Are you starting to feel like retirement is this rigged game?
Like, no matter how much you save, it’s never enough. But what if I told you there are simple, overlooked cheat codes that can give you an edge, even if you’re starting late? These aren’t the big flashy financial hacks that everyone else repeats. No, these are the under-the-radar moves that can quietly change your game.
By the end of this video, you’ll have a few easy ways to tilt midlife retirement prep in your favour without feeling like you have to overhaul your entire life to do it. So, let’s load this level and bust it out. Okay, cheat code number one is breaking your limiting beliefs. We have to start with this one because this is the foundational building block. Remember the little engine that could?
I think I can. I think I can. I think I can. Now, the wrong mindset, one rooted in fear or hopelessness, can prevent you from ever knowing your true potential, what you can really achieve. Maybe you’ve caught yourself thinking, “What’s the point?
I can’t save enough, or I’ll just work forever, or it’s too late to even make a difference.” If you’ve caught yourself thinking those things, even saying them out loud, then you’re not alone. Many Gen Xers assume that retirement is a pipe dream. So, let’s work on those limiting beliefs first. And the easiest way to do that is to start thinking the opposite of those statements.
Those statements that I just mentioned, those examples, just turn them around into the positive and then say them out loud, because once you start believing that it’s possible, every other cheat code on this list starts working for you. And you know, I used to think those hopeless thoughts myself. Every one of those statements I said out loud all the way up until my late 40s. And I finally realised that they were lies that I was telling myself. When I started saying the opposite, even though I had no basis for thinking they were true, the fact that I was saying them just made me feel better.
Now that we’ve addressed mindset, let’s move to cheat code number two: build your credit power.
Now, this is something you probably want to put on your retirement prep checklist, and that’s your credit. Now, while you’re still earning, it’s the perfect time to work on it. First, if your credit score needs a little work, try to get it above 670. That keeps your borrowing costs low and gives you flexibility down the line. And one easy and kind of cool way to keep an eye on your score is to install the Credit Karma app.
Now, I’m not sponsored by them at all. I’ve been using it for years. They will keep an eye on your credit and your score. They’ll even give you tips on how to improve your credit score, you know, targeted and customised just for your situation. Secondly, make sure you have at least 2 or 3 active credit cards before you retire.
Now, you don’t want to go into retirement with just one credit card or worse, none at all. Because the truth is, a bank can close an account at any time, and you know, suddenly your credit disappears if you’ve only got the one card. And we all know it’s harder to get approved for a credit card when you don’t have that steady income coming in. You’ll want to use those cards as well because the banks will close them on you for inactivity. So treat those two or three cards from different issuers like an insurance policy for your future.
Now we all know the world we live in today, for better or worse, runs on credit. And you may be someone who just charges everything to your card and pays it off at the end of the month. You could have credit cards you keep only for emergencies. You might have credit card debt you’ve been trying to pay off for years. Uh, there’s no good or bad.
Credit cards are neutral. It’s all in how we use them. But we can’t deny that they are a necessary thing in the world we live in today. So, before you retire, you want to get your credit score in good shape and have several cards at your disposal. Cheat code number three is to plug your biggest financial leak.
Do you know what your biggest money drain is? Is it your adult kids? Is it debt? Or maybe it’s just the small cuts, you know, streaming services, eating out or DoorDash. Maybe travel has become your biggest financial drain.
Because honestly, you can go somewhere for just a long weekend and you’re already out thousands of dollars. So why do I bring all this up? Because if you’re behind in your retirement savings, and I mean, let’s be real, in this world, in this economy lately, do any of us truly feel secure in our savings? But if you’re behind, here’s your move. Identify the biggest financial leak in your life.
And if it’s not debt-related, grab the money from that and reroute it. Just pick an account that you’re going to direct all that money to instead. And you can take your pick. It can be a tax-deferred account, like your 401(k). It could be your Roth IRA.
Wait, you don’t have one yet? Okay. Open your first Roth IRA account and start there first. Or even a plain old savings account. That’s better than nothing.
because I’ll show you a little later in the video why that matters as well. Whatever that financial drain is, just ask yourself, does the leak serve my future self, or does it steal from it? Check code number four, health is your retirement fund. Okay, you may be set to retire very soon, or you’re planning to work a little longer, maybe a lot longer. Either way, health is wealth because a million-dollar nest egg won’t do you much good if you’re too sick to enjoy it.
Okay, let me prove to you that what you eat really, really matters. Now, I’m not sure if you heard this, but there was this Russian influencer who just recently died. He was 30 years old, died in his sleep of a heart attack after doing 10,000 plus calories a day for this binge food challenge that he was doing. This was a guy who appeared to be healthy, very fit, and 30 years old. And I know y’all remember the Super Size Me guy.
He did the documentary on Super Size Me. He nearly destroyed his body by eating McDonald’s three times a day for like a month, and he passed away not too long ago from cancer. You know, we just don’t see what it’s doing to us right away because the damage happens slowly. And it’s not just food. It’s also all the sitting that we’re doing, not moving and letting our muscles just wither away.
Did you know that research shows we lose 5% of our quad muscle size and over 10% of quad strength in just 7 days of bed rest? That’s huge. just in one week. I recently had a head cold and spent two days in bed. So, it’s not hard to imagine how a sickness or an injury could knock us flat.
And at our age, we’ll never get that quad strength back if we don’t fight it and restrengthen when we’re back on the mend. So, eat better, move more, and sleep enough. Healthy habits now mean more energy later and fewer medical bills eating into your savings. G-code number five is using your family as a financial strategy. Okay, are you ready for this one?
Multi-generational living. What if your parents moved in with you, or you moved in with them? Is that so bad you could help them out? reduce their expenses and, at the same time, lower their own housing costs. That’s like giving yourself a massive raise without changing jobs or lifting a finger.
