What is Retirement?
This is an excellent question, and it is a topic we hear about all the time.
When I was a child, the only thing that I knew about retirement was that my grandmother received a monthly cheque from the government. This cheque represented her Old Age Pension (OAS) plus the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS). As she never worked outside of the home, she was not entitled to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). I will cover these government benefits at a later date.
Retirement is really a time of transition in our lives when one door closes and another opens in the same way as when we transitioned from our school days to our careers. Retirement allows us to spend more time with our families and friends, relaxing and enjoying ourselves and reaping the rewards of all of our hard work supporting our families and lifestyle during our long careers.
To have a successful retirement, I strongly believe that we must have prepared for it. You must be financially comfortable by accumulating sufficient retirement assets, have your debt paid off and be in good health. This is really a balancing act. If we have everything in good order at the time of our retirement, this transition should be positive and stress free to a new and enjoyable way of life.
When I was a child, the only thing that I knew about retirement was that my grandmother received a monthly cheque from the government. This cheque represented her Old Age Pension (OAS) plus the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS). As she never worked outside of the home, she was not entitled to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). I will cover these government benefits at a later date.
Retirement is really a time of transition in our lives when one door closes and another opens in the same way as when we transitioned from our school days to our careers. Retirement allows us to spend more time with our families and friends, relaxing and enjoying ourselves and reaping the rewards of all of our hard work supporting our families and lifestyle during our long careers.
To have a successful retirement, I strongly believe that we must have prepared for it. You must be financially comfortable by accumulating sufficient retirement assets, have your debt paid off and be in good health. This is really a balancing act. If we have everything in good order at the time of our retirement, this transition should be positive and stress free to a new and enjoyable way of life.
Prepared & written by Carol Kelly, RPA Date: July 12, 2016
