retirement planning textbook.pdf

Retirement Planning Course Overview Welcome to the Retirement Planning course. This course will provide you with the basic education that you need to prepare retirement plans for your clients. After completing this course, you will be familiar with the following: annuities, which can provide a regular income for either a specified term or for life the Canada Pension Plan (CPP), including the eligibility requirements and the benefits provided by the various programs that operate under the CPP umbrella the Old Age Security (OAS) employer-sponsored pension plans tax-deferred savings for retirement including both registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), and deferred profit sharing plans (DPSPs) distribution of benefits from regular RRSPs and locked-in retirement accounts through registered retirement income funds (RRIFs), life income funds (LIFs), and locked-in retirement income funds (LRIFs) aspects of investment planning that are affected by retirement taxation of income during retirement tax strategies relevant to retirement, including income splitting with a spouse and the disposition of capital assets how to develop a post-retirement income plan and a retirement savings plan some of the decisions that might be faced in retirement planning www.CIFP.ca © 2024 1 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Welcome to Introduction to Retirement Planning. In this unit, you will learn about the history of retirement, the different expectations of individuals approaching retirement and your role in retirement planning. You will learn about the following topics: Relationships The Fundamentals of Retirement Planning The Retirement Planning Process 2 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Relationships Welcome to the lesson Relationships. At the end of this lesson, you will be able to do the following: distinguish between Engagement skills and Hard Skills identify who your client is & understand the personal style of your client understanding personality cues understand specific engagement skills and their application helping your clients plan for a retirement well lived What are client engagement skills? Client engagement skills are all about connecting and communicating with your clients at the human level. This is the person to person connection that drives trust, confidence and belief. Engagement skills are arguably the most difficult but the most important skills to learn in becoming a trusted advisor and building a practise. Because human beings are endlessly complex, no one approach, or skill will work in all instances. Humans are not only complex, but, they can change their ideas, and motivations from meeting to meeting and even within the same conversation. Client engagement skills are about mastering a set of behaviours and relationship building skills that put your customers first and identifies you as a trusted business partner, not just as another supplier. It means consciously thinking about your client’s experience at every touch point. Most people who have direct client contact are often too eager to tell clients about their products, services or solution. In taking this approach, they position themselves on the opposite side of the table; your clients sense it, understand it, know it, and reject it. According to a variety of online definitions, engagement skills are a combination of people skills, social skills, communication skills, character traits, attitudes, career attributes, social intelligence and emotional intelligence. These skills enable people to effectively navigate their environment, work well with others, perform well and achieve their goals with complementing hard skills. Whether or not we are aware of it, living in a civilized society, we all possess engagement skills albeit, to varying degrees. In large part, engagement skills are social skills that are intangible but nevertheless, integral in effectively dealing with family and friends, co-workers, existing and potential business partners and clients and even with complete strangers. Your ability and willingness to help others, to work in a team environment, to solve problems and to communicate effectively are just a few examples of the many different components that make up the skill set known as engagement skills. As a Registered Retirement Consultant (RRC/CR &reg), the importance of engagement skills in attracting and perhaps, more importantly, retaining clients is often understated particularly when compared to the more tangible requirements for hard skills such as product knowledge, educational proficiencies and technical skills. Without minimizing the importance of hard skills - clearly, you must be technically competent - the reality is that it is the engagement skills demonstrated by you that builds a trusting, enduring relationship with your clients. An RRC/CR&reg who has strong engagement skills will have the ability to look for clues in a client’s body language, voice, word choice and demeanor so that appropriate questions can be asked, and a relationship built. By comparison, hard skills are usually related to professional knowledge, tools or techniques that allow us to work within our profession. Examples of hard skills are: designing a bridge, developing software, applying taxation laws, injecting a vaccine. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 3 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Are Engagement Skills Important? Have you ever found yourself irritated by another person? Have you assessed them as being irritating, hardnosed, mushy or just not getting to the point? In short "difficult to get along with". Or, perhaps you have struggled to get your message across to another person. Maybe you have tried to communicate your message as clearly as you know how to, and they still aren’t understanding you. Maybe you have had the experience of being in a meeting and people don’t seem to want to listen to you. All of these scenarios are where engagement skills come in to play. Strong engagement skills build relationships and assist clear communication. Engagement skills can be described as the bedside manner of a doctor. Two doctors may have an equally high degree of education, proficiency and technical skills to treat a given ailment. These are hard skills. Beyond your doctor’s competence, wouldn’t you rather be treated by a doctor that demonstrates compassion, empathy, respect and attentive listening? Who can eliminate your anxiety and fear and restore calm and peace of mind by simplifying complicated medical concepts into layman’s terms? As a patient, wouldn’t you want your doctor to listen and directly address your concerns and to take the necessary steps to ensure you have a clear understanding of your circumstances and the implications of the proposed treatment? Both hard skills and engagement skills must be learned. For example, an RRC/CR &reg does not have an innate understanding of the details of a given investment product or tax concept, it must be learned. Engagement skills tend to be more intuitively based on societal norms and accepted social practises but also must be learned. We are all aware the engagement skills of some individuals are considerably better than the skills possessed by other individuals. The good news is that where we may be lacking, techniques can be learned to improve and expand on the basic engagement skills we possess. The most effective RRC/CR&reg is one who follows the retirement planning process using his or her fundamentally sound hard skills in conjunction with a highly developed suite of engagement skills. Personal Style Each person is a very special and unique individual. We have our habits, our culture, our education, our ethics and manners. And, we have a personal style, or personality or temperament. We bring our entire self to each interaction and environment we encounter each day. This includes work and the interactions with our clients. To be optimally effective and professional it is imperative that we understand how we act, react and interact with the world. What makes us tick? What are our hot buttons or frustrations? How do we prefer to communicate and listen? One of the most notable contributions in history was in 460 BC by Hippocrates (often referred to as "the father of western medicine"). He observed that people in general seemed to have one of four humours, or approaches to life. This discernment of four groupings is a common theme that connects many of the most predominant personality theories. Today there exist many different systems for categorizing personality traits into meaningful patterns. Many of these various systems use special vocabulary such as colours, letters, adjectives or other terms to describe the same thing - your personality temperament. If you have integrated any of these terms or descriptors into your language you are speaking a type of personality language. For this lesson we will use the specific language of Personality Lingo! (www.personalitylingo.com) Whether you are brand new to personality training or intimately familiar with a favorite system - the power of knowing your personality is undeniable, and the power to identify 4 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning easily the personality of others is invaluable. Personality affects everything we do - from how we take in and process information to personal preferences and life decisions. Modern scientific studies claim to have found proof that our temperament is coded into our DNA, giving even more validity to this time-tested theory. Furthermore, science indicates that personalities are neither race nor gender biased. We may have learned preferences for thought and behaviour, but these are external behaviours not innate personality traits. If you have ever been in a conversation where people are discussing personality types, it can seem like a foreign language to those that don’t understand the vocabulary of that identification system. You could all be talking about the same thing but using different terms to describe it. Knowing ourselves is the beginning of being able to understand others and build effective relationships and solid communication. Comparisons of Common Systems Colour Systems Hippocrates was perhaps the first to reference colour with his four humours. Over the years there have been numerous systems that have carried on with