I had a portable pension with the Ontario Nurses government pension but I decided to cash it out at age 49 and I am so glad I did - I started living this philosophy back in 2008 and it is a beautiful way to live - my nest egg continues to grow even though I have been unemployed for 16 years. Planning is everything. Frugal most days but when I spend I go all out and enjoy to the full!!! Highly recommend. Thanks Kristann
Read the book and really enjoyed it. My only son graduates from college in 2 years - this book inspired me to surprise him with a graduation present of enough money that it will grow to $1M by his retirement.
This book was huge for us! I'm 46 & my husband is 51 (and we were both civil service employees). We are set for retirement and wondered when enough would be enough. Then this book came into our lives. Now we are trying to focus on helping our young adult children and investing in memories as a family. We have 5 more years until our last children leave the nest, but we're researching and making plans for our travel lifestyle. Living day-to-day life, it is hard to keep the mindset and we regularly have discussions to evaluate whether we are living to accumulate or die with zero. I loved hearing your insight and I'm excited to see your journey!!
Thank you for your comment! I have had many conversations with my husband over the years about what is enough financially to retire and I expect to continue having those conversations now that we’ve both left paid employment.
I listened the audiobook, which is read by the author. It was one of several things which helped me encourage my husband to retire early. This is the first holiday weekend since he retired May 1st. We are enjoying the time together for sure and he's getting the garden in shape.
I can’t wait to read the book. I’m very fortunate that I work part time as a nurse so I have time off to travel. I’ll be 62 in July but never traveled abroad when younger so I started traveling after getting a divorce after 25 years of marriage. I plan on working until age 65 due to need for medical insurance but I’m not waiting until then to really enjoy myself when still able to. Being a nurse I’ve seen so many people who wait until they retire to enjoy themselves only to get sick and not be able to do so.
I think even if your kids would be okay, we should still give money to our kids. Spend while we're here to help them, like paying for their college education, buying their first home, etc. My husband and I are HUGE advocate for Generational wealth.
That is a lovely goal. I’m sure your kids would love an inheritance no matter when they get the money. My mom denied herself a lot of pleasures so that she’d have some money to leave us kids when she passed away (she left us each enough to buy a new car). I was grateful for the inheritance but would’ve preferred for her to have spent more on herself. She was a very caring person. I really miss her.
Thanks for this video! I'm 42 and I'm also a state employee working towards a pension and I don't often hear about people in the fire community with this option. For me it means I will be working full time until the age of 53 to 56ish so I can make the most of the pension. I'm excited to listen to more of your content!
Thank you so much for your kind comments! I really appreciate you watching my videos! I have been traveling a lot this month and got dreadfully behind on responding to comments!
I loved that book but read it a long time ago. I also retired at 56, divorced with no kids. My parents have passed and my inheritance was finalized years ago. I have a brother and am close to his family and have wonderful friends! I am very fortunate that I am in great shape financially. Unlike so many others, I am not crazy about travel at this point. I am 64 now and traveled so much when I was younger and also traveled a lot throughout my career. I need to start to spend down but it is such a different mindset to get into. After watching your video I think I will read the book again and figure out a plan😜 Enjoyed this!
Thanks so much for your comment! Sounds like you’ve had a fantastic retirement so far! Yes, spend that hard earned money while you’re still in good health. Make some more amazing memories for yourself! 🥹
Just entering retirement transition. Read the book a month ago, found it very insightful and thought provoking. I’d recommend it to family and friends for sure. Thank you for sharing!
Hi. I started my YT journey last month. Your words reminded me why I me made a decision to retire early. I want document my 5 year journey to my own financial independence so others can learn and have hope they can do it too! Thank you for your videos and sharing your life!
I just found your channel today! Your story resonates with me and I can't wait to watch more of your videos. I am 47 and have a government job. I especially like that you are planning to spend intentionally, to have all the great experiences you can!
I have learned to live somewhat frugal and have learned to enjoy the “little things “, Golf, hiking,Mass, So in retirement (3 1/2 years), I will continue to live my lifestyle with some extra spending . It is my expectation to leave much of my retirement savings to my two daughters and my church and will enjoy knowing this. This subject matter is such a personal choice and I have had many conversations about this with co workers and family. So far most respect my thoughts as I respect their opinions. Huggs and Kisses 😊
I read the book and loved it. I've adapted many of Bill Perkins' concepts into my retirement lifestyle. It has been such a counter intuitive shift for me from being a lifelong saver/investor to a spender. I ALMOST feel guilty for harvesting. I mean I've been working, saving, sacrificing for decades and now it's time to spend. Congratulations to you, your retirement and the challenge to relax some of the budget restrictions and responsibly enjoy your financial harvest.
Thanks for your story. I think it’s always interesting how people get to their fire destination. I retired early but put my fire number on cruise. Expect to hit 7 figures in 3 or 4 years Congratulations on your accomplishment!
My biggest regret was not entering into the civil service/government work force when I was in my twenties. I believed in the promises of profit sharing and private pension from the company I stayed with for thirty-four years, until it went bankrupt and I ended up with only a small fraction of the pension. Financial security is worth much more than a slightly higher pay check, broadly touted so many years ago before pay scales became much more competitive in the government jobs market vs private. But, live and learn!
Focus on protecting and strengthening your health now and commit to maintaining it throughout life. I think too many people just accept that their physical capability will wane, but that certainly is not inevitable. I was in poor health up to my late 40s, but I realized after losing several family members prematurely to various chronic diseases that I had to turn things around. Now I'm 55 and in the best health of my life. There is no reason you can't live a very full and active life way past 75, but you have to make physical and mental fitness your top priority. You can't enjoy your wealth if you're in poor health!
