Long-Term Thinking, in Focus

Typically celebrated in May, Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month is often a time to celebrate food, culture and community. But for those of us working in the actuarial profession, it can also be a time to reflect on something less visible: perspective.

In 2026, as headlines focus on volatile interest rates, the retirement of millions of baby boomers, and, in the United States, the status of Social Security, many of the risks dominating the national conversation are ones that actuaries have been quantifying and communicating for decades.

As an Asian actuary working in retirement and insurance, that connection between heritage and long-term thinking feels especially clear this year. In many ways, the economic environment of the past few years has felt like an actuarial case study unfolding in real time. Here are three examples:

1. Interest rates remain volatile following the most aggressive Federal Reserve tightening cycle in roughly four decades. As of 2026, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield is fluctuating in the mid-4% range—levels not seen consistently since before the 2007–2009 global financial crisis (when I was still taking my actuarial exams). For insurers and pension plans, this higher-rate environment continues to reshape asset-liability management decisions. Higher yields improve reinvestment opportunities and affect liability discount rates, but they also introduce new challenges around duration management, product competitiveness and policyholder behavior. Strategies developed during the prolonged period of near-zero interest rates have therefore had to adapt quickly to a world where liquidity management, spread compression and disintermediation risk remain central considerations.
2. The demographic shift actuaries have been modeling for decades is accelerating. The oldest baby boomers are now approaching age 80, and millions of Americans continue to transition into retirement each year. Longevity risk, retirement income sustainability and the design of lifetime income solutions have therefore moved from theoretical actuarial discussions to central economic questions. For organizations such as TIAA (where I work), whose retirement products are built around lifetime income guarantees, these demographic trends directly shape how actuaries design and manage solutions intended to support financial security throughout retirement.
3. Social Security has also returned to the national spotlight. Updated projections continue to show that the program’s trust fund reserves could face depletion within the next decade without policy adjustments. As someone who works closely with retirement systems, it is striking for me to see debates about retirement age and benefit formulas moving from actuarial reports and policy briefings into everyday economic conversation.

I believe that, for actuaries, none of these developments is particularly surprising. They are the very risks our profession has analyzed for decades—often long before they become headline news. Reflecting on that reality made me think differently about Asian Heritage Month.

Asian Heritage Month often focuses on culture and history, and those celebrations are important. But heritage also shapes how we approach uncertainty and decision-making. For many Asian professionals, family histories include migration, adaptation and rebuilding in unfamiliar environments. These experiences often reinforce the value of resilience, long-term planning and disciplined decision-making. These qualities align naturally with the actuarial profession.

Actuaries are trained to look beyond the next quarter or the next election cycle. Our work exists because some of society’s most important risks unfold slowly—retirement security, longevity, healthcare costs and financial stability across generations. The actuarial mindset requires patience and perspective. It means recognizing that decisions made today—about pension funding, insurance product design or retirement systems—will affect outcomes decades into the future. In many ways, those values echo lessons embedded in many immigrant and Asian family experiences: plan carefully, manage risk thoughtfully and think about how today’s choices affect the next generation.

Our most valuable contribution is not simply technical accuracy. It is perspective. Actuaries are trained to identify risks long before they dominate the headlines—and to help institutions make decisions today that will still make sense 30 years from now. In an environment defined by demographic change, economic uncertainty and evolving retirement systems, that long-term mindset may be one of the most valuable perspectives our profession—and our heritage—can bring to the conversation.

This connection between heritage and long-term thinking comes into sharper focus when viewed through the lens of individual experience. For me, growing up in an Asian family, there was always an emphasis on thinking long term—education, discipline, resilience, and preparing carefully for uncertainty. Looking back, I realize how deeply those values were shaped by watching my late mother, who came to Canada as an international graduate student in the late 1980s.

She arrived in a new country during a time when navigating life as an international student was far less well-supported and connected than it is today. There were financial pressures, cultural differences, and the quiet challenges that come with building a life far away from family and familiarity. Yet even during those difficult years, she consistently focused on the future rather than immediate hardship. She approached life with remarkable discipline and optimism—always thinking several steps ahead about education, stability and creating opportunities for the next generation.

What I remember most is not simply the sacrifices she made, but the perspective she carried through uncertainty. She believed that thoughtful decisions made today could create stability and opportunity many years later. That long-term mindset shaped how I view both life and my profession.

In actuarial work, especially within retirement and insurance, many of the most important decisions unfold over decades rather than quarters. We evaluate risks that develop slowly—longevity, retirement security and financial sustainability across generations. The profession requires patience, disciplined thinking and the ability to balance short-term pressures with long-term resilience. In many ways, those principles feel deeply connected to the values my mother embodied throughout her life.

As I reflect during Asian Heritage Month, I am reminded that heritage is not only about culture or tradition. It is also about perspective—the experiences, sacrifices, and resilience passed down across generations that shape how we approach uncertainty, responsibility and long-term decision-making. For me, my mother’s journey continues to influence the way I think about leadership, risk and the importance of building systems that endure well beyond the present moment.

Statements of fact and opinions expressed herein are those of the individual authors and are not necessarily those of the Society of Actuaries or the respective authors’ employers.

Copyright © 2026 by the Society of Actuaries, Chicago, Illinois.