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“Time is what we want most but what we use worst.” — William Penn
“Yesterday’s the past, tomorrow’s the future, but today is a gift. That’s why it’s called the present.” — Bil Keane
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I had a birthday. Again!
Now, age 73 doesn’t appear as old as it used to be!
Each passing year changes and shortens my horizon, just like it does yours.
And that changes how one approaches life. Does one buy a new house at age 73 and consider a 30-year mortgage? Or does someone engage in the opposite behavior, refraining from buying green bananas?
A shorter time horizon also means a shorter runway for you to correct problems. Like a plane trying to land on a short runway, there is less wiggle room as your time horizon shortens.
I’ve said before that I don’t dwell on my demise, or even think about it extensively.
Having a shorter time horizon means the time of my death is moving closer. That’s reality!
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If you’re like me, and your horizon is a bit on the shorter side, here are some considerations for you to evaluate:
Financial Considerations:
- Prioritize immediate needs: As my time horizon shrinks, my focus has shifted from accumulating long-term investments for retirement to ensuring sufficient funds for current and immediate needs. The accumulation phase during the working years is relatively uncomplicated. Save a certain amount in each paycheck and invest it conservatively. When I quit working and began retirement, this all changed. I am less concerned with continuing to build my nest day and now focus on how to utilize the money that I have saved. It helps to consider these accumulated savings as deferred spending from my working years dedicated to spending during my retirement years.
- Estate planning: Ensuring one has proper legal documents to manage assets and distribute them according to your wishes is critical. My estate documents were written several years ago. The wishes of my wife and I have changed. Our estate documents need to reflect our current thinking and wishes, and that means it’s time for my wife and me to schedule an appointment with our estate attorney to update our estate documents.
- Healthcare costs: If you need assisted living or long-term care, make sure you have a plan to cover the associated expenses. Long-term care becomes a greater potential issue as each person ages. A key consideration is funding options for long-term care. Other long-term care decisions include where the care will be provided (at home or outside facility), and who will be the primary facilitator (child, family member, legal guardian, trustee, or advocate).
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Healthcare Considerations:
Focus on quality of life: Treatments and interventions should be weighed against their potential impact on quality of life and comfort. Most readers have experience with a relative or friend who received extensive care for an illness or cancer treatment. in many cases these patients die soon after receiving extensive treatment. This begs the question of whether the treatment was warranted and justifies the negative outcome. Several years ago I researched end of life care and found in some countries that there is little or no medical intervention. Patients nearing the end of their lives and patients with terminal illnesses are supported, by not aggressively treated. Surprisingly, most patients welcomed the opportunity to spend their remaining time with family and friends while receiving supportive care. These patients understood they were dying, but opted for a better quality of life until their death instead of the undesirable side effects associated with aggressive long-term treatment.
Advance directives: Living wills and medical power of attorney should be reviewed and updated to ensure your wishes are honored. My wife and I have Living Wills and DNR orders in place. According to the Cleveland Clinic, a Do-Not-Resuscitate order (DNR) is a set of instructions that tells your healthcare team what kind of care you do and don’t want at the end of your life. This is a legal and medical document, and it ensures that your end-of-life medical care aligns with your beliefs, needs, and desires as closely as possible. We have agreed that remaining alive with no appreciable quality of life is not our end-of-life plan. Neither of us wants to live in a vegetative state, or be artificially kept alive with no chance of recovery. These important End-of-life wishes should be legally recorded now, as someone may be unable to express their wishes at some date when that information becomes vitally important.
Comfort and pain management: Prioritize comfort and pain management as medical treatments focus less on prolonging life and more on alleviating suffering. I was surprised to learn that Hospice Care encompasses many forms of therapy besides end-of-life support. A patient does not necessarily need to be at the end of their life to initiate Hospice Care. Hospice nurses provide care and support outside of impending end-of-life situations. In most cases, Hospice Care is initiated when a patient is deemed to have a remaining lifespan of six months or less. However, Hospice Care can continue beyond that point if the patient’s condition does not improve, and Hospice Care is deemed medically necessary.
