Is A Pension Really Worth It?

"You know, the pay sounds enticing; in fact, it's the best in the country, not to mention the promising retirement plan down the road."

We often look for nursing positions with our eyes only fixed on the retirement benefits and sometimes overlook the stressful and potentially unsafe workplace conditions employers will, and do, subject us to. They sidestep conversations about hiring additional staff to alleviate our workload, resort to hiring travel nurses to plug the endless gaps, or entice us with appealing 401k plans and generous pensions.

I remember talking with Kristia, a home healthcare nurse in Southern California, who shared how her grandmother retired from Kaiser with a whopping $2 million pension plan after working with them for several decades.

See for yourself how much you could earn in retirement if you worked for Kaiser and earned $150,000 per year on average:

Employers may assume that the allure of retirement benefits will keep us tethered, especially when they generously match our 401k contributions or tie pensions to vesting schedules. Some might even assume that we lack the financial know-how to manage our own retirement savings.

So, when should one actually prioritize that retirement plan?

Well, if you genuinely adore your job and your employer genuinely values your contributions (a rare find these days), then considering retirement benefits makes sense.

However, choosing a job primarily for its retirement plan should be a last resort, reserved for times when your financial situation looks grim, you're reluctant to switch specialties, relocate from your hometown, or struggle to find better career prospects.

But take a moment to envision your future self.

The person you are today may have evolved significantly from the individual you were ten or even five years ago. People change, and their aspirations and priorities shift with time.

If you've improved upon your money-saving skills and developed a new financial mindset, a retirement plan may lose some of its importance. For Monica and me, the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in the US forced us to reevaluate our finances. We found ourselves burdened with over $128,000 in debt, devoid of savings, and lacking investments. So, we rolled up our sleeves, worked our butts off, and took on extra shifts (without risking our sanity) to clear that debt.

Now, we've come to realize that we may not need our employers for as long as we once believed. We've grown our net worth from negative $80,000 to almost $700,000 in less than seven years and have become less reliant on their 401ks, their pensions, or their hefty hourly wages—quite a revelation, I must admit.

Our seven-year stint in California has left a void in our lives. We miss our family more than we ever anticipated, particularly after welcoming our pandemic baby, which altered our perspectives.

Having a child at this later stage in our lives (I'm 38 and Monica’s 35) wasn't part of our original plan. We had envisioned embarking on cross-country adventures in a campervan once our 17-year-old daughter headed to college. But life has its own script, and as adults, we must be willing to adapt.

A simpler lifestyle has grown more appealing, with less emphasis on material possessions and more emphasis on finding joy in life's simple pleasures—like going out on lunch dates while the kids are in school, traveling as cheaply as possible, and having cherished moments with friends and family.

Consider your health when you reach retirement age. Many individuals may confront health challenges at that stage; it's a statistical inevitability.

Working in a job that fails to bring satisfaction isn't good for your health. It's no surprise that nurses are more susceptible to back pain, workplace injuries, miscarriages, or even thoughts of suicide due to the stress that comes with the work that we do. The toll brought on by an unfulfilling job can be more detrimental to our health than a profession that directly benefits others.

It's important to look for alternative paths to secure your retirement without relying solely on your employer. These paths may include things like investing in real estate, much like the nurses I've interviewed on our YouTube channel. Alternatively, consider launching a side hustle related to your nursing specialty or a passion in your personal life.

These are the actions that can lead you to financial independence, where you're no longer beholden to your employer. Take Dr. Kiiyonna Jones, FNP, RN, for instance; she left her $95/hr job at UCLA to pursue her passion in the medspa industry. She transitioned from making $150,000+ per year at UCLA to earning over $500,000 per year in profits from her Medspa business. She mentioned that leaving her job and its benefits was one of the scariest things she's ever done, but it turned out to be the smartest decision she's ever made.

So, don't wait. Find your passion beyond the bedside and break free from the shackles your employer has placed upon you.

See you on the next one

Jason

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