IT’S become more important than ever to consider precisely what you want from your retirement.

Will you be happy simply making ends meet - or do you aspire to travel extensively while helping family and friends financially?

Whatever your motivation, there’s one universal truth…

The importance of devising a personalised “retirement strategy” has never been greater.

What’s more, I also encourage my clients to start thinking about this plan at the earliest opportunity.

The reason for this is simple.

Put simply, the sooner you devise and implement a strategy under the guidance of a professional financial advisor, the greater the likelihood of its ultimate success.

Reverse financial planning…

The first step on your journey to your retirement is to imagine the life you want to lead when you finally get there…

And it’s essential to be entirely truthful with yourself about this.

For example, will you still have rent or monthly mortgage payments to pay? Or will you own your home outright which should mean that utility bills, council tax and ongoing maintenance are your main monthly outlay.

After that, how much money will you realistically need to lead the life you want?

And what age do you actually want to retire? Will you be happy working to the state pension age, which is currently 66-years-old for both men and women, but will gradually rise to 67 for those born on or after April 1960?

The state pension obviously forms the foundation on which most people’s retirement provision is based.

Nonetheless, as auto enrolment continues to gain momentum nationally, millions of workers are building up workplace pensions which will help them attain additional retirement income.

Countless more have separate private pensions in place which will serve the same purpose.

Throughout my career as a financial planner, I’ve repeatedly seen how some people wish to work for as long as possible, while others can’t wait to retire.

But it’s only when you’ve fully considered these key questions that you can then “work backwards” to ensure that you have the right investments in place currently to help ensure what you want to achieve ultimately.

This ‘reverse financial planning' is truly invaluable when it comes to your retirement strategy.

Concluding thoughts…

When it comes to attaining financial security in retirement, carefully considered strategies – which embed the right investments for your specific needs – are essential.

Many entrepreneurs are familiar with the concept of “business exit plans” and retirement strategies bear comparison with these.

You are - in effect - your own business and you need to consider how you’ll achieve financial security when you no longer wish to work.

You’ll need to incorporate many different factors into this strategy – not least the potential repercussions of inflation on your retirement income.

And when it comes to your investments it’s worth considering a portfolio that’s truly diversified to increase the likelihood of success.

In other words, don’t place all your proverbial eggs in one basket.

If you have any questions about the best way to get your finances on track for retirement, please get in touch with Peter or another member of the Amber River Leodis Wealth team by going to https://amberriver.com/services/

No individual investment advice is given, nor intended to be given in this article and liability will not be accepted in respect of any action you may take as a result of reading this article. If you are unsure you are urged to take independent investment advice.