Well said, James! Great video! We were stuck in the traditional financial planning world too long before switching to Root. Even the week before we switched, our traditional planner was telling us to double down on saving. This was really starting to stress us out! Once we realized that we already had enough to retire and no longer needing to put away dollars today for tomorrow, optional work was such a blessing. Thank you!
This is a great video. It’s so easy to get caught up in always saving the most you can. It’s a good reminder that you may be able to scale back the savings and enjoy the fruits of your labor before retirement, not just waiting until retirement to enjoy
Man I really needed to hear this today. I am retired military veteran who is currently working for the DoD to get another pension. My health has declined since my retirement and I am working so that I can have something for my spouse upon my passing. I have also been able to contribute to a TSP and hoping to get it to 500k when I retire permanently in a couple of years. Thanks for the information. I will keep this video when I need a wake up to live for the here and now. God bless.
I was running the numbers about 4 years ago and realized that with what is left of my time saving for retirement, increasing the savings rate really didn’t make that much of a difference in the final amount saved, it now depended more on the time invested than the amount I was investing because the growth of the principal far outweighed what I am putting in. I am still contributing more than the match but I don’t really have a good reason for doing so. Old habits I guess.
Great advice James to live a balanced life of saving for retirement and living in the present. Sometimes people plan to use a 3% (vs. 4%) withdrawal rate in retirement as way to rationalize saving more for retirement. For example, if I am 55 and have already saved 1 million and will only need $40,000 per year to live on starting at 60, then I don't need to really continue saving. However, if I am thinking I need to save more even though I have already saved enough based on needing only $40,000 per year starting at 60 and having already saved 1 million at age 55 using a 4% withdrawal rate, I can easily just rationalize that a 4% withdrawal rate in retirement isn't safe and drop it to a 3% withdrawal rate and thus now I need $1.33 million saved ($40,000/.03) and thus I have just rationalized indirectly the need to continue to save. Interesting how the conventional thinking of continuing to save can be rationalized indirectly by using a lower (e.g., 3%) withdrawal rate.
Great video, James. Once I was FIRO, I made a conscious decision to ramp back in my late 30s / early 40s. Sure glad I did. Most of my peers are beyond burned out, and many now have health conditions in their 40s and 50s that are already preventing them from doing the things they had dreamed of. I'll add the caveat that I don't have expensive tastes ... if I end up with $10M vs $5M, it doesn't move my quality of life needle at all. I can still do everything that I want to at a much lower cost.
At 62yo and able to retire now, I have opted to wait another 2-3 years but that does not mean I am still doing the same thing today as I have in the past to save for retirement. I have stopped saving for retirement but do continue to invest in my employer matched 401K as well as savings and interest. What has changed? My wife and I are living our best Pre-Retirement Life now by spending. The money we were saving each month/year for traveling and pampering ourselves at retirement is NOW being used with friends and family, to do and go to the places we want and enjoy. We just returned from Slovenia & Italy and have more trips planned this month and for next year. We sold our beautiful home and rent until we locate our final forever home (In no hurry ... just enjoying the ride while we are both here and able) ☺
James could you please do an episode on the Variable Percentage Withdrawal distribution method. I just learned about it and would like to know what you think about it. Thanks
Love your content! I am strongly considering your software package. However, I need to confirm it will work for my specific case. I am trying to find a software that will account for an inheritance coming in. I really need to be able to play around with the timing of that versus my personal portfolio and how that impacts my possible retirement dates. I could find no way to contact anyone through your website, tried the contact button and it did nothing when I entered my email. Is this a feature of your software? Not a unique situation but one I need to account for and understand.
Legacy goals are not necessarily a reason to keep on saving! People tend to assume they need to work extra years so that they can provide a free handout to somebody, such as for college tuition. There may be an occasional, unique reason for this but often it is a destructive mindset. Especially with this last generation. They don't need to be enabled with a free pass to stare at their screens even more than they do while the money just appears in front of them. Thanks for more motivation James!
Overall, a great message. However, the example of contributing to get the match and then taking out the funds (even if a penalty) did not sit well with me. Remember, employers offer 401(k) matches to encourage long-term savings for retirement. Using the match and then withdrawing the funds shortly after can be seen as taking advantage of the system, which might not align with the intended purpose of the benefit.
Well said, James! Great video! We were stuck in the traditional financial planning world too long before switching to Root. Even the week before we switched, our traditional planner was telling us to double down on saving. This was really starting to stress us out! Once we realized that we already had enough to retire and no longer needing to put away dollars today for tomorrow, optional work was such a blessing. Thank you!
