by Joe Hearn | Dec 4, 2014 | Lifestyle Design, Retirement
As promised, I wanted to give you more details about the upcoming availability of The Ideal Retirement Design Guide. I created the guide because after 20 years of researching, writing about and helping people plan for retirement, I kept seeing a recurring problem. What was the problem?
The problem?
Most people don’t have a plan for retirement. They don’t know what they want to do, how much it will cost or whether or not they are on track to save enough to pay for it. Not surprisingly, that creates a great deal of anxiety and uncertainty. And rightly so. If you are among the 88% of people who don’t have a written plan, your retirement will probably fall far short of what it could be.
The solution?
How do you solve that problem? You need a plan, of course, but retirement has a lot of moving parts and it gets complicated quickly. I tried to simplify the process by listing out each major area that you need to cover and then creating a module for each that discusses the issues involved and gives you worksheets, checklists and strategies to help you plan. The Ideal Retirement Design Guide is a 12 module, comprehensive program that will help you create a detailed plan for the retirement you’ve always dreamed about by focusing on one key area each week for 12 weeks.
What is included?
The guide has 12 modules that each cover a key area of your retirement. The first module is a 72-page lifestyle design guide that will help you think through and define the Who, What, Where, When and Why of your ideal retirement. The remaining modules cover areas like calculating how much you’ll need, creating a sustainable withdrawal strategy, maximizing Social Security benefits, long-term care, health care, estate planning, minimizing taxes and much more. To help you learn from real world examples, there are also 6 Q&A Case Studies with current retirees. In addition to all that there are 4 hours of audio interviews (and corresponding transcripts) with experts in areas like income planning, estate planning, long-term care, health care and retiree taxes. Finally, there will be several bonus resources like a free eBook that I wrote especially for the guide called 50 Essentials for Retirement Success.
When will it be ready?
The current plan is to make it live in our store at 8 a.m. Central time on Wednesday, December 10.
What will it cost?
If you hired someone to do this planning for you, it would cost thousands of dollars. Unfortunately, that’s probably why many of you don’t already have a plan. I wanted the price to be accessible to most people, but I spent so much time, effort and expense creating it that I can’t afford to give it away either. I settled on one simple price of $159, shipping included. If you buy more than one (Christmas is right around the corner) the price drops to $139 each. That’s less than what it would cost to spend an hour with any one of the experts interviewed (not to mention everything else that comes with the kit) and it’s a small price to pay to get your retirement plans on track. Having said all that, don’t feel any pressure to buy it. Most of what I write at Intentional Retirement is free and available to all. Yes, I have to cover the expenses of the site, so I also offer a few useful products designed to help you solve some of the most challenging problems you’ll face in retirement, but please don’t buy them unless a) you can afford it and b) you think it will be helpful for your situation.
Why order now?
A few reasons. First, I wasn’t sure what the demand would be, so I only created 250 of the kits. When they’re gone, the store page will stop taking orders. This isn’t a trick to create scarcity. The kits are expensive to produce and I wanted to make sure there was demand before ramping up production. I have no idea if they will sell fast or not, but there are a few thousand people on the waiting list, so if you want one I’d encourage you to order sooner rather than later.
Second, once the initial run sells out, the kit will be unavailable for a period of time while we process orders and interview customers to see what they liked and what we could improve. When I make it available again, I expect to raise the price. So order now if you want the lower price and if you want to put “Plan for retirement” on your New Year’s Resolution list.
Third, it’s Christmas! Give yourself or someone you care about the gift of an awesome retirement. Sure, they might get you an ugly sweater or 5 piece wrench set, but you can give them (or yourself) the confidence and peace of mind that comes with having a great plan for what should be one of the most rewarding periods of life. And remember, I’ll knock $20 off per kit if you order multiple copies.
One quick disclaimer: We’ll make every effort to get it to you before Christmas, but we’re a small operation and UPS and the Postal Service are shipping a few billion other packages this time of year, so don’t cross me off your Christmas Card list if unavoidable delays keep it from arriving by the 25th. Just in case, I’m having my designer create a gift card that you will be able to print from the site. The card will explain what the guide is and why you’re an awesome person for buying it for the people on your gift list. That way, if your order doesn’t arrive before you leave for Christmas at grandma’s house, you can print out the gift card to show the recipient what you got them and let them know that it will arrive shortly.
How can I order?
As I mentioned earlier, it will be available next Wednesday at 8 am Central. Just go to our Store page, click on The Ideal Retirement Design Guide product page and then click “Buy Now” to order. For your ordering peace of mind, our store is administered by 1ShoppingCart, one of the biggest names in ecommerce. When you click on the “Buy Now” button, you’ll be redirected to a secure product page where you can complete your order.
