Pension Sticker Shock – Don’t show me the money

Apparently, there are stages in the process of receiving a pension. The process is not as simple as waking up one day to find a check in your mailbox. Let’s call these stages Delight, Depression, Shock, Fear, and Acceptance. If you’ve been a smart planner, you can move from stage 1 to stage 5 with perhaps an extra trip to direct deposit. If you have done everything right, in Acceptance, you will probably smile and say thank you. You’ve maxed out your 501K and have investments to back it up. You already know how much you’ll get each month and how long your funds will last.

However, if you’re like many of us and haven’t been thinking too much about all of this, you can go through all the stages. It’s lovely to realize that someone is really going to send you a check for the rest of your life. Enjoy it! Party a little. Contemplate never going back to work, even though you know that won’t happen. For some, depression sets in too soon because they feel strange. If you lose your job in Britain, they say you’ve been sacked. Getting a pension can make you feel redundant and invisible.

Sticker Shock – I can’t think of another term for the sight of that first check. For some of us, it is much smaller than we expected. First, remember that interim checks (the first few months for most people) are only about two-thirds of the actual check. Second, breathe.

Fear nips at Sticker Shock’s heels if the number on that check is significantly smaller than expected. Don’t lose yourself in fear. Immediately make a list of all your other assets and sources of income. Then, if you’ve never done this before, find a trusted financial advisor right away. A good advisor can tell you how to make up for lost time and, realistically, exactly how much you can expect to make up. Remember that you are increasingly likely to work until age 70, the maximum age for Social Security. Schedule an investment tune-up and bite the bullet.

Acceptance comes differently for the nonplanning team. At this stage, it is the acceptance of responsibility. Acceptance of the ability to create a different future. Acceptance that all is not lost.

I am not a financial planner or financial expert, but I can offer some advice. Know your financial position now. Go online for forms and resources, RIGHT NOW!