I'm just a maid, husband is a butler/muralist. We don't have much but what we do have we love to spend on travel. I really wish if our families would like to give us money they do it now so we can buy a house.
You are well spoken. Do you have choices other than “just a maid” to make a higher income? Can you and your husband buy a smaller home in a less expensive area? In my experience, wishing and hoping others will do something is less promising than taking the matter into my own hands. I am for generational wealth but to instill the idea that the child has to build their own wealth and giving them an opportunity to do so is one of the greatest legacies that a parent could leave a child.
@joannabusinessaccount7293 Oh yeah, we have other choices for our careers in theory. We both have 2 college degrees, but cleaning is very flexible and profitable. It's the taxes and health insurance that are our main expense. Yes we do plan on buying our own home and funding our own retirement, but it seems like our parents plan is to make us take care of them which would make it very hard to pursue our own wealth. It's a complicated situation we are only 40 and my mom 70 and she already needs us 3x a week to do things. As other boomers in our family age I think it will effect our finances or the nursing system will just take all their money anyways.
@@joannabusinessaccount7293youre correct ... but in the reply the phrases "in theory" , "2 college degrees but cleaning is flexible" , "we are only 40" , and "the nursing system will just take all their money anyway" explain this situation completely
Retiring from state service in 9 months at 53. People ask why I am leaving so early, when my pension will be higher if I wait. I respond "Why would I stay here when they are going to pay me for life not work here?" I can get any other job and still make $35k a year from a job I don't have to go to.
There seems to be the implicit idea in many retirement videos that everyone's ideal is to travel..There are many people whose idea of fun is to spend their days gardening.
I would think carefully about spending all of your TSP and leaving your husbands account alone. You might want to consult tax advisor… It might make sense to draw down equally on both accounts so that you’re not stuck with large required minimum distributions at 75 because of the size of one account. You don’t want to add onto your tax bill later in life…it’s just a thought. But ask a tax professional. Also, I was interested in the story you told about caring for your mother when she was older. You mentioned you don’t have children of your own nor do your siblings……what are your plans for yourselves in your later years since you don’t have children to look out for you? It’s something I’ve heard discussed a lot among people who are single or who don’t have children and I’m curious what your thoughts are on that… I need to read the book! Thanks for sharing!!
Hi there! Thanks for your comment. In order to stay within the 12% tax bracket next year I could only withdraw about 3% from my TSP, which is below the 4% safe withdrawal rate. I probably should have explained better that I’m not planning to take all of my TSP, only enough to stay within a lower tax bracket. We also have a brokerage account which we can draw from at the long term capital gains tax of 15%. As for old age, my husband and I are expecting to hire helpers as needed and possibly move into assisted living if needed. Since we own our house outright and it is currently valued in the high six figures, we would likely draw from the proceeds from the house sale or take a reverse mortgage if we need to move to an assisted living facility. I appreciate your great questions and suggestions! 😀🙏
I loved the book and shared it with some of my friends. They changed their life after reading and discussing it. In their mid 60s and they just took their first international trip. They loved it so much they want to do another one in the fall. hahaha. They have the travel bug now. I live by the time buckets. Have done many of the things you can do in your younger days and now doing the next ones before I get too old. Then have plans for slow travel through our 60s and into 70s and if still above ground even more slower travel and cruises. Create those memory dividends !! :)
Congrats on your retirement. I also retired from federal service at 56. Great decision ten years on as we travel 4-10 months a year making the best of our go go years. We also decided not to do Roth conversions because the fortunate reality is that our tax liability will always be higher with our pensions and COLAs. Makes no sense. Since my parents had Alzheimer’s in their 60’s we are taking a cautious approach to our TSP and brokerage account to insure we don’t burden our children with late in life costs. Better to have not given money to them to only have them pay it back for assisted living or memory care.
Thanks for your comment! And congratulations on your early retirement! It sounds like you are having a fantastic retirement. I truly hope you don’t get Alzheimer’s. My maternal grandmother died from Alzheimer’s in her mid 70s but her symptoms became obvious in her late 60s. My mother also died in her mid 70s but it was related to other diseases and she did not have any form of dementia when she passed. So hopefully that will be your experience too. 🙏
Nice review. We enjoyed our careers a lot, and also tried to have a lot of fun along the way. Both retired at 63. Money is not an issue for us(other than to have a plan and a budget). That was 2 and 3 years ago. We have no regrets, we could have retired earlier. Both of us were in healthcare, so we saw a lot of bad outcomes. Absolutely be careful about sacrificing today for tomorrow. There is a mid point. We also,are still waiting to get our inheritance! Both mom’s still alive at 87 and 88! We don’t need it. So 100% if you want to leave money to someone, get it to them when they need it. Maybe plan on the grandkids? That is our plan. BTW my 88 yo mother leaves on her annual trip to Europe in 2 weeks! She has slowed down, but not yet at the “no go” years.
Great book. I just read it for the second time. You mentioned in your video that you aren't sure if social security will be there in the future. I use to think the same until I read more about it. From what I learned social security will be there. It may be reduced by 20% in 10 years if congress does nothing to fix it, but it will still be there. I encourage you to read about how social security works. That alone helped me feel better about social security being there in the future. For instance a large percentage (80% or so) of social security payments come from people who are currently paying social security tax. Thus, it is only the trust fund that is in trouble. Furthermore, there are some simple, although highly political, ways to fix social security. For instance, only $168,600 in earnings in 2024 is subject to social security tax. For example if someone earns $178,600 in 2024, $10,000 of it is free from the 6.2% social security payroll tax. So, raising this cap means more earnings will have the social security tax applied and thus more money available for social security payments. This is only one of many possible solutions though. As you can already imagine this is a highly political decision because most people making more than the cap ($168,600) will very likely lobby against this solution to fix the social security problem, which if I was one of them, which I am not, I too would likely be against it.