this approach and attached a colour label to a particular personality. The table below reviews a sampling of those systems and how they relate to Personality Lingo Personality Connector Thinker Planner Mover Lingo® Hippocrates Phlegm Yellow Bile Black Bile Red Blood Don Lowry’s True BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Colours Colour Lingo BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Personality BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Dimensions Insight Learning BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Four Lenses BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Four Windows BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Real Colours BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Spectrum BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Temperaments Personality BLUE GREEN GOLD ORANGE Resources Colour Code BLUE/WHITE RED Blue – N/A YELLOW Herrmann Brain RED BLUE GREEN YELLOW Ritberger ORANGE GREEN RED YELLOW Birkman GREEN BLUE RED YELLOW Letter Descriptor Systems The most popular letter systems for Temperament identification are the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Keirsey systems. The chart below shows how Myers-Briggs ad Keirsey relate to Personality Lingo: Personality Connector Thinker Planner Mover Lingo® www.CIFP.ca © 2024 5 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning ENFJ, INFJ ENTJ, INTJ ESTJ, ISTJ ESFP, ISFP Myers – Briggs ENFP, INFP ENTP, INTP ESFJ, ISFJ ESTP, ISTP Keirsey NF NT SJ SP Temperament Comparisons of Common Systems...continued Word Descriptor Systems Dating back to the ancient Greeks, there is a long history of adding descriptive adjectives (or labels) to each of the four personality styles. The chart below shows how these systems relate to Personality Lingo: Personality Connector Thinker Planner Mover Lingo&reg Ancient Greeks Fire Water Earth Air Galen Phlegmatic Choleric Melancholic Sanguine Sensing Intuition/Thin Sensing Carl Jung Intuition/Feeling (/Perceiving* king (/Judging*) ) Seasons Summer Winter Autumn Spring Keirsey Idealist Rational Guardian Artisan Keirsey/Bates Apollonian Promethean Epimethean Dionysian Diet Styles Diet Feeler Diet Thinker Diet Planner Diet Player Inner Hero Helper Thinker Planner Doer Helen Fisher Estrogen/Oxytocin Testosterone Serotonin Dopamine Helen Scully Facilitator Innovator Organizer Liberator Character Blue Dolphin Green Owl Gold Ant Orange Wolf Champions *Carl Jung does not explicitly mention a judging or perceiving attitude. The "Judging" and "Perceiving" terms are listed here to make a clear distinction between the Planner and Mover temperaments as they relate to Carl Jung’s classifications. DISC C D I S DISC Conscientiousne Dominance Influence Steadiness ss Personality Connector/Mov Planner/Connec Mover/Thinker Thinker/Planner Lingo er tor COLOURS Orange/Green Blue/Orange Gold/Blue Green/Gold Keirsey SP/NT NF/SP SJ/NF NT/SJ ENNEAGRAM 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Planne Connec Planner/Con Connec Thinke Thinke Mover Planne Connec r tor nector tor r r r tor SJ NF SJ/NF NF NT NT SP SJ NF 6 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Who Are You? So where do you fit? What is your personal style? This is important as who we are on the personality level greatly impacts everything we do. Engagement skills, communication, sales, leadership, learning, stress management, conflict resolution and more are all influenced by who we are. This is how we act, react and interact with the world around us. Let’s start with Introvert or Extrovert. Many people erroneously believe that introversion means you are shy whereas extroversion means you are not. Both Introverts and Extroverts can be shy. Shyness is the fear of social judgement and can be experienced by either introverts or extroverts. A basic definition for Introverts is that they gather or restore their energy from their internal world of thoughts, ideas and reflections and Extroverts rejuvenate or gather their energy from the outside world of people activities and their environment. People with a preference for Extroversion tend to express their most dominant personality traits outward. Determining the personality style of someone who is extroverted is usually quite straightforward – what you see, is what you get! Introverts on the other hand tend to use their primary personality style to process internally. They may communicate outwardly and behave in manners that are associated with their secondary style. Therefore, extra attention needs to be paid when identifying the personality style of Introverts. Extroverts (E) VS Introverts (I) Social Interaction Inner concentration External world of thoughts Inner world of feelings Breadth Depth Extensive interests Intensive interests Many relationships Few relationships Gregarious and social Reflective and thoughtful After-thinkers Fore-thinkers About 55% of the population About 45% of the population www.CIFP.ca © 2024 7 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Importance of Personality Style Our personalities are a very important and critical component of who we are, how we respond, how we communicate, how we relate and how we process information. This is foundational to learning and using excellent engagement skills to build both personal and professional relationships. As you will learn later in this unit, your personality greatly influences how and what you verbalize and hear. You could be clearly communicating your message and be completely misunderstood! How? Easily – you speak your own language and use words based on your personality. You hear what other people say through your ears which filter messages through your own language based on your personality. Confusing? Not really it is just thinking of Personality -speaking as another language. For example: You could say, "I would like you to come in for a portfolio review." Quite a clear message, wouldn’t you agree? But here is what people not like you might hear you saying, "You are in trouble we have to talk about your portfolio right now and boy do I have bad news for you!" Where did that come from? That isn’t what you said! No, but it is the message that was heard. This is one of the reasons that communication can be so difficult! Where do we start? Ideally, we start with understanding ourselves. We start to understand how we act, react and interact with the world. How do we view the world? What makes our heart happy? What are our hot buttons? Understanding ourselves first is the foundation to being able to start to understand others. There are good resources both free and for purchase to explore and discern our personality. You can search on-line, connect with a local personality training expert or start with www.personalitylingo.com for a free, fun, personality quiz that can get you started. Personality Overview In many models there are 4 quadrants that describe type, preferences or behaviours. If you are familiar with another model, use the charts above to find your fit in our model. The following is a very brief overview using the Personality Lingo model of Mover, Thinker, Connector, and Planner. Mover Playful, high energy, easily bored, loves freedom and new ideas. Creative, great negotiators, always up for an adventure. Loves novelty and being on the leading edge, lives in the moment. Strengths: embrace change, think outside of the box, love a challenge, high energy, playful and fun, very gregarious. Visual communicator. Challenges: easily bored, short attention span, frustrated by status quo, don’t always think before speaking. Communication Tips If you are a Mover: don’t interrupt, focus on the speaker, tone down the volume, limit wordiness and conversation Speaking to a Mover: Tell "people" stories, give colourful details, give attention, don’t tune out. Thinker Logical, analytical, naturally curious, love knowledge and learning, perpetual learner. Able to easy conceptualize, reserved, appreciate being given the time to think and process. Live in the future. Strengths: very knowledgeable, independent and able to work alone, reserved and proper, analytical and innovative. Frequently ask, "Why?" 8 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Challenges: may come across as a "know-it-all" or arrogant, fact based rather than emotionally sensitive, very demanding of themselves and others. Communication Tips If you are a Thinker: practise saying "please" and "thank-you". Focus on the person not the project. Practise active listening, read to the end of the letter. Speaking to a Thinker: Use bullet points, not small details or stories. Give the bottom line first, give additional details only if asked, ask questions, expect the "why" statement. Connect Supportive, kind, positive, crave connection to others. Great imagination with or love of the arts, a real people person, very collaborative and a natural mediator. Lead with their heart and easily identify and relate to the emotional state of others. Seek personal growth and meaning Strengths: open and accepting, love to communicate, very cooperative, natural mediators, caring and compassionate, creative and empathetic. Soft spoken. Challenges: extremely sensitive, lead with their heart, often supress their own needs and wants, tentative in communicating their needs. Communication tips: If you are a Connector: express your opinion, share ideas, practise making and expressing choices, speak more quickly and boldly. Speaking to a Connector: show respect and look for the positive, freely give praise, give focused attention, wait to speak until they are completely finished, give a few choices. Planner Conscientious and dependable, reliable, organized, makers of lists. Know and follow the rules, guidelines and legislation. Steadfast, goal driven, believe in right and wrong. Strong sense of duty and commitment to the job at hand. Strengths: organized, productive, prepared, value citizenship, community service. Follow directions, follow through on tasks, hard working, loyal and responsible. Challenges: need to have a plan and clear instructions or directions, resist imposed change, puts others on an agenda, not tolerant of casual time management or being surprised. Communication tips: If you are a Planner: don’t overwhelm others with details, give praise when due, celebrate incremental improvements, adjust your expectations, appreciate contributions of others. Speaking to a Planner: first ask if it is a good time to talk, respect their time/space/silence. Give factual and orderly details. Be prepared – think through what you will say. Wait for their response. Our personality or personal style influences every aspect of life. One thought you may be having is "Yes, but I can relate to all of the above". Yes, that is true. We do have the ability to choose our behaviours depending on the relationship or circumstance. Most people have one or more commonly two personality styles that are their dominant style that they most often operate from. A suggested resource is the book "Personality Lingo" by Mary Miscisin M.S. available through Amazon or her web site. The book goes into much detail and includes information on identifying your style, communication, stress and being your best. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 9 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Identifying the Personal Style of Clients Now that we can identify our own preferences, how do we quickly and easily identify the personal style of our clients? We started by learning how to identify our personality, our strengths and challenges and some basic communication tips. How do we quickly and easily identify our client’s personal style and how can we best relate to them? Can I not just be myself? Yes, you can. Use the strengths of your personality to build relationships and client lists while respecting the personality of others. Learn to speak their languages and you will be well on the way to enhanced engagement with your clients. As humans we take our personality everywhere we go. Both you and your client will give reliable clues as to preferred personal style which are easy to read if you know what to look for. We want to look for visible clues – things we can see, vocal clues - that which we can hear, and some general environmental clues – observable elements. Is this three-fold method 100% accurate? No, but then neither is a self-test! An easy three step process goes like this: i. Observe visible, vocal and general clues … take a guess as to which Personality Style you think is being shown by your client, ii. Ask them a question from the information below and listen to their answer iii. If your initial assessment wasn’t correct based on the answer you received, you can easily adjust your approach and ask another question. It is OK to explore your perception before making a determination of the conversational approach you will take based on the preferred style. By learning what to observe it can give you a very good starting point, a reliable way to be respectful of the individual and their "way of being". Here is some great news! No personality, style or preference is better or worse than any other! There is no good personality vs "bad" personality, we are different but equal. Also, there is no gender bias between personalities. There is no personality that is for women and one for men, there is a relatively even distribution of the genders between the personality styles. Celebrate – who we are - what we are - and we can choose to operate within our strengths! 10 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning The Mover Basic desire is to be noticed and to have fun. What you Clothing: often bright and/or intense colours, trendy threads, see beads and sparkles, colourful ties often with graphics, fun socks, novelty sweaters that tell a story. Activity: high energy, constant movement, big gestures and movements, often touches others – clap on the back, fist bump, tap on the shoulder. Can forget to respect the personal space of others. Focus: very impetuous, easily distracted "squirrel!", tends to what is right in front of them, irreverent humour! Emotions: highly charged and changeable. Emotions are not hidden, happy is elation, sad is devastating and responses are based on the current state of emotion. May have several changes from high to low in a short span of time. What you Volume: usually quite loud and easily heard across the room. hear Often have a very loud and distinctive laugh. Even whispers carry quite far. Language: not afraid to make up their own words or use slang. May use edgy and just barely appropriate language, jokes, metaphors and fun terminology. General: love to tell stories to make a point or just entertain. Very visual and graphic with a wide eyed "who me?" innocence of expression. Speak very quickly with great excitement and can quickly change the subject as they can be easily distracted. Environmen Personal work space can be quite chaotic. May appear to be tal Clues disorganized but they will know where everything is. Engage in high energy activities and possibly extreme sports. Love to challenge themselves and then tell a great story about their adventures. Always open to new ideas, adventures or products. Rely on the research and opinions of others. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 11 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning The Thinker Basic desire is to be in charge and have control What you Clothing: often wears the strong power colours – black, red, navy see blue, royal blue. Power clothing such as jacket and slacks, logoed clothing, not usually seen wearing ultra casual such as baggy jogging pants and sweatshirts. Conservative jewellery. Activity: quick and active with purposeful movements. Each action has a reason. Able to be completely still, alert and watchful. Focus: very decisive and direct. Always alert and watchful, easily takes charge of a conversation or situation. Focussed eye contact. Emotions: not readily apparent. Operates from logic rather than emotion. Emotional layer is very deep and when they rise to the surface are expressed very strongly. Intolerant of sloppy work and mistakes and easily angered. What you Volume: not necessarily loud but strong and direct. Will speak hear over others without raising their voice. Genuine laughter is of moderate volume. Language: use technical language and correct terminology. Knows how to spell and pronounce the big words and may use their vocabulary as a weapon rather than a tool. Enjoy utilizing a robust lexicon. General: Want to know what you know. Asks many questions and will listen appreciatively to the answer. May challenge your knowledge or assumptions, respects intellectual discourse. Environmen Personal workspace will likely have evidence of several projects tal Clues on the go at once. Also, research books, models, prototypes or equipment. Love technology and the access to learning and knowledge that it represents. Enjoy doing difficult things. Love the challenge of hard work, technically precise activities and pushing themselves to the limit while controlling their environment. Naturally curious and thirsty for knowledge they enjoy solving problems and inventing better ways of doing things. Prefer to keep their emotions to themselves and are slow to trust. 12 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning The Connector Basic desire is to have peace and no conflict What you see Clothing: prefer comfortable and soft textured clothing. Soft knits, elastic waist, unstructured suits and sweaters. Soft colours, pastels, browns, blues, greens, earth tones. Activity: very relaxed and laid back, low energy. Peaceful and calm, even in chaos Focus: will focus exclusively on those they are in conversation with. Pay close attention to feelings, language and environment around them. Emotions: lead with their heart. Very peaceful and calm, seldom have extremes of emotion. Balanced and rational. What you hear Volume: most often quiet spoken with much feeling in their tone and expressions. Language: use emotional words such as "I feel …" very descriptive language, use lots of adjectives General: usually good listeners with strong focus on your words and how you are saying them. Very emotionally intuitive, can easily pick up your current emotional state. Environmental Have many friends and prefer to be in a group or working as a clues team. Would rather work with people than things or tools. Casual about their surroundings unless it comes to comfort items. Work area will have pictures of family and friends and some fun conversational objects. May have rocks or bottles of sand that have emotional meaning to them Wear their hearts on their sleeves and are ready to be glad or sad as the situation requires. Very openly emotional. Always put the needs of others ahead of themselves. Very cause oriented, people, animals, environment etc. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 13 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning The Planner Basic desire is to have perfection and organization What you see Clothing: the correct clothing for each activity. Tucked in, buttoned up, correct and proper, not necessarily stuffy or stiff. Activity: very persistent and thorough, need to finish what they start. Likes to organize things and data – uses charts and graphs. Focus: prefer to focus on tasks rather than people. Very artistic and deeply sensitive. Can shut out the world to focus on a task. Emotions: very deeply emotional, quiet tears at a beautiful sunset or picture. Keep feelings to themselves but are the most emotionally sensitive. You just don’t see it. What you Volume: quiet-spoken, low tone, unemotional or intense. Very hear quiet laugh or chuckle. Do not draw attention to themselves. Language: Uses correct and precise language and terminology. Clear expectations and terminology, very articulate. General: a very clear communicator that may start a conversation in their head and begin orally half way through. Very organized thoughts and may speak in a "list". Environment Very tidy, everything in its place. Difficult to replace items when al clues they are still useful. May have "hoarder" tendencies as it is hard to part with familiar objects. Works space will be very organized and likely minimalistic – one file or sheet of paper at a time on the desk. Cannot think or work in clutter Work very well alone without supervision. Prefer to be given the job, the expectations, and the deadline and then be left alone to work. Like to follow the rules and procedures, most comfortable in a formal environment where everyone knows and follows the rules. 