Ameriprise Financial today released the findings of the The New Retirement Mindscape(SM) , the first study to explore peopleís attitudes, worries, behaviors, ambitions and needs before and after retirement. Working with Age Wave and Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D., a leading authority on baby boomers, the study uncovered five distinct and predictable stages of retirement:
1) Imagination, 2) Anticipation, 3) Liberation, 4) Reorientation and 5) Reconciliation.
ìUp until now, no one has so thoroughly investigated the mindscape of retirement,î said Ken Dychtwald, CEO of Age Wave. ìBaby boomers, who are starting to turn 60 this year, are probably well aware of the financial challenges that lay ahead, but few may realize what they will experience emotionally. Incredibly, we have discovered that retirement is a complex process made up of distinct emotional stages, similar to other well-known life transitions, such as pregnancy or grieving and loss.î
Ameriprise Financial CEO Jim Cracchiolo said, We have over 10,000 financial advisors across the country who help people prepare financially for whatís next in their lives. A key part of this market is the boomers, who are now beginning to give serious thought to their upcoming retirement. The insights developed in this research will help us to better serve our clients and to continue to develop the right financial products and services for this generation.î
Working with Harris Interactive, a leading market research firm, The New Retirement Mindscape study was fielded to more than 2,000 Americans ages 40-75 and revealed the following five stages of progression into retirement:
Stage 1: Imagination (15 - 6 years prior to retirement) ñ Retirement is still years away, but during the Imagination stage, people have very positive views about retirement, although only 44 percent say they are ìon trackî in terms of preparation. In this stage, people have high expectations of adventure
(65 percent) and empowerment (53 percent) for retirement.
Stage 2: Anticipation (5 years prior to retirement) ñ As retirement draws closer, positive emotions are on the rise with 80 percent saying that they ìwill be able to achieve their dreams in retirement.î However, in the two years prior to retirement, worries and anxiety mount with 22 percent saying that they will feel a
sense of loss after their working years are over. The most commonly cited triggers for retirement readiness were achieving ìfinancial freedomî (18 percent) or a significant birthday (16 percent).
Stage 3: Liberation (Retirement Day and one year following) ñ This is a time of great excitement, relief and enthusiasm as 78 percent of people say they are ìenjoying retirement a great deal.î But, similar to a honeymoon, the feeling of liberation is short-lived, as a new reality soon begins to set in.
Stage 4: Reorientation (2-15 years after retirement) ñ During the Reorientation stage, many say the joy of retirement has passed, giving way to feelings of emptiness (49 percent), worry (38 percent) and boredom (34 percent). This is the point in the progression where an emotional let-down may occur to varying degrees. Four distinct profiles emerged in the Reorientation stage: Empowered Reinventors (19 percent), Carefree Contents (19 percent), Uncertain Searchers (22 percent) and Worried Strugglers (40 percent).
Stage 5: Reconciliation (16 or more years after retirement) ñ This stage is marked by increased contentment, acceptance and personal reflection. People have come to terms with all that retirement has to offer. While there are lower levels of depression (5 percent), some people (22 percent) report feelings of sadness as they confront end-of-life issues.
One group of retirees referred to as Empowered Reinventors stands out as role models and may be the first glimpse of how many baby boomers will reinvent retirement. This group, which was the most proactive about retirement planning, is most apt to view retirement as a time of new adventure (70 percent) and empowerment (56 percent), with almost half (43 percent) saying doing more meaningful or satisfying work is very important to them.
Cracchiolo added, One insight from the survey was that some of the most successful retirees were also the ones who had done financial planning along the way. To us that certainly isnít a surprising finding. But for boomers it is a valuable lesson that some amount of advanced planning can help prepare them for a more rewarding retirement.î
To help people navigate the retirement mindscape to their greatest advantage, Ameriprise Financial has created The Dream BookSM, a powerful new guide to help people identify their priorities, values and dreams for retirement. The Dream Book encourages and helps people to envision how they want to spend their retirement years from a lifestyle and emotional perspective before crunching the numbers.
ìThe Dream Book approach to retirement planning, which poses thought-provoking questions such as ñ what you still want to achieve, who you want to spend more time with, what youíre most passionate about and how you want to make your lasting mark ñ is unlike any other Iíve seen in the financial services industry,î according to Dychtwald. ìIt clearly hits the mark with boomers who are a different breed who will settle for nothing less than this type of individualized financial life planning.î
The New Retirement Mindscape study also revealed that having ìmore control over their own timeî was the best thing about retirement for 44 percent of retirees, followed by 23 percent saying ìthe opportunity to relaxî was what they enjoyed most. Another 17 percent said the best thing about retirement was ìhaving the chance to reinvent their life.î
When asked what was the hardest thing they experienced in retirement, respondents not surprisingly expressed concerns over health insurance (24 percent) and loss of income (24 percent). But the unforeseen loss in retirement was the loss of social connections at work (22 percent).
Harris Interactive fielded ìThe New Retirement Mindscapeî via a telephone survey in August 2005 to 2,000 adults age 40 to 75 with a margin of error of the overall sample of /- 2.2 percent at the 95 percent confidence level.
Distributed by HR Marketer.com
For more information about ìThe New Retirement Mindscapeî study and The Dream Book, visit:
Ameriprise Financial released the findings of the The New Retirement Mindscape
.