I retired at 58.5 years old from the federal government. I took deferred retirement at 58.5 years to keep my health care. I had to pay the government’s part of FEHB for 1.5 years. At 60, I got my full pension and federal health care for life. My pension is tiny due to sequestration 10 years before I retired, so I used geoarbitrage and moved to a low cost of living area of the U.S.
Thanks for your comment! It sounds like you made a smart move to make your money go further by moving to a lower cost area. I hope you are enjoying your retirement!
I’m 55 (today!) and can’t see retiring before 65. Net worth of $700-750k approx. No pension. My hats off to all of you who can quit the rat race early!
Depends on your type of work. I felt the same way, until body started breaking down due to years of construction and looked around and almost everyone I know has died before age 60. When you get to be 60 I think your views will change.
@@johnd4348 luckily I have had desk jobs so I’m hoping my body will last a little longer. I fully understand those who have had physical jobs can’t easily last until 65 or 70.
18 year Federal government retiree here. We have been pulling about $50K per year from the TSP. Every year we have earned enough back in this investment to cover the $50K withdrawal. Best decision to retire at 55.
Congratulations on your retirement. I think this book is more about selling more books than giving good financial advice. The part about spending more than what you earn during younger years may or may or may not work out depending on what happens in the future. It might be overly optimistic at least in that section. Robot might replace your job in 10 years and you may have to rebuild a new career from scratch at a time that you built up debt in your younger years. It's written to cater to younger spend-a-holic to buy the book and talk about it so that others can follow. The 4% rule doesn't always work. Inflation for each person is different. Basic needs tend to go up faster than government published inflation (think housing, medical, food, energy, basic transportation (not a Ferrari)). Aside, even when 4% rule did "work", it was only up to 30 years and would not apply if you're trying to retire in your 30's for most people because you may live a lot longer than 30 years. It's ok when you reach point where even with the most conservative calculation and lofty medical inflation numbers you can throw at, you'll still likely to end up with too much money left over--that's the other audience the book was written for. Let's say you died at age 85 with $1 million of assets. If you could spend the equivalent amount 60 years ago at age 25, how much would that equate to in lump-sum amount be assuming 6%/year after inflation? $30,314.34. The magnification of life experience early on might not equate to the comfort of a fallback cushion you are building if you didn't spend that money that early. So I think there's a great deal of exaggeration on how much money was left behind and how much how much more enjoyment you could have earlier in life if you spent it on experiences back then. Money is a weird thing. Sure, giving to adult kids who are just starting out has a bigger impact to them. But there's a point where you have to decide if you're doing more harm than good by handing out money. What was that comment from Warren Buffett....Leave enough to do something, but not enough to do nothing.
When I think of a FIRE video , I don’t think of someone who retires to a pension and social security covering all their bills …. I think of people who saved and invested and got there … it was a foregone conclusion, unless you’re horrible about going into debt for nonsense
Thanks for your comment! While I do have a pension, my husband does not, and my pension replaces about 33% of my salary. We did save and invest as well. I’m part of the 2% of federal employees who have a million dollars in my retirement account, which took a long time to achieve. I have huge respect for people who achieve FIRE without a pension.
@@kristannonfire gotcha ... if you dont have kids , and you and your husband have both invested for retirement (with over a million in yours alone), and a brokerage account , and your pension and SS cover your expenses , it sounds like you guys have over-saved for retirement by a large margin ... tomorrow is not guaranteed , spend that money and enjoy it without guilt ! ... in the last 18 months ive lost my mother 66 , my dad 67 , and my boss who was a good friend at 68 ... they would have all enjoyed life much more and not focused on money stress and work so much if theyd known how little time they had left ... my boss was a good man , but he focused on nothing but his business he owned and money it seemed like ...he got cancer and for the last 3 years of his life he was mostly miserable and could rarely make it to work or stay all day ... he sold the business because of his health and died 5 months later ... the millions of dollars he had in the bank when he died did nothing for him in the end ... money isnt a goal , its a tool to achieve freedom and happiness ... congrats to both of you and good luck , you deserve it !
I read and enjoyed the book. However, i disagree with his opinion that 20 year olds should not be saving. Also did not agree with nursing home care should be just left up to the government. People that I know with long term care insurance found out that it doesn't cover as much as they were told. Other than those 2 items, the underlying concept of the book was excellent.
Thanks for your comment! You bring up great points. I was just talking with a neighbor of mine who is a caregiver for his elderly parents. He said that assisted living facilities in our area start at $7000 per month and his parents simply cannot afford that. Nor can he. So I think you’re wise to be prepared for that if the need arises.
Government Jobs are the only jobs left in America that allow and fund you to retire early, the rest of the real world doesn't really have this available. Like covered healthcare and pensions, we have to save the entire money needed and don't get the benefit a government employee gets
Thanks for the comment! Yes, investing early and often is key to attaining financial independence! I am a big fan of automatic deductions from my check to go directly to retirement and other savings accounts. Set it and forget it. You will quickly not even miss that money!
I am getting a pension immediately. In the government if you have a combination of at least 30 years of federal service and at least 56.5 years old you can get an immediate pension. It’s pretty awesome, but most federal employees don’t retire until after age 60.
