Benita’s Corner (Episode One) : The “good life” bug bit

Benita’s Corner (Episode One) : The “good life” bug bit

Hi, I’m Benita and it’s nice to meet you. This is to officially welcome you to my corner where I plan to rant (mostly about money), goof around, and sometimes get serious with what’s happening in my life and the world.

My friends describe me as intelligent, playful, and highly optimistic. So, I hope that as you read, you’ll get a glimpse into my life, teach me a thing or two, and hopefully learn from my experiences, as we navigate the tides of adulthood – you and me.

 

Now, to the first subject of my rant…

 

The “good life bug”

 

A few years ago, I finished youth service and was super excited to land my first job. Armed with a 2.1 degree, a couple of professional courses under my belt, and the enthusiasm of a winner, I came to Lagos to begin an exciting career. I had this dream that once I landed this city flowing with milk and honey, companies will be rushing me.

 

Well, I got the shock of my life when I had spent over six months in my sister’s house, sent out over a hundred job applications, and not one company was excited to employ me. I had thought they’d rush me like hot puff puff but alas… I cried, fasted, and prayed. I even went personally to offices to beg for an opportunity to show my CV… I did so much, yet nothing.

 

Then Nosa shows up…

 

A couple of years down the line after I finally got a job, I met Nosa, and he introduced me to the ‘good life’. Nosa was a fashionisto and skilled with styling. Unfortunately, he was also a party animal, and soon, with my constant hangouts with him, I got bit by the good life bug. Only, this good life bug was costing me more than I cared to admit.

 

As a Customer Service officer, I was earning N200k but my people, do you know that by the time the 25th of every month came around and salaries were paid, I’d already be in debt?

 

Hmmm… How manage, you ask? Well, Nosa had introduced me to some boutique owners who didn’t mind giving me items to pay later. So, while I looked like a million bucks when going to work and parties, my account was constantly in red. Or should we talk of the unending parties and hangouts this my guy always roped me into? Where I had to open my purse so as not to be seen as a broke babe…SMH.

 

I was living from salary to salary with no savings or investment to my name. Even common emergency fund, your babe didn’t have.

 

This lifestyle felt normal to me until one day when I met Rachel, my paddy way back in the University.

 

You guys won’t believe what I saw that day. I felt like an utter fool to put it lightly.

 

Shoot! My ride home is about to leave, and unless you people want your girl to trek from VI to Festac, I gotta go (My car broke down mbok). This gist will continue next time. In the meantime, beware of the “Nosa’s” out there. Lerra!

To be continued!

 

 

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The Do’s of spending in retirement

The Do’s of spending in retirement

Mojisola is on the brink of retirement and her excitement knows no bounds. She already drafted a plan of what she’d want to do with her years after hanging her work boot. She wants to get it right and enjoy her retirement without running out of money or good health.

 

Here are some interesting bits of her spending plan:

 

 

Track your spending daily – Mojisola knows that checking on her transactions and account balance will help her see how much is going out and discover where to cut back on excesses. This ensures that she won’t be dipping too much into the money she has saved.

 

Spend on learning – Continued education of any kind such as developing new professional skills or enhancing old ones is a positive way to spend retirement money, Mojisola discovered. This knowledge expansion helps you stay sharper and relevant as you get older.

 

Spend on relationship building – Paying for travel to visit her children, grandchildren, or old friends from school will be money well spent in retirement. Like her, you need to keep a vibrant social life to enjoy retirement.

 

Spend on activities that can improve your health – Such as health club/gym memberships, exercise equipment, and personal training, among others. Mojisola is aware that these activities will boost her mood, keep her in great physical and mental health and expose her to new relationships.

 

Spend on activities that bring you pleasure – Research shows that great experiences tend to bring far more happiness to retirees than accumulating lots of expensive stuff. So instead of buying an expensive bag, Mojisola would rather choose a trip with friends instead.

