New Year, new you. We’ve all been there, and whether you’re one to make a mockery of the yearly ritual or take it as gospel, you can’t deny that you will have, at some point, woken up in the New Year and at least sniffed at the opportunity for a better you.

So when Aegon released a survey on people's priorities for 2018, it was no surprise that 44 per cent of the 788 people surveyed were focused on doing more exercise and losing weight, respectively, but, where did financial planning rank in people's new year priorities?

Well, a staggering 62 per cent said they hadn’t prepared any financial goals for 2018 and just 28 per cent said they were aiming to manage their finances more effectively.

In spite of this, the survey found that more adults are worried, 41 per cent to be precise, about retiring comfortably, while just 10 per cent are worried about their fitness once they hit retirement age.

Other than New Year's resolutions being woefully short sighted, and other than the age old issues of engaging the masses to save more into their pensions, the findings raise some interesting questions for the pensions industry, on which it could draw some valuable conclusions.

For starters, going on these results, at what point do people start thinking about saving for retirement? The sample size says adults, but it would be much more interesting to know the age range of these adults, and how this affects their approach towards financial planning.

For instance, the survey found that women (38 per cent) were more likely to strive to manage their finances more effectively than men (30 per cent), given their longer life expectancy this is important, but not groundbreaking.

Aegon head of pensions, Kate Smith argues that whether you are 25 or 45, it is important to start planning for retirement now. “It’s concerning to see so many people are worried about their ability to retire comfortably, yet so few have taken steps to address this with a financial plan.

“New Year resolutions are a tradition but they are notoriously short sighted. They usually focus on an immediate problem and setting short term goals to be achieved in the year ahead. Some people support these goals with action plans to achieve certain milestones by the end of the year," she said.

Smith also points to a wider societal problem: the nation’s relationship with credit.

“We live in a buy now, pay later society, where the option of borrowing is readily available. While borrowing – student loans, credit cards, mortgages and car purchase agreements – might have got you through life so far, it won’t fund your retirement”, she said.

“New Year is usually about the “new” you but it’s also a time for you to think about what you could do now for the “old” you, the future you. The sooner you start planning for retirement the more likely you are to be able to achieve the comfortable retirement you want.”

Long-term saving is a message the industry has been pushing for a while, and it is making strides in achieving this. But people's short-term goals, highlighted by Aegon's survey, may give those trying to save for the long term into a pension pot, food for thought.

Share Story: