Setting Retirement Resolutions: 7 Goals for a More Secure and Fulfilling Year

Setting Retirement Resolutions: 7 Goals for a More Secure and Fulfilling Year

New Year’s resolutions have a reputation problem. Most people abandon them by February. The gym membership collects dust, the diet plan gets forgotten, and those ambitious goals fade into vague intentions. But retirement resolutions deserve better treatment than your typical promise to eat more vegetables or finally organize the garage.

Your retirement well-being isn’t about willpower or motivation that might fade when life gets busy. It’s about creating systems and habits that compound over decades. The difference between setting retirement goals in January versus waiting until later? Those extra months of contributions, investment growth, and strategic planning. While 2026 is just around the corner, Americans are already feeling the weight of retirement concerns. According to a study, people believe they need $1.26 million to retire comfortably, yet more than half expect to outlive their savings. That disconnect between hope and reality makes this the perfect moment to set meaningful retirement resolutions that actually stick.

Increase Your Contribution Rate

Most people contribute enough to their retirement accounts to get the employer match, then stop there. They’re leaving money on the table. If you’re putting 6% of your salary into your 401(k) because that’s where the match ends, consider bumping it up to 7% or 8% this year.

The math works in your favor. Let’s consider this hypothetical scenario – starting at age 30 and contributing an extra 2% of a $75,000 salary means an additional $1,500 per year into your retirement account. Over 35 years at a 7% return, that small increase becomes about $210,000 more in your account. You won’t even notice the difference in your paycheck after a few weeks.

Make It Automatic

Contact your HR department or log into your 401(k) portal. Set up automatic annual increases of 1-2% each January. Many plans call this an “auto-escalation” feature. It happens without you needing to remember or make another decision. Your lifestyle adjusts gradually while your retirement balance grows faster than you expected.

Get Serious About Healthcare Planning

Healthcare will be one of your largest retirement expenses. Medicare doesn’t cover everything, and what it doesn’t cover adds up fast. Dental care, vision, hearing aids, long-term care – these costs hit retirees harder than they anticipate.

Start researching your options now rather than scrambling when you turn 65. Understand the difference between Medicare Advantage and Medigap plans. Look into Health Savings Accounts if you’re eligible. These accounts offer triple tax advantages that make them powerful retirement tools for those with high-deductible health plans.

Build Your Healthcare Reserve

Consider setting aside a separate fund specifically for healthcare costs in retirement. Even $100 per month adds up. Over 10 years at a modest 5% return, that becomes a substantial amount dedicated to covering medical expenses that Medicare won’t handle. Having this cushion prevents you from draining your primary retirement accounts when health issues arise.

Consolidate Your Old Retirement Accounts

The typical American worker, born between 1957-1964, has held over 12 jobs throughout their career. Each job might have come with a 401(k). Many people have multiple old accounts scattered across former employers, each with different fees, investment options, and login credentials they can barely remember.

This fragmentation creates problems beyond inconvenience. You might have duplicate investments, pay higher fees than necessary, or forget about accounts entirely. The Department of Labor now estimates there are nearly a trillion dollars in unclaimed retirement benefits sitting in forgotten accounts across the country.

Create a Consolidation Plan

Spend a few hours this month tracking down your old accounts. Request statements. Compare fees and investment options. Most people benefit from rolling old 401(k)s into an IRA or their current employer’s plan. Consolidation gives you a clearer picture of where you stand and makes rebalancing your portfolio much simpler. You’ll actually know what you own and whether your allocation still matches your goals.

Run the Numbers on Your Retirement Date

Most people pick a retirement age based on when they think they “should” retire rather than running the actual calculations. Age 65 sounds right because that’s when Medicare starts. But your personal retirement date depends on your savings, expenses, Social Security strategy, and desired lifestyle.

Working just two additional years can close the retirement savings gap for many people. That’s not about suffering through extra years you don’t want to work. It’s about understanding the real options available to you so you can make informed choices rather than hoping everything works out.

Calculate Multiple Scenarios

Use online retirement calculators or meet with a professional to model different retirement ages. What happens if you retire at 62 versus 65 versus 67? How does delaying Social Security benefits change your monthly income? What if you work part-time for a few years during the transition? Running these numbers now, while you still have time to adjust your approach, beats discovering gaps after you’ve already left your career.