@@kristannonfire im turning 35 this year and have 6 yrs under my belt federal wise. If I retire at 55. That's only 26 yrs of service. Would I still qualify to collect my pension at 55
I "have fun" in non-conventional ways. Not big on traveling. I plan on leaving money for my daughter. I watched my Mom spend any money she had over the twenty years after my Dad died. I found it selfish.
I’m sure your daughter will appreciate an inheritance, and I’m glad you are enjoying your life and making great memories for yourself! Thanks for the comment!
Yep - I've got to navigate my way through that! I am sure I'll do more videos on that as I settle into my retirement. We've got enough cash in the bank right now to see us through the rest of this year, but I will be interested to see how much of it we "allow" ourselves to spend. And we still haven't decided whether to take one big lump sum withdrawal from our brokerage account in January or do several smaller lump sum withdrawals over the course of the year. I'll be researching that for sure. Thanks for your comment!
@@kristannonfireThis is where I am, too. I will be interested in your thought process and decision. Today I am thinking I will keep the amount to cover a few years expenses in easily accessible “ cash” that gets replenished when timing is right. I will also watch for your thoughts on social security timing. Thanks for the video. Added the book to my reading list.
2:10 Mother had some health issues so "we" decided. Nope. That's how US women like to see the world. She decides and he goes along and then she thinks they decided together. I'm a US man, retired 22 years ago at 45. Biggest threat by far to retiring early is being married. I ended my marriage over retirement differences and it was the best financial decision I ever made. We're both much happier and doing our own thing. IMO it's better to divorce when you still want to be together then to have the risk to divorce when one spouse decides to take their half and live solo. Get divorced and stay together keeping finances separate.
4:50 Taking off to get great experiences. This is dumb as dumb gets. There's this myth that spending money is the only path to gaining good experiences. Better imo to earn money while gaining new experiences. Want to see the world? Get a job on a cruise ship or as a English language teacher. It is so silly to wait until retirement to start living.
Im sure you are excited. Those of us in the private sector had to live lean to save for retirement, and now we can't because we have to keep working to pay for all the government people who get a salary for life.
Oh please. Did you know that the pay in government is generally 30/50% lower than the private? Second, did you know that the ‘pension’ that the government workers will have are deducted from their working ages month after month while working? Third, did you know that there are boatloads more rules and regulations about work, time off, etc. working for the government? Suggest you educate yourself about where the ‘free money’ of government pension comes from before you accuse them of stealing your retirement. Worked in both government and private sectors, speaking from a more complete perspective.
Thanks for your comment! The pension was one of the main things that attracted me to work for the government along with the stability and benefits, and I always did feel it was a privilege to serve our country. Also my dad was career military and my mom was a career civil servant and they encouraged it. I’m glad they did. My husband worked for the private sector his whole career, he made good money but he suffered through several corporate restructuring and layoffs.
Oh, and one more thing, no, the government retirees do not get a “salary for life.” My understanding is they only get something like 2% of their annual salary each year - which is minuscule amount of their salary. It irks me when people think government’s employees steal money from tax payers. It irks me when people talk about military pension like t stealing from the government. No, our veterans risked their lives for this country. Did you?
I agree it is pretty unusual! My mom never dreamed that she'd never have any grandchildren. And all of us siblings assumed one of us would have kids - but none did! Actually none of us really wanted kids. We're all pretty introverted and like to have lots of quiet time to ourselves. While kids are pretty amazing, parents don't have much time for themselves for many years. Neither my husband nor I thought we'd be happier if we had kids. We've never regretted the decision.
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You popped up in my feed, so nice to see a woman discussing retirement! Subscribed.
I had a portable pension with the Ontario Nurses government pension but I decided to cash it out at age 49 and I am so glad I did - I started living this philosophy back in 2008 and it is a beautiful way to live - my nest egg continues to grow even though I have been unemployed for 16 years. Planning is everything. Frugal most days but when I spend I go all out and enjoy to the full!!! Highly recommend. Thanks Kristann
I love this! Thank you for sharing! Congratulations on your amazing early retirement!
Thank you for sharing, I appreciate your style and wish you a happy healthy retirement.
@@CuriouslyInquisitive thank you so much for the kind words! I am totally loving retirement so far! Have a great day! 😁
Read the book and really enjoyed it. My only son graduates from college in 2 years - this book inspired me to surprise him with a graduation present of enough money that it will grow to $1M by his retirement.
What a great gift you’re giving your son! Thank you for your comment!
Transferring wealth to kids at milestones was one of the biggest lessons I learned, too!
This book was huge for us! I'm 46 & my husband is 51 (and we were both civil service employees). We are set for retirement and wondered when enough would be enough. Then this book came into our lives.
Now we are trying to focus on helping our young adult children and investing in memories as a family. We have 5 more years until our last children leave the nest, but we're researching and making plans for our travel lifestyle.
Living day-to-day life, it is hard to keep the mindset and we regularly have discussions to evaluate whether we are living to accumulate or die with zero. I loved hearing your insight and I'm excited to see your journey!!
Thank you for your comment! I have had many conversations with my husband over the years about what is enough financially to retire and I expect to continue having those conversations now that we’ve both left paid employment.
I listened the audiobook, which is read by the author. It was one of several things which helped me encourage my husband to retire early. This is the first holiday weekend since he retired May 1st. We are enjoying the time together for sure and he's getting the garden in shape.
