The New Retirementality: Planning Your Life and Living Your Dreams...at Any Age You Want, 4th Edition

Chapter 4

Money Is Only Part of the Equation

Many people are so occupied with getting out of a career trap that they seem to care little about what happens after they leave their jobs. Despite the fact they have planned other aspects of their lives, they seem to feel retirement will take care of itself. The opposite is often true.

—Elwood Chapman and Marion Haynes, authors, Comfort Zones: Planning Your Future

I recently had a conversation with a man who has been involved in financial planning for over 30 years about would-be retirees’ lack of preparedness on the advent of their transition. He said, “I ask the couple, ‘What are you going to do in retirement?’ And frequently I’m met with blank stares.”

What difference will all our financial planning for the future make if we have no idea what kind of life we want to purchase with those finances?

Would you prepare for a two-week overseas vacation and not make any arrangements for how you will best use your time once you arrive? Only an intrepid adventurer or a cavalier fool would approach an expensive journey this way. Even just heading out for a short weekend trip, one may spend considerable time plotting out hotel, route, food, and entertainment options. Why, then, embark on a 30-year journey with the sole concern being economic? Millions are saving for what might be a 35-year journey—with absolutely no idea where that journey might take them. Individuals who approach retirement in this manner will have a ticket to ride but no road ...