 

Learn all you need to enjoy a comfortable retirement at www.armpension.com

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3 Ways to Improve Mental Health in Retirement

3 Ways to Improve Mental Health in Retirement

Meet our friends  David and  Sade. Both of them have been retirees for one and six years, respectively

 

Sade, who has been retired for six years, wakes up at 6 am every day to go for a run and has been working hard at keeping healthy and happy. She has more time now for her children’s birthday parties and personal passions.

 

David, on the other hand, just retired but is filled with anxiety about the future. For the first time, he wakes up to face an empty to-do list, which bothers him. This is uncharted territory to him. “What if life becomes bland and the excitement isn’t there anymore,” he thinks.

 

If  Davids’s story sounds familiar, not to worry, here are a few tips to improve your mental well-being:

 

1. Focus on your physical health – Now that you have more time for your physical health, why not make the most of it? Your physical health is connected to your mental well-being. A few planned and consistent activities like exercising, eating healthier meals, and practicing balancing stretch help ensure that your physical health and, in effect, your mental well-being remain sound.

 

 

2. Don’t skip your doctor’s appointments – One thing that can affect mental well-being as you age is worrying about the state of your overall health. If you have any concerns about your physical health or you’ve noticed that something has changed in your body, talk to your doctor during your appointments rather than letting it sit on your mind. He/she will provide answers or assistance that will help eliminate any fears or manage any issues that exist.

 

 

3. Explore what gives you a purpose – Having a purpose is critical for mental well-being. It gives you a reason to get up in the morning and gives your days a touch of meaning. Just because you’re retired from regular work doesn’t mean you can’t have a new purpose in life.

 

 

Creative activities like painting, writing, drawing, singing, dancing, or building something can help spark a latent passion you didn’t have time to nurture while building your career. You can consider using the experience you have acquired over the years to mentor the younger generation or volunteer for a cause you hold dear; either way, when you find a purpose that lights your heart on fire, it will enhance your mental well-being.

 

 

Visit www.armpension.com for more tips.

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10 BENEFITS OF A COMPREHENSIVE POWER OF ATTORNEY

10 BENEFITS OF A COMPREHENSIVE POWER OF ATTORNEY

Powers of attorney are voluntary delegations of authority by the principal to the agent. The principal has not given up his or her own power to do these same functions, but rather has granted legal authority to the agent to perform various tasks on the principal’s behalf.

A comprehensive power of attorney ensures someone you trust will be in charge of important decisions and tasks, from paying bills to monitoring health care, and is a crucial part of long term planning.

Having covered the explanation of what a durable power of attorney is, here are the top 10 benefits of having a comprehensive power of attorney.

Provides the ability to choose who will make decisions for you (rather than a court).

If someone has signed a power of attorney and later becomes incapacitated and unable to make decisions, the agent named can step into the shoes of the incapacitated person and make important financial decisions. Without a power of attorney, a guardianship or conservatorship may need to be established, and can be very expensive.

Avoids the necessity of a guardianship or conservatorship.

Someone who does not have a comprehensive power of attorney at the time they become incapacitated would have no alternative but to have someone else petition the court to appoint a guardian or conservator. The court will choose who is appointed to manage the financial and/or health affairs of the incapacitated person, and the court will continue to monitor the situation as long as the incapacitated person is alive. While not only a costly process, another detriment is the fact that the incapacitated person has no input in who will be appointed to serve.

Provides family members a good opportunity to discuss wishes and desires.

There is much thought and consideration that goes into the creation of a comprehensive power of attorney. One of the most important decisions is who will serve as the agent. When a parent or loved one makes the decision to sign a power of attorney, it is a good opportunity for the parent to discuss wishes and expectations with the family and, in particular, the person named as agent in the power of attorney.

The more comprehensive the power of attorney, the better.

As people age, their needs change and their power of attorney should reflect that. Seniors have concerns about long-term care, applying for government benefits to pay for care, as well as choosing the proper care providers. Without allowing the agent to perform these tasks and more, precious time and money may be wasted.

Prevents questions about principal’s intent.

