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The goal of the Retiring With Enough blog and podcast has always been to simplify retirement planning and retirement. As I approach my 100th blog and podcast, I thought it would be interesting to take a retrospective look at some of my earlier blogs and podcasts.
I can’t believe that it’s been almost two years since I started this podcast and blog. I estimate the elapsed time from researching to finishing the podcast and blog is at least 14 hours of intensive effort per blog and podcast. If you use 14 hours as an average estimate, I’ve spent more than 1400 hours on the production of the blog and podcast in the first two years.
First and foremost, the concept of “Enough” stems from a society that embraces the need for “More”. We are conditioned as consumers to want a bigger house, a more expensive car, more money, more clothes, nicer vacations, more expensive jewelry, more of everything. The list of “More” options is almost endless.
The problem is that in most cases “More” does not equal happiness. The whole supposition of Retiring With Enough is that happiness flows from the realization of “Enough”. A person or couple can attain happiness when they realize they have enough money, have worked enough, and will have enough to do in retirement.
Using this concept, “Enough” will having a different meaning for every person and couple. The idea is to arrive at retirement with the feeling of gratitude and happiness that comes with the realization that one has “Enough.”
My road to happiness started with a well-thought-out Retirement plan. This retirement plan should be written, specific, thorough, have a strong basis, provide a pathway to action, and have a process for management, adjustment, and tracking of progress. (See: MAPPING YOUR FUTURE: DO YOU HAVE A SOLID PLAN?.)
One of the biggest problems in retirement planning is a term called Temporal Discounting (See: OVERCOMING THIS PLANNING PITFALL: TACKLING TEMPORAL DISCOUNTING #1, OVERCOMING THIS PLANNING PITFALL: TACKLING TEMPORAL DISCOUNTING #2). Temporal discounting values future results less than present results. People struggle with planning for and providing for a future “You” that does not exist yet, and may never exist if that person dies at a younger age. A retirement plan that includes all of the specific information noted above helps to avoid temporal discounting.
In “Avoiding a Financial Hurricane” (See: AVOIDING A FINANCIAL HURRICANE BY CREATING AND UNDERSTANDING A FINANCIAL PLAN) I used the visual example of an auto or cell phone’s map feature. I equated having a Retirement plan to the map application on your phone or automobile.
All of the different elements and features on the map were equated to a financial plan. All the features on the map help to get you to your destination The map application creates a plan or route from where you are now to where you want to go. It is much the same financially.
The blue dot on the map represents your current position. In finance, your net worth tells you your current financial position and would equate to the blue dot on the map. When you type your destination on the map, this equates to financial independence. This is where you want to go. Once the final destination is entered, the map will provide the number of miles and estimated time of arrival at the destination. The equivalent in retirement planning would be the amount of money needed to retire and how long it will take you to save that amount of money. Just like the mapping technology on your phone, you must take the necessary steps to provide and interpret information for your financial destination, and you must then follow the map successfully.
Do you need a financial advisor to navigate the path to financial independence and to create a retirement plan for you? (See: THE QUEST FOR THE RIGHT ADVISOR: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES AMIDST MULTIPLE DESIGNATIONS #1, THE QUEST FOR THE RIGHT ADVISOR: EFFECTIVE STRATEGIES AMIDST MULTIPLE DESIGNATIONS #2.)
If you are well-versed and self-educated financially, then a financial advisor may not be a necessity. If you are not comfortable or well educated financially, then a financial advisor can be a crucial component in your plan for financial success.
Included in one of the early podcasts are important questions to ask a potential financial advisor. The most important of these would be to verify that the financial advisor is a fiduciary and will act as a fiduciary in all instances as your financial advisor (See: INFORMED DECISIONS: 20 CRUCIAL QUESTIONS TO ASK POTENTIAL FINANCIAL ADVISORS.)
The financial side of retirement planning is pretty simple. It’s a math problem! This math problem starts with identifying how much money a person will need to retire (how much is your “Number”. See: REACHING FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE: UNRAVELING THE ‘RIGHT’ NUMBER TO QUIT WORK.) Many financial experts say that this number is your annual income multiplied by the number 25. Realistically, it is a lot more complicated as it is the combination of net worth, age, and lifestyle. Functionally, a person’s ”Number” represents how much a person will spend and how many years they will be spending that money. On average an 85-year-old would need a much smaller “Number” than a 40-year-old. Each person’s “Number” represents much more than annual income multiplied by the number 25.
