pitfall that can be devastating just as retirement begins. 

I successfully quit smoking 20 years ago today – 20th May 1996 (not that I’m counting). Thank goodness, what a filthy habit!!  

​As anyone who has given up the smokes will tell you, quitting is tough.  In fact, I had numerous attempts before I got it right. 

You’re excited! The big day has finally come. You’ve dreamt of this moment for years; no more pointless Monday morning meetings, no more doing emails at 6am, no more of those ridiculous team-building events, no more strategic opportunities to leverage our game-changing, holistic, disruptive, evidence-based, sustainable blah blah blah nonsense.