Many of us have read about court battles over a person’s intent once that person has become incapacitated. A well-drafted power of attorney, along with other health care directives, can eliminate the need for family members to argue or disagree over a loved one’s wishes. Once written down, this document is excellent evidence of their intent and is difficult to dispute.

Prevents delays in asset protection planning.

A comprehensive power of attorney should include all of the powers required to do effective asset protection planning. If the power of attorney does not include a specific power, it can greatly dampen the agent’s ability to complete the planning and could result in thousands of dollars lost. While some powers of attorney seem long, it is necessary to include all of the powers necessary to carry out proper planning.

Protects the agent from claims of financial abuse.

Comprehensive powers of attorney often allow the agent to make substantial gifts to self or others in order to carry out asset protection planning objectives. Without the power of attorney authorizing this, the agent (often a family member) could be at risk for financial abuse allegations.

Allows agents to talk to other agencies.

An agent under a power of attorney is often in the position of trying to reconcile bank charges, make arrangements for health care, engage professionals for services to be provided to the principal, and much more. Without a comprehensive power of attorney giving authority to the agent, many companies will refuse to disclose any information or provide services to the incapacitated person. This can result in a great deal of frustration on the part of the family, as well as lost time and money.

Provides peace of mind for everyone involved.

Taking the time to sign a power of attorney lessens the burden on family members who would otherwise have to go to court to get authority for performing basic tasks, like writing a check or arranging for home health services. Knowing this has been taken care of in advance is of great comfort to families.

How to set up a Power of Attorney using ARM Trustees Incap Solutions

What is Incap Solutions?

Incap Solutions is a service which enables you to plan for the “in-between” situations whereby an individual is temporarily or permanently incapacitated and is unable to make personal medical decisions or financial decisions.

Incap Solutions employs the use of Medical and Financial Power of Attorney.

A power of attorney is an important estate planning tool through which a person (often known as the principal, grantor or donor) grants certain powers to another person known as the agent, donee or attorney-in-fact. While executing a power of attorney (otherwise known as the POA), the principal could determine the magnitude of power to be granted to the attorney-in-fact, by either authorizing the attorney to deal with only a particular subject matter relating to the principal (a specific power of attorney) or to handle most/all of the principal’s matters (a general power of attorney).

Typically, a power of attorney would terminate upon the death of the principal, there are cases whereby the principal is neither dead nor functional. A Durable power of attorney would be useful in such instances where the principal becomes incapacitated.

To set up an Incap Solutions, please visit here

Credit in part: https://www.mclinburnsed.com

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How Abu succeeded in building wealth

How Abu succeeded in building wealth

Abu is single, and 27 years old. As soon as he left University three years ago, he scored a job as a Banking Officer. The first thing he did was rent an apartment close to his workplace for an easy commute and then accumulate a significant amount of discretionary income from his employment.

 

Goals

 

While his mates – including his childhood friend, Hassan – were busy buying up every new tech gadget, Abu ignored the intense pressure to spend frivolously, and instead focused on his life’s objectives: buy a car, get married in the next few years, purchase a home, start a family, and possibly even plan for retirement.

Like he did so many times in the past, he asked Hassan to straighten out his financial life, but his friend was too far taken with the good life.

 

Baby Steps

 

Abu was now eager to begin planning for all his important life events but did not have a formal financial plan. He had a big advantage, though: his parents had taught him and his siblings to budget and save, right from when they were 6 years old. Spurred on by his father’s anthem: “Great wealth builders focus on both saving money and earning more”, Abu imposed strict financial discipline on himself.

He:

 

  • Rented a house for the first few years after starting work. In the short term, renting offered far more flexibility than committing to a long-term mortgage, which he was entitled to, six months into his new job, subject to his position being confirmed. While renting, Abu would save on property maintenance, repairs, tax, insurance, and any force majeure disasters, which were all the Landlord’s obligations. Abu’s dream was to purchase real estate and build an elevated bungalow with a pool for his family. He felt he would be ready to handle the responsibility of a loan three years into working full time.