Once you know how much you’ll need, then you need to know how much you presently have, and how much more you’ll need to save. This current amount of retirement savings is known as a Net Worth statement. Your net worth is a representation of all of your assets, and all of your liabilities, and once liabilities are subtracted from assets, the remainder is your net worth (See: CALCULATING YOUR FINANCIAL FORTITUDE: WHAT’S YOUR NET WORTH?, BEYOND THE NUMBERS: EXPLORING THE MEANING OF NET WORTH.)
What all this boils down to is that everyone is going to need a certain amount of money in retirement. Some people live much more conservatively than others, and as such will need less money to live on. People who have a more extravagant lifestyle will need more money to live on.
Retirement plans are not written in concrete! Most people can shift their retirement spending up or down to meet their current needs.
Many of these first 100 blogs and podcasts have spoken about varied financial subjects such as emergency funds, portfolio design, portfolio construction, retirement plans, sequence of return risk, best long-term investment options, portfolio balancing, and retirement plan construction. There were also blogs and podcasts about stocks, retirement funding sources, creating a retirement paycheck, investment plan basics, building a retirement pie, financial missteps that cost time and money, building a $1 million nest egg, and other assorted financial topics. (See: COMPOUNDING MAGIC: HARNESSING THE EIGHTH WONDER IN YOUR FINANCES, LONG-TERM INVESTMENT STRATEGIES: SEPARATING FACT FROM OPINION, PREPARING FOR THE UNEXPECTED: THE IMPORTANCE OF AN EMERGENCY FUND, MASTERING THE PORTFOLIO: UNDERSTANDING THE NUTS AND BOLTS, BUILDING YOUR RETIREMENT INCOME: EXPLORING FUNDING SOURCES, FROM PROBLEM TO SOLUTION: CRAFTING YOUR RETIREMENT PAYCHECK, CRAFTING A STRATEGIC INVESTMENT ROADMAP- LITE VERSION, BUILDING A RETIREMENT PIE: ONE SLICE AT A TIME.)
As stated above, the financial portion of retiring is a math problem, but the decision to quit working is more emotional. Some people hate their jobs, and some people can’t seem to quit working. I spoke about the many tangible and intangible benefits that work provides. In addition to ongoing income, work provides social contact, self-fulfillment, and retirement funding. When you quit working, these benefits go away (See: PROFESSIONAL STRUGGLE: FINDING HAPPINESS BEYOND THE WORKPLACE, REACHING CONTENTMENT: EXPLORING THE MEANING OF “HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH?” , TRANSITIONING AWAY FROM FULL-TIME WORK: FINDING THE RIGHT BALANCE.)
One way to combat this is through a phased retirement approach. With a phased retirement, a worker gradually decreases the time spent working over a certain period (See: THE GREAT DEPARTURE: CHOOSING BETWEEN SWIFT OR GRADUAL RETIREMENT.)
There was a whole podcast spent on the One More Year (OMY) syndrome where people continue to work years after they are financially able to quit because they cannot decide to quit working (See: RETIREMENT CROSSROADS: DEBATING THE NEED FOR ONE MORE YEAR OF WORK.) There was also another podcast on the decision process for quitting work or changing jobs (See: RETIRING OR CHANGING JOBS: A COMPREHENSIVE CHECKLIST.)
One podcast discussed the challenges of self-employment and a set of podcasts on workaholism and perfectionism (See: THE CHALLENGES OF SELF-EMPLOYMENT: MYTH OR REALITY?, FINDING HAPPINESS BY BREAKING FREE OF WORKAHOLISM, BEYOND PERFECT: SEEKING A CURE TO PERFECTION.)
Work may not be enjoyable, but after many years work becomes comfortable and predictable. People become acclimated to routine, and the end of work also means the end of that comfortable and predictable routine. Many people would rather face a job that they don’t like than face the fear and uncertainty that come from the loss of the routine that a job provides. For many people, the emotional uncertainty of retirement far outweighs the discomfort of continuing to work. Many workers have no idea how they will fill Retirement days and replace the time spent working. Without proper forethought and planning, retirement can be a stressful and frightening time.
