3 New Year’s Resolutions for Your Financial Security and Health in Retirement

Steve Vernon, Contributor
Dec. 29, 2025

Financial security and good health are the foundations of a successful and enjoyable retirement. If you achieve these goals, then you can relax and pursue what gives you joy and fulfillment in life. But if you don’t plan ahead for these goals, you might just get the life that shows up instead of the life that you want.

Here are three New Year’s resolutions that can help you live the best possible life with the years you have remaining.

Resolution #1: Plan Ahead for Financial Security

A robust financial plan for your retirement should have two parts:

1. It should ensure you’ll have enough lifetime retirement income to cover your living expenses for the rest of your life. This means building a diversified portfolio of retirement income that can cover your “must-have” and “nice-to-have” living expenses, with a margin for surprises.
2. It should have provisions that protect against risks that can disrupt your plans and are common for most retirees. These risks include stock market crashes, high medical care costs, expensive house or car repairs, and a period of cognitive decline or frailty near the end of your life.

If completing these tasks is beyond your expertise, then find a retirement advisor who has the necessary skills and your best interests at heart to help you achieve them.

Resolution #2: Make a Plan for Your Health and Longevity in Retirement

Many surveys of retirees report that good health is the key to happiness in retirement. But as you age into your retirement years, you’ll need to be more proactive to maintain your health; you can’t just take it for granted, as you might have done in your earlier years.

Build the foundation for good health by exercising sufficiently, eating a healthy, nutritious diet, getting enough sleep, reducing stress, and minimizing unhealthy habits. If you’re satisfied with your existing strategies in these areas, you might consider rounding out your plans with additional strategies that people often overlook. For instance, if you haven’t done so already, you might consider building an early warning system to warn of medical conditions that are common with older people, such as heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers.

Finally, take some time to review your elections regarding health insurance and Medicare. If you’re considering retirement before you’re eligible for Medicare at age 65, it’s essential to find health insurance you can afford. Then, once you’re eligible for Medicare, smart choices can help you be healthy and stay alive.

This resolution can take some time to implement—resolve to be persistent if you keep putting off this task.

Resolution #3: Plan for Happiness and Satisfaction with Life

When it comes to planning for your happiness and satisfaction with life in your retirement years, you’ll want to be proactive. If you’re like many people, your job and raising a family might have taken up most of your time during your working years, and you probably didn’t need to think too much about what to do with your spare time. You may have made social contacts at work, which can grow cold once you retire.

Now that you have more time on your hands, you’ll be better off if you purposely plan for activities and events that can provide happiness and satisfaction. For many people, this will involve taking the initiative to see family and friends and pursuing activities that give you contact with like-minded people.

To get started determining just what will make you happy during your retirement, try answering the “ who-what-when-where-why ” questions about your retirement. Who do you want to spend time with? What will you do? When do you want to retire and start your retirement activities? Where is the best place for you to live in retirement? And last but not least, why do you want to retire?

You could also consider other insightful exercises, like writing your bucket list, considering how to avoid “death-bed regret,” or writing your obituary.

Many people have time off around the holidays and spend time with family and friends. That’s a good time to share your thoughts and concerns about retirement with them; you can often gain valuable insights by kicking things around with people you care about.

Most likely it will take some time to think about and start implementing these resolutions, but try making your resolutions a priority in the weeks and months following the new year. Your future self will thank you for taking the time to plan ahead for the rest of your life.

By Steve Vernon, Contributor