Books Archive

12 Ways to Retire on Less: Planning an Affordable Future

Retirement Wisdom · Dec 8, 2021 ·

by Harriet Edleson

Because of my work as a retirement coach, I read more books on retirement than most people. I found 12 Ways to Retire on Less to be a breath of fresh air. It’s a well-written, no-nonsense, comprehensive guide to planning for retirement in today’s challenging environment.

Planning for retirement today entails navigating a great deal of uncertainty and anxiety. Journalist Harriet Edleson highlights the practical considerations for the big decisions you’ll face in planning for retirement, including when to retire or work longer; budgeting; generating income in retirement; when to file for Social Security; moving or staying in a place; housing options in later life, and the often-overlooked issue of transportation. It’s a pragmatic, reality-check on retirement today that shows how there are still ways to make it work.

The strength of the book is on how to make savvy moves to optimize your resources in funding what for many people promises to be a longer retirement than previous generations enjoyed. However, my favorite parts of the book were when Edleson goes beyond those core financial topics to emphasize the importance of keeping the dreams you have for retirement in focus. In several chapters, she explores viewing retirement as an adventure and writes of discovering a new purpose and honing in on what you really want to do in this phase of life, including envisioning your dream locations and where you want to travel. Starting with this vision of retirement as an adventure sets the stage for then finding smart ways to fund your vision.

I recommend this book as a valuable resource that will help you reframe how you’re thinking of your next chapters and retire smarter.

Listen to our conversation with Harriet Edleson here

Retirement Wisdom · Oct 25, 2021 ·

(Book review by Joe Casey, Retirement Wisdom)

What happens when successful people are too busy to plan for the non-financial side of retirement? They enter retirement half-prepared. Former Senator Ted Kaufman and former management consultant (CEO whisperer) Bruce Hiland noticed something with their retired friends and associates. They had all prepared for the financial side, but many had put off – or ignored – how they would live their lives without the world of full-time work. They had failed to anticipate the transition – and they became stuck. In contrast, they noticed others were thriving in retirement. Their mindset was noticeably different. They had approached retirement as a new adventure and had prepared for retirement as a journey.

Kaufman and Hiland collaborated on an essential guide for the journey of your retirement – Retiring? Your Next Chapter is About Much More Than Money. It’s an insightful and practical resource, written in a conversational tone, to help you prepare comprehensively for retirement life. This book highlights what you’ll need to think about (and do) to be well-prepared for the changes that retiring brings. The authors squarely define the key problems and challenges you’ll need to solve, and you’ll come away with a deeper understanding of why a successful retirement goes far beyond what your Financial Advisor can provide.

The authors share what they’ve learned from their own experiences (having retired multiple times) and from conversations and interviews with many others over six years. They point out how dramatically retirement has changed in recent years and the challenges (and opportunities) those changes create. The book reframes the new retirement as a larger expanse of time (often 30 years or more) that demands an entirely different approach to planning than the shorter retirements of yesteryear. I like many things about this book. One is that unlike many books on retirement, it’s based on principles rather than prescriptions. The authors understand that your retirement journey will be unique to your circumstances, values, and aspirations and one-size-fits-all solutions won’t get you there.

The book addresses fundamental questions all retirees must ultimately answer starting with where will you live in your retirement? The most valuable parts of the book, in my opinion, are the chapters where they tackle the thorny issues that make or break retirements, such as identity, purpose, and health, including your physical, cognitive, and emotional wellness.

Each chapter provides reflective questions and exercises to complete as you progress, as well as a list of recommended resources. It’s a succinct guide that covers all the bases. Don’t half-prepare for your retirement journey. If you’re planning for retirement, you’ll find this book an essential asset.

This book is at the top of the shortlist of books I highly recommend to people planning for retirement.

100% of the profits from this book are being donated to charity.

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Retiring? Your Next Chapter is About Much More Than Money

Interested in learning more?

