“I will be 49 years old this year and I’ve always been self-employed. I currently operate a successful salon, but lately I’ve been getting a little tired of working all the time. The problem is that I’ve never really thought about retirement, so I don’t have much money saved up. Is it too late to start a retirement plan?

Perhaps the most discouraging experience for a financial advisor is to meet someone whose financial situation is so grave that you really can’t offer much assistance to fix it. Fortunately, those cases are rare. Unfortunately, when they do occur, they’re usually associated with persons in their retirement years.

Let’s look at three persons who have had negative retirement experiences; where it was just too late to make positive changes:

Sixty-seven year-old Clarence has been the caretaker for a residential complex for over thirty years. He is appreciated by all the occupants, as he is trustworthy and friendly. However Clarence is realizing that the effects of age have diminished his ability to carry out any of his very physical job functions, and he is worried what will happen in the future. Continue reading Your Retirement Years: will you be stressed out or stress-free? →