Blue Monday

It is Blue Monday, the 3^rd Monday of January. It is classified as the most depressing day of the year. I must admit that I thought Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Blue Monday were all invented from across the pond but apparently not.

“Blue Monday” has disputed creators. Some believe that it was a PR stunt by a travel company to sell last minute holidays to beat the January blues. Others give credit to a part time psychology professor of Cardiff University who used scientific formulas to prove that we are most depressed today.

There is nothing like a formula to convince an actuary that it must be true. This formula is

Level of depression = {[Weather + (Debt – monthly salary)] x T^Q}  

                                                  [Motivation x Need to take action].

This made me think that we could write a formula for Happiness in Retirement.

Happiness in retirement = [Certainty of income + Size of community ] ^ sense of purpose

                                                  [Medical conditions + complex financial arrangements]

There is a strong correlation between health and retirement, which continues in retirement. In retirement, there is the added sense of priorities (I am not going to live for ever) and worry (if I run out of money, there is no way that I can build it up again). It is really important to sleep at night and understanding where your money is and how/when your income is paid is a big part.

These key messages should be thought about before:

• transferring out of a defined benefit scheme;
• entering into a drawdown arrangement; or
• buying esoteric investment with your pension fund.

If you are thinking about any of these options and you are attracted by a large transfer value, flexibility or super investment returns, PAUSE, call The Pensions Advisory Service and talk it through with a pension specialist.