14 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Conversational Personality Clues How can we begin to get a sense of our clients, colleagues, friends or family’s personality without asking them to take an assessment or use a tool to evaluate them? What are some questions or conversation openers we can use to get off on the right foot? The following are some ideas with the answers that may guide you in the right direction to determine which personality quadrant fits. Mover: White water rafting or other high energy activities – hiking, scuba diving, zip-lining Thinker: A scientific expedition or What is other learning experience – Galapagos, your the pyramids, historic hike idea of a great Connector: Romantic get-away, family vacation trip, holiday with friends – cottage at ? the lake, cabin in the woods Planner: Traditional family vacation, preferably low cost – return to same place each year. Mover: Quick to take action and eager to grab a problem and solve it How would Thinker: Curious, knowledgeable, a others great problem solver describe Connector: Friendly, gets along well you? with others, lots of friends Planner: Prepared, likes to plan ahead, "boy-scout" Mover: Throw a big party and rent a If you limo to go get the cheque with a bunch won the of friends lottery, what is Thinker: Create a new venture or the first business and invest in learning or education thing you Connector: Share it with family and would friends, give to charity do with Planner: Put it in the bank, consult the with a lawyer, banker and planner and money? make a solid plan. Mover: Flip a coin! Impulse, what How do seems best at the moment with the you information available make Thinker: Logic and research. Explore decision all options and rate past successes and s? outcomes www.CIFP.ca © 2024 15 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Connector: What feels right for the situation Planner: Past precedents and the correct procedures. Mover: I make friends easily, people seem to like me, I like to think that I collect people. Thinker: I usually like to be with people, things seem to go better if I am How do you in charge. relate to Connector: I like watching people and people? connecting. It gives me a good picture of what they are like Planner: I prefer to observe and go beneath the surface to see the real person. Apart from the necessit Mover: Going out with friends, ies of adventure, having fun and looking good life, Thinker: I buy good quality, name food, brand items that are life enhancing shelter, tools clothing Connector: Comfort items and , what convenience products do you spend Planner: I don’t spend, I prefer to save your every spare cent money on? 16 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Conversational Personality Clues...continued Mover: Look for the sunny side and move on If a disaster Thinker: I would need to figure out struck, how what happened and why do you Connector: I would be very think you emotionally distraught and worried would about other people react? Planner: I would use my emergency plan and make the best of it. Mover: An actor, artisan or entrepreneur If you could Thinker: An inventor or explorer or be anything researcher you wanted to be, what Connector: A spiritual guru, social would you convener, secret contributor do? Planner: Chief executive, philanthropist. Mover: Bold, adventurous, brave, fun Thinker: Competent, What words knowledgeable, hard working describe you the Connector: Compassionate, warm, best? caring, friendly Planner: Practical, dependable, responsible, frugal Mover: I have better things to do than keeping track of my money – that’s your job! What is Thinker: I feel out of control and disorganized if I am not in total your charge of my finances. attitude toward Connector: Finances intimidate me, managing and I don’t feel the need to check money? my balances every day. Planner: I have a spreadsheet detailing every bill I pay, and items purchased. What Mover: I bought what I liked and process did then thought about how to pay for it you use later www.CIFP.ca © 2024 17 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning when you Thinker: I researched and found a bought your good compromise between what I last car? wanted and what I could afford Connector: I ended up spending more than I planned to but I got the colour and features I wanted. Planner: I researched every detail and made sure it would fit my budget and driving needs. (just for fun) Mover: Grab it, capture it and show it to my friends If an extra- terrestrial Thinker: Ask it where it was from appeared at and how it got to my front porch your front Connector: Try to befriend it and door, what invite it in would you do? Planner: Close the door and call the authorities The responses above are in general terms and most respondents will use their own words and thoughts. However, this is a good guide to help with your ongoing communication and professional relationship building. Personality comes into significance when talking about and planning financial matters, life issues and retirement considerations. Communication Communication is a gift to both the speaker and the receiver. Therefore, is stands to reason that being a solid communicator will stand a professional in very good stead. Let’s look at what good communication is and isn’t. First, communication is not talking. You may have heard the age-old question, "If someone talks in the woods and no-one is there to hear them, are they communicating?" Talking, is just that, talking. Communication is the giving and taking of information, ideas, concepts or messages. Without a receiver, communication has not occurred. Without a message being sent in a way that the receiver can comprehend and respond to, communication has not happened well. How do we ensure that we communicate in the most effective way we can? The following ideas, techniques and instructions will assist with that. As a Registered Retirement Consultant, you are communicating with clients, colleagues, other professionals and many other people. Some conversations are easy, some are more difficult but good communication skills will help you with all types of communication. Communication consists of good speaking skills and solid listening skills, coupled with respecting and understanding how best to communicate with the person’s individual style. In other words, communicating from your voice to their ears. If you were to greet a Mover client with energy and excitement, asking about their latest adventure – you would open the communication doors. Ask about their goals for the future and then suggest some low maintenance easy to follow strategies with an element of "safe risk" and some fun … they will listen to you. 18 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Greet a Thinker that way – and they will not respond to you. Instead, be well prepared and able to answer the questions or know where to find the answers in preparation of the meeting. Minimize the greeting and ask, "How may I best serve you today", listen and respond with a bullet point list and they will appreciate that you are respecting their needs for brevity and knowledge. A strategy where they feel in control of the process and investments may be most successful. A Connector client, needs to know that you care for them personally and are interested in them as a person. Greet them warmly, remembering details about their family or activities. Spend time setting the stage and building or renewing a relationship before asking how you may help them on this visit. Again, a low maintenance easy to follow strategy or plan may be most well received. Planners are very reserved and do not easily share personal information. Explaining why the potentially intrusive questions need to be asked will be helpful. Be prepared with the information written down in detail so they may review it, take it away for review and plan another meeting to make decisions or ask more questions. Planning will take time and considerable sharing of information will be required for the relationship to be solidified. Movers and Connectors are both people and relationship focussed. You will enjoy warm handshakes, open conversation and ease of relationship building with either. Conversely, both Thinkers and Planners are more interested in the task or information than connecting on the personal level. Both present a "calm, cool and collected" front and prefer a minimum of personal conversation, preferring to focus instead on the business of the meeting. The first stage of developing good engagement skills is being able to easily identify which personal style your client is likely operating from and building a professional relationship that respects their needs and values. The second stage of enhancing engagement requires developing effective Communication Skills like: Attending, Soliciting, Reacting & Structuring. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 19 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Attending Skills To attend means simply to give heed to, or to be present with. If you really pay attention to someone, you are indirectly telling them that they are important (i.e.: affirming their self- worth) Furthermore, you dramatically increase the chances of understanding both the stated and implicit messages in someone’s communication. According to Dr. Kris Magnusson of Simon Fraser University, one of the most important determinants of how well you will be able to establish rapport with others is the degree to which they perceive you to be attending to them. Attending skills are primarily physical behaviours that let other people know that you are focussing on them. A well-recognised model for basic attending skills is the SOLAR model. SOLAR model Setting the stage is the starting point for a good meeting. Dr. Norm Amundsen, a respected long-term Faculty of Education member of the University of British Columbia, crafted the SOLAR model and described it in his text book "Active Engagement" as the starting point for developing a professional relationship. The stage is set very purposefully in how the meeting area is set up. Often an office will have a desk with you on one side and your client(s) on the other. This is the least optimal configuration. If possible a round table is much preferred or a set of chairs facing each other with casual tables at the side for coffee cup and writing tablet to indicate no barriers and a sense of equality of all participants. The SOLAR model stands for Square position, Open posture, Leaning in, Asking open questions, and Reflecting