Listen in to my conversation with the authors on The Retirement Wisdom Podcast.

Listen to our retirement podcast conversation with the authors here.

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Other Podcast Conversations You May Like

Successful Aging – Daniel Levitin

When Will You Flip the Switch? – Dr. Barbara O’Neill

How to Live a Values-Based Life – Harry Kraemer

The Anti-Retirement Movement – Milledge & Patti Hart

Retirement Wisdom · Sep 6, 2021 ·

Tapas Life: A Rich and Rewarding Life After Your Long Career – by Andrew Robin

Retirement isn’t what it used to be. So, what’s your next move after being immersed in a decades-long demanding career? I often see people search for the next ‘big thing’ to replace the primary role that work occupied in their life. Some struggle to find it and drift longer than they expected in the years after their career comes to an end. But most of the clients I work with design a new ”portfolio” life with multiple areas of focus and they retire happy.

Andy Robin has created a clever way to describe this new way of post-career living. He likens it to the series of small meals you’ll eat Spain – a bit of this and a then bit of that. It’s an interesting way to think about retirement.

Robin stresses the importance of building a structure for your days and weeks in your post-career life. It’s one of the fundamental challenges of the transition to retirement. He offers sound advice on how to create this new structure gradually (one Tapa at a time) based on what you really want to do. It transforms the challenge of forging a new structure into an opportunity to thoughtfully craft your new existence.

Tapas Life describes various types of Tapas, ranging from ones focused on Meaning and Giving Back to Business, Health, and Flow. The author shares his experiences discovering each one and lessons learned along the way, as well as examples of the Tapas that other people are pursuing in their retirement.

The book notes the counterintuitive role of failure in this phase of life. In contrast to failing at something in your full-time working years, where there are consequences, it’s now usually something to embrace. Failing becomes reframed as a genuine learning experience that allows you to move on to your next adventure.

Robin shares useful advice on developing new social connections on re-contracting with a spouse or significant other as you embark on this transition. Tapas Life is a short book (133 pages), but it’s packed with entertaining anecdotes and practical advice on how to invent a new life in retirement.

Listen to our retirement podcast conversation with the author here.

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Other Podcast Conversations You May Like

Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans

The Future You – Brian David Johnson

Your Retirement Won’t Come with a Road Map – Carol Hymowitz

Why Retirement is About Much More Than Money – Ted Kaufman & Bruce Hiland

Retirement Wisdom · Jul 15, 2020 ·

By Marta Zaraska (2020, Appetite by Random House)

Book Review by Joe Casey

Is growing younger an oxymoron? Marta Zaraska, a science journalist whose work has been featured in The Washington Post, Scientific American and The Atlantic, argues no. If your goal is to live to 100, there’s a lot you can do now to tilt the odds in your favor. The Mind-Body connection is a powerful force to leverage in your favor.

Beyond Eating Right & Working Out

We already know how important eating right and getting regular exercise is to longevity. But Zaraska shows how that’s just the beginning. Her review of the science, and her interviews with a number of the principal researchers, shines a spotlight on factors and practices that reduce your mortality risk more than diet and exercise.

Growing Young evaluates two types of interventions that cut the risk of mortality. First, she looks at studies on Food & Exercise and then compares them to the data on Social & Mind Interventions. She has an awesome chart on page 100 that summarizes a ton of studies to highlight findings you may not expect. (In my opinion, the chart alone is well worth the cost of the book). The author focuses on data from meta-analyses in peer-reviewed journals, the “gold standard.” To be clear, this is a matter of “and” not “either-or” – don’t ditch sound diet and exercise practices. You’ll want the power of Food/Exercise and Social/Mind Interventions both working on your behalf. A key point of the book is that many of us may be sorely underinvesting in the Social/Mind Interventions – and she makes a compelling case to begin doing so.