This is my favorite video you have ever made (and there are a bunch of favorites). I really connected with this one.
This is a great video. It’s so easy to get caught up in always saving the most you can. It’s a good reminder that you may be able to scale back the savings and enjoy the fruits of your labor before retirement, not just waiting until retirement to enjoy
Man I really needed to hear this today. I am retired military veteran who is currently working for the DoD to get another pension. My health has declined since my retirement and I am working so that I can have something for my spouse upon my passing. I have also been able to contribute to a TSP and hoping to get it to 500k when I retire permanently in a couple of years. Thanks for the information. I will keep this video when I need a wake up to live for the here and now. God bless.
I was running the numbers about 4 years ago and realized that with what is left of my time saving for retirement, increasing the savings rate really didn’t make that much of a difference in the final amount saved, it now depended more on the time invested than the amount I was investing because the growth of the principal far outweighed what I am putting in. I am still contributing more than the match but I don’t really have a good reason for doing so. Old habits I guess.
Great advice James to live a balanced life of saving for retirement and living in the present. Sometimes people plan to use a 3% (vs. 4%) withdrawal rate in retirement as way to rationalize saving more for retirement. For example, if I am 55 and have already saved 1 million and will only need $40,000 per year to live on starting at 60, then I don't need to really continue saving. However, if I am thinking I need to save more even though I have already saved enough based on needing only $40,000 per year starting at 60 and having already saved 1 million at age 55 using a 4% withdrawal rate, I can easily just rationalize that a 4% withdrawal rate in retirement isn't safe and drop it to a 3% withdrawal rate and thus now I need $1.33 million saved ($40,000/.03) and thus I have just rationalized indirectly the need to continue to save. Interesting how the conventional thinking of continuing to save can be rationalized indirectly by using a lower (e.g., 3%) withdrawal rate.
Great video!
Great video, James. Once I was FIRO, I made a conscious decision to ramp back in my late 30s / early 40s. Sure glad I did. Most of my peers are beyond burned out, and many now have health conditions in their 40s and 50s that are already preventing them from doing the things they had dreamed of.
I'll add the caveat that I don't have expensive tastes ... if I end up with $10M vs $5M, it doesn't move my quality of life needle at all. I can still do everything that I want to at a much lower cost.
At 62yo and able to retire now, I have opted to wait another 2-3 years but that does not mean I am still doing the same thing today as I have in the past to save for retirement. I have stopped saving for retirement but do continue to invest in my employer matched 401K as well as savings and interest. What has changed? My wife and I are living our best Pre-Retirement Life now by spending. The money we were saving each month/year for traveling and pampering ourselves at retirement is NOW being used with friends and family, to do and go to the places we want and enjoy. We just returned from Slovenia & Italy and have more trips planned this month and for next year. We sold our beautiful home and rent until we locate our final forever home (In no hurry ... just enjoying the ride while we are both here and able) ☺
Thanks, James. Very interesting perspective!
James could you please do an episode on the Variable Percentage Withdrawal distribution method. I just learned about it and would like to know what you think about it. Thanks
Great alternative to abruptly retire.
Those eyes at 3:32, WTH?
aka Coast FIRE
Love your content! I am strongly considering your software package. However, I need to confirm it will work for my specific case. I am trying to find a software that will account for an inheritance coming in. I really need to be able to play around with the timing of that versus my personal portfolio and how that impacts my possible retirement dates. I could find no way to contact anyone through your website, tried the contact button and it did nothing when I entered my email. Is this a feature of your software? Not a unique situation but one I need to account for and understand.
Legacy goals are not necessarily a reason to keep on saving! People tend to assume they need to work extra years so that they can provide a free handout to somebody, such as for college tuition. There may be an occasional, unique reason for this but often it is a destructive mindset. Especially with this last generation. They don't need to be enabled with a free pass to stare at their screens even more than they do while the money just appears in front of them.
Thanks for more motivation James!
Hello, thank you for everything that you learn us. But we need this in Spanish please.
How about a Properly Structured Max Funded IUL policy for living income tax free
Overall, a great message. However, the example of contributing to get the match and then taking out the funds (even if a penalty) did not sit well with me. Remember, employers offer 401(k) matches to encourage long-term savings for retirement. Using the match and then withdrawing the funds shortly after can be seen as taking advantage of the system, which might not align with the intended purpose of the benefit.