Great thread so far.
As Steve Jobs said the immutable fact is death is the greatest changing force on the planet. There's this balance between the present and the future. What good is saving for an RRSP if you exit the planet pre-maturely.
Then I think about John Lennon, that life is what happens when your busy making other plans. The whole Freedom 55 thing.
Theres a fine balance for living and experiencing each day and planning for the future.
Wealth which creates choice is created from income and ensuring your expenses are way below. Wealth is potential energy that is stored to be used to make a choice. Once that choice is made, wealth quickly dissipates. Most people that I know that are wealthy consume very little and would be hard to identify. Most people that I know the make a lot of money spend it and do not have wealth. Just materials and coffee house addictions and no freedom of choice.
To that end, retirement should be defined as having your expenses totally in control. The truth is by the time most people are 65 they aren't too interested in consuming anymore. They are not looking to move into a neighbourhood, or the trouble of renovating. They may not want to travel as much, or plan out a cheaper extended stay. They drive their cars longer, they drive less. The flash dance of newer, better, faster is replaced with peace, no trouble, leave me alone. They've successfully partnered with a woman who has issued her demands, not divorced you (50% wife tax) and is no longer possessed.
It's more about a state of mind. If you really went to work on your spending and you could transport your mind to the age of 65 and take away all your desires and needs, your spending would plummet tomorrow. That's the moment you start to build wealth and freedom of choice. However, you could be 25, and you need a house a new car, a washer a dryer, a wedding..... wealth is demographically linked to age.
Retirement is not sitting around wasting your days, or spending wads of cash, it's having enough wealth to responsibly choose and be free from outside influence on your decisions.
|