And if your parent sells their home to move in with you, they could even pay you a little rent or contribute extra for the caregiving or support you’re providing. Hey, it’s a lot better bargain to pay you, their adult children, than to go into assisted living. And I mention all of this because that’s exactly what my mom and I have been doing for around 10 years now. We split the housing expenses, which saves me quite a bit of money. I’ve been able to funnel that extra money into my retirement savings all throughout my 50s.
You know, and this idea doesn’t just work for parents. It could work for adult kids moving back home or other relatives who need a place to stay. It feels good to help someone through a rough patch, but once they’re back on their feet, there’s nothing wrong with charging a little rent. You know, even $200 a month teaches responsibility. It’s even a self-esteem booster for them, and it helps you cover your expenses.
Family and finances, they don’t have to clash. When it comes to midlife retirement prep, cheat code number six is feed your focus. Have you ever noticed that when you watch a lot of DIY shows, you suddenly start seeing projects you could do all around the house? Or when you get hooked on makeup tutorials on YouTube and somehow your Amazon shopping cart is always full of new cosmetics that you want to try. Now, that’s not a coincidence.
It’s not completely all marketing, either. A lot of it has to do with your focus. Whatever we give our attention to, whatever we feed our minds with, there’s always an outward expression of that. It’s just human nature. So, here’s your cheat code.
Start feeding your focus on money, on growing that money and financial wisdom. Listen to financial podcasts. Find videos about retirement planning, saving, and smart investing. When you fill your ears and your mind with that kind of content, you’re going to find yourself sometimes even subconsciously starting to mirror those habits in your life. You’ll start thinking differently.
You’ll start spending differently. You’ll plan differently. And I’m even going to throw this out there. Whenever I post a video about money or retirement on my channel, my analytics show that 75% of my viewers are men and 25% are women. Every single time.
So, here’s my challenge to all the Gen X women out there. Make more time for financial wisdom. Even if it feels boring, even if it feels complicated, even if you always let your husband handle all of that, because this isn’t just about money. It’s about mindset. It’s about ownership, the amount of wisdom that you walk in.
It determines the kind of harvest that you will see in your life. So feed your focus, and you’ll see the results of it in every part of your life. The seventh cheat code is to be smart with withdrawals and your cash bucket. Many of us Gen Xers will be turning 59½ soon. Some of us have already passed that, and we know what that means.
That’s the magic age when all of that retirement money finally becomes available to us penalty-free. And the thing is that you don’t even have to be retired to have access to it. So with that freedom comes temptation. Oh, we could pay off the house. Oh, let’s buy that RV that we’ve always wanted.
But be super careful with this one, especially if you’re still earning income. Now, let’s just say you make $75,000 a year. You want to take 50,000 out of your 401 (k). You want to finish paying off the house or do that remodelling project. Now, when you do your taxes, you’re going to be paying taxes on $125,000, not just $75.
That puts you in a different tax stratosphere there. And I’ve seen it happen. People have withdrawn their entire 401k, not realising the surprise waiting for them come April 15th. But here’s the smarter move. Start building your cash bucket now before you retire.
In the few years before you hit 60, try to set aside one to three years of living expenses in a high-yield savings account or even in a Roth IRA. And that way, if you need a big chunk of money, you’ve got more options, not just your 401 (k). It gives you flexibility. It reduces your tax hit. And it lets your investments keep growing for longer.
Because smart Gen X planning isn’t just about what you earn. It’s also about how you take it out. Your eighth cheat code is to plan your network. Maybe you haven’t thought about this one yet. Retirement might still seem far off or maybe even unattainable, but sooner or later, most of us will reach a point where we no longer work.
Sometimes that’s by choice. Other times, it’s because of job loss or health challenges. But when that day comes, when the clock no longer rules your schedule, things can start to feel different. days can begin to run together. Wednesday doesn’t feel much different from Sunday.
And if you’re spending a lot of that time alone, that sameness can hit you a lot harder than you expect it to. You know, a lot of us imagine what we’re going to do with all that time once we’re no longer working for the man. We picture fitness and long walks, road trips, and finally catching up on sleep, all great and good things. But I think one of the most important things that we can plan for is how to stay connected. In my cheat code video on relationships and community, I talked about finding your third place.
That’s somewhere where you can go often enough outside of work and home, where you’ll see familiar faces and feel a sense of belonging. I have seen it at work over and over again. And boomers, they’re really good at this, too. I know those who make friends by volunteering at my church. I know people who go to the gym on the same days of the week, and they’ve formed a whole new social circle from scratch.
There’s even a dog park near me where a group of retirees meet almost every single morning. Some days there are four or five of them. Some days there are 10 of them. They bring their own lawn chairs. They sit in the sun, and they catch up.
And they always seem happy and willing to welcome someone new. Now, it might take time, maybe even months, to find your rhythm with a new group or a new activity, but don’t give up because retirement without a network can turn lonely really fast. If we start thinking about this now, we can build a lifestyle that keeps us mentally strong and emotionally grounded later. Your schedule is part of your safety net. So, start designing it as carefully as you would your own financial plan.
So, my generation, I want to encourage you to start thinking and planning for your retirement years. We’re getting closer to starting a brand new chapter. And whether you plan on working until the end, shifting to part-time, or maybe you’ve already taken the plunge, just remember this. Retirement isn’t a one-and-done event. It’s an evolving chapter, one that we get to redefine as we go.
Now, if this video helped you rethink what’s possible, please hit that like button, subscribe, and be sure to check out parts one through five in this cheat code series. I’ve grouped them all in a playlist, and I’m going to link it right here. Now, I hope you have a great week. I will see you in the next video. Bye.
