There’s a long-standing belief in retirement planning that’s been passed from generation to generation:
“Your percentage in bonds should match your age.”
It’s simple, feels safe, and seems like a responsible way to reduce investment risk as you grow older. But it assumes your age tells the whole story.
It doesn’t.
At One Financial Services, we believe it’s time to let go of the rule-of-thumb thinking that oversimplifies real life. Because retirement planning isn’t about your age—it’s about what you’re asking your money to do.
Withdrawals Are the Disease
Here’s how we often explain it: When you retire and begin withdrawing money from your portfolio, it puts your capital under stress. That withdrawal pressure is the disease. It threatens the longevity of your financial life.
Like any disease, it needs a treatment plan.
You wouldn’t ignore a medical diagnosis. And you wouldn’t treat it with vitamins and hope. You’d get a prescription—even if it included something toxic.
That’s where equities come in.
Stocks Are the Toxic Medicine
Stocks are like the antibiotic in your financial medicine cabinet. They can be volatile, uncomfortable, or even risky—to a degree.
But that doesn’t mean they’re dangerous in the right dosage.
They’re the necessary toxicity required to fight off the damaging effect of consistent withdrawals over time—especially in a long retirement horizon with inflation lurking in the background.
Would you want to take this medicine forever? Probably not.
Do you need to take it in excessive doses? Also no.
But do you need some, even if it’s uncomfortable? Yes—because it gives your portfolio the ability to fight back.
The Wrong Treatment Can Make Things Worse
Too many people, especially those entering retirement, abandon equities entirely because they feel like “it’s time to be conservative.”
But if you remove the very ingredient that helps protect your portfolio from depletion, you’re doing the opposite of what’s helpful. You’re treating a disease with a placebo instead of medicine.
A portfolio that’s too cautious may feel safe, but it can quietly weaken your plan. It might:
- Increase your risk of outliving your money
- Undermine your ability to keep up with inflation
- Force you to withdraw principal too quickly
- Leave you without the growth needed for later-life expenses
The Right Dose, at the Right Time
We’re not advocating for excessive risk. We’re advocating for intentional strategy.
Just like a good physician prescribes the right dose of the right medicine for the right patient, we build portfolios that deliver the right amount of equity exposure to support the plan—without overwhelming it.
That means:
- Adjusting risk based on withdrawal needs, not just age
- Aligning asset mix with your spending patterns and goals
- Stress-testing your plan for volatility and sequence risk
- Reassessing regularly, just like adjusting treatment as conditions change
Letting Go of Old Formulas
Let go of the idea that turning 65 means turning off equities.
Let go of the myth that safety is about avoiding risk entirely.
Let’s build a plan that treats the real issue: how to keep your money working as hard as you need it to.
Because in retirement, withdrawals are the threat. Stocks may potentially be the medicine.
And a healthy plan balances the discomfort of risk with the strength of resilience.