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Relationship and Support:
Nurture relationships: Spend quality time with family, friends, and loved ones. Family has always been an integral part of our life plan. Our recent move into a larger home has ensured we will have adequate space for our growing extended family. Our enlarged home also provides more room for entertaining and gathering with friends. My wife and I normally buy additional tickets to local entertainment venues and ask friends to accompany us, so we can enjoy local amenities while sharing our time with friends.
Build a support network: Ensure you have a strong support system to assist with practical needs and emotional support. For most people, this support network will be provided by family and close friends. As people age and friends die, care will likely be provided by family, advocates, trustees, or family attorneys.
Consider professional care: If needed, engage with professionals like geriatric care managers or home healthcare providers to ensure your care needs are met. Older patients tend to minimize or discount healthcare requirements as they age. Outside sources of care provide feedback and confirmation that older patients are receiving required care.
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Personal Goals and Legacy:
Focus on experiences: Prioritize activities that bring joy and fulfillment, such as traveling, pursuing hobbies, or spending time with loved ones. I have spoken about prioritizing experiences over things in several blogs and podcasts. My wife and I have focused on providing experiences for our children and grandchildren. When they were younger, we took extended family vacations. They still refer to those family trips today. Over the last 10 years, we have scheduled family vacations at different resort locations to create family experiences and spend time together. I feel that purchasing “things” doesn’t create lasting happiness, but purchasing “experiences” with friends and family pays lifetime dividends and creates lasting memories.
Leaving a legacy: Consider how you want to be remembered and ensure your wishes are fulfilled, such as through philanthropy, mentoring, or creating something lasting. I hope my blogs and podcasts will become a legacy for my children, grandchildren, and beyond. Leaving heirs money will only take them so far. Most research indicates that legacy giving runs out within three generations. There is an old axiom that states: “If you give a man a fish you feed him for a day. If you teach him how to fish you feed him for life.” in addition to educational content, my wife and I plan to provide some monetary inheritance for our children and grandchildren upon our passing. Throughout my working career, we have supported our local house of worship. Through my dental practice, I donated to many varied charities and worthy causes. I also donated my time to provide pro bono dental treatment to those in need.
Reflect and reflect: Consider what is most important to you and focus on creating a life that aligns with your values and priorities. If you start to create a life that aligns with your values when your horizon is very short, you are late to the game! Considering what’s important to you and aligning your values with those priorities should be an early lifelong goal. If this is not the case, then by all means, move forward with this goal. Later in life is a period for personal reflection and assessment. One can reflect on and assess the totality of one’s life and what one’s accomplished. If this list is short, then there are still some productive things that can be started within a short time horizon.
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Final Thoughts
At a seminar I attended many years ago, the instructor asked us to take out a sheet of paper and put a dot at both ends of the paper. He then asked us to draw a line between the two dots. He explained that the first dot represented the date of our birth, and the second dot represented the age at which we thought we would die. We were then asked to place a dot along the line that represented our current age. It was sobering to realize that the dot representing our current age was well past the midpoint between the first two dots representing birth and death. It was a graphic reminder of our remaining life. It’s a simple exercise, and worth spending a few minutes to complete.
Realizing that your time horizon is shortening is not all bad. The latter part of your life is an excellent time to reflect and take stock of what you have accomplished in your lifetime.
Because children are grown and gone, it is also a time when most couples can focus on themselves and personal priorities such as health, financial planning, family, and end-of-life planning.
Regardless of which, or how many of these priorities, each person evaluates, they are all important and worthy of reflection and introspection.
I don’t dwell on my death, nor do I fret over it. I am trying to plan properly so that I don’t leave legal or financial problems.
I worry much less about things I can’t control. During my 73-year lifetime, I’ve experienced several complete stock market cycles. Although my understanding of the stock market is incomplete, my level of apprehension has decreased. I’ve watched the control of the US government move between the political parties. Voting and relating my feelings to my representatives and senators are two things I can control. I tend to worry less about other political occurrences I can’t control.
I worry less about my health. I am more conscientious about my diet, exercise, and health maintenance. I don’t know how long I’ll live, but I am trying to stay healthy as long as possible.
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