Family Matters Investing Pension2.5 min readFebruary 13, 2024

If I had a million dollars

Setting your Sights on Retirement – Five things you can do to bring it into focus

Do you remember the Barenaked Ladies song, If I had a Million Dollars? Tongue in cheek, they sing about all the things they would do if they had a million dollars. It was released when I was in my 20’s. Around that same time, I read an article that said I would need $1 million dollars to retire. I remember feeling incredibly overwhelmed. Fast forward 20 years and I recently read that a young person today should set their sights on saving $3 million for retirement. Personally, I think it is dangerous to try to put a single number on retirement and suggest that there is a “one size fits all” plan. Being prescriptive can be problematic for several reasons:

If the number is unrealistic, we may feel helpless trying to meet that goal. Why would we bother taking any steps, if we are unlikely to achieve it?
No two financial situations are alike. What a person needs will depend on where they live, their family situation (married, single, kids), how they choose to live (moved by marketing or living simply) and what they want to do in their retirement (travel, volunteer, pursue hobbies etc.)
We can’t predict the future. Will we need more support because of health care requirements or will global events effect what we need or want.

Here are five things that you can do NOW, even if retirement seems a long way off:

Start now, don’t wait, even if you are only able to save a little. Putting away a small amount of money now is better than not saving at all.
Be self aware, know your values and start to build a plan. Start to move forward and some things will become apparent as you move further along the path.
Take some time to understand the financial literacy landscape. You don’t have to be an expert. If you work with a financial adviser there is one level of knowledge that you need to have and if you are a DIY sort of person, then there is a very different level of knowledge that you need.
Know what financial fraud looks like – you don’t want to lose the money that you worked hard to earn. Stay on top of current financial frauds, protect yourself and those you love.
Assess your plan regularly. Look at the progress that you have made, determine if you need to make any adjustments taking into consideration what has happened in the last year and what you think may happen in the upcoming year.

The whole goal of retirement planning is to set ourselves up for SUCCESS. Follow these five steps and you won’t have to eat “Kraft dinner” in your retirement years.

~Ainsley Cunningham
Founder and Project Coordinator, MoneySmart Manitoba
Manager, Education & Communications, Manitoba Financial Services Agency