back what you have believed you have heard. This is an easy to remember and apply – once learned – process that will allow you to maximize your time in the client meeting. S - Square position Squarely face your client, whether across a desk or table, or in facing chairs. This gives the opportunity for direct eye contact and the most room for expressive movement. It is easy to speak directly and to listen actively when sitting face to face. O - Open posture An open posture is where your hands and arms are relaxed and resting on the table, or desk or on the arms of chairs. Arms and legs are not crossed, the opposing elbows are not firmly clenched in your hands and your shoulders and neck are relaxed. For some people the habit of crossing their legs is firmly entrenched. If possible practise crossing legs at the ankles, not the knees as this can still present an "open" attitude to your client. Being physically open in your posture allows you to hear what is in the conversation, a closed posture – with crossed arms or legs indicates defensiveness. Be open, engaging and vulnerable to facilitate relationship building. Open shows listening, closed indicates decision is made, no longer listening. L - Lean in to the conversation Rather than leaning back into your chair lean in toward your client at a comfortable level. Leaning slightly towards your client conveys interest and focus. Think about a social environment you may have been in – you lean in when you are engaged, listening, or engrossed in what you are hearing. Leaning back gives the appearance of avoidance or superiority. Leaning in shows interest, engagement and openness to the ideas being expressed. A - Ask open questions Open questions do not have a predefined answer. They allow for the engagement and exploration of ideas and thoughts and provide a lot of information. A guideline would be questions that begin with how, what, where, why, or when. For example: "What are some of 20 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning the elements you consider when making plans for your future?" An open question gives the respondent full breadth of thought and opinion in their response. As you listen you may hear information or ideas that will help you in your further exploring for suggestions, solutions or pathways. If in doubt, ask yourself "What would Dr. Phil say?" Likely he would say "And how is that working for you?" a very open question. R - Reflect what you believe you have heard Always double check to ensure that your perception of what you thought you have heard, is indeed what the person believes they have said. WHAT? Think about a mirror for words. In some ways we are a mirror to our client’s world. Remember that there are always 2 sides to a conversation. What the speaker believes they have said, and what the listener believes they have heard. There are two elements at work here, personality and perception. How we speak and how we perceive the message is influenced by our personality, in other words our perception of the message. An individual may say, "I want to plan a party for our staff." Straight forward – right? Not necessarily. Are they saying that they want to do the work of invitations, setting the venue, menu and activities and cleaning up? Or, that they have the big picture idea but want to get a party plan team together to divide the work? Or, they are just floating the idea to see what the response is? Or, they would like to plan a party, but the timing is off, or there are other environmental considerations that could make it difficult? Your client may say, "I plan on doing a lot of travelling". Straight forward, right? Wrong! What does travelling mean to them? Is it a transatlantic cruise or a car trip to visit relatives? Does it involve exploring new countries and cultures or exploring previously unexplored parts of their own province? What does travelling mean to them – and equally important, their spouse! Secondly what does "a lot" mean to them? Is it more than they are currently travelling? Is it half the year or more than 2 small trips a year? Have they thought about what "travelling a lot more" means in their life plan or are they just musing out loud and floating out some ideas? Reflecting what you think you have heard is critical to ensuring both communicators are following the same track or logic. Your response could be, "For a comparison, what kind of travelling are you doing now?" Reflecting what you think you have heard is critical to ensuring both communicators are following the same track or logic. Your response could be," What ideas have you come up with so far?" www.CIFP.ca © 2024 21 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Soliciting Skills Soliciting is the art of eliciting information. To solicit is to "obtain by persuasion, entreaty or formal application". We will explore 4 specific communication soliciting skills: closed-ended questions, open-ended questions, declarative probes and prompts. Closed-ended Questions – or closed questions can be answered with Yes or No or a one or two-word answer. Example: "Is it raining?" – Yes. "Are you cold?" - No "What is your name?" – Tom Jones. "Where do you live?" – 123 Somewhere Street. Forms are often completed using closed ended questions. Closed questions are useful for eliciting known information where the individual is not required to give additional information or speculate or describe information or situations. Closed questions are not bad questions, they have very specific uses. Open-ended Questions – or open questions require a fuller, more informative and robust response. Open questions have sentences, lists and stories as answers and allow respondents to include more information, including feelings, attitudes and understanding of the subject. They often start with "How, why, what". Open questions lead to conversation and the sharing of thoughts, ideas and information. Example: "What do you imagine your first day of retirement will be like?" – I am going to get up early, make coffee, read the paper and wave to everyone going by on their way to work. Then I will take my dog for a walk. For lunch … As you can see, an open question elicits so much more. Declarative Probes – are functionally like open-ended questions but are less interrogative. It is suggested that a declarative probe is a "polite command". Their use is to get more information, to have the respondent open up and tell more. A declarative probe is "Tell me more about that please.", "Elaborate a bit for me". In conversation with a client they may say something like, "I am worried that I won’t have any friends when I retire." – Elaborate a bit for me please. "Well, I have been working long hours and the only people I hang out with are the ones at work. If I stop going to work, I stop having friends." – Tell me more about that please. "When I get home from work I am tired and just want to eat, watch TV and go to bed. I don’t have the time or energy to join a group or meet the neighbours… " Use of a declarative probe brings out more and more detail and information giving a more complete picture of the concern, consideration or contemplation without making the person being asked feel like they are on the hot seat. Prompts – are used to gently assist or encourage a hesitating speaker to say something or to continue with what they were saying. A prompt is used to move the conversation along. Prompts are short one or two-word phrases or non-verbal vocal noises. Hmmmm, What else? Go on, And then … ? Example: "My spouse thought I should come to see you" - UmHmmmm" Our brother in law is one of your clients and he seems to be quite happy with the results of his portfolio" - Go on…" 22 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Basic Reacting Skills Reacting skills are what we use when it is our turn to speak, or to respond or to react to what we believe we have heard. It gives us the opportunity to ensure that we are on the same level of understanding as the person we are engaging with. Reacting skills cover three levels of understanding; auditory – what we believe we have heard; perceived intention, significance or substance – what it means to us and emotional – how the words make us feel or respond. Reflecting verbal content The most basic verbal mirroring technique, is also known as paraphrasing. In a reflection of verbal content, only the actual content of the spoken message is reflected back to the client – no inferences or interpretations are added. A level one reflection looks like this: Client: Boy, I’ve been feeling really tired lately. RRC/CR® – You’ve been really tired lately. Notice how no new information was added and the client’s own words were used. Although it may seem pedantic or redundant, reflection of verbal content does serve a useful purpose. Some clients are nervous or under emotional stress. It helps them to hear what they are saying and determine if their description is an accurate one. This provides a relatively safe response to the client, helping to build trust. A level two verbal reflection uses the same words as the client but changes the order: Client: Boy, I’ve been feeling really tired lately. RRC/CR®: Lately you’ve been really tired. This forces the client to at least reconsider what has been said and determine if it makes sense. Again, no new information was added but through changing the order of the words the client gets a chance to reconsider what was said. A level three verbal reflection closely resembles a paraphrase. When you paraphrase something, you are essentially translating the message into your own words: Client: Boy, I’ve been feeling really tired lately. RRC/CR®: You’re feeling exhausted? You are giving the exact same message back but using your own words. No new information has been added but because your word may not express the client intent exactly it should be offered tentatively. This gives your client the opportunity to correct your words and fill in with their own. