"I work four days a week because I choose to!”

“When we were your age…,” your parents often say. They made different choices. After finishing their studies, the baby boomers got a job, got married, bought a house and started a family well before they were thirty. Whenever they could, they'd save money for later. Your lifestyle might be quite different, though, because you've got other priorities or you don't have the means at this point in your life. And when it comes to your pension, you have to take action nowadays.

Events that used to be milestones tend to be postponed nowadays. There's so much more to life. Making a career, traveling, developing yourself, doing a project abroad – these are milestones too! Apps are making our daily lives a lot easier. Banking, saving energy or booking a trip, for example. Do you compare yourself with others or do you consciously make your own choices?

Life events and your pension
You’ve got plenty of options, but making choices can be stressful. When issues are complex, people tend to postpone their choices to avoid making the wrong decision. The choices you make today will have an impact on your future, including your pension. Important events such as marriage, divorce, illness, quitting your job for a while and switching jobs have an impact on your pension. Check how life events will affect your income in retirement.

Financial awareness
Young people nowadays go and live on their own later, on average, because it's hard for them to get a mortgage and there’s a shortage of starter homes. What's more, they often work under flexible employment contracts and have student loans to pay off. How much financial scope do you have? Knowing that will help you make informed choices. Use your DigiD to login to the On Track section of ING CDC Pensioenfonds’ Pension Planner. That section isn’t only about the future, but about today as well. About the impact your current income and expenditures will have on your income later in life. Discover how you could cover a deficit or create financial scope to realise your choices.

Check your pension every time you make a move
What choices do you have? Some young people choose to work four days a week instead of five. A good salary and facilities for personal development are important. A job that energises you is also important and young people are not afraid to keep that in mind. If you make a move, in or outside ING, make sure you check how that will affect your pension.

This article provides an outline of trends in society as well as some general information. Would you like to read articles relevant to other age groups? Select the age group in the upper right corner of the screen.