You can always reach out to us if you have any questions or want us to model different retirement scenarios for you.

Update Your Beneficiary Designations

Life changes. People get married and divorced. Children are born. Family members pass away. Yet most people set their beneficiary designations when they open their retirement accounts and never look at them again.

Your beneficiary forms override your will. If you got divorced but never updated your 401(k) beneficiary, your ex-spouse might receive those assets regardless of what your will says. If your designated beneficiary died and you never named a contingent beneficiary, the distribution could get tied up in probate or go to unintended heirs.

Review Every Account

Pull up all your retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and annuities. Verify the primary and contingent beneficiaries on each one. Make sure the designations match your current wishes. This takes an hour or two but prevents enormous headaches for your family later. Think about naming contingent beneficiaries even if you think you won’t need them, having that backup plan in place protects against unexpected circumstances.

Develop Your Tax Strategy

Most retirement savings sit in tax-deferred accounts like traditional 401(k)s and IRAs. That creates a future tax bill that many people underestimate. When you start taking required minimum distributions at age 73, that income gets added to your other income and taxed at your ordinary rate.

Smart retirement planning includes tax diversification. Having money in traditional accounts, Roth accounts, and taxable brokerage accounts gives you flexibility in retirement. You can control your tax bill by choosing which accounts to draw from based on your needs each year.

Consider Roth Conversions

If you expect to be in a higher tax bracket in retirement or want to leave tax-free money to heirs, Roth conversions might make sense. You pay taxes now to convert traditional IRA money to Roth, then that money grows tax-free forever. The key is doing conversions during lower-income years when the tax hit won’t be as painful. Talk to a tax professional about whether partial conversions over several years could benefit your situation.

Create Your Retirement Vision

Money matters, but retirement is, at the end of the day, about how you spend your time and energy. Too many people reach retirement without a clear picture of what they actually want to do with those years. They’ve focused so much on the financial side that they haven’t thought about the lifestyle side.

Research shows that retirees who have purpose and social connections report higher satisfaction than those who simply stopped working without a plan. What will give your days meaning? What relationships do you want to nurture? What interests or hobbies deserve more of your attention?

Write It Down

Create a specific vision for your first year of retirement. Where will you live? How will you structure your days? What activities matter most to you? Getting concrete about these details helps you spot gaps in your planning. Maybe you realize you’ll need to budget more for travel. Maybe you discover you want to move closer to grandchildren, which affects your housing and cost-of-living calculations. The clearer your vision, the better you can align your financial plan to support it.

Work With Us

Setting retirement resolutions moves you from vague hopes about the future to concrete steps you can take right now. The seven goals we’ve covered, increasing contributions, planning for healthcare, consolidating accounts, calculating retirement dates, updating beneficiaries, developing tax strategies, and creating your retirement vision, address both the financial mechanics and the lifestyle elements that make retirement fulfilling. Small actions this month compound into meaningful security over the decades ahead.

At Avior, we help clients translate retirement goals into personalized strategies that account for their unique circumstances, values, and dreams. We’ll work with you to assess where you stand today, identify the adjustments that will have the biggest impact, and create a comprehensive plan that covers everything from investment management to tax optimization to estate planning. If you’re ready to make 2025 the year you take control of your retirement future, schedule a consultation with our team. Let’s turn your retirement resolutions into the confident and fulfilling future you deserve

Investment management and financial planning services are offered through Avior Wealth Management, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Tax and accounting services are provided by Avior Tax and Accounting, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avior Wealth Management, LLC.

Insurance products, including life, disability, long-term care, and annuities, are offered through Avior Insurance. Insurance and annuity products are not offered through Avior Wealth Management, LLC, and are not covered by SIPC. Avior Insurance operates independently to provide insurance solutions tailored to clients’ needs. Insurance products are subject to the terms and conditions of the issuing carrier.

All information contained herein is general in nature and is not to be construed as specific investment advice. Avior does not provide legal advice. Clients should consult their own legal, tax, and financial professionals before making any decisions. All investments involve risk, including the potential loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.