Plan Your Prosperity: The Only Retirement Guide You'll Ever Need, Starting Now--Whether You're 22, 52 or 82

The Imagined Dichotomy

Many investors and even some professionals distinguish between financial planning and retirement planning—like they’re two distinct phases, or the two are, inherently, radically different.

But in my view, this imagined dichotomy is wrong—this idea you should invest one way for a period of years and then you need a whole separate set of rules upon hitting some milestone.

For most investors, whether you’re 22, 52 or 82, financial planning is retirement planning is financial planning. Whether you’re saving your first dollar or your four millionth (good for you!), you should consider the ultimate long-term purpose for your money. Which, for many investors, is to provide for them (and their spouse) in retirement and/or leave something behind for the loved ones, a beloved cause, etc.

But maybe not! Maybe this doesn’t apply to you. You don’t need to think about the ultimate purpose for your money now. Maybe you’re heir to a billion-dollar fortune. Your future is amply covered, you don’t want to think about it, you bought this book only to level your kitchen table, and your entire purpose in life is to fritter. Fine! But for most everyone else, if you’re holding this book, however old you are, you should be thinking, now, about your future prosperity.