  • Did a 10- minute commute to work. Because he lived near his workplace, he did a short, inexpensive ride-share to work with colleagues, and did not immediately have to worry about the costs of vehicle reliability, pricing, or financing.

  • Never bought what he didn’t need. Did he ‘want’ that sleek, supersonic Mercedes Benz that Yusuf had just bought? Of course. But he just didn’t ‘need’ it immediately.

 

Action Plan

It was now time to plot his future with more certainty, and Abu turned to a professional financial advisor from a trusted Asset Management firm to help him with planning.

This made financial planning easy for Abu by first assessing his goals, current situation, and risk tolerance, drawing up a budget, and then constructing an investment portfolio. For Abu, the recommendations were to establish a preliminary annual savings account and a retirement fund.

 

The plan was for him to save up to 30% of his income, if possible so that he could aggressively put more of his wealth toward investments – short and long term – such as an emergency fund, mutual funds, Exchange-Traded Funds (ETF), and even a personal retirement account.

 

The financial advisor continues to support Abu in tracking, reviewing, and re-evaluating his progress toward his specific goals.

 

Lessons Learned

 

Yusuf, on the other hand, made the terrible mistake of thinking that financial planning for the future was restricted to those approaching retirement. His preference for spending over saving hindered his life trajectory.

 

While he now shares a small apartment with two friends and is saddled with debt, Abu lives in his own house, is married, has purchased a car, and has comfortably risen in the ranks at work.

Abu’s greater future orientation is a testament that starting life with good financial habits will inevitably bleed over into success in building wealth.

 

Get in touch with a Financial Advisor today via [email protected] 

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Smart lifestyle tips for retirees

Smart lifestyle tips for retirees

One of the ways to enjoy a comfortable retirement is by engaging in a chain of healthy behaviors that eventually form a lifestyle that enables you to thrive every single day.

As your partner invested in your tomorrow, it is our duty to keep providing you with tips that help you make the most of your retirement.

These 4 tips will help improve your lifestyle.

  1. Keep active

Find ways to stay active and keep fit each day. Consider activities that you enjoy which maintains strength, balance and flexibility while promoting cardiovascular health. Physical activity helps you stay at a healthy weight, prevent or control illness, sleep better, move better, reduce stress, avoid falls and feel and look better.

  1. Eat well

When you eat nutritious foods in the right amounts, you not only stay heathier, but you also ward off many illnesses like heart diseases, obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and more.

  1. Prevent falls

We become vulnerable to falls as we get older. Prevent falls and injury by keeping paths clear of electrical cords and clutter, removing slippery rugs or carpets, cleaning up spilled liquids and using nigh lights in the hallways and bathrooms. When moving about, choose footwears with good support and strong under-foot grip to avoid slipping.

  1. Go for regular check-ups

By age 50, women should begin mammography screening for breast cancer while from age 40, men should check for prostate cancer. Make sure you don’t skip health checkups and use these visits to discuss any other health concerns you may have with your doctor.

 For more tips to enjoy your retirement, visit www.armpension.com/blog

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Stages of retirement planning

Stages of retirement planning

Now that we’ve looked at what retirement planning is and the benefits of retirement planning, it is pertinent that we explore some guidelines for successfully planning your retirement at different stages of your life.

 

Young Adulthood (21-35 years old)

 

If you fall into this age bracket, you have sufficient time to let your investments mature which is an important and valuable factor in retirement planning. The reason for this is that you enjoy the benefits of compound interest which allow your retirement savings to earn interest and that interest to earn even more interest. This means that the more time your retirement savings stays before you retire, the more interest you will earn.

 

If for instance, you make additional voluntary contributions of N20,000 monthly in your retirement savings to match what your employer contributes, it will be worth three times more if you invest it at age 25 than if you wait to start investing at age 45 – that’s the beauty of compounding.

