T. Assessment: Financial Planning for Caregivers
Executive Summary:
Q. Specifically what action can we take as a group of individual caregivers to create support situations and ease the financial burdens of caregiving?
A. As an engineer nearing retirement age (especially after the semi-retirement intervals that followed contract engineering work) I imagined myself tackling projects like Meatless Turkey Talk and Global Warming in the years ahead (after departing from my career). I never expected the current depressed economy. Nor did we consider the caregiving situations encountered in the last 10 years. In work I found myself most successful when I looked over the fence “before throwing the ball” to see where it might land if I didn't demonstrate additional care and influence. I took this same approach for giving care to care-receivers and acted “In Their Names” (ITN). Instinct told me we should collaborate on giving this ITN approach increased access and visibility. In turn "non-caregivers’ ” can make a commitment to helping caregivers restructure their Financial Plans. These associations would be observable and appreciated by everyone involved with the program of advocating ITN.
Method For Implementation:
Per a Genworth post:
“Caring for a loved one can play havoc with the caregiver’s efforts to save for retirement." (Absolutely true.)
“Caregiving also had a direct effect on the caregivers' ability to work and keep jobs. (Again, true–understatement).
Appreciate this: If Caregivers were to find a new system of support, how invaluable would that be? And what if the skeleton for that system were already framed? There are two directions for cash flow: incoming and outgoing. When the major work to be accomplished is not development but distribution of the method for implementation, losses can be controlled and curtailed much more efficiently. The focus of the ITN program is on helping the caregiver find support. When we are striving to help others we all have a lot in common!
Read the compilation of online Resources. In particular you should see (from Custom Lists)
This email message was received last month from an online viewer of MLBerg's ITN blog touting "Searchable Database of Eldercare Financial Resources for Caregivers" (payingforseniorcare.com).
"As I see it, caregivers are time-stressed, almost by definition. They take care of their loved ones, and then themselves in that order. You want to them to go broader and spread the word, but they are looking for support and supporting. Are they also able to take on more?
Targeting non-caregivers might not yield success in that without having been thru the experience they may not have the sensitivity. But past caregivers, may have the time and the sensitivity both. Not sure how to target that though."
Many non-caregivers' driving concern is a drop in 401 (k) investments or a rise in fund withdrawal activities. I know the personal effect losing Linda's parents had on the family. Although each situation is unique and may not be as harsh as for those in tenuous cases, if paying for senior care drains caregiver retirement funds, how does someone tackle the cost of giving care in al other caregiver conditions?
It is tough to see "discretionary funds" diverted away from investment companies. Losing elders becomes exhausting and affects everyone. Voluntary donations are absolutely meaningless when the person you love exhibits such frail vulnerability that your plans to retire become fuzzy. It is worse than encountering a corporate raider who flames out your stock portfolio or tanks your diversified funds. One alternative might be to take some Bull/Bear Market strategy and ignore the fact a care-receiver doesn't voluntarily become a drain to family resources. The division between caregivers and the life they once knew is transparent but not easily embraced, especially by those still in non-caregiver roles.
So about 401(k)'s. What if financial institutions decided to take the approach of "Support caregivers first, helping them stabilize their upheavals and gaining their confidence. Guide them through the unique investment considerations made by caregivers." If institutions lessened the cost to seek support and used ITN involvement to incentivize continuance, there would be less reason for “Captains going down with the ship” because fewer “total losses” would result from sinkings.
My Financial Advisor told me "Not sure how we can help but I agree with your assessment."
I replied "Nobody is sure. It is an awesome responsibility to proceed and act as if we know what we are doing.”
Does it make sense to ask non-caregivers for specialized involvements? Can anyone know without a doubt the same unsalvageable wreck will happen to them someday? This may not be something you can help with but you might know someone else who sees the significance of caregiving awareness. Please reply or forward this information to those who are enabled to make a difference so we are not left without direction.
Action Items (Building a Network of Support):
Ø From MLBerg's ITN blog:
Top-Down Administrative Focus on Caregiver Support
What would happen if you THE CAREGIVERS were empowered to improve your delivery of care? Suddenly it wouldn’t matter if you did or didn’t have a perceived deficiency or quality of life issue threatening your peace of mind and normal situation.
Your responsibility is to light (and relight) the “fire of love” that shows you care.
Build your own success story!
1. Set (small) goals you can reach.
2. List and Achieve tasks (accountability).
3. Feel Good about your accomplishments (celebrate).
Ø From MLBerg Surrealist (S4, the fourth satellite)
Purposes for Caregiver blog
Consider reasons to develop a Caregiver blog network (CBN).
Ø And from MLBerg S5
Objection
…So to reiterate, we need:
We must demand answers. We must not become intrusive. Responsibility to advance the mechanism of supporting others is the result of caring.
Q. Specifically what action can we take as a group of individual caregivers to create support situations and ease the financial burdens of caregiving?
A. As an engineer nearing retirement age (especially after the semi-retirement intervals that followed contract engineering work) I imagined myself tackling projects like Meatless Turkey Talk and Global Warming in the years ahead (after departing from my career). I never expected the current depressed economy. Nor did we consider the caregiving situations encountered in the last 10 years. In work I found myself most successful when I looked over the fence “before throwing the ball” to see where it might land if I didn't demonstrate additional care and influence. I took this same approach for giving care to care-receivers and acted “In Their Names” (ITN). Instinct told me we should collaborate on giving this ITN approach increased access and visibility. In turn "non-caregivers’ ” can make a commitment to helping caregivers restructure their Financial Plans. These associations would be observable and appreciated by everyone involved with the program of advocating ITN.
Method For Implementation:
Per a Genworth post:
“Caring for a loved one can play havoc with the caregiver’s efforts to save for retirement." (Absolutely true.)
“Caregiving also had a direct effect on the caregivers' ability to work and keep jobs. (Again, true–understatement).
Appreciate this: If Caregivers were to find a new system of support, how invaluable would that be? And what if the skeleton for that system were already framed? There are two directions for cash flow: incoming and outgoing. When the major work to be accomplished is not development but distribution of the method for implementation, losses can be controlled and curtailed much more efficiently. The focus of the ITN program is on helping the caregiver find support. When we are striving to help others we all have a lot in common!
Read the compilation of online Resources. In particular you should see (from Custom Lists)
- How to Become a Better Caregiver
- Caregiver’s Manual for Men CMfM Volume 1: How to Love a Cancer
- And if both of these made sense to you (why I chose to become an advocate for Caregivers) then perhaps you will understand All Things ITN.
This email message was received last month from an online viewer of MLBerg's ITN blog touting "Searchable Database of Eldercare Financial Resources for Caregivers" (payingforseniorcare.com).
"As I see it, caregivers are time-stressed, almost by definition. They take care of their loved ones, and then themselves in that order. You want to them to go broader and spread the word, but they are looking for support and supporting. Are they also able to take on more?
Targeting non-caregivers might not yield success in that without having been thru the experience they may not have the sensitivity. But past caregivers, may have the time and the sensitivity both. Not sure how to target that though."
Many non-caregivers' driving concern is a drop in 401 (k) investments or a rise in fund withdrawal activities. I know the personal effect losing Linda's parents had on the family. Although each situation is unique and may not be as harsh as for those in tenuous cases, if paying for senior care drains caregiver retirement funds, how does someone tackle the cost of giving care in al other caregiver conditions?
It is tough to see "discretionary funds" diverted away from investment companies. Losing elders becomes exhausting and affects everyone. Voluntary donations are absolutely meaningless when the person you love exhibits such frail vulnerability that your plans to retire become fuzzy. It is worse than encountering a corporate raider who flames out your stock portfolio or tanks your diversified funds. One alternative might be to take some Bull/Bear Market strategy and ignore the fact a care-receiver doesn't voluntarily become a drain to family resources. The division between caregivers and the life they once knew is transparent but not easily embraced, especially by those still in non-caregiver roles.
So about 401(k)'s. What if financial institutions decided to take the approach of "Support caregivers first, helping them stabilize their upheavals and gaining their confidence. Guide them through the unique investment considerations made by caregivers." If institutions lessened the cost to seek support and used ITN involvement to incentivize continuance, there would be less reason for “Captains going down with the ship” because fewer “total losses” would result from sinkings.
My Financial Advisor told me "Not sure how we can help but I agree with your assessment."
I replied "Nobody is sure. It is an awesome responsibility to proceed and act as if we know what we are doing.”
Does it make sense to ask non-caregivers for specialized involvements? Can anyone know without a doubt the same unsalvageable wreck will happen to them someday? This may not be something you can help with but you might know someone else who sees the significance of caregiving awareness. Please reply or forward this information to those who are enabled to make a difference so we are not left without direction.
Action Items (Building a Network of Support):
Ø From MLBerg's ITN blog:
Top-Down Administrative Focus on Caregiver Support
What would happen if you THE CAREGIVERS were empowered to improve your delivery of care? Suddenly it wouldn’t matter if you did or didn’t have a perceived deficiency or quality of life issue threatening your peace of mind and normal situation.
Your responsibility is to light (and relight) the “fire of love” that shows you care.
Build your own success story!
1. Set (small) goals you can reach.
2. List and Achieve tasks (accountability).
3. Feel Good about your accomplishments (celebrate).
Ø From MLBerg Surrealist (S4, the fourth satellite)
Purposes for Caregiver blog
Consider reasons to develop a Caregiver blog network (CBN).
- Opportunity for the Caregiver to connect with others in the Caregiving Community.
- Media for the Caregiver to publish updates about the Care-Receiver.
- Platform for the Caregiver to relinquish worries and concerns.
- Storefront for purveyors in the Health Care Industry and vendors in the Financial Planning Market.
- Nobody has much excess time for developing new caring relationships.
- The "real time" stressor of caregiving is rarely captured by the media.
- If a tree falls in the middle of the forest and nobody is there to witness it, does it make any sound? Someone cares.
- We are so inundated with sales calls the natural reaction becomes "turn a deaf ear." Please be patient.
- Collaborate with meaningful aspirations.
- Create face-to-face prospects for interaction.
- Always try to respond with positive and hopeful attitudes.
- Believe intuitive reactions and seek to make life-giving choices.
Ø And from MLBerg S5
Objection
…So to reiterate, we need:
- research on men as caregivers.
- development of a support mechanism for men as caregivers.
- points of contact for caregiving men in remote locations who must build their system of support without the advantage of an established physical facility or disease-specific resources.
We must demand answers. We must not become intrusive. Responsibility to advance the mechanism of supporting others is the result of caring.