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 23 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Reflective Meaning Reflecting meaning is similar to a reflection of verbal content, with the added component of inference. Sometimes it is necessary to infer what the other person meant or seemed to say but didn’t actually say it directly. You are intending to infer the meaning of the statement. These inferences which are common in "normal" conversations (where most people assume but do not verbalize their inferred meaning) need to be reflected back to the client to ensure that our interpretations of the implied meaning are the correct ones. When we look for unstated meanings in client statements, we are leaving ourselves open for error. We might be making an assumption about what the client means that is totally wrong. That is why it is important to verbalize what you think your client means. Not only does a reflection of meaning ensure that you are on track, but it also gives the client time for reflection. By reflecting "This is what you seem to be saying" you give the client permission to correct any mistaken assumptions or interpretations. Again, it is important to be tentative. This can be accomplished by using a tentative lead in such as "It seems to me that …" or "Do you mean …?" Client: I am worried about my job. I’ve missed the last two weeks because I have been very sick." RRC/CR®: It seems you are worried that you are behind at work and will struggle to get caught up. Is that right?" Some people like to preface a reflection of meaning with a reflection of verbal content. This ensures that the actual content was heard and provides a springboard for making an inference. Using this technique, the response to the above comment might look something like this: RRC/CR®: So, illness has kept you away from work for two weeks and now you are feeling worried? (wait for nod or acknowledgement) Is that because you think you’ve gotten too far behind to catch up?" Note there are other equally plausible inferences that could have been made. If the "wrong" inference is made, the client will quickly let you know. The point is, it is better to verbalize these assumptions so that the client can clarify or correct where necessary. Reflecting Affect (Feeling) Reflecting affect (feeling) is a reflection of the feelings behind a client statement. As with reflections of meaning, reflection of affect must be done tentatively. This is one of the most powerful tools that can be used. It helps to defuse negative emotions that may be getting in the way of a client’s capacity to deal with problem situations. Acknowledgement of feelings such as anger, fear or frustration is often a first step in resolving a negative situation. Consider this: Client: There is so much information coming at me from all sides that I just don’t know what to do! RRC/CR®: "Sounds like you are getting quite frustrated?" Client: "You bet I am! I am just buried in brochures, and papers and web sites …" RRC/CR®: "In addition to the frustration you sound overwhelmed and maybe a little desperate?" Client: "Yes, you have nailed it!" A number of alternative responses are possible – as you gain more practise with communication skills, you will begin to pick up on the verbal and non-verbal cues of the 24 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning interaction and be able to identify the "correct" feeling more readily. Effective Reflections There are two major problems in learning how to do effective reflections: recognizing a meaning or emotion and identifying or labeling it. We often deal in shades of meaning, and the subtle differences in meaning between two words may be key. Here is a mini glossary that may be a useful tool: Ideas for empathetic response leads: Kind of feeling … Sort of saying … I am picking up that you … If I am hearing you correctly … Kind of makes (made) you feel … What I guess I am hearing is … I wonder if you are expressing a concern that … You place a high value on … I read you as … Your message seems to be, "I … So, your world is a place where you … Some affective vocabulary: Words to convey Words to convey Words to convey affection: love, friendly, happiness: glee, strength: responsible, caring, like, fond of, contented, joyous, ecstatic, confident, alive, adequate, respect, admire, trust, glad, merry, lively, jovial, powerful, certain, sure, close, adore, devoted, animate, elated, genial, efficient, important, regard, tenderness, buoyant, bright, saucy, competent, effective, attachment, yearning, jolly, playful, zest, thrilled, superior, cope, potent, able, longing, infatuated, bliss, tickled, sensational, lucid, adaptable, forceful, passionate, cherish, idolize. terrific, good, neat. effectual, Words to convey Words to convey hurt: Words to convey confusion: bewildered, used, put down, neglected, unhappiness: low, sad, puzzled, flustered, rejected, demeaned, dejected, depressed, down, overwhelmed, mixed up, scorned, criticized, belittled, lost, blue, melancholy, muddled, perplexed, shot down, cast off, brood, dreary, flat, joyless, tumult, chaos, jumbled, discarded, devastated, somber, gloomy, dreadful, uncertain, undecided, ripped off humiliated, dismal, empty, grim, ambivalent, drifting, betrayed, exploited, desolate, awful, terrible, baffled, trapped, in a embarrassed, maligned. disappointed. quandary. Words to convey anger: Words to convey fear: Words to convey guilt: rage, resentment, irritation, timid, diffident, anxious, blame, regret, shame, fury, annoyance, provoked, worried, apprehensive, embarrassed, at fault, infuriate, inflamed, doubt, qualm, hesitant, reprehensible, wrong, displeasure, animosity, fright, terror, scared, remorseful, crummy, rotten, wrath, indignation, nervous, restless, humiliated, unforgivable, exasperate, pique, huff, trepidation, intimidated, mortified, ashamed, morose, seethe, offend, rile, creeps, shivers, jumpy, disgraceful. outraged, mad. worried, uneasy, unsure. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 25 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Structuring Skills Without structure, conversations and client meetings can become meaningless drifting from topic to topic with little sense of direction, accomplishment or purpose. There is a need to manage interviews in a manner that allows clients full opportunity for expressions, and yet still provide a context for learning, growth and decisions. Structure provides meaning and maximized opportunity. In this section we will look at three structuring skills: Summaries, Overviews and Transitions. Summaries One of the most useful ways to organize the content of an interview is to make frequent use of summaries. Summaries condense the content of an interview – or portion thereof – into the key points or issues that were raised. Effective summaries have a number of useful functions: They help keep both parties in the conversation focussed on the issue at hand. They provide context for comparison, thereby helping your client to sort out what issues belong together, and which ones are unrelated. They provide ways of demonstrating that you are effectively tracking what is being said They provide a means of monitoring progress toward a conversational goal. They can be used as a source of feedback and encouragement for your client. Summaries are used in a variety of situations. They may be used as part of the meeting opening with a repeat client ("Let’s just review what we did last time we met.") When used as part of an overview, a summary simply identifies the major themes that were previously discussed. RRC/CR®: "As I recall, you were going to discuss with your spouse the options for pension splitting and TFSA contributions. You were going to get some information from your employers and banks and read over some of the literature that I shared with you. Have I got all of that right?" Every interview or meeting should also close with a summary. Summarize the entire session including the main theme and activities. Sometimes a summary may not seem too different from some of the Reflecting skills previously discussed. There are however a couple of important distinctions. First, a summary never includes new content or information that your client has not yet had a chance to respond to. Summaries should not contain any new inferences of meaning, feeling or behaviour. Second, summaries contain more than one piece of information to respond to; reflections, on the other hand, only deal with one issue, thought or feeling at a time. 26 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Overview Structuring Skills Overviews, used at the beginning of a meeting or interview, give a general picture of where the session will be going. A good overview provides a framework for both the content and the process for the upcoming interaction. This ensures there are few surprises or hidden agendas, and both parties can concentrate on the discussion at hand. It is good practise to include an overview at the beginning of each client meeting. An overview should contain at least four major components. i. A brief description of how you intend to approach the meeting, interview or issue ii. Your clients and your expectations should be clarified. Here you explain what is expected from your client and in turn what your client can expect from you. iii. Your client should be given some indication about how much time is likely to be needed and the general structure of how the meeting will proceed. This includes the length of each meeting and how many meetings will be needed. iv. An agreement to proceed is reached based on the previously mentioned conditions and expectations. RRC/CR®: "John, it is good to meet you. I know you have been working with my colleague on the financial aspects of your retirement plan, and now you are wanting to look at a plan for your time and activities, in short, your Retirement Life. The process will include some work together engaging both you and me, some work on your own, thinking about some specific elements, some conversations with your spouse and some research on your part. I commit to following through on everything I commit to do in our meetings, and in return need you to commit to following through on what you promise to do. We will likely meet 4 to 5 times for about an hour each time. Does this sound like a process that will work for you John, and that you can commit to?" Client/John: "It sounds like it will be a lot of work, but I like the idea that we will be working on the other important half of my retirement plan. I really want to work on designing a retirement life that is meaningful, satisfying and fun for both my partner and me. Yes, I believe this is just what I am looking for." Transition Structuring Skills A transition is a powerful conversation and interview structuring tool. A transition is used to move