Saving for your future self 👴 👵

How will you pay for a longer life?

Experts reckon we’re living longer, thanks to amazing advancements in medical care, general hygiene, nutrition and technology. But while following #cleaneating YouTube recipes or benching at the gym might be fab for your life expectancy, you’re also faced with a dilemma. What if you can’t keep working forever – or don’t want to? How will you pay for your future life? 

“The future depends on what we do in the present.”

-Mahatma Gandhi

Get into the saver’s state of mind

Fact is: the future is gonna happen. And your future self will still be *you* in all your awesomeness. So do you want that future self to struggle once they’ve stopped working? Or do you want to totally ROCK OUT when you get older, with a bit of money in your back pocket? Option 2, please! The only thing that’s stopping you is…you (cheesy, but true). So here are three ways to do #oldfartme a massive favour.

Pensions 

By the time you’ll likely start your first job (from 2019), you’ll automatically be enrolled into a workplace pension and will contribute at least 5% (with your employer lobbing in a minimum of 3% on top). Another way of beefing up your pension pot is by saving into a private pension. This (like your workplace pension) is invested in the stock market, and doesn’t come with free money from your boss, but gives you much more flexibility. Read up on the pros and cons of both, this is a major decision and there is no perfect solution. Neither of them will let you touch the money until you’re at least 55. 

Want to dive deeper into pensions, check out our Pensions 101 and Workplace pathways.

Lifetime ISA

Another option is a Lifetime ISA. The government will contribute 25% (up to £1,000 a year) of the value of your contributions (up to £4,000 a year). You can use this tax-free account to buy your first home or stash for your retirement. You can withdraw from this early but you’ll pay an exit fee of 25% on the entire amount including all investment growth.

Love thy (future)self 

Sounds cheesy, right? BUT, research has found that one way of getting people to save more money for retirement is by looking at an aged version of themselves. (We think this sounds weird too, but, whatever works…). Apparently, it builds a connection. Without this connection, saving is more like the choice between spending money on yourself today or giving it to a stranger in the future. To grow a bond with your future-self, try using FaceApp to generate an aged version of yourself. Be warned, it’s scary stuff.

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