#158 - How Binary Thinking Can Ruin Your Retirement Goals

Feb 22, 2017

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Hey, hey - it’s great to have you along for another episode of The Retirement Answer Man. I’m Roger Whitney and I am THE Retirement Answer Man. This episode of the show is all about how the habit of binary thinking can derail your retirement planning goals. What is binary thinking? I’m glad you asked! On this episode, I’m going to walk you through a couple of examples of binary thinking, including one I experienced with a friend of mine in years past, to show you exactly what it is and how it can be detrimental to your life - and your retirement planning. And… I’m going to answer some listener questions about this year’s Retirement Plan LIVE. I hope you’ll make the time to listen. You’ll want to hear this one! What is binary thinking and how can it negatively impact your retirement planning?

On. Off. On. Off. That’s essentially what binary thinking is. It’s thinking in terms of one thing, or another - and nothing else. When you get into the habit of thinking in a binary sort of way, you can miss a whole world full of options that might otherwise be open to you. I hope you can see how bad that can be when it comes to the way you approach retirement planning. This episode, I’m going to give you some example of how you can avoid binary thinking. Is retirement preparation only about saving and investing? Nope. That’s too binary.

On this episode of The Retirement Answer Man, I highlight some good news that comes from the latest stats about retirement savings. Fidelity says that the average household savings rate has gone up to 8%. Wooohoooo! That’s always a good thing. BUT, it’s not the only thing that matters. You can’t ONLY save and invest and expect that you’re going to be all set for retirement. You need to think more broadly, less binary. That way you can make the most of every option you have. On this episode, I’m going to highlight some of the ways you can do that, so be sure you hear these great tips. What are the old stories you need to stop telling yourself?

All of us have, what a colleague of mine calls, “old stories.” They are the things about ourselves that perhaps USED to be true but are no longer true - but we continue to talk (and think) as if they are still true. For example, you’ve heard me talk on the show about how I almost ruined my marriage because of the self-centered way I was living. If I continue to think of myself in those terms even though I’ve changed, I could sabotage my own ability to move my life forward. When it comes to our ability to build a great retirement, those old stories can be especially damaging. On this episode, we’re going to dive into what you can do to avoid living according to your version of those old stories. You’ll want to hear this one. Don’t miss this year’s Retirement Plan LIVE webinar. Here’s how you can get in on it!

We’ve wrapped up the podcast episodes of this year’s Retirement Plan LIVE, and like we do every year, we’ll be summarizing and revealing the actual retirement plan for this year’s participants (Joe and Kim) in a LIVE webinar. It’s a fun way to wrap up and for you to see how retirement planning is actually done. You can get in on it via personal invitation. How do you get one of those golden tickets? Listen to this episode to find out! OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE RETIREMENT ANSWER MAN

[0:29] The story of Ralph - and the trap of binary thinking.
[2:47] The solution to the retirement crisis is somewhere in between the extremes.

HOT TOPIC SEGMENT

[4:51] Retirement savings are at an all time high (according to Fidelity)!
[6:15] Savings and investing are only part of the retirement equation.

PRACTICAL PLANNING SEGMENT

[8:52] Q & A about Kim and Joe’s case study from Retirement Plan LIVE.
[11:01] One listener’s concerns about Kim and Joe’s retirement situation.
[13:35] Will Social Security really increase like Kim expected it to?
[17:10] Would it be best for Joe and Kim to knock out their mortgage before retirement?
[20:08] Is it possible to live off $24K a year as one financial guru suggests?
[24:00] How you can get access to the LIVE webinar of this years Retirement Plan LIVE.

TODAY’S SMART SPRINT SEGMENT

[24:54] Continue to organize your online passwords - and are the password managers really that safe?

THE HAPPY LAB SEGMENT

[27:21] A group call experience I had… and woman who says she’s too gruff with others.
[28:47] The old stories we tell about ourselves and why we need to STOP.

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
www.RogerWhitney.com/blog - find my core values as shared on this episode.
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Contact Roger: http://www.rogerwhitney.com/retirementanswers/
Roger’s retirement learning center: www.RogerWhitney.com/learn
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