from one area of focus to another; you may use a transition to make this shift of focus evident to your client. Transitions also serve three other major functions: i. They help to keep the focus of the interview sharp ii. They help prevent repetitive cycles iii. Help to keep the interview moving forward. A transition typically has two principle components: A statement of the previous area of discussion, followed by a statement of the next area for work. Transitions essentially tell your client, "This is where we’ve been, and this is where we are going next." There are two cautions that need to be issued with respect to the use of transitions. First, you must ensure that the current area of discussion is fully covered before moving on to the next. Always ask one more question than you think necessary. A redundant answer will indicate that the area has been sufficiently covered. The second caution pertains to the way the transition is presented. To be effective, they must be smooth; a tie in from one area to the next is done in a natural rather than an abrupt way. The sequence of skills used immediately before and after a transition typically determine how "smooth" it was. The most effective routine is to reflect the last client content, check for accuracy, summarize the www.CIFP.ca © 2024 27 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning area being discussed, state the transition, and follow with an open question. RRC/CR®: "We have been talking about the vision you have for your preferred retirement life. We have talked about your relationships, the location you see yourself in, activities you will do and some other lifestyle ideas. What else would you like to add?" Client: "I think we have covered it all for today, I know I have some thinking to do but I can’t think of anything else to add." RRC/CR®: "Excellent, our next step will be to explore some of the supportive people in your life that can help you or encourage you in achieving your preferred retirement life. Who are some people who are closest to you that will support you in moving to your preferred future?" Client: "Well, there is my son and daughter-in-law, they are in the process of taking over the business and should be ready by then. My friend Joe is great! He is always ready to chat or lend a hand, and then there is …" Planning for a Client's Well-being You may be asking yourself "What do I need to include in a FULL Retirement Plan for my clients?". Which came first - the chicken or the egg? Or, in our context - which comes first the Financial Planning or the Life Planning? Does it matter where we start the planning process with our clients? The author of the best-selling book "What Color is Your Parachute for Retirement", John E Nelson says "Retirement planning and education programs provide tools and checklists for a successful financial transition. But financial security doesn’t automatically create happiness in retirement. The universal dream is prosperity, health and happiness - otherwise known as well-being". He goes on to state that well-being includes the Financial component as well as considering Geography, Medical, Psychological, Social and Biological needs. Have you ever wondered just how to open the conversation with your clients about their retirement plans? Is it too personal to ask? What if they are sad or angry? How do you deal with these messy emotions? An initial suggestion - explore the Canadian Institute of Financial Planning (CIFP) Retirement Institute web site. (www.retirementinstitute.ca) This is an excellent starting point and has great information and practical resources for you. It hosts the "Six Step Retirement Planning Process" – an excellent guide. [It can be found under the "What an RRC® /CR® Holder Can Do for You" tab: https://www.retirementinstitute.ca/WebPage.aspx?ID=350&SID=2 In Step 4: Identify Appropriate Strategies and Present Retirement Plan it states "Recommended strategies should also consider qualitative lifestyle considerations. For example, retirees should be made aware of how changes in a person's personal situation can have an impact on their lifestyle when they stop working, such as, someone who retires 28 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning from a physically active job should consider thinking of ways to remain active to avoid health issues. The RRC/CR may encourage and assist the client to prepare for the emotional transition the client may experience. Part of the RRC/CR® role is to build bridges and links to Financial Applications of Life Planning components. What are the financial implications, adaptations, options to be considered to customize the Financial Plan to the client’s vision of their Retirement Life. A rule of thumb is to plan for 70% of income at age 65, is just a rule of thumb. The challenge is to get the 2 numbers (how much do I need and for what) in a personal way for clients. A client is much more likely to act when both Lifestyle and Finances are clear. This moves from a Transactional relationship to a Relational relationship and enhances the level of engagement as the two levels of planning merge into one. It is also important to include spouses and or partners and possibly other family members, which can add a level of complexity. A plan would start with the individual, then include the spouse or partner and then possibly the family. This means there may be elements that require outside professionals in your planning and consideration such as lawyers, bankers, insurance specialists, psychologists, mediators etc. When your client asks you "How much do I need to save for retirement?" the conversation opener should be "Great question! Let’s start by thinking about and talking about some of the activities, needs and preferences you have for this next phase of your life. We need to talk about both time and money in order to answer that question." Creating A Retirement Life Vision We will be exploring some specific tools that can assist in the planning process and conversations with clients. It is purposefully written in most sections as if the client is being engaged in the conversation, rather than as instructions for you as the RRC/CR ®. However, there are still some suggestions and instructions for good practise directed specifically to you, too. Learning Objectives Specific Tools for exploring the future Developing a client Retirement Life Plan Learn specific life plan tools Learn to help clients develop a vision for their future Learn to help clients develop achievable goals and plans www.CIFP.ca © 2024 29 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Retirement Life Planning Conversations and Personality Cues Once you have assisted your client to think about and create their Retirement Life Vision, then you are both ready to move on to more in-depth Retirement Life Planning. This Unit covers other significant components/elements that may be needed by your clients depending on the stage and age. Again, this is purposefully written in most cases as if your client is being engaged in the conversation, rather than as instructions for you as the RRC/CR &reg. However, there are still some suggestions and instructions for good practise directed specifically to you, too. In the previous Unit you were introduced to the Personality Types as described by Mary Micisin in her work both on-line and in the book Personality Lingo. You will find in each section prompts for using the information or expected responses from the Mover, Thinker, Planner, and Connector. Understanding client personalities and how they view the world and respond to information will allow your client and you to customize and support retirement life planning that is well suited to their personal and financial needs. Values Our values are the things that we believe are important in the way we live our life and interact with the world around us. They determine our priorities and deep down are the guide we use to measure if our life is turning out the way we hoped it would. Values are our principles and/or standards of behaviour. Our moral code, our code of behaviour or our personal code of ethics. We all have values and these values can change over time as we enter and exit various phases of life. Our values influence our behaviours and our behaviours can change as we enter and exit various phases of our life. It is very common for ones’ personal values to be quite different as we move toward planning our retirement life. Retirement is different from raising children, being in school or engaging in the competitive work place. An exercise for your client to consider is the following: Gather 3 colored markers or pens – a green, yellow and red. Review the words or phrases in the table below. With the Greenmarker, indicate the values that youOFTEN or ALWAYSvalue. With the Redmarker indicate the values that youSELDOM or NEVERvalue. With the Yellowmarker indicate the values that youSOMETIMES value. The challenge is to get the list of ALWAYS or OFTEN value words or statements down to a list of 10 values. This list of 10 values will likely be reflective of your core values going ahead into your retirement life. The core is who you are now, on the inside. This sets the stage for all other life plan elements. Diversity Environment Supervision Spirituality Help Society Community Public Profit, Gain Change and Work Alone Excitement Precision Work Contact Variety Power and Location High Physical Knowledge Fast Pace Authority Earnings Challenge Anticipated Competition Time Affiliation Recognition Work With Work on the Freedom Others Frontiers of Knowledge Practicality Advancemen Fun and Exercise Creativity Adventure t Humour Competence Friendship Stability Security Work-Life Job Moral Balance Tranquility Fulfillment Creative Honesty and Family Intellectual Work Under Challenging 30 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning Expression Integrity Status Pressure Problems Steep Help Others Personal Tradition Group & Structure and Learning Safety Team Predictability Curve Aesthetics Artistic Status Make Independen Influence Creativity Decisions ce People Psychological Strength Discovering one’s Psychological Strengths can seem a little like personality strengths. The key difference is that part of a personality is inherited whereas psychological strengths are primarily our choice. These strengths are often aligned with happiness, vitality and joy. What