A number of women tell her they feel confident about their plan, most of them because they started investing early, but very few say it has been easy.
Kirsten, a 27-year-old brand manager, has a light-hearted-though-serious message for younger women: “Adulting is a lot harder than anyone warns you about. There are so many moving parts, and so many grey areas … it's often difficult to know if you're making the right decisions.”
She describes some of the many forks in the road women might encounter: “Should you take your dream job at a lower salary, or move to that corporate for a higher one? Or maybe it's time to take the leap and start the business you've always dreamed of.”
“But,” she says, “one thing that is definitely not grey is saving for retirement. Regardless of income this needs to be budgeted for, preferably at 15% of your net income, but saving less than that is better than saving nothing.”
“Be smart: prepare now to maintain your lifestyle later and give yourself peace of mind!" urges Kirsten.
Another of Abigail’s clients, who asked not to be named for reasons of personal safety, is as emphatic as Kirsten, but for very different reasons.
This woman, let’s call her Margie, a survivor of an abusive relationship, urges younger women to take responsibility for themselves and to start saving early, even if it is only a small amount.
She told Abigail that starting her own retirement plan was a key step in freeing herself from an abusive relationship. She had been trapped in a marriage that was abusive – “physically, verbally, psychologically, emotionally and financially” – for 20 years.
At the age of 39, she says, she was “totally destitute without a cent to my name”. Despite her awful situation, Margie managed to get herself into a new job where she was obliged to contribute to a company pension fund.
“That was the start of my emancipation!” she says. “At 41 years of age, I eventually managed to break the shackles that bound me and I got a divorce.”
Having a plan and her own savings gave Margie the confidence to take that first step. There was still a mountain to climb, though, with two young children to bring up and with no financial support at all from their father. Margie stuck to her guns and kept her eyes focused on the future she had taken ownership of.
“I started to put a small sum away every month towards a retirement annuity. As the years passed and my children became older and more independent I was able to contribute to a second and even a third retirement annuity.”
Knowing that she had missed out on many years of saving opportunities and the near magical power of compounding, Margie took on extra work to supplement her small salary and led “a humble and frugal lifestyle”.
The advice she would give her younger self, Margie says, is: “Never allow your power to be taken away, always have a separate banking account and start saving (even if it is a small amount) as soon as you possibly can.”
Another single mother, Ann, told Abigail about the importance of taking responsibility, in her case for herself and one of her children, who is disabled.
“Being a single parent with a disabled child I have to have sufficient funds for two people because I’m still going to have my child depending on me.
“I forgo a lot of luxuries because at the end of the day I have to ask myself, ‘Who is going to support me in retirement?’ I cannot live on R1,600 per month from the government.”
Ann says it is about prioritising the things that are important to you. For her that is a secure future, rather than a new car or fancy clothes.
“People’s mentality is often about showing off what they have. In the meantime they might not be saving enough. I can’t say I’ve denied myself every luxury, but it’s about balancing it out.”
Ann also keeps an eye on what she is paying in fees, including on her retirement savings, and tries to keep herself informed.
“I want to know what am I paying as it impacts me at the end of the day. I read up about it and try to equip myself better so I know more about what I’m doing.”
Her other child is married, but she has her “own brood to look after, with schooling etc” and Ann doesn’t want to have to depend on her.
“I don’t want her to be one of the ‘sandwich generation’,” Ann says, referring to the generation of people who are supporting ageing parents just as they are trying to raise families of their own.
Another of Abigail’s customers wishes her own mother could have had financial security. Watching her mother endure a miserable old age informed Jillian’s own commitment to taking total responsibility for preparing for her retirement.
Jillian’s mum had not been able to provide adequately for her own retirement “because she simply did not have the money being a single mother of three”.
She was not able to afford membership of a medical aid after leaving the workforce. As a result, says 44-year-old Jillian, “she spent most of her later life in and out of government hospitals, waiting in long lines for admission”.
Jillian believes that had her mother been able to afford private specialists and hospitals “she may have had a few more years with us”.
Seeing her mother suffer had a profound effect on Jillian, who sees investing for old age as non-negotiable.
“I invested most of my disposable income in provident funds and I have been on a medical aid plan since I was 23 years old.”
Being frugal and disciplined has been important, says Jillian, but she says she is also “fortunate” in that she has a good job and a partner who helps financially.
She also chose to preserve her savings when she changed jobs. Jillian says she had the opportunity to withdraw all her savings and could have blown it all but she took the advice of her broker and ploughed most of her savings into another fund. The value of those savings has grown significantly since thanks to compound interest.
Another aspect about Jillian’s approach to retirement that has served her well is that she has stayed engaged and has “consolidated and changed my retirement plans to maximise tax benefits”. She reviews her investments every year to make sure her money is working as hard as it can.
“With modern medicine being what it is it does not make sense to live a good lifestyle when you are young only to have to scrimp and save and potentially suffer physically in your old age and potentially become a burden to your children,” says Jillian.
Her advice for other women is to remember that financial independence leads to emotional independence.
“Do not become trapped in an environment where you are forced to make decisions regarding your or your children's happiness and well-being because you are trapped in a situation due to financial constraints.”
It is a while off but Jillian looks set to make the most of her Golden Years. “I've worked hard since a young age to thoroughly enjoy my old age and intend doing so.”
