“Leanna, what should I invest in?”

This is one of the most common questions that comes up when I meet someone who is approaching retirement.

And I understand why.

Because after years of saving and studying the markets, many people are ready to make big decisions like which stocks or bonds to buy, even before they see me.

But when someone asks me those questions, my answer is usually not what they expect.

Before we talk about what to buy, we need to take a step back and ask something more important:

What do you need your investments to do for you?

The first answer is usually:

“I want to make more money.”

And that’s completely fair because that’s what an investment is for.

But in retirement, money isn’t just about building wealth.

It might morph into:

• protecting your lifestyle
• needing to create income
• supporting your future health needs
• figuring out what you want to leave behind

That’s why the investment itself is usually the last step in the process, not the first.

“Oh, I see what you mean. I never thought about it in that way.”

And that’s the difference between letting money guide your emotions vs being rational about what’s available to you.

Most retirees build their portfolio on ideas that sound good like a:

• stock you’ve heard from a friend about
• fund that performed well last year
• bond someone recommended

There’s nothing wrong with any of these ideas, but they don’t automatically translate to being functional in your retirement portfolio as a whole.

What you choose should be part of a cohesive strategy where every investment has a specific function.

Instead of jumping off the starting line, take a step back and ask yourself:

• Are you trying to protect your capital?
• Are you trying to generate more income?
• Are you trying to grow your money over the next 10, 20, or 30 years to have flexibility?

Those questions matter because different goals require different tools.

This becomes especially important when retirees hear about exciting investment opportunities.

Companies like SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic might go public this year, and it’s natural for retirees to wonder whether they should buy right away.

But before deciding whether something belongs in your portfolio, the better question is:

What role is this investment supposed to play?

• Are you trying to sell it within a few days?
• Are you planning to hold it for a year or two?
• Are you hoping to grow it for the next five to ten years?

That context changes everything.

The same investment could make sense in one part of a retirement plan and be completely inappropriate in another.

Money you need for income, stability, or near-term cash flow should not usually be treated the same way as money designed for long-term growth.

A popular investment idea can feel exciting and something you can’t miss.

But if the decision is based on hype instead of purpose, this is where heated emotions can set fire to your retirement plan.

And usually, someone else will profit off of your emotions.

Risk feels more personal in retirement, because your nest egg was built from years and years of sacrifice.

In my experience, there are two investment philosophies that can happen in retirement:

1. The “overly cautious” approach

They focus almost entirely on security, using tools like GICs or fixed income because they want certainty.

That might provide comfort, but it can also limit growth, flexibility, and the ability to keep pace with rising costs over time.

2. The “make as much money as possible” approach

They take on more risk than their retirement plan can realistically handle. But if the market moves against them at the wrong time, that can create stress, force difficult decisions, and potentially affect the retirement they were trying to protect.

In retirement, the goal isn’t to avoid risk entirely. (I’ve tried.)

The goal is somewhere in the middle — to take the right kind of risk, in the right place, for the right reason.

That’s a very different conversation than simply asking, “What should I buy?”

A better conversation starts with understanding what level of return your plan requires.

If your plan only needs a certain level of return to support your lifestyle, you might not need to chase unnecessary risk.

Because you enjoy sleep, right? And trust me, you don’t want to lose it over an investment that doesn’t serve you.

Like Morgan Housel said in “The Psychology of Money”:

Don’t sacrifice what you have and need for what you don’t have and don’t need.

And finding that balance is different for every person.

Some people value security above almost everything else. They want to know where their income is coming from and they want to reduce uncertainty as much as possible.

Others are more comfortable with market fluctuations because they understand that part of their money has a longer time horizon.

Most retirees need some combination of both.

They need income they can rely on, but they also need growth that can support the future.

This is why structure matters.

At PKAG, we structure your portfolio around a 4 bucket system of:

• Income
• Growth
• Health
• Legacy

We start by asking what your money needs to accomplish based around your vision.

The Income Bucket is designed to support cash flow and provide more stability. The Growth Bucket is designed to keep part of your wealth working for the future. Your Health and Legacy Buckets help account for the other realities of retirement: potential care needs, family priorities, estate planning, and the life you want your money to support beyond regular income.

Once those goals are clear, then we can look at the specific types of investments that match your needs.

That may include GICs, bonds, fixed income, equities, funds, alternatives, or other investment solutions.

But the product comes after the purpose.

Need help building your investments intentionally along with your retirement plan?

Feel free to contact us with any questions you might have.

We also have free, no-obligation seminars where we'll discuss how we can design your plan in detail.

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