is true happiness and why do we seek it? According to Psychology Today, happiness is: More than simply positive mood, happiness is a state of well-being that encompasses living a good life—that is, with a sense of meaning and deep satisfaction. It is not an offshoot of joy but rather a result of time, discomfort and our way of expressing and thinking about our feelings. How can we choose to be happy? It has been said that the only thing in our lives we do have control over is our attitude. We can choose how we respond to life events. Imagine you are out for a lovely Sunday drive. It’s sunny, the weather is great, and some super tunes are playing. In your exuberance you exceed the posted speed-limit and suddenly you notice the flashing red and blue lights in your rear-view mirror. Time for you to make a choice of which emotion you are going to experience. Do you choose anger? "Darn it! I got caught. It’s not fair, other people are speeding, and they didn’t get caught. Don’t the police have better things to do than hassle me on a Sunday afternoon? This is going to completely ruin my day … grumble, grumble, grumble." Or, do you choose another emotion? Balance – "Oops, looks like I got caught. I don’t really want the ticket, but I am glad that the officers are out here keeping the roads safe. Guess I better slow down and enjoy the scenery!" The key message is, the choice of response is yours. We can choose our responses – other people cannot drive our responses—that comes from within. Do you get angry when someone cuts you off in traffic? Or, do you give a friendly wave (with all the fingers) and graciously let them in front of you? Your choice. We share the planet with several billion other people, so we don’t always have things go the way we would prefer. Do you choose anger? Or do you choose to accommodate the differences and take a balanced response. Vitality: the word vitality is derived from the Latin word vita which means life. Vitality is your life force and your ability to live or exist. Your vitality is influenced by your nutritional choices, your health, your social engagement and attitude toward your current life stage. To a large extent an individual can influence their personal vitality. We hear the messages on Social Media, traditional media and from our doctors – diet and exercise can make a difference. Nutritional choices, limit sweets and alcohol, eat more plants, get moving, sitting is the new smoking – all these messages and more are flooding our senses and encouraging us to retain or regain our vitality. Watch what you eat, keep moving and stay socially engaged to stay vital as we age. Joy: This is the emotional culmination of happiness and vitality. If you research the synonyms for joy you will find words like delight, ecstasy, rapture, bliss … all descriptors of the indefinable emotional something that we strive for and recognise when we experience it. Strengths are always positive. Most people do know their strengths although they may be so comfortable, they have forgotten them. www.CIFP.ca © 2024 31 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Invite your clients to check to see what attitude they are bringing to their life choices. Were they perhaps raised in a negative environment? Is this what they expect of life? Encourage them to practise being positive and looking on the bright side of life. If they were raised in a positive environment … celebrate it and pass on the positivity. How does this translate to individual personalities? Mover: Their basic desire is to be in motion and to have fun! You may hear them saying "Are we having fun yet?" They desire to be engaged, social and active which are the elements that support their psychological strengths. Thinker: Their basic need is to be in control – primarily of themselves and secondarily their environment. Being able to make decisions for themselves about all life elements is very important. When health or safety concerns force them into a different environment, it can be a success if they are allowed input into the choices of environment. They do not necessarily need to be in control of everything for psychological well-being, but certainly some elements need to be under their care and control. Planner: Their basic need is to have everything perfect with minimal or no changes. They need peace and perfection and an environment that allows them to plan. They have a strong need for order which only becomes a stronger need with aging. Moving from one home to another can be very traumatic, but this can be made easier to manage with lots of pre-planning that they are involved with. It is often said that psychological well-being is more difficult for this group as life seldom is perfect and orderly. Connector: Their basic need is to have peace and harmony and relationships. They need to be around people and have good friends and family as part of their life. Caring relationships, no family drama and a quiet and peaceful environment are the keys to their psychological well-being. Any environment will work so long as it is peaceful and has access to people, including friends and family. Physical Vitality The following are some suggestions of questions to ask your clients: What is your current state of health? Have you been generally healthy or, have some aches and pains and medical conditions crept up on you? It is said that sitting is the new smoking. Have you spent your career at a desk? How are your knees? Hips? Back? What state of health are you taking into your next life phase? Even if an individual has been sedentary most of their life, it is never too late to start moving! The field of Functional Nutrition has been creating and sharing a record amount of nutritional and life style information to assist people to eat and move toward maintaining or increasing health and physical vitality. Many of us have seen the YouTube videos or pictures on the internet of very senior people demonstrating amazing feats of strength and endurance. An 80-year-old body builder, a 100-year-old skydiver, climbing mountains and finishing high level hikes and walking programs in their 70’s, 80’s and beyond. Hats off to these remarkable individuals! Most people do not have the desire, the discipline or the drive to reach these milestones. They just want to feel good, have minimal aches and pains, be healthy and able to be active. Lifestyle and dietary choices certainly do contribute to physical vitality or lack thereof. Humans were meant to move, so move. Our nutritional choices are very broad now, it is tempting to "treat "ourselves too often, but that can lead to health challenges. 32 www.CIFP.ca © 2024 Retirement Planning What is the general state of health in your family? Do you have a parent or grandparent that had heart issues? Was it due to lifestyle choices or possibly an inherited condition? There are most definitely health trends and inherited conditions that can greatly affect physical health and vitality. For example, an inherited condition like Huntington’s Disease, although there is great research and wonderful emerging therapies coming on stream, is not currently managed through lifestyle choices. Are there medical issues that are common in your family? Is there a tendency to Type 2 Diabetes? What about high blood pressure? Obesity? Suggest your clients have a conversation with their medical professionals to see if there are lifestyle choices that can be made that will improve these conditions. Frequently a regime of walking or movement and moderation or dietary changes will be suggested. Physical vitality is largely within the control of each individual and their lifestyle choices, with inherited conditions being the exception. Physical vitality is important as many other life satisfactions are driven by this element. A pain filled life, or chronic exhaustion, or other manageable conditions makes it hard to be happy, to be engaged, to have fun, to travel, to be part of life. How does this translate to individual personalities? Mover: These people have been high energy often very physically involved throughout their lives. It isn’t a surprise that they may have old injuries to knees, hips, hands, tendons, ligaments etc. that make them need to slow down. This can cause frustration that is only alleviated by finding a new, body friendly activity. Physical vitality is important to them and they work towards it in a fun and adventuresome way. They love variety in their diet, enjoy diverse foods and readily follow food trends, happily moving on to each new one as it emerges. You may hear them say that they don’t have time to go to a doctor! Thinker: These people have always taken a very rational approach to life and challenges. They have a voracious appetite for information and listen respectfully and then go and do their own research. They like to master things and often prefer to do difficult activities. They like to master the mountain, conquer the difficult hike, explore and learn about uncharted territories. This group is most often strongly self-governing in diet and lifestyle choices. They will research and incorporate what they believe to be the best activity and diet preferences into their life. Planner: This group likes to follow rules and detailed protocols that have been created by others. Most often they are most comfortable with traditional medical approaches and value the relationship with their long time medical practitioners. They are often very knowledgeable and thorough with any health concerns or family medical concerns and act on symptoms quickly. Connector: These folks cherish relationships with medical professionals both traditional and alternative. Many report that they enjoy massage therapy and visualization relaxation, yoga and other low key health practises. Because Connectors tend to be the most low-key individuals they need to be encouraged to move through walks and other activities. They especially enjoy group activities and love the idea of going on a health retreat. They are wonderful caretakers of others but can be neglectful of themselves. Medical Philosophy www.CIFP.ca © 2024 33 Unit 1: Introduction to Retirement Planning Here are some prompts for your client conversations to help them to determine their medical philosophy, or, what they believe about medical care for themselves. What are your beliefs regarding how to maint

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