When to Start Planning for Retirement: The Simple Mistake Most People Make

The first article in my new Retirement Reflections series.

Are you in your 50s?

Have you started thinking about retirement yet?

Not just when you’ll retire, but what life might actually look like when you do.

For many years retirement felt like something that belonged to “older people.” It sat somewhere in the distance, far enough away that there always seemed to be more urgent things to think about. Work. Family. Mortgages. Raising children. Paying bills.

Then one day I realised retirement wasn’t some vague idea anymore. It was something we actually needed to prepare for.

If you know anything about me, you’ll know that whenever I become interested in something, I like to learn everything I can about it.

When I wanted to start this blog, I didn’t just write a few posts and hope for the best. I learnt about websites, photography, SEO, and even taught myself enough coding to create a blog that felt like me.

When Tony and I decided we wanted to buy an investment property, I enrolled in a property investing course so I could understand how to identify good value properties and choose areas with long-term potential.

I simply enjoy learning. Understanding something properly gives me confidence.

So, about two years ago, retirement became my next subject.

Like many people who have been self-employed for most of their working lives, our superannuation wasn’t exactly where I hoped it would be. Between running our own business for nearly thirty years and the periods where I worked in law, we’d always focused on keeping life and business moving forward. Super often felt like something we would “sort out later.”

I understood our household finances reasonably well, but when it came to superannuation, retirement planning and exactly how much we would need, I realised there was a lot I didn’t know.

So I decided the best place to start was with a financial planner.

Ironically, it was Emily and Mitch who first found the planner we eventually chose, and I’m so grateful they did.

I arrived at our first appointment armed with folders full of paperwork, convinced we’d spend the whole meeting talking about numbers.

Instead, one of the very first questions he asked was:

“What are your goals? What do you want your life to look like?”

Well… he had me right there.

He understood that retirement isn’t just about having enough money.

It’s about creating a life you actually want to live.

From there he walked us through where we were financially, what we were doing well, where we needed to improve, and what realistic steps we could take over the coming years.

Thankfully, we started this process early enough that we still had time to make meaningful changes.

Over the last few years we’ve worked together to strengthen our retirement plans. He reviewed all of our insurances, explaining what we genuinely needed and what we didn’t. That alone saved us a substantial amount of money each year.

He also helped us decide when it made sense to sell our investment property, simplify our share portfolio and generally make our financial life much easier to manage.

Today, I feel something I never really expected to feel.

I feel calm and ready (or at least on the right track) for retirement.

We still have around five years until Tony hopes to retire at 65, but I no longer wonder whether retirement is financially possible. We know what we’re working towards, and each year we can see ourselves getting closer.

If you’ve never sat down with a financial planner, I honestly can’t recommend it highly enough.

But I will add one important caveat.

Not all financial planners are the same.

Do your homework.

Ask family and friends for recommendations.

Interview a few before making your decision.

Pay attention to how they communicate. Do they listen? Do they ask about your goals? Do you feel comfortable asking questions?

And perhaps my biggest piece of advice…

Be cautious of anyone who seems more interested in selling their own agenda than helping you achieve yours.

That has always been a red flag for me.

Now that I feel much more confident about the financial side of retirement, I’ve found myself thinking about something else entirely.

What happens after the money is sorted?

How do we create a retirement filled with purpose?

How do we stay curious?

How do we keep learning?

How do we build friendships, routines, hobbies and a life that feels meaningful once work is no longer our identity?

To me, that’s the exciting part.

Money is only the first chapter.

Living well is the rest of the story.

Over the coming weeks I’d love to share what I’m learning as Tony and I prepare for this next season of life. I’ll be talking about everything from curiosity and purpose to creating routines, travelling well, keeping healthy, maintaining strong relationships and building a retirement that’s rich in experiences rather than simply years.

We’re certainly not experts.

We’re simply learning as we go.

And perhaps that’s exactly what retirement preparation should be.

Not something we begin six months before we leave work.

But something we thoughtfully prepare for over a few years.

I’d love to know—have you already retired, or is retirement still on the horizon for you? What are you most looking forward to… or perhaps most nervous about?

If you’ve ever wondered about your purpose you might love this article.

While this series shares our personal journey and the questions we’re asking, it’s always worth seeking advice from a qualified financial planner before making decisions about your own retirement.