Have you ever tried to sit on a one legged chair? It can get pretty shaky can’t it? That is the same way some people have based their retirement income. Maybe in the 70’s and 80’s it was all in Fixed Income Investments with the high interest rates. Many people thought they had it made just living off their interest. Maybe in the 90’s it was the stock market with double digit gains each year. Many people thought they had it made and could just live off capital gains. Recently it was real estate again with its extraordinary appreciation. Many people had begun to believe real estate was where you should have had all your money.

Regardless of which asset category you have picked just being focused in one asset class is like trying to sit on a one legged or lopsided chair.

Maybe you think you can enjoy a comfortable retirement if you had several million dollars and probably could. But what if that money was all in stocks that generated no dividend income or rental real estate that was only breaking even or fixed income that wasn’t generating enough interest to pay the bills.

You see in our working years, we have primarily focused on wealth accumulation. Income is usually not of primary importance to us as long as our account/net worth is growing. However, going into retirement, regular current income is needed to replace that which we used to get up and go to work every day to earn.

Who do you want to shoulder the investment risk for your retirement income?Do you want to deal with the stress of a stock market plunge, or real estate bear market with your entire investment portfolio? How do you generate monthly income in retirement if you never had a pension plan and why is that important?

I developed my “Four Pillars of Retirement Income”as a direct result of having gone through the worst Bear Market in my life, having been in the Securities Industry since 1982. During that gut wrenching experience; the 2000—2002 Bear Market, I have had numerous conversations with clients and non-clients alike. What struck me most was that those individuals that are retired and have a well diversified portfolio, various sources of monthly income without having to bear the stress of all the investment risk, and low or little debt in their lives, had the best outlook on being able to weather all the events that have happened over the last two Bear Markets and the least amount of stress. You see the older we get the less stress we want in our lives—it can literally kill us.

In talking with my clients that I have enjoyed a special relationship with over the last 30 years, I would like to share their insight and what a successful retirement might be like for you.

I invite you now to learn about my “Four Pillars of Retirement Income” and just like the four legs on a solid chair, this concept may help you in preparing for your “Retirement Adventure.”