National Post Article – Mar 1, 2012

Our business is education and training. We do not sell financial products and we do not give advice.

The Retirement Education Centre Inc. - Serving the needs of businesses and individuals for over 15 years.

National Post Article – Mar 1, 2012

Faced with impending retirement, the main concern for many is, "how much Money will I need?"

While financial security is vital, it's just as important to have a plan for future happiness –

what will keep you motivated?

Out with the old, in with the new HOW I MADE IT

When Av Lieberman gives

advice to clients struggling

with the insecurity and

confusion that often

accompanies the

transition into retirement,

he knows what he's

talking about.

A veteran of the life insurance industry for almost 30 years, by the mid 1990s Lieberman had what he thought was a stable and successful career at the

corporate level. "Things were going very well, and as far as I was concerned-I was about 50 at the time-I was going to finish my career with that particular company and charge off into the sunset in

retirement," says Lieberman. But life gets in the way sometimes. The company I was with went through a restructuring, and I found myself without a job. And for me it was devastating. I guess I hadn't

realized how much of my sense of self-worth and self image were tied up in my title and my job."

Finding a new fit Like others in his position, Lieberman saw his options as limited. "I thought I'm well qualified,

I have an excellent track record – I’ll just go get the same job somewhere else," he recalls. After a year of disappointments, he realized his old job just

didn't exist anymore."The industry was changing and there was this movement of replacing experienced people with much younger people at half the salary. So I didn't get anywhere." That's when it occurred to him that his

predicament presented an opportunity: "If I was going through all these challenges with change and transition, there must be literally thousands and thousands of people out there struggling with the same

kinds of life issues ." So Lieberman, along with a couple of colleagues, founded the Retirement Education Centre, which developed a program that combined retirement education with transition

planning. Lieberman believes that traditional retirement no longer exists, and that the entire concept is being redefined. "I tend to think of it in terms of my father," says Lieberman. "Back in

his time, people had no choice but to retire. That was the way things were, that's when your pension kicked in at 65. So most

PROFILE

AV LIEBERMAN

• Hometown:

Saint John,

New Brunswick

• Born: May 7, 1943

• Currently resides:

Waterloo, Ontario.

• Career history:

Life Insurance

Industry (three

decades).

• Current position:

President of the

Retirement

Education Centre,

Inc.

people put their feet up and, in effect, waited to die. You didn't think about planning for the future. Life expectancy was a fair bit shorter than it is today.

So you retired to nothing.”

Longevity leads to

additional planning

needs Today, on the other hand, he says, "people are retiring younger and living longer and it's not inconceivable that you could have 20, 30 years ahead of you in the next stages of your life – that’s a long time to sit and

twiddle your thumbs. So there's a motivation to try and figure out a new structure for yourself, one that's challenging, motivating, and meaningful. Medical science has proven that the

more active you are, both mentally and physically, it lengthens your life." Lieberman says that while most people focus on figuring out how much money they need to retire, the bigger question is:

What am I going to do? What's going to keep me motivated?"

One of his company's most effective mottos is: "retire or transition to something, not from something." Lieberman says there are several popular options, including

returning to school (for personal edification rather than a degree), turning a hobby into a small business, and volunteer work. But according to Lieberman, "working part-time is the way of the future. All of the research points to the fact

that the vast majority of people will continue working on a part time basis." While continuing to work might be the answer, it should be on your terms, says Lieberman. "Here I am, I'm 68 now, I love doing

what I do. I'm an example of the new retirement. I've no intention of packing it in and putting my feet up. I'm going to keep doing this for as long as I can do it."

MAJID MOZAFFARI

edilorial@mediaplanet.com

151 Frobisher Drive, Unit B – 108 www. i ret i re .org Tel: 519-576-1575

Waterloo, ON N2V 2C9 1- 800- 637- 6140 Fax: 519-576-5934