Traditionally, women haven’t been as involved with the financial side of their family as the man. That’s changed over time and many women are now embracing that role and flourishing in it but plenty of challenges still exist.

We understand that and try to put an emphasis on education and support for our female clients, and many of those efforts are led by one of our advisors, Heather Atkins, CFP®, CRPC®. To really explore women and finance, we invited her onto the podcast to share her insights. Today is part two of that conversation where we talk about planning challenges, how strategies change as you age, and where Heather wants to go in the future.

When we think of planning for retirement, saving is the easy part for the majority of us. It’s a piece that we usually put on autopilot. We contribute a portion of every paycheck into a 401(k) and put\ a money away into a savings account, and most people think that’s all they need for their retirement plan.

But moving from saving to planning is where it gets a little more difficult and requires much thought. How will you use and spend that money you’ve saved, which is where we come in. Having someone that you know is putting your interests is paramount.

That’s why Certified Financial Planners are always working through long-term strategies for your retirement.

But those investments change depending on where you are in your career. We dive into it a little deeper on the podcast, but when you start with people in the 30s and 40s, saving should be the primary goal for these younger age brackets. When you are still a number of years away from needing that money, your focus should be on building your emergency fund and stashing money away. Aim for six months’ worth of expenses for your emergency fund and then focus on paying down debt.

Now let’s shift the focus to our 50s. When you reach that age, you’re probably maxing out your finances with your children’s college expenses and other debts that you’re building up around this time. One thing we discuss with our clients is that your retirement has to remain a financial priority because it’s easy to overreach and stretch yourself too thin with college funding. Women often put their children first, and that’s a wonderful thing, but it could put your retirement in jeopardy. That’s one of the challenges facing women and many families during this time.

The beauty of financial planning is that solutions are out there for you no matter where you are in life or how much you’ve already saved. The key is getting started now and taking that next step towards securing your financial future.

If you’d like to dive deeper into these topics, please call 860-385-4351 to get registered for an upcoming workshop. Also let us know if you’d like to get a copy of Heather’s book, 10 Tips to Help Empower Women Investors.

1:24 – Differences in saving

3:34 – What is a fiduciary? 

5:13 – Where to focus in your 30s and 40s

8:36 – Where to focus in your 50s

13:33 – Heather’s future as an advisor