27/11/2025
THE GREAT RETIREMENT WORRY
November 26, 2025
Many South Africans are deeply worried about their lack of retirement savings.
On a Facebook community last week, a woman in her forties wrote that her fear and anxiety about her lack of savings was paralyzing and all-consuming.
Many members of the community commented that they too were despairing about having too little saved – often at older ages - or worse had no savings.
Uncertainty about the future rattles most of us, but it is particularly hard as you get older and realize your comfort zone is under threat and you have less time to do anything about it.
Minimizing the threat to your future means doing whatever is within your control. Here are few ideas:
SCALE BACK A LITTLE NOW
Scaling back a bit now in order to save more will be much less painful than scaling back massively in retirement.
Retirement concerns often hit in mid-life when financial commitments to family are at their peak. This makes it much more difficult to live on less.
It is hard to admit to children and other dependents that you need to scale down. But rather that than ask your children or other younger relatives in a few years' time, as they start to establish their own homes and families, to support you as well.
Children are often aware that other parents have more to spend, but you will teach a valuable lesson if you explain – even just simply - your plan to fix your financial future. Children who learn to live within the family’s means early in life are likely to be the ones who have the discipline to grow their own wealth from an early age.
SAVE SOMETHING
However dire your retirement savings situation is, start saving something. Even if you are forced to live with family later on, covering your personal expenses later in life will give you some independence and help everyone.
You may think your financial situation now is tight, but unless you are living on the poverty line there is always something you can consider cutting back.
EARN MORE
It isn’t always possible, but you will never know if it is until you try to earn more. Could you upskill and move to a higher-paying job?
Many South Africans are proving that it is possible to supplement their income with a side-hustle. It may mean giving up free time and earning less than you do in your day job, but a side hustle may in time grow into a steady income stream.
If there is really nothing you can do to earn more, consider selling off some things you own that you no longer need and investing the proceeds.
RETIRE LATER
Our retirement savings calculator is a powerful tool that lets you test your retirement scenarios. It can be daunting to see the numbers, but it will also help you formulate a plan. Test the triple whammy that retiring later has on your retirement income:
· It lets your savings grow for longer;
· It lets you save for longer;
· It reduces the years in retirement for which you will need an
income.
If you are employed and unable to delay your retirement, consider whether you could continue working part time or in a consulting role, or grow your side-hustle into something more substantial.
GET ADVICE AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Getting advice will also help you make a plan and an adviser can keep you accountable. A good financial adviser will also be able to help you find the safest way to take as much investment risk as you can to grow your retirement savings as quickly as possible without gambling on your future.
Do not be tempted to invest in high-risk schemes for high returns, particularly if you do not fully appreciate how these work and the risk of losing money. The chances of making your situation worse are very high. Many a desperate retiree or near-retiree has fallen for this trap.
BE POSITIVE BUT PRACTICAL
Many people with little to no retirement savings hope Prince Charming, a wealthy benefactor or a bet on a game or at a casino will change their fortunes. This doesn’t happen for most people. But positive people who make practical plans make their own worlds go round.
Laura du Preez
Editor Smart About Money
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