 

Early midlife (36-50 years old)

 

At this time in your life, even though you may have some number of financial responsibilities to bear, chances are you may have climbed a bit higher up the career ladder with some extra income as well, hence it is critical that you continue saving at this stage of retirement planning. The combination of earning more and the time you still have to invest and enjoy compound interest makes these years some of the best for aggressive savings.

 

Consider bumping up your additional voluntary contributions now as well to ensure that you have enough to fund the lifestyle you desire when you retire.

 

Later midlife (50-65 years old)

 

While time is running out to save for most people at this stage of retirement planning, the possibility of receiving higher wages due to career climb and having paid off some weighing debts can provide more disposable income to invest.

 

This is also the time to be frugal with expenses if you haven’t saved a lot for retirement or create periodic budgets to manage all that you’ve accumulated to ensure that you don’t outlive your money.

 

Whatever stage you are now in the retirement planning life cycle, you can speak to us about your retirement concerns via [email protected] or 0700 CALL ARM.

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This thing called retirement!

This thing called retirement!

Retirement is that time of life when a person chooses to permanently leave the workforce behind. In Nigeria, the average retirement age for those in the public sector varies between 55-60 years while some retirees who are fit and healthy often opt for a private employ when they retiree to either keep busy or meet up with expenses.

 

Retirement can last for decades these days due to increased life expectancy and typically consists of multiple phases.

 

Phases of retirement

 

According to Late sociologist Robert Atchley who was around in the 1970s, retirement can come in six phases.

 

  1. Pre-retirement: This is the planning phase where a person starts to think seriously about the life they want for themselves in retirement and whether they’re financially on track to achieve it.

 

  1. Retirement: This phase is the transition from full-time work to retirement.

 

  1. Contentment: This is a happy phase where the retiree enjoys the fruits of their lifetime hard work. People call it the honeymoon period and if the retiree saved enough money, this phase could last a lot longer.

 

  1. Disenchantment: Once the honeymoon phase is over, some retirees may experience some of the emotional downsides of retirement like loneliness, disillusionment, and a feeling of uselessness.

 

  1. Reorientation: When in this phase, people try to understand who they are at that moment and figure out their place in the world as a retiree.

 

  1. Routine: During this phase, retirement now becomes more familiar, and one tends to accept their situation and settle into a new set of routines. For some, this means discovering a new sense of purpose and taking advantage of the opportunity to enjoy life; for others who didn’t save enough and need to supplement their income, it can mean getting a part-time job.

 

Retirement in olden-day Nigeria

 

Not many people in Nigeria had grand or great grandparents who planned for retirement. It is typical to see children being the retirement plan for a certain number of aged parents who once they get to a certain age, depend solely on their children for their financial needs.

 

It can be argued that back then most of our parents didn’t do blue-collar jobs that allowed them to have a pension plan and that entrepreneurship was not as lucrative due to the absence of the technology that is available today to enable traders to save ahead. However, that argument may still be shaky considering that only a small percentage of Nigerians consider the benefits of saving for retirement.

Retirement in present-day Nigeria

 

Today, while some Nigerians are still stuck in the age-old mentality of expecting their children to be their retirement plan, more Nigerians are taking retirement more seriously.

 

Nigerians who are employed in public and private sectors have the mandatory contributory pension scheme which is a combination of deductions made from their salary matched with their employer’s contribution into their retirement savings account to ensure they have something tangible to fall back to in retirement. Aside from this, more Nigerians are opting for additional contributions to their retirement savings as they look forward to a retirement where they don’t have to be financially dependent on anybody.

 

In the most recent past, entrepreneurs have also been given the opportunity to start saving for retirement through the Micro Pension scheme which was not previously available.

 

In conclusion…

 

Nobody likes to be a nuisance to another especially at a time in your life when you should relax and enjoy the rewards of your years of hard work. Hence, the most important part when you think of retirement should be planning – both for the financial and emotional impacts of retiring to ensure that you get a comfortable retirement.

 

Experts advise that as you plan for retirement, you should think about what it looks like. Talk to your friends. Write about it. Create a storyboard and be imaginative. Your financial plans and your day-to-day retirement plan should go hand in hand.