I can’t wait to read the book. I’m very fortunate that I work part time as a nurse so I have time off to travel. I’ll be 62 in July but never traveled abroad when younger so I started traveling after getting a divorce after 25 years of marriage. I plan on working until age 65 due to need for medical insurance but I’m not waiting until then to really enjoy myself when still able to. Being a nurse I’ve seen so many people who wait until they retire to enjoy themselves only to get sick and not be able to do so.
I think even if your kids would be okay, we should still give money to our kids.
Spend while we're here to help them, like paying for their college education, buying their first home, etc.
My husband and I are HUGE advocate for Generational wealth.
That is a lovely goal. I’m sure your kids would love an inheritance no matter when they get the money. My mom denied herself a lot of pleasures so that she’d have some money to leave us kids when she passed away (she left us each enough to buy a new car). I was grateful for the inheritance but would’ve preferred for her to have spent more on herself. She was a very caring person. I really miss her.
I would have had kids if my parents hadn't charged me rent! So there's that food for thought Tightwads get fewer grandkiddies
Thanks for this video! I'm 42 and I'm also a state employee working towards a pension and I don't often hear about people in the fire community with this option. For me it means I will be working full time until the age of 53 to 56ish so I can make the most of the pension. I'm excited to listen to more of your content!
Very inspiring! Will follow your channel and learn from your journey. Although my husband and I older than you. Thank you.
Thank you so much for your kind comments! I really appreciate you watching my videos! I have been traveling a lot this month and got dreadfully behind on responding to comments!
I loved that book but read it a long time ago. I also retired at 56, divorced with no kids. My parents have passed and my inheritance was finalized years ago.
I have a brother and am close to his family and have wonderful friends!
I am very fortunate that I am in great shape financially. Unlike so many others, I am not crazy about travel at this point. I am 64 now and traveled so much when I was younger and also traveled a lot throughout my career.
I need to start to spend down but it is such a different mindset to get into. After watching your video I think I will read the book again and figure out a plan😜 Enjoyed this!
Thanks so much for your comment! Sounds like you’ve had a fantastic retirement so far! Yes, spend that hard earned money while you’re still in good health. Make some more amazing memories for yourself! 🥹
Just entering retirement transition. Read the book a month ago, found it very insightful and thought provoking. I’d recommend it to family and friends for sure. Thank you for sharing!
Hi. I started my YT journey last month. Your words reminded me why I me made a decision to retire early. I want document my 5 year journey to my own financial independence so others can learn and have hope they can do it too! Thank you for your videos and sharing your life!
Thanks so much- I’m going to check out your channel!
Thank you for sharing about this great book. I loved the time bucket strategy.
This is the first of your videos that I’ve watched. Very enjoyable, great information, and I like your personable style. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you so much for the lovely comment! 😀
I just found your channel today! Your story resonates with me and I can't wait to watch more of your videos. I am 47 and have a government job. I especially like that you are planning to spend intentionally, to have all the great experiences you can!
Thank you so much!
I have learned to live somewhat frugal and have learned to enjoy the “little things “, Golf, hiking,Mass,
So in retirement (3 1/2 years), I will continue to live my lifestyle with some extra spending . It is my expectation to leave much of my retirement savings to my two daughters and my church and will enjoy knowing this.
This subject matter is such a personal choice and I have had many conversations about this with co workers and family. So far most respect my thoughts as I respect their opinions.
Huggs and Kisses 😊
I read the book and loved it. I've adapted many of Bill Perkins' concepts into my retirement lifestyle. It has been such a counter intuitive shift for me from being a lifelong saver/investor to a spender. I ALMOST feel guilty for harvesting. I mean I've been working, saving, sacrificing for decades and now it's time to spend. Congratulations to you, your retirement and the challenge to relax some of the budget restrictions and responsibly enjoy your financial harvest.
Well said! I hope you are living your retirement! You deserve to!
Thanks for your story. I think it’s always interesting how people get to their fire destination. I retired early but put my fire number on cruise. Expect to hit 7 figures in 3 or 4 years Congratulations on your accomplishment!
Thanks so much for your comment! It sounds like you’re well on your way to a prosperous retirement!😀
I’m eligible for a federal pension on 6/29/24 at 56 and a half.
Glad TH-cam suggested your channel. Just ordered the book and look forward to reading it.
Hope you enjoy it!
My biggest regret was not entering into the civil service/government work force when I was in my twenties. I believed in the promises of profit sharing and private pension from the company I stayed with for thirty-four years, until it went bankrupt and I ended up with only a small fraction of the pension. Financial security is worth much more than a slightly higher pay check, broadly touted so many years ago before pay scales became much more competitive in the government jobs market vs private. But, live and learn!
Oh gosh, I am so sorry that happened to you! That is horrible!
I love your smiling eyes!
Go go years, slow go years and no go years. I reckon having until 75 to enjoy go go fun
I hope so too! Thanks for your comment!
Focus on protecting and strengthening your health now and commit to maintaining it throughout life. I think too many people just accept that their physical capability will wane, but that certainly is not inevitable. I was in poor health up to my late 40s, but I realized after losing several family members prematurely to various chronic diseases that I had to turn things around. Now I'm 55 and in the best health of my life. There is no reason you can't live a very full and active life way past 75, but you have to make physical and mental fitness your top priority. You can't enjoy your wealth if you're in poor health!
Great perspective. I will get the book. Tomorrow is not promised to any of us. Huge life decision but one that has to be made.
I've been wanting to read this book! Thank you for the synopsis. ☺ I agree 100%. Subscribed!
Awesome! Thank you!
Hi great video have a fantastic retirement… love from Scotland x
I'm just a maid, husband is a butler/muralist. We don't have much but what we do have we love to spend on travel. I really wish if our families would like to give us money they do it now so we can buy a house.
