Adapt weight-loss and stop-smoking tactics to savings

Adapt weight-loss and stop-smoking tactics to savings

It's that time of the year when Americans set lofty goals to improve their lives by ditching unhealthy habits like smoking or overeating. In that spirit, a survey by Allstate suggests that people start the year off right with a savings plan that they can stick to all year. Allstate's fifth annual "Retirement Reality Check" survey, which measures Americans' attitudes about saving for retirement, gives insight on tactics that can help achieve your resolutions. "Our survey asked people what goal is hardest to achieve, and the clear front-runners were saving for retirement, losing weight and stopping smoking," said Mike Wargo, New York Regional Financial Services leader. "A distant fourth-place goal was staying physically fit."

The survey also asked respondents what tactic would be the best first step to achieve the goal they declared was toughest. Regardless what goal respondents cited as most difficult, having a goal or plan was the number one tactic suggested. The second most-mentioned tactic was getting professional help.

Wargo said the growth of smoking-cessation and weight-loss programs demonstrates that people are willing to seek help to find a plan that works for them. Using the same tactics to work out a savings plan that suits individual needs should make it easier for people to achieve retirement goals, he said. "Often, New Year's resolutions are abandoned after only a few weeks because people can't see the light at the end of the tunnel," Wargo said. "Our survey suggests that people are more likely to succeed if they set reasonable goals. Instead of seeing the goal only as the whole piece, saving $50,000 for retirement or losing 40 pounds, doing these things in manageable steps will allow people to be more successful."

Professional advice can help people identify goals that are significant but achievable, he said. "Once people see results, it is easier to stick to a plan or even increase the goal," he added.

Seeking advice might be particularly useful in creating a savings plan because there are so many factors to consider, he said.

"When it comes to saving for retirement, people need to consider a combination of their current income and expenses as well as their long-term lifestyle goals," he said. "When you look at the big picture, it is easier to identify goals that are achievable and trade-offs you're willing to make to get, and stay, fiscally fit."

Allstate recommends that people follow 10 steps to create a retirement savings plan that addresses short- and long-term needs:

Educate yourself on the different savings options available.
Monitor your savings and investments to determine the appropriate investment choices given the time you have left before retirement.
Discuss with your spouse how you want to spend your retirement.
Decide which savings vehicles will help you save more for retirement.
Work with a financial professional to ensure your insurance needs are adequate and keeping up with the changes in your life.
Determine how much money you need to save by the time you retire.
Determine whether you have prepared for life's unexpected events in your retirement planning.
Educate yourself on how to pay for long-term health care.
Determine how much you will spend each year on your retirement lifestyle.
Estimate how much you will receive in retirement from Social Security and your employer-sponsoring retirement plan, if you have one.

People need to pay particular attention to their assumptions about Social Security benefits. The Allstate survey showed that the majority of respondents are extremely pessimistic about Social Security, with 57 percent saying they have "major concerns" that their benefits will be reduced or even eliminated. Another 27 percent cited this as a minor concern. Only 16 percent said Social Security is not a concern at all. But at the same time, only two percent of respondents said that drastic changes to Social Security would prompt them to start saving more for retirement. "It isn't logical to have a concern but then do nothing to address it," Wargo said. "This underscores why it's so important for people to take a hard, critical look at what income they truly expect to have in retirement."