That’s all for now. Thanks for following along. We’ve got new readers/subscribers this week from quite a few different states, but also from as far away as Japan, so hello (or Kon’nichiwa as the case may be) to those of you who are new around here. Touch base if you have any questions or if there’s ever anything I can do for you.
Joe
Photo by Nick Kelly
by Joe Hearn | Nov 26, 2014 | Lifestyle Design, Retirement
Hi everyone. I just wanted to give you a quick update on The Ideal Retirement Design Guide. It’s taken me longer than expected to get it ready, but it’s almost here. The good news is that the extra time paid off in a pretty amazing resource that is comprehensive and easy to use. It will walk you step-by-step through the process of designing the retirement you’ve always dreamed about.
I’ll give more details next week (including when it will launch, what it will cost, what is included and how it can help), but for now I just wanted to give you a quick heads up that it will soon be available, just in case you’re looking for a good Christmas or New Year’s Resolution gift for yourself.
For now, I wish you all a restful and Happy Thanksgiving (for my non-U.S. readers, tomorrow is Thanksgiving here in the States, when we reflect on what we’re thankful for and eat too much turkey). Enjoy the holiday and thank-you for following along here at Intentional Retirement.
Joe
by Joe Hearn | Nov 14, 2014 | Retirement
I’ve had Walden on my reading list for as long as I can remember, but I didn’t get around to reading it until earlier this year. I was struck by how closely several of Thoreau’s key philosophies paralleled with those of us here at Intentional Retirement. Below are 7 ideas from Walden that are worth considering, pondering and maybe even incorporating into your life and retirement.
From Walden: “I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately, I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to put to rout all that was not life and not when I had come to die discover that I had not lived.”
Application: We all need to live deliberately (i.e. intentionally). Pretty much everything I write points back to this concept in one way or another, but if you want some ideas on how to apply this, check out A Brief Guide to Retirement Bliss.
From Walden: Thoreau questioned the wisdom of spending “the best part of one’s life earning money in order to enjoy a questionable liberty during the least valuable part of it.”
Application: Right on Henry. In other words, don’t save the best for last. Retirement should not be a timeline where youth is 0-20, working years equal 20-65 and retirement is 65 plus. Instead it should be a pie chart divided between time you control and time you don’t. Retirement is using whatever time you control now (whether that’s 10%, 50% or 90%) to live the life that you want to live. For more on this check out The problem with delayed gratification and How to retire today.
From Walden: “So thoroughly and sincerely are we compelled to live, reverencing our life, and denying the possibility of change. This is the only way, we say; but there are as many ways as there can be drawn radii from one centre.”
Application: You don’t need to live your life either a) the way you’re living it now, or b) the way you think others are expecting you to. It’s your life and like Thoreau said, your options are pretty much unlimited when it comes to how you can live it. Decide what’s important to you and then start taking those plans very seriously. For help on this read 15 Practical ways to live a purposeful life and 10 Questions that will help you decide what to do during retirement.
From Walden: “I also have in my mind that seemingly wealthy, but most terribly impoverished class of all, who have accumulated dross, but know not how to use it, or get rid of it, and thus have forged their own golden or silver fetters.”
Application: Don’t be cash rich and lifestyle poor. Your money exists so you can fund the experiences and things you really want out of life. If you have A without B, you’re doing it wrong.
From Walden: “In short, I am convinced, both by faith and experience, that to maintain one’s self on this earth is not a hardship but a pastime, if we live simply and wisely…It is not necessary that a man should earn his living by the sweat of his brow, unless he sweats easier than I do.”
Application: Don’t focus too much on work. One of the top five regrets of the dying is “I wish I had worked less.” Work is important, but keep it in perspective. To help with that you can read (and watch) One year to live.
From Walden: “Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end, an end which it was already but too easy to arrive at.”
Application: Unless you want and can afford both, seriously consider focusing on experiences over assets. Regardless of which you choose, however, when you find out what’s important to you, don’t hesitate to invest extravagantly in those things.
From Walden: “A man is rich in proportion to the number of things he can afford to let alone.”
Application: If you’re going to have a meaningful retirement, you need to embrace the idea that your goal is not to have busy days or full days, but days spent on things that bring meaning, fulfillment, purpose, fun and happiness. For help in this read How to cure the busy virus or Maximizing retirement: Maintenance vs. Milestones.
Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend!