You are well spoken. Do you have choices other than “just a maid” to make a higher income? Can you and your husband buy a smaller home in a less expensive area? In my experience, wishing and hoping others will do something is less promising than taking the matter into my own hands. I am for generational wealth but to instill the idea that the child has to build their own wealth and giving them an opportunity to do so is one of the greatest legacies that a parent could leave a child.
@joannabusinessaccount7293 Oh yeah, we have other choices for our careers in theory. We both have 2 college degrees, but cleaning is very flexible and profitable. It's the taxes and health insurance that are our main expense. Yes we do plan on buying our own home and funding our own retirement, but it seems like our parents plan is to make us take care of them which would make it very hard to pursue our own wealth. It's a complicated situation we are only 40 and my mom 70 and she already needs us 3x a week to do things. As other boomers in our family age I think it will effect our finances or the nursing system will just take all their money anyways.
@@joannabusinessaccount7293youre correct ... but in the reply the phrases "in theory" , "2 college degrees but cleaning is flexible" , "we are only 40" , and "the nursing system will just take all their money anyway" explain this situation completely
Retiring from state service in 9 months at 53. People ask why I am leaving so early, when my pension will be higher if I wait. I respond "Why would I stay here when they are going to pay me for life not work here?" I can get any other job and still make $35k a year from a job I don't have to go to.
I can't wait to watch more of your videos. You have a very pleasant voice.
That is so awesome!!!! The time will go fast! Thank you so much for your nice comments!
There seems to be the implicit idea in many retirement videos that everyone's ideal is to travel..There are many people whose idea of fun is to spend their days gardening.
@@bluegtturbo you’re right!
I would think carefully about spending all of your TSP and leaving your husbands account alone. You might want to consult tax advisor… It might make sense to draw down equally on both accounts so that you’re not stuck with large required minimum distributions at 75 because of the size of one account. You don’t want to add onto your tax bill later in life…it’s just a thought. But ask a tax professional. Also, I was interested in the story you told about caring for your mother when she was older. You mentioned you don’t have children of your own nor do your siblings……what are your plans for yourselves in your later years since you don’t have children to look out for you? It’s something I’ve heard discussed a lot among people who are single or who don’t have children and I’m curious what your thoughts are on that… I need to read the book! Thanks for sharing!!
Hi there! Thanks for your comment. In order to stay within the 12% tax bracket next year I could only withdraw about 3% from my TSP, which is below the 4% safe withdrawal rate. I probably should have explained better that I’m not planning to take all of my TSP, only enough to stay within a lower tax bracket. We also have a brokerage account which we can draw from at the long term capital gains tax of 15%. As for old age, my husband and I are expecting to hire helpers as needed and possibly move into assisted living if needed. Since we own our house outright and it is currently valued in the high six figures, we would likely draw from the proceeds from the house sale or take a reverse mortgage if we need to move to an assisted living facility. I appreciate your great questions and suggestions! 😀🙏
I loved the book and shared it with some of my friends. They changed their life after reading and discussing it. In their mid 60s and they just took their first international trip. They loved it so much they want to do another one in the fall. hahaha. They have the travel bug now. I live by the time buckets. Have done many of the things you can do in your younger days and now doing the next ones before I get too old. Then have plans for slow travel through our 60s and into 70s and if still above ground even more slower travel and cruises. Create those memory dividends !! :)
Thanks so much for your fantastic comment!
Really helpful! I subscribed and look forward to learning more.
Thank you so much for the comment and subscribing! 🙏😀
Thank you for sharing. I agree with you. Planning to retire in my fifties December. 😊
Congratulations on your upcoming retirement! I hope the next 7 months fly by!
Early retirement wanderlust just did a good little review on this book about two weeks ago.
Thanks for the recommendation! 😀
Congrats on your retirement. I also retired from federal service at 56. Great decision ten years on as we travel 4-10 months a year making the best of our go go years. We also decided not to do Roth conversions because the fortunate reality is that our tax liability will always be higher with our pensions and COLAs. Makes no sense. Since my parents had Alzheimer’s in their 60’s we are taking a cautious approach to our TSP and brokerage account to insure we don’t burden our children with late in life costs. Better to have not given money to them to only have them pay it back for assisted living or memory care.
Thanks for your comment! And congratulations on your early retirement! It sounds like you are having a fantastic retirement. I truly hope you don’t get Alzheimer’s. My maternal grandmother died from Alzheimer’s in her mid 70s but her symptoms became obvious in her late 60s. My mother also died in her mid 70s but it was related to other diseases and she did not have any form of dementia when she passed. So hopefully that will be your experience too. 🙏
Nice review.
We enjoyed our careers a lot, and also tried to have a lot of fun along the way. Both retired at 63. Money is not an issue for us(other than to have a plan and a budget).
That was 2 and 3 years ago. We have no regrets, we could have retired earlier.
Both of us were in healthcare, so we saw a lot of bad outcomes. Absolutely be careful about sacrificing today for tomorrow. There is a mid point.
We also,are still waiting to get our inheritance! Both mom’s still alive at 87 and 88! We don’t need it. So 100% if you want to leave money to someone, get it to them when they need it.
Maybe plan on the grandkids? That is our plan.
BTW my 88 yo mother leaves on her annual trip to Europe in 2 weeks! She has slowed down, but not yet at the “no go” years.
Wow, thanks for the great comment! Yay for your mom still traveling to Europe! I hope I’m able to do that. Sounds like you have a very nice life! 😀
Wow, 88 and still going!
We’ve spent 5 years focused on hobbies and adventurous travel, but will spend the next 12 months pet/house sitting as a new project….
