Tough talk on sorting your finances

The logic of saving for your retirement is as brutal as it is simple. Most of us hope to retire - to stop having to work to fund our lifestyle. And most of us would like to live reasonably well in either part or full retirement. But who's going to pay?

New Zealand is on the brink of a retirement tsunami: a tidal wave of ageing baby boomers is about to swamp a dwindling number of taxpayers, making universal New Zealand Super likely to become a thing of the past. And we're not alone - governments around the world are in a panic about how to keep their pension schemes going.

Economist Gareth Morgan says it's time to take the situation into our own hands, showing that none of the conventional approaches to providing for retirement is sufficient on its own to save us, but that some combination of them is our best hope.

This is not a get-rich-quick book: it's not even a get-rich-slow book. It won't tell you which stocks to buy, which horse to back or any kind of winning strategy to take to the casino. It will tell you how to invest your life's earnings, show you just how many investment advisers and managed funds rip you to bits, and help you to avoid the traps. Its tough-talking style dispels some of the mythology, hype and bluster that can cloud your judgement when it comes to planning for a secure future.

Warning: This book is intended to scare you. Its message is keep saving, but clean up your act when it comes to investing those savings, or its milk arrowroots and mittens in Bluff for you.

About the author:

Dr Gareth Morgan is CEO of Gareth Morgan Investments portfolio manager, and Chairman of and a consultant to economics consultancy Infometrics Ltd which he founded in 1982. He is also a well-known columnist, a television debater and a sought-after conference speaker.