If the pandemic has made you re-evaluate your life goals, you’re not alone. A recent study by mutual life and pensions company Royal London looked into how the over 55s are planning to focus on their dreams post-lockdown.
Along the way, the study revealed the surprising reasons that have held them back from achieving those dreams. Here are some of the most interesting facts Royal London uncovered when polling 1,000 UK respondents aged 55 or over.
Why aren’t people achieving their goals?
According to Royal London, 90% of those over 55 have yet to achieve their life goals. And of those, 43% said they would regret not ticking those goals off their bucket list.
When asked why their dreams had been pushed aside, 37% cited money as the main reason. Other reasons for the delay included work commitments (16%), family commitments (12%) and poor health (9%).
Only 9% of respondents said that they had “never got around to planning” those goals. This means that most people do have big dreams, but life just gets in the way.
The survey also revealed that 44% of people don’t believe they’ll be able to achieve all of their life goals because of financial restrictions.
This is perhaps not a big surprise, considering that half of Brits had no savings pre-pandemic. Many had to dip into the savings they had to get through the pandemic and make up for lost wages. Without savings, planning for a goal might seem unattainable.
What life goals are over 55s pursuing?
The top three bucket list items are all about travel. Seeing the Northern Lights tops the list for 55% of respondents. Travelling on the Orient Express and visiting one of the Seven Wonders of the World come next.
But people also have other life goals, including staying fit and healthy (for 65% of those surveyed), becoming debt-free (34%) and starting a business or buying a second home abroad.
How can you budget for your life goals?
Since lack of money is the main reason people aren’t pursuing their life goals, it makes sense to take a look at your budget. Write down your income and expenses and see if there are obvious ways to cut down your outgoings.
Next, the Money Advice Service recommends setting clear financial goals. They explain that it’s not enough to simply say “I want to go and see the Northern Lights.” You need to spend some time doing research and figuring out what that goal would cost you.
Then, work out how much you need to save each month to achieve that goal. If you are able to set aside, for example, £100 a month, you can then calculate how long it will take to achieve that dream.
You don’t have to earn a lot of money to save for a goal. Setting up a Direct Debit to your savings account every month will guarantee that money goes towards your life goals before you start spending. Out of sight, out of mind works really well when saving towards the things that matter.