That sounds like so much fun! I have a friend who does that and she loves it.
This channel is a nice find! Just subs to your channel, hope to see more of you. 😊
Awesome! Thank you!
Great book. I just read it for the second time. You mentioned in your video that you aren't sure if social security will be there in the future. I use to think the same until I read more about it. From what I learned social security will be there. It may be reduced by 20% in 10 years if congress does nothing to fix it, but it will still be there. I encourage you to read about how social security works. That alone helped me feel better about social security being there in the future. For instance a large percentage (80% or so) of social security payments come from people who are currently paying social security tax. Thus, it is only the trust fund that is in trouble. Furthermore, there are some simple, although highly political, ways to fix social security. For instance, only $168,600 in earnings in 2024 is subject to social security tax. For example if someone earns $178,600 in 2024, $10,000 of it is free from the 6.2% social security payroll tax. So, raising this cap means more earnings will have the social security tax applied and thus more money available for social security payments. This is only one of many possible solutions though. As you can already imagine this is a highly political decision because most people making more than the cap ($168,600) will very likely lobby against this solution to fix the social security problem, which if I was one of them, which I am not, I too would likely be against it.
Thanks for the comment and great explanation! I appreciate it!
I retired at 58.5 years old from the federal government. I took deferred retirement at 58.5 years to keep my health care. I had to pay the government’s part of FEHB for 1.5 years. At 60, I got my full pension and federal health care for life. My pension is tiny due to sequestration 10 years before I retired, so I used geoarbitrage and moved to a low cost of living area of the U.S.
Thanks for your comment! It sounds like you made a smart move to make your money go further by moving to a lower cost area. I hope you are enjoying your retirement!
Congratulations
I’m 55 (today!) and can’t see retiring before 65. Net worth of $700-750k approx. No pension. My hats off to all of you who can quit the rat race early!
Depends on your type of work. I felt the same way, until body started breaking down due to years of construction and looked around and almost everyone I know has died before age 60. When you get to be 60 I think your views will change.
@@johnd4348 luckily I have had desk jobs so I’m hoping my body will last a little longer. I fully understand those who have had physical jobs can’t easily last until 65 or 70.
18 year Federal government retiree here. We have been pulling about $50K per year from the TSP. Every year we have earned enough back in this investment to cover the $50K withdrawal. Best decision to retire at 55.
That’s awesome! Congratulations!!!! May I ask what your fund mix? I have 60% in C fund and 40% in G fund.
Congratulations on your retirement. I think this book is more about selling more books than giving good financial advice. The part about spending more than what you earn during younger years may or may or may not work out depending on what happens in the future. It might be overly optimistic at least in that section. Robot might replace your job in 10 years and you may have to rebuild a new career from scratch at a time that you built up debt in your younger years. It's written to cater to younger spend-a-holic to buy the book and talk about it so that others can follow. The 4% rule doesn't always work. Inflation for each person is different. Basic needs tend to go up faster than government published inflation (think housing, medical, food, energy, basic transportation (not a Ferrari)). Aside, even when 4% rule did "work", it was only up to 30 years and would not apply if you're trying to retire in your 30's for most people because you may live a lot longer than 30 years. It's ok when you reach point where even with the most conservative calculation and lofty medical inflation numbers you can throw at, you'll still likely to end up with too much money left over--that's the other audience the book was written for. Let's say you died at age 85 with $1 million of assets. If you could spend the equivalent amount 60 years ago at age 25, how much would that equate to in lump-sum amount be assuming 6%/year after inflation? $30,314.34. The magnification of life experience early on might not equate to the comfort of a fallback cushion you are building if you didn't spend that money that early. So I think there's a great deal of exaggeration on how much money was left behind and how much how much more enjoyment you could have earlier in life if you spent it on experiences back then. Money is a weird thing. Sure, giving to adult kids who are just starting out has a bigger impact to them. But there's a point where you have to decide if you're doing more harm than good by handing out money. What was that comment from Warren Buffett....Leave enough to do something, but not enough to do nothing.
Thank you so much for the thoughtful comment! You make very good points.
When I think of a FIRE video , I don’t think of someone who retires to a pension and social security covering all their bills …. I think of people who saved and invested and got there … it was a foregone conclusion, unless you’re horrible about going into debt for nonsense
Thanks for your comment! While I do have a pension, my husband does not, and my pension replaces about 33% of my salary. We did save and invest as well. I’m part of the 2% of federal employees who have a million dollars in my retirement account, which took a long time to achieve. I have huge respect for people who achieve FIRE without a pension.
@@kristannonfire gotcha ... if you dont have kids , and you and your husband have both invested for retirement (with over a million in yours alone), and a brokerage account , and your pension and SS cover your expenses , it sounds like you guys have over-saved for retirement by a large margin ... tomorrow is not guaranteed , spend that money and enjoy it without guilt ! ... in the last 18 months ive lost my mother 66 , my dad 67 , and my boss who was a good friend at 68 ... they would have all enjoyed life much more and not focused on money stress and work so much if theyd known how little time they had left ... my boss was a good man , but he focused on nothing but his business he owned and money it seemed like ...he got cancer and for the last 3 years of his life he was mostly miserable and could rarely make it to work or stay all day ... he sold the business because of his health and died 5 months later ... the millions of dollars he had in the bank when he died did nothing for him in the end ... money isnt a goal , its a tool to achieve freedom and happiness ... congrats to both of you and good luck , you deserve it !
If I miss a day of work, it takes two to catch up.
Yes, I have always felt that way too!
