If you step back from the story, there’s incredible absurdity in what we consider normative work behavior. Warren Buffett has joked that doing work you don’t like in the hopes it will help you find work you might later is like saving up sex for your old age. The very idea of retirement is a bit of a fraud, in part because of the difficulty of saving enough to do it (especially in lieu of defined benefit plans that no longer exist for most workers), in part because you’re trading money spent in youth for money spent in old age (airfare vs medical care, anyone?!), and because many people never benefit from the trade at all (either dying or becoming too debilitated in old age to make much use of the time, and crucially because doing nothing (the mainstream retirement dream) is pretty much guaranteed to kill the spirit and the body (and quickly). I don’t think some smoky backroom cabal enables this narrative and its concomitant aesthetic of palm trees and silver years spent holding grandchildren, but there are certainly a lot of beneficiaries of this dubious construct, among them the entire investment management industry. I’d be very curious to see what the real purchasing power of that ~$9 million is when our couple retires as well as what kind of life they can expect it to buy them then. The framing of the problem (how much money will they have) is perfect Wildean cynicism, focused on the money and not its value. And so we tend to think about retirement as an end state. What we should do is question whether we are in this earth to subsist on expensive, rushed, and often unfulfilling 1-2 week vacations that serve as distraction rather than doing everything we can to milk our time on here while we have the vitality to do it. Some people will even rationalize a year off as a chance for our couple to recharge their batteries, meaning gain the power necessary to go back to trading the best years of their lives for some sub-vital years on the backend. This is madness.
Appreciate your sentiments here. Like most things, the truth lies in the middle - in my opinion. Is it a shame that some people spend their lives miserable just so they can retire? Yes.
But most people overestimate how long they can work. 68% of folks expect to retire at 65 or older but only 31% do. Many are forced to retire due to health, downsizing, or to care for a family member. All things out of their control.
Understand…But, not all thinks are out of control. The beauty of economics-based planning is one can see the living standard effects of different retirement dates very quickly when using MaxiFi software.
The decision to take a mini-retirement demonstrates the importance of having a good work-life and personal-life balance. Although taking some time off might seem appealing, it's important to consider how this might affect your long-term financial stability. This post does a great job at portraying the potential outcomes and provides guidance to determining if taking a mini-retirement is in your best interest.
The idea of a mini-retirement is pretty interesting! I think Katie and Benji’s decision to take a year off shows how a lot of younger people are rethinking the whole work-life balance thing. Sure, it might seem financially risky at first, but the impact over the long run doesn’t seem that big. Plus, the chance to recharge and focus on living life on their terms could pay off in the future in ways that go beyond money. If you can plan it out and afford it, why not? For some, the experience of taking a break could be way more valuable than a slightly higher bank account later on.
Taking a mini-retirement sounds exciting, offering a much-needed break and the chance to recharge, but it’s important to consider how it might affect your future. While it can be personally rewarding, as the Hobbs' experience shows, it could also lead to a small dip in your long-term financial stability.
It can. One way to think about the living standard result is the cost to the year off. If the Hobbs take the year off, they are making a value assessment about its importance to their happiness.
The Hobbs couple's decision to carry out a mini-retirement concept, in my opinion, shows how money isn't necessarily everything. I also thought it was interesting how, occasionally, having a little financial setback is worth having the flexibility to enjoy life as you see fit. I find it useful to compare working 37 years with taking a break from work, especially because it has such a little effect on their lifetime level of living. It gets me thinking about how time is more valuable than money.
If you step back from the story, there’s incredible absurdity in what we consider normative work behavior. Warren Buffett has joked that doing work you don’t like in the hopes it will help you find work you might later is like saving up sex for your old age. The very idea of retirement is a bit of a fraud, in part because of the difficulty of saving enough to do it (especially in lieu of defined benefit plans that no longer exist for most workers), in part because you’re trading money spent in youth for money spent in old age (airfare vs medical care, anyone?!), and because many people never benefit from the trade at all (either dying or becoming too debilitated in old age to make much use of the time, and crucially because doing nothing (the mainstream retirement dream) is pretty much guaranteed to kill the spirit and the body (and quickly). I don’t think some smoky backroom cabal enables this narrative and its concomitant aesthetic of palm trees and silver years spent holding grandchildren, but there are certainly a lot of beneficiaries of this dubious construct, among them the entire investment management industry. I’d be very curious to see what the real purchasing power of that ~$9 million is when our couple retires as well as what kind of life they can expect it to buy them then. The framing of the problem (how much money will they have) is perfect Wildean cynicism, focused on the money and not its value. And so we tend to think about retirement as an end state. What we should do is question whether we are in this earth to subsist on expensive, rushed, and often unfulfilling 1-2 week vacations that serve as distraction rather than doing everything we can to milk our time on here while we have the vitality to do it. Some people will even rationalize a year off as a chance for our couple to recharge their batteries, meaning gain the power necessary to go back to trading the best years of their lives for some sub-vital years on the backend. This is madness.
Appreciate your sentiments here. Like most things, the truth lies in the middle - in my opinion. Is it a shame that some people spend their lives miserable just so they can retire? Yes.
But most people overestimate how long they can work. 68% of folks expect to retire at 65 or older but only 31% do. Many are forced to retire due to health, downsizing, or to care for a family member. All things out of their control.
Understand…But, not all thinks are out of control. The beauty of economics-based planning is one can see the living standard effects of different retirement dates very quickly when using MaxiFi software.
The decision to take a mini-retirement demonstrates the importance of having a good work-life and personal-life balance. Although taking some time off might seem appealing, it's important to consider how this might affect your long-term financial stability. This post does a great job at portraying the potential outcomes and provides guidance to determining if taking a mini-retirement is in your best interest.
Is this something you would ever consider?
The idea of a mini-retirement is pretty interesting! I think Katie and Benji’s decision to take a year off shows how a lot of younger people are rethinking the whole work-life balance thing. Sure, it might seem financially risky at first, but the impact over the long run doesn’t seem that big. Plus, the chance to recharge and focus on living life on their terms could pay off in the future in ways that go beyond money. If you can plan it out and afford it, why not? For some, the experience of taking a break could be way more valuable than a slightly higher bank account later on.
Thank you for your thoughtful remarks Thea!
Taking a mini-retirement sounds exciting, offering a much-needed break and the chance to recharge, but it’s important to consider how it might affect your future. While it can be personally rewarding, as the Hobbs' experience shows, it could also lead to a small dip in your long-term financial stability.
It can. One way to think about the living standard result is the cost to the year off. If the Hobbs take the year off, they are making a value assessment about its importance to their happiness.
The Hobbs couple's decision to carry out a mini-retirement concept, in my opinion, shows how money isn't necessarily everything. I also thought it was interesting how, occasionally, having a little financial setback is worth having the flexibility to enjoy life as you see fit. I find it useful to compare working 37 years with taking a break from work, especially because it has such a little effect on their lifetime level of living. It gets me thinking about how time is more valuable than money.
That is a very interesting personal takeaway Jason. Thank you for commenting.