If I win the lottery I'm retiring: Are we really planning our golden years?

How do you imagine Christmas in 30 years? With your family and children? During the holidays the most important thing is to enjoy the Christmas spirit, to be happy with our loved ones and to put our cares aside. That's why we have to think about the future and the golden years.

Retirement is something we should think about when we are young and plan for when we start our first job. Brigitte Miksa, Head of International Pensions at Allianz Asset Management, says a person needs about 60 to 70 percent of the income they were getting immediately before retirement.

Is there a relationship between planning and satisfaction? An answer to this question is provided by a group of American scientists. A study by the University of Alabama shows that people who start planning their golden years early are significantly more satisfied with their retirement. People who take care of their insurance regularly and from an early age have a clearer view and expectations, which are directly related to a person's sense of satisfaction.

However, it turns out that many people see their retirement age as something imaginary. An AAG study asks participants what they would do if they won the lottery. 46% of respondents said they would retire immediately. This poses the question of whether trust in pension funds is so low and retirement planning so far-fetched that people are looking for alternative methods, however improbable they may be.

The odds of winning the lottery are 1 in 13,983,816. What does that mean? For a sure profit, we need to buy tickets worth BGN 70 million.

Retirement age may sound like a distant and impossible thing, but it's certainly no more improbable than winning the lottery. The holidays 30 years from now can be even more cheerful and relaxed if we think about them today.