The Problem With Women Retiring Earlier
WORKING LONGER MAY BE A GOOD IDEA In 1992, counselor and author John Gray published his widely discussed book “Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus.” The relationship book focused on the ways in which men and women communicate differently, offering insight to struggling heterosexual couples.
All of this adds up to a major problem: Women are having to rely on that reduced retirement income for a longer period of time.
However, in the world of retirement, that same title could apply. Women aren’t approaching retirement like men — and that’s not advantageous.
Granted, spouses often share retirement
According to studies, women tend to retire earlier than their male counterparts. In particular, white, married women without a higher education degree tend to retire at least 2–3 years earlier than men. In 2018, The New York Times explored this phenomenon and cited a main cause. Women tend to marry men who are older than them, and many couples retire together. Therefore, women are younger than men when they retire. That same New York Times report found that women live — on average — four years longer than men. In retirement savings-speak, this means women need more retirement income than men. Furthermore, women typically earn less than men, which means their contributions to retirement are often less than men. (In 2021, the Pew Research Center reported women earned 84% of what men made in 2020.) Have you ever met people who seem to think they are very intelligent and smart? I am not confusing this with someone who has good self-confidence because there is a difference. The person who thinks they are intelligent or smart is generally basing their actions on a past accomplishment or financial gain. And How Do You Know if You’re Smart? WHAT’S THE DEFINITION OF INTELLIGENCE
income, which could protect women who choose to retire when their husbands do or earlier than is the norm. However, it may be beneficial for women to work until the same age as their husband’s age of retirement — or longer — to pad their savings. Another New York Times article suggests that working until 70 can provide added income that savings strategies alone cannot meet. There are many social, cognitive, and emotional benefits to working longer, too. However, retirement is your oyster! Retire when you feel it’s best for you and your retirement savings plan is ready to use. But if this article raises questions, consult with your trusted financial expert. people began to treat me like I was smart — especially people who had money and bankers. Mind you, I knew I wasn’t any smarter than I was 18 months earlier. What I did know is I’d gotten lucky and happened to be in the right place at the right time and recognized it, but my IQ or intelligence factor had not increased. Yet the general public had a different perspective. I share this story with you because I recently listened to a podcast by Robert Kiyosaki, the author of the bestselling book “Rich Dad Poor Dad.” (This is an excellent book, and I highly recommend it if you haven’t read it already.) In the podcast, he tells people he can see who is highly intelligent because they agree with him on his beliefs and subject
matter. In other words, he only hangs around with people who have the same beliefs and opinions regarding politics and world affairs. Isn’t this something we are all guilty of? Don’t we avoid those people who do not agree with us and have different opinions? Don’t we do so within our own family where we avoid the relatives and in-laws we don’t agree with or think we don’t have anything in common with? I know I do and have in the past, but the ones who agree with me, well, I somehow think they’re okay and probably smart.
I know this for a fact because I had it happen to me over 35 years ago. I was just a regular guy working in a printing factory, making a good wage for the times. I managed to work myself into a position where I could help small-business owners and entrepreneurs invest in oil wells when oil prices were booming as they are today. The company I worked with drilled over 34 successful oil wells, and the price of oil was the equivalent to $100 a barrel in today’s dollars.
Since I was on commission only, and retained a portion of the oil interest, in less than 18 months, I had increased my income by 10 times. This newfound income enabled me to quit my job and devote full-time hours to the oil production business. Now here comes the funny part. I was just as dumb after I quit my job, and the only difference was that I had made some money and miraculously
I see the same situation play out in family businesses especially in multi-generational businesses where the children of the owner came back into the business after the business had been operating successfully for a number of years, and within a short time, the children think they are capable operators of the
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