I grew up in a rural setting, as most who have read some of my blogs might realise. A great deal can be learned from observing and learning from nature. A simple experience of seeing ants or a termite’s nest teaches you to save money for your old self and even sweeter, for your retired self long before 65. Learn the hard lessons earlier, and you will be set for life.
Your future self relies on you
Let’s get to the meat of it your future self relies on your ability to put money away for tomorrow. Many avoiders, according to psychology, might think it’s morbid once you start talking about retirement and death.
Hey avoiders, whether you save for retirement or not, you will still die, and yes, time will still pass. Don’t let death ☠ be the reason you won’t save and invest for your future self.
Let’s play to your reasoning of dying if you die young, whoever is your beneficiary or next of kin can do with the money 🤑. That’s it about death, since we’re all going to die whether you like it or not. If you live to be old with no savings and investments, you are screwed, as Americans would say, worse off than being dead.
Ant-like, hope for the best, prepare for the worst
Learning to save and invest for tomorrow is, in fact, a sign of maturity. It shows faith and an ant 🐜-like hope for the best while preparing for the worst.
Don’t be fooled YOLO is the enemy of intentional and healthy living. Yes, we only live once, but does that mean we should aimlessly spend money and neglect our future selves?
According to a study by 10X Investments, only 6% of South Africans can retire comfortably. The rest… please, let it not be the 94%. This is a hard reality, but true nevertheless; it could be you if you do not take action.
The simple maths of retirement
If you follow my work, you would have heard me talk about budgeting. Make it a priority to have your future self-catered for in your monthly budget plan.
A simple calculation of how much money you will need: I say simple because I won’t follow the complex retirement calculators out there. Most of them are flawed since they don’t consider your actual expenses, but rather your salary, which I think is incorrect, as they assume you spend everything you earn each month.
You need to know all your expenses no guessing. Do the math, follow your bank statement, and add everything.
Here, we follow what is known as the 4% rule from the Trinity Study. The study says if you have a set portfolio of equities and bonds let’s use the typical South African Balanced Fund for simplicity you can withdraw 4% from the portfolio each year and you won’t run out of money for 30 years most of the time given paying attention to fees for investments sequence of returns and overall market performances etc, my opinion if you follow everything correctly you’re more likely to run out of life instead of money.
Example to get to your Freedom Number:
Monthly expenses: R20,000 × 12 months × 25 = R6,000,000
This number becomes your North Star, something to aim for your target, your Financial Independence number (FI number)
Start early and beat the instant gratification virus
The earlier you start, the better, as you will need time for compound interest to work in your favour. Once you have this number down, start putting that food away like an ant the rain is coming.
If you can defeat the instant gratification virus, as I call it, you can make good ground. Don’t be threatened by the millions you need to get to this magical freedom number. Rather, take one step each month, and soon you will have run the Comrades Ultra Marathon.
Careful of sprinting too early out of excitement you can burn yourself and run out of steam 🚂.
Lessons from my first trail run
Years ago, I think it was 2013, I entered my first trail run 18km. Being competitive as I am, I gave it a go. I was in second place for about 5km, but when the hills, rocks, and terrain changed, I paid for my foolishness.
Not only that, I didn’t have any energy gels, food, or a trail bag for water. This was a trial run with only two refreshment tables; both tables were closer to the finish. I bonked out, sat by the side of the trail, and begged for energy gels from the other runners.
Please don’t follow my stupidity be realistic and sensible, do what works for you, but keep going, it’s a long journey.
How much should you save?
Set a budget and follow it religiously. Start with 15% of your gross salary and grow 📈 that savings rate to 25%, 30%, even 50% if you are hardcore.
Don’t punish yourself by making it miserable rather, make it fun and celebrate the little milestones along the way. Saving and investing for your tomorrow should not be deprivation, but rather a necessity and a journey, not a destination.
Keep running 🏃 your medal is waiting for you in Durban. It’s a down run this year. There’s lots of support too: stop by for massages, grab refreshments on the way, and enjoy the cheers of everyone.
In closing
Don’t be too slow, though remember there are cut-offs along the Comrades route. However, be grateful that the only cut-off in the retirement investment journey will be death. After that, your people will be set for the future.
This is how I approach retirement savings and investing. It’s as hard as running Comrades only a few will attempt it, and not everyone who runs it finishes it but it is rewarding at the end 🔚 if you finish.
Enjoy your retirement investment journey. You could even liberate yourself from the chains of the 9-to-5 early, before the traditional 65years. Remember, retirement is not an age, but it’s a math game it’s when your investments can cover your expenses. At that point, you are free to pursue other things in your life, like travelling, arts, volunteering, etc, you name it, even just a nice walk on the beach.
If you are bound to your day job forever, you will have very little time to do these cool things. Our days are numbered use them wisely. Don’t let most of those days be consumed by your job for decades.
Trading Time or Buying Freedom 
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