I’ve had a successful career practicing Dentistry and continue to work part-time. But I’ve also said that regardless of the money I would have made I would never give back the 10 years of freedom that I’ve gained. Time spent with my wife and family. Time spent traveling, hunting, fishing, creating a blog and podcast, and whatever else interests me (See: UNRAVELING THE SECRETS OF PROSPERITY AND SUCCESS, UNRAVELING THE PARADOX: COMPARING THE COST VS THE PRICE OF HAPPINESS, EXPLORING HAPPINESS ON THE LESS TRAVELED ROAD, SEEKING HAPPINESS: EXPLORING THE CROSS OF LIFE.)
More money can’t buy more time! But I’ve also said that continuing to work, or quitting work and retiring is an individual decision. It has to feel right, and each person must decide when they’ve had “Enough”.
Probably the most significant podcast in the area of purpose in retirement has been a podcast titled: You Can Only Be Who You Are (See: YOU CAN ONLY BE WHO YOU ARE.) Some people retire with a long list of hobbies and objectives. Some people reach Retirement and only desire the absence of lists and objectives. Some people want to travel extensively and some people want to stay home. Some people feel uneasy without having an all-consuming “Purpose” in Retirement and some people just want to let each day happen organically without any particular planned activities. There is no right and wrong way to create your retirement path. Having “Enough” to do in retirement means different things to different people. A purpose for some may be volunteering at some nonprofit organization, while a purpose for another person might mean, caring for grandchildren. Both are OK!
The podcast titled: Carpe Diem: Making the Most of Every Moment (See: CARPE DIEM: MAKING THE MOST OF EVERY MOMENT) spoke to the concept that every person is only allowed so much time on earth, and each person’s allotted time should be spent wisely. There are podcasts on minimizing regret and forgiveness (See: LIVING JOYFULLY BY MINIMIZING REGRET, EXPLORING FORGIVENESS: DOES BAD BEHAVIOR EARN A HALL PASS?)
Recently I did a three-part retrospective on my thoughts after 10 years away from full-time work. The first podcast was about my life, the second about my finances, and the third about my retirement activities. All three spoke about what has occurred in the last 10 years in the three different areas of my three-legged stool (See: A DECADE BEYOND THE CUBICLE: REFLECTIONS ON LIFE POST FULL-TIME WORK, A DECADE BEYOND THE CUBICLE: REFLECTIONS ON FINANCES POST FULL-TIME WORK, A DECADE BEYOND THE CUBICLE: REFLECTIONS ON PURPOSE POST FULL-TIME WORK.)
Recently, I had my first Retirement All-Star podcast. Fritz Gilbert was a great guest, and the podcast was very informative. Recently, I recorded my second Retirement All-Star interview with Kevin Lyles., CRPC.
My list of future topics has only grown! I will continue the popular Retirement All-Star series and have many other topics about work finance, purpose, and health.
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Final Thoughts
After almost ten years, I feel that I have successfully navigated the early years of my retirement. A big part of my success is that I’ve identified what “Enough” means for my wife and I. That being said, my wife and I are buying a larger home and should close on the home shortly (June 27, 2024.) I’ll speak about this decision in greater detail in a future blog and podcast in the near future.
It’s been a great two years, and the support and feedback I have received have been overwhelming! I find it hard to believe, but I have listeners in 48 countries and almost 1000 cities.
In a recent interview I was asked how long I was going to continue writing and recording podcasts. My answer was that I would continue to produce “Retiring With Enough” as long as it brought my joy, gave me purpose, and made me happy.
I pledge to continue helping people all over the world to simplify retirement planning by addressing the three legs of the Three-Legged Stool (See: FOUNDATIONS OF RETIREMENT: THE THREE-LEGGED STOOL, RETIRING WITH ENOUGH: A FRESH LOOK AT THE THREE-LEGGED STOOL.) which focus on work, finance, purpose, and health.
And as always, thanks for reading and listening.
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