Victory Lap

Once you achieve Financial Independence, you may choose to leave salaried employment but with decades of vibrant life ahead, it’s too soon to do nothing. The new stage of life between traditional employment and Full Retirement we call Victory Lap, or Victory Lap Retirement (also the title of a new book to be published in August 2016. You can pre-order now at VictoryLapRetirement.com). You may choose to start a business, go back to school or launch an Encore Act or Legacy Career. Perhaps you become a free agent, consultant, freelance writer or to change careers and re-enter the corporate world or government.

Sorry Boomers, as FinTech rises, Millennials now main focus of financial industry

Posted By Jonathan Chevreau | August 12, 2016

As I recount on page FP3 of today’s Financial Post, the baby boomers are fast becoming supplanted by the Millennial generation when it comes to attracting the attention of the financial services industry and in particular the rise of the fintech industry.

For online version, see Sorry boomers, the focus is shifting: Millennials are fast becoming new apple of financial industry’s eye.

Certainly, much of the action around so-called “Fin-Tech” is oriented to the Millennial market, with many of the firms also founded or cofounded by Millennials. The big three fintech categories are online lending, robo-advisers and payment technology.

Note the New York Times had an interesting piece this week on fintech and blockchain: Envisioning Bitcoin’s Technology at the Heart of Global Finance. Also note my Hub review of Don Tapscott’s groundbreaking book on blockchain, with a link to a video: Book Review: Blockchain Revolution.

YOLO: the new Millennial motto?

Also in the FP package today is a review of a book written by a Millennial that addresses Millennials: You Only Live Once, otherwise known as the popular millennial slogan YOLO.

Rediscovering your Inner Child in your Victory Lap

Posted By Michael Drak | August 10, 2016

The other day I was talking to a gentleman about how, in our Victory Laps, we have the opportunity to start living like a kid again. He thought that was a little weird, but I think I finally won him over by triggering some long forgotten memories in him.

Remember back to when you were a kid in school. Back then, we had no fears and anything seemed possible. We dreamt such big dreams, like competing in the Olympics or becoming the president of a large company.

Life used to be such an adventure back when we were young but unfortunately over time we tend to bury our hopes and dreams, deep down inside us. We are driven to obtain financial security for our families and save up enough for eventual retirement but at some point we allow ourselves to be assimilated by our jobs and start following the crowd.

We end up acting like everyone else, without knowing exactly where they are taking us, and live by rules drawn up by someone else. As a result, many people just sit back and watch their dreams slowly wither and die. They follow the same dull, boring daily routines, and feel overwhelmed by the pace of their lives, their jobs, debts owed and family obligations. When we allow our dreams to die our soul isn’t far behind.

Young people have little in the way of financial resources, but seem to have the ability to live where they want, travel where they want, and have no fear of doing what they want to do in life. We can learn (perhaps re-learn is a better word) a lot by watching and listening to our kids.

The challenge we boomers face is to find a way to open our minds and take a new approach to life as our past experiences and old prejudices keep getting in the way. Don’t settle for just getting by and start looking at the world with fresh eyes. We all need to start living again just like when we were kids.

If You Don’t Do It Now, You Never Will!

Working part-time in Semi-Retirement a boon to finances

Posted By Jonathan Chevreau | July 28, 2016

I predict that many aging Baby Boomers will — either by preference or financial necessity — delay traditional full-stop Retirement and instead embrace Semi-Retirement.

My latest Retired Money column, which has just been published at MoneySense.ca, explores the positive effect on retirement nest eggs of working at least part-time after the traditional retirement age of 65. For full article and chart, click on Should you work part-time in retirement?

It’s based on an analysis by ETF Capital Management, which showed the powerful impact of earning just $1,000 in part-time income each month between the age of 65 and 75; or in the case of couples $2,000 a month between them.

Not working at all after the traditional retirement age of 65 has financial implications, never mind boredom and lack of social interaction. In the case of a retiree with lifestyle expenses of $60,000 who undertakes a full-stop retirement at 65, and earns no extra income, there is a sharp fall in a $500,000 (combined registered and non-registered) portfolio starting at age 65. By the time they reach their early 80s, the nest egg is depleted to zero.

But a couple earning just $2,000 a month between them part-time after 65 and going until 75 will find the extra income delays the portfolio’s drop below zero beyond their early 90s. Not only does the nest egg not decline the first ten years, but it actually rises! By the time you reach 75 and finally stop working even part-time, the portfolio declines from a higher level and much more gradually.

Of course, the more you work, the better: for a couple earning $3,000 a month between them, the portfolio still has more than $200,000 by their 90s! Similarly, the analysis also shows what happens if you work extra hard, which many might argue wouldn’t even qualify as retirement. At $4,000 a month the portfolio is barely depleted at all by the time they reach 100!

Isn’t this really Semi-Retirement?

Millennials can learn from Boomers’ reinvention of Retirement

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | July 20, 2016

dcitizen2 — Digital Citizen Show. Left to right: Hugh Reilly, Norman Evans, Jon Chevreau

By Kollin Lore, Hub Staff

We are edging nearer to 2031, the year when all Baby Boomers will be age 65 and above, and most will at least be contemplating some form of Retirement or Semi-Retirement.

It will also be a time when the millennials will have pretty much all grown up and taken over the workforce.

Next month Jonathan Chevreau and Mike Drak’s Victory Lap Retirement will be published, a perfect time considering the age we are headed towards. However, though the book concerns the older generation, there is much to learn for millennials too.

Earlier in July, Chevreau discussed his upcoming book on Digital Citizen’s ThatChannel with creative director, Norman Evans, Laura Tyson, and host, Hugh Reilly. Click on the highlighted link to access the YouTube video: Get Ready to Earn Your “Playcheque.”

“The Boomers have reinvented every stage in life they have gone through,” said Chevreau. “Now they are going to reinvent retirement, by starting with the word ‘retirement’ because they are not ready to stop … That’s why Mike and I created the phrase Victory Lap.”

This titular ‘Victory Lap’ concerns finding that balance between stress and boredom following retirement. It means staying active and can include anything from travelling the world, to part time jobs, to volunteering to more time with family.

Of the many activities in which to partake during the Victory Lap, volunteering is an especially valuable past time to consider. Continue Reading…

How small business lending has changed since 2008

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | July 18, 2016

DeathtoStock_Medium6 — Photo: deathtothestockphoto.com

By David Gens, founder and CEO of Merchant Advance Capital

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

The small business lending landscape today bears little resemblance — functionally, structurally or in terms of customer priorities — to what it was at the moment of the 2008 financial crisis. The intervening years have seen the creation of many new alternative finance companies, who are able to efficiently deliver credit by leveraging technology. Here’s how these developments affect the range of choices among your borrowing options.

Online lending growth consistent, lenders gain trust

Conventionally, a small business owner would attempt to reach out to a major bank for financing: a process that has become less and less viable as banks become less willing to accept the risk of lending to new businesses with limited credit profiles and limited hard assets with which to secure a loan.

Today, online small-business loans from alternative lenders account for about 2% of all small-business loans despite their ability to offer more tenable and accessible financing agreements for SMB owners. Growth, however, is a solid prediction for the industry: loans from the same providers are expected to comprise 16% of the total small business loan volume by 2020, according to a 2015 report by Morgan Stanley.

Consumers and businesses now have alternative financing options outside of traditional banking – moreover, these alternatives have gathered increasing mainstream relevance and investor confidence, moving beyond the high-risk/high speed niche to which they were originally confined.

Access to capital a key motivator

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Sign up for our Daily Digest E-Mail!