Sunday, January 24, 2010

Gen X & Y: The Next Sandwich Generations?


This is a topic that the politically correct world would never bring up. But I'm politically incorrect, so here goes. You can also skip all my je ne sais blah and get to the moral of the story in the last few paragraphs...

In addition to my Harry Winston nightmares, I also had nightmares about leaving my family behind whilst I was carrying my Hermes Kelly handbag. This has been a recurring nightmare for me for some time. I've had similar dreams in the past, even before I actually went out and technically purchased a Hermes Kelly. I know I have to do something about this financial guilt whilst at the same time not compromising my own financial future.

My financial vulnerability started when my Dad's business collapsed. It changed him as a person and I doubt he ever really recovered. Looking back, I grew up in an environment where failure was acceptable. My Dad has lost a fortune at least three times and I have been afraid on some level of doing something similar. So, when I entered the workforce, I found myself suddenly entering a world where success was the norm. It was exhilarating yet a bit frightening. According to me, everything needed to be perfect and failure was not an option. As my income grew, I found myself shouldering a lot of the financial responsibility in my family and finally, I had to say enough is enough recently.

2009 is the first year I actually focused on my own financial goals for a change. In an ideal world, we wouldn't have to choose between money or family. But if it isn't money or family, sometimes the battle could be between what you want vs. what your family wants you to want. So, I think it's practically one and the same.

Anyway, I think most people in the Gen X and Gen Y demographic wouldn't need to think about this since so many are luckily trust fund babies. For the unfortunate few, myself included, who do have to think about this, Gen X and Gen Y could be the next Sandwich Generation. We could, at one point, find ourselves suddenly trying to shoulder the responsibility of raising a family and then at some point trying to care for our parents as well.
Bummer, to say the least. And here I was thinking I could retire in a few years due to my beautiful Le Grand Plan. But alas, out comes Obama from left field and the US equities markets are once again temporarily out of service.

To get back to this very serious topic of becoming the next Sandwich Generation, I haven't actually come up with a solution yet. However, I was thinking annuities could be one option. It wouldn't be an ideal solution, but perhaps it could be worth exploring. Another thing to seriously consider is long term care insurance.

Some more reading:

Prepare yourself now to help care for parents later


Monthly Checks for Life: 5 Rules for Immediate Annuities


Income for Life: 7 Best Annuities


From what I can see, $0.5 million in savings will only yield a very mediocre lifestyle for a couple in retirement.

1 comment:

ForexDiva said...

Yes, great that I'm getting a Hermes Kelly... but definitely not great with all the rest of it! C'est comme ca!