Joe
by Joe Hearn | Oct 29, 2014 | Happiness, Health, Retirement
One of the benefits of my job is that I get to see a large group of people all making decisions about the same thing: Retirement. Over the years, that has given me a large data set of decisions and their consequences. Some of those decisions are minor, while others have consequences that ripple out for decades. Some of those decisions pay off big, while others tend to blow up—often in spectacular, catastrophic, almost comical fashion.
Below are 7 decisions—big and small—that will impact your happiness, fulfillment and options during retirement. They are decisions you will never regret.
The decision to decide. Recently a palliative nurse recorded the regrets of her dying patients and compiled them in a book called “The Top Five Regrets of the Dying.” The number one regret was “Not living the life I wanted.” To avoid this regret, you need to (Surprise!) decide what kind of life you want to live. But don’t stop there. Once you decide what you really want out of life, you need to start taking those plans very seriously. Imagine the satisfaction you could have if you arrived at the end of your days knowing that you did everything you possibly could to live the life that you wanted. For some practical ideas on how to do this, read Part 3 of the Intentional Retirement Manifesto A Brief Guide to Retirement Bliss.
The decision to “cut the branch.” A month or so ago I brought in an expert to help me trim and prune the trees in our yard. Most of the work went pretty quickly until we got to a large tree in our back yard. He informed me it had a branch that shouldn’t be there, but it had been allowed to grow for so long that cutting it now would make the tree look a bit silly for a few years. As I pondered what to do I asked him “When that little branch started growing ten years ago, should I have cut it then?” He said yes. Then I asked him “Ten years from now, will I look back on today and wish I had cut the branch?” Yes again. So I fired up the chain saw (it was a big branch) and started cutting.
No doubt each of us can listen to that story and use the branch as a metaphor for something in our own life. What is it for you? A job? A relationship? An unhealthy habit? Whatever it is, maybe now is the time to cut the branch.
The decision to do less. If you’re like most people, your default setting is for more. More commitments, more work, more stuff, more relationships, more money, more sporting events for your kids, more television, more house, more projects. More, more, more. The funny thing about “more” is that it can be incredibly diluting. If you have 30 projects at work, for example, you’ll probably have less impact than if you were allowed to focus on 3. This is the paradox of more. The more you try to do, the less you end up doing. If you want to do more, figure out a way to do less. Cut the unimportant (especially in retirement) so you can free up space, time and money to focus on the things that really matter to you. Less > More.
The decision to improve your marriage. Middle age is a risky time for your marriage. Hardly a year goes by that at least one of my clients doesn’t call it quits in that phase. This year was particularly bad. Divorce is never fun, but it’s even less so when you’re on the doorstep to retirement. Your assets get divided in half. Your kids will likely take sides. Your friends will certainly take sides. The dreams you had for “Someday” are off the table. How much better would it be to enter retirement in a happy, fulfilling marriage—plans, family and finances in tact—ready to enjoy the next phase? Yes, that takes work. Especially if the problems have been allowed to fester over the years. But take a long, hard look at the consequences before deciding that divorce is a better option.
The decision to bury the hatchet. A client called me earlier this year and told me that her ex-husband had just stopped by. They had been through a messy divorce due to infidelity about 20 years previously and hadn’t spoken since. Needless to say she was a bit surprised to find him on her doorstep with tears in his eyes. He wasn’t there to try to fix things. They had both moved on and married other people. He simply wanted to apologize and ask for forgiveness. My client later found out that when her ex left her house he went to her parent’s house and several other people in the family and did the same thing. It’s tough to go through life without hurting someone or being hurt by someone—usually our kids, friends, spouse or extended family. Carrying that baggage around can cause bitterness, resentment, and regret. Why live with that pain year after year until one of you eventually takes it to the grave? If it was your fault, acknowledge as much, apologize and ask for their forgiveness. If it was their fault, have grace and move on.
The decision to bet some chips. Have you ever seen the movie Rounders? It’s a movie about a poker player, starring Matt Damon. I was watching it on Netflix the other night and a quote stuck with me. Talking about poker Damon said “You can’t lose what you don’t put in the middle. But you can’t win much either.” It’s easy to play life too conservatively. God knows I’m guilty of this more often than I’d like to admit. Too often we go through life unwilling to take a chance and bet some chips. This can feel safe in the short run, but like Damon said, it never results in much of a payoff. Is there something that you’ve always wanted to do, but been afraid to take the risk? The clock is ticking. Maybe it’s time to bet some chips. Win or lose, you’ll at least have the satisfaction of having tried.
