Retirement life stages

It’s great news that Australians are living longer. In fact, you may be retired for as long as you were working. To help us improve our understanding of the various financial and personal challenges for our members, ESSSuper ran a series of member focus groups early in 2013.

This research identified four distinct retirement life stages:

• Stage 1: Pre-retirement planning phase As tempting as it may sound, spending all day doing nothing might not be so exciting in reality. And with people living longer, how you cope financially may depend on how well you plan for each life stage of your retirement.
• Stage 2: Active retirement phase Living in retirement is very different to working. Keeping physically and mentally active is essential for your health. An active, varied lifestyle may also reduce the risk of illness.
• Stage 3: Contemplative phase As we age further, we begin to slow down and our health may start to decline. It’s important to stay as active as we can, and enjoy being with family and friends.
• Stage 4: Dependency phase There may come a time when you need to reach out for help and support. Who can you reach out to in your community?

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