Double Down on The Mind-Body Connection

In an era, where many of us search for the latest quick fix, Zaraska urges people to build the right set of Longevity Habits. She takes on SuperFoods, Supplements, and even Organics, citing research that illuminates the power of marketing over the substance of science. Instead, she unveils the science demonstrating the positive benefits of social connectivity, optimism, life purpose, and volunteering – and the threats posed by loneliness, pessimism, and certain personality traits. And take note: according to Zaraska, the research shows that what boosts longevity the most is a happy committed relationship with a spouse or partner.

It’s Not About You

While the book is based on science, it’s entertaining to read. The author traveled extensively in researching the book and shares some fun stories of her experiences. One of my favorite things about this book is that the author took the time to personally experiment with a number of research findings herself. And at the end of each chapter, she lays out a short list of practical tips to boost longevity.

In the end, perhaps an obsession with eating right and exercising right may be necessary, but not sufficient. We can pay more attention to the mind-body connection, by focusing on and helping others. There’s more power in strengthening key relationships and practicing acts of kindness than any supplement money can buy. Science says.

Growing Young: How Friendship, Optimism & Kindness Can Help You Live to 100

Listen to our conversation with the author on The Retirement Wisdom Podcast

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Related Podcast Episodes You May Like

The Mind-Body Connection and The Rabbit Effect – Kelli Harding

How Can You Be Better with Age? – Alan Castel

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About Retirement Wisdom

We help people who are retiring from their primary career and are not done yet, discover what’s next.

A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident.

Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you make yours great.

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Retirement Wisdom is a coaching company that helps people plan for the non-financial aspects of retirement. From time to time we may provide book reviews that cover other aspects of retirement planning. Readers are advised to consult qualified financial and/or medical professionals on those matters.

Retirement Wisdom · Jul 14, 2020 ·

By Todd Tresidder (2020, Second Edition)

Book Review by Joe Casey

When can I retire? While we focus on the non-financial aspects of retirement planning at Retirement Wisdom, we know that achieving financial security comes first. It’s critical to have as clear a picture of possible on your ability to retire from a financial perspective. It’s the first part of the equation when people think about the question Can I retire? It’s an important question – and it’s become a more complex question to answer given the uncertainty we face in 2020.

But where do you start to get a good handle on your readiness to retire financially? This book by former hedge fund manager Todd Tresidder offers an excellent starting point. The books I value the most are ones that get me to question my assumptions, challenge my thinking, and offer a different perspective. For me, this book nailed it all on three.

At one level, retirement planning can seem straightforward. How much money do we need and what income will we need to sustain our lifestyle in retirement. But of course, it’s much more complicated than that and Tresidder helps you see through the complexities and focus on what matters most.

In How Much Money Do I Need To Retire? Tresidder, the founder of Financial Mentor, explains three different financial approaches to retirement planning. The first is the Traditional Model, the second is a Lifestyle Planning Model, and the third is the Cash Flow Model. He offers a balanced evaluation of the pros and cons of each approach, but he is clear in his critiques and his recommended approach.

He is highly critical of the Traditional Model, which is the one that most of us are most familiar with. Tresidder makes the case against the Traditional Model because it’s an asset-based approach that, in his view, fails to adequately account for several key risks, such as longevity risk, inflation among others.

Tresidder is more positive about the Lifestyle Planning Model because it goes beyond assets to zero in on the underlying assumptions. It focuses less on income in retirement and more on projecting what your spending will be in retirement. My work in retirement coaching has taught me that people’s retirements are more unique than similar, so I can appreciate the value of this approach.

Finally, he makes a strong case for the Cash Flow Model and his rationale for why he sees it as the most stable and safest approach. There’s a very useful chapter on what you need to know to use retirement calculators wisely, by unpacking their assumptions to avoid getting a false read on your financial projections.

If you’re planning for retirement, you’ll find this to be a worthwhile, thought-provoking resource. It will help you to step back, think through the various strategies, and become clear-eyed about the assumptions that underpin the various options.

How Much Money Will You Need to Retire?

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