Yes, I totally know that feeling!!!!
❤
I read and enjoyed the book. However, i disagree with his opinion that 20 year olds should not be saving. Also did not agree with nursing home care should be just left up to the government. People that I know with long term care insurance found out that it doesn't cover as much as they were told. Other than those 2 items, the underlying concept of the book was excellent.
Thanks for your comment! You bring up great points. I was just talking with a neighbor of mine who is a caregiver for his elderly parents. He said that assisted living facilities in our area start at $7000 per month and his parents simply cannot afford that. Nor can he. So I think you’re wise to be prepared for that if the need arises.
Government Jobs are the only jobs left in America that allow and fund you to retire early, the rest of the real world doesn't really have this available. Like covered healthcare and pensions, we have to save the entire money needed and don't get the benefit a government employee gets
Thanks for the comment!
invest invest and move to lower cost of living i dont know in US but other countries yes
Thanks for the comment! Yes, investing early and often is key to attaining financial independence! I am a big fan of automatic deductions from my check to go directly to retirement and other savings accounts. Set it and forget it. You will quickly not even miss that money!
I retired at 33 years old. I never count on social security because next 30 years social security won't exist anymore.
Wow AMAZING to retire that young!!!!
Retiring at 56, when are you able to start collecting your federal pension?
I am getting a pension immediately. In the government if you have a combination of at least 30 years of federal service and at least 56.5 years old you can get an immediate pension. It’s pretty awesome, but most federal employees don’t retire until after age 60.
@@kristannonfire im turning 35 this year and have 6 yrs under my belt federal wise. If I retire at 55. That's only 26 yrs of service. Would I still qualify to collect my pension at 55
I read that book and appreciate some of the insights. But I think the author is too confident in predicting your lifespan and spending needs.
It is definitely a book that challenges the reader to question assumptions on both sides. Thanks for your comment! 😀
I "have fun" in non-conventional ways. Not big on traveling. I plan on leaving money for my daughter. I watched my Mom spend any money she had over the twenty years after my Dad died. I found it selfish.
I’m sure your daughter will appreciate an inheritance, and I’m glad you are enjoying your life and making great memories for yourself! Thanks for the comment!
Saver to spender anxiety. Yikes 😮
Yep - I've got to navigate my way through that! I am sure I'll do more videos on that as I settle into my retirement. We've got enough cash in the bank right now to see us through the rest of this year, but I will be interested to see how much of it we "allow" ourselves to spend. And we still haven't decided whether to take one big lump sum withdrawal from our brokerage account in January or do several smaller lump sum withdrawals over the course of the year. I'll be researching that for sure. Thanks for your comment!
@@kristannonfireThis is where I am, too. I will be interested in your thought process and decision. Today I am thinking I will keep the amount to cover a few years expenses in easily accessible “ cash” that gets replenished when timing is right. I will also watch for your thoughts on social security timing. Thanks for the video. Added the book to my reading list.
2:10 Mother had some health issues so "we" decided. Nope. That's how US women like to see the world. She decides and he goes along and then she thinks they decided together.
I'm a US man, retired 22 years ago at 45. Biggest threat by far to retiring early is being married. I ended my marriage over retirement differences and it was the best financial decision I ever made. We're both much happier and doing our own thing. IMO it's better to divorce when you still want to be together then to have the risk to divorce when one spouse decides to take their half and live solo. Get divorced and stay together keeping finances separate.
Thanks for your comment!
4:50 Taking off to get great experiences. This is dumb as dumb gets. There's this myth that spending money is the only path to gaining good experiences. Better imo to earn money while gaining new experiences. Want to see the world? Get a job on a cruise ship or as a English language teacher. It is so silly to wait until retirement to start living.
Thanks for your comment!
Im sure you are excited. Those of us in the private sector had to live lean to save for retirement, and now we can't because we have to keep working to pay for all the government people who get a salary for life.
Oh please. Did you know that the pay in government is generally 30/50% lower than the private? Second, did you know that the ‘pension’ that the government workers will have are deducted from their working ages month after month while working? Third, did you know that there are boatloads more rules and regulations about work, time off, etc. working for the government? Suggest you educate yourself about where the ‘free money’ of government pension comes from before you accuse them of stealing your retirement. Worked in both government and private sectors, speaking from a more complete perspective.
Thanks for your comment! The pension was one of the main things that attracted me to work for the government along with the stability and benefits, and I always did feel it was a privilege to serve our country. Also my dad was career military and my mom was a career civil servant and they encouraged it. I’m glad they did. My husband worked for the private sector his whole career, he made good money but he suffered through several corporate restructuring and layoffs.
Oh, and one more thing, no, the government retirees do not get a “salary for life.” My understanding is they only get something like 2% of their annual salary each year - which is minuscule amount of their salary. It irks me when people think government’s employees steal money from tax payers. It irks me when people talk about military pension like t stealing from the government. No, our veterans risked their lives for this country. Did you?
No children in the whole family? Hmm unusual
Not so unusual. I have a brother and a sister and none of us have children.
@@heidikamrath1951 it’s still unusual.
I agree it is pretty unusual! My mom never dreamed that she'd never have any grandchildren. And all of us siblings assumed one of us would have kids - but none did! Actually none of us really wanted kids. We're all pretty introverted and like to have lots of quiet time to ourselves. While kids are pretty amazing, parents don't have much time for themselves for many years. Neither my husband nor I thought we'd be happier if we had kids. We've never regretted the decision.
Hmm, unusual, but not newsworthy. What exactly are you commenting about, concerning the no children comment?
@@joannabusinessaccount7293 did you watch the video?