 

Walk into Tomorrow to plan your retirement today.

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What is Retirement Planning?

What is Retirement Planning?

Retirement planning is simply the preparation for life after employment ends. This preparation impacts all aspects of your life and not just your finances.

The aspect that doesn’t require money include lifestyle choices like how to spend time in retirement, where to live, when to completely stop working and more. A well-rounded retirement plan should consider all these areas.

However, the approach or emphasis a person puts on retirement planning changes throughout different life stages.

Early career

During this time, the emphasis should be to set aside enough money for retirement. You have the luxury of time to accumulate what you need for retirement and the benefit of compounding interest to ensure that what you set aside accumulates returns over the long-term.

Mid-career

This time, while you’re still setting money aside in your retirement savings account, you should consider ways of increasing your retirement income by setting specific income or asset targets and taking prudent steps to achieve them. Let’s assume that over the course of your career, you ‘ve had pay raises or promotions, this means you have the opportunity to increase what you put into your pension pot.

Retirement

This is the time you hang your work boots and officially go from accumulating assets to what financial planners call the distribution phase. You’re no longer paying in, instead, your years of savings start to pay out. The good news for those who have managed to accumulate enough retirement income is that they can enjoy a comfortable retirement spent pursuing their hobbies and having fun. The reverse would be the case for those whose retirement income may not be enough.

Final thoughts…

Retirement planning should start long before you retire – in fact, the sooner, the better. You must figure out how much you need to retire comfortably and then work with that magic number in mind as you save ahead for retirement.

Our Retirement Lifestyle Planner enables you to Walk Into Tomorrow, today to plan out your dream retirement. On the easy-to-use portal, you get a holistic view of how your retirement lifestyle would be and how much you’d need at every point in your retirement. This helps you total up the magic number you need to save to get the retirement your desire.

Click here to Walk Into Tomorrow and plan your dream retirement now.

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6 books to read on money and investing

6 books to read on money and investing

There’s a well of knowledge available for those who seek it – and if you’re interested in making more money, you should read more to understand how to handle money and the basics of investing.

Here are some books on personal finance and investment you should read to help you manage your finances better.

 

The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham

 

Referred to as the godfather of investing, Benjamin Graham takes a different approach to investing in this book which we’re sure you’ll enjoy. Warren Buffet calls this “the best book on investing you’ll ever read”.

 

A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton Malkiel

 

This is a good one for beginners as Malkiel includes handy definitions of investment terms as it applies to various investment strategies directed toward different stages in life. In this book, he lays emphasis on long-term investments rather than get-rich-quick schemes including how to avoid common mistakes.

 

Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman

 

 

This book isn’t just about investment. This Psychology professor delves into how one’s thought processes can affect investment success. Within the book, Kahneman explains how to identify your biases and lock them out so as to make rational, clear, and analytical investment decisions.

 

Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin

 

This book is what you need to learn the art of living within your means by changing your habits and enjoying life. It helps you understand how to deal with this thing called ‘Budgeting’.

 

Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki

 

‘Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich teach their kids about money that the poor and middle class do not’ is touted as one of the bestselling personal finance books ever.

 

In this book, Kiyosaki uses his childhood recollections of his not-so-wealthy father and the father of his friend who was one of the richest residents in Hawaii to drive home points about money. The comparison shows how best to manage your money or lack of it, as well as helping your kids to do the same. Kiyosaki in this book posits that not all debt is bad, and you can build wealth even if you don’t currently have a staggering income.

 

The Broke Millennial by Erin Lowry

 

This book offers a fun, relatable take on managing money for beginners. Targeted towards 20-30-somethings who want to learn about finances, Lowry covers tricky, real-life situations involving money and how to deal with the challenges of having or not having enough brings.

 

Explore the pages of these select books to build your money-management and investing knowledge and then go on to explore www.arminvestmentcenter.com to put what you’ve learned to practice with a plethora of investment vehicles to suit your every need.

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