The decision to get healthy. Most of my clients are in the 50-75 age range. They seem healthier than most, but here’s an abbreviated list of health problems that they have dealt with so far this year: prostate cancer, breast cancer, diabetes, hernia, heart attack (survived), kidney stones, dementia, severe back pain, glaucoma, TIA stroke, broken wrist (due to osteoporosis), arthritis, lung cancer and depression. Those are just my clients, just in the last 10 months. Health problems are a fact of life as we age. Obviously we can’t prevent all illness, but doing everything you can to be healthy can improve your odds of a long, active retirement.
~ Joe
by Joe Hearn | Jul 17, 2014 | Investing, Retirement
Have you ever noticed that the time it takes you to do something expands to fill the time you allow yourself to do it?
I see this most frequently at work. If I have 5 tasks to do and all day to do them, it takes me—surprise!—all day. If I only have half a day to do the same five tasks, however, I am somehow able to check them all off my To-do list before lunch.
I don’t think I’m alone in this. You do it too, right?
Too Much Runway
With that in mind, think about your retirement. The typical retirement age is 65, which means we give ourselves about 45 years to get “Retirement Ready.”
At the risk of stating the obvious, forty-five years is a LONG time. Too long. Giving yourself that much runway almost guarantees that you will procrastinate and not take things very seriously. After all, there’s always next year (or next decade).
What would happen if you only gave yourself 40 years? Or 35? Or 10? Answer: You’d be much more serious about hitting your goal. You’d save aggressively, spend intentionally and invest wisely. How much could you shave off the typical 45-year timeline? Let’s look at an example.
Ben and the Incredible Shrinking Career
We’ll need to make some assumptions here, but just keep in mind that the end result is more important than the assumptions. Let’s say you have a 20-year-old guy named Ben who wants to retire with $1 million. Let’s assume the markets return 8% per year and Ben makes $50,000 per year throughout his entire career and never gets a raise.
Given those criteria, if Ben saves about 5% per year he will hit his $1 million goal in 45 years. But what if he saves more?
Save 10% = Retire in 37 years
Save 15% = Retire in 32 years
Save 20% = Retire in 28 years
Save 25% = Retire in 26 years
So Ben could retire in his 40s or 50s instead of his 60s if he decided to spend his money on mutual funds instead of mojitos.
I’m guessing I have exactly zero readers that are 20 years old, but the above math can apply to you as well. Sure it won’t be as dramatic because you don’t have as many years as Ben, but you’re also not starting from $0, you’re in your prime earning years, your kids are grown and if you’re over 50 then you’re eligible to make catch-up contributions to your retirement accounts.
You probably won’t be able to shave 20 years off, but could you shave off one? Five? Seven? Each year is a year you can spend with your spouse and friends instead of your boss or that difficult client. It’s a year you can spend seeing the world instead of staring at your cubicle. It’s a year you can spend sitting at the beach instead of stuck in meetings.
With so many people behind on their savings, retire later is a common piece of retirement advice. Given human nature, however, retire early might yield better results. And don’t forget…
Life is short. Be intentional
Joe
by Joe Hearn | Jul 11, 2014 | Retirement
Retirement planning affects almost everyone so, not surprisingly, there are a lot of people writing about it. I do my best to bring you helpful information each week, but there are lots of other writers out there producing great stuff as well.
With that in mind, I thought I’d start periodically highlighting some of the best retirement articles from around the web that I think are interesting and helpful.
This week, I’ve selected several articles from my fellow writers over at Dow Jones MarketWatch. There is some great stuff here, so set aside some time this weekend to grab a cup of coffee and do a little reading.
How to retire early – 35 years early. By Andrea Coombes. An interesting interview with blogger Mr. Money Mustache on how he used some unconventional thinking to retire at age 30.
Retirement: Two different views on the 4% rule. By Wade Pfau. The 4% Rule is a common rule of thumb, but it’s not perfect. Wade gives a few thoughts on whether or not you can rely on 4% as a safe withdrawal rate.
What’s the best age to retire? By Robert Powell. This article covers many of the factors that should weigh into your decision of when to retire.
Retire happier: Control your medical costs. By Elizabeth O’Brien. A few strategies for keeping your health care bills from swallowing your retirement income.
8 habits of highly successful retirees. By yours truly. These are the habits that make retirement remarkable.
Have a great weekend. And remember…
Life is short. Be intentional.
Joe
P.S. From the “where credit is due department”, thanks to my friend Joshua Becker over at Becoming Minimalist for giving me the writer roundup idea.
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