Early Retirement Resources 8/14/2023 – Can I Retire Yet?

I have an interesting set of resources covering a diverse array of topics today. Let’s dive right in!

A Little Perspective

I encourage you to look past the clickbait listicle title on this first resource. If you do, you will find a thought provoking list to help you align your spending with timeless truths. From No Sidebar 12 Things That Look Less Impressive the Older You Get.

It’s easy to find ourselves longing for “the good old days” when everything was so much better. Or was it? John Rekenthaler writes Retirement in America: Were We Better Off 50 Years Ago?

What Do You Value?

Many readers of this blog are pondering early retirement, traditional retirement, mini-retirements, or even whether ever retiring makes sense. A big part of finding the best answer to those questions is to examine what work means to you personally.

Derek Thompson creates a framework for doing so, writing Your Career Is Just One Eighth of Your Life.

Many personal finance “gurus” share one size fits all financial advice. Adam Grossman writes Your Answers May Vary.

This idea of getting very intentional about determining what you value and aligning your financial decisions with your values was a big part of the conversation I had with the guys from the Boston Institute of Finance on their BIF Bites Podcast. They asked me, Is FIRE Still Possible in 2023?

Taking Care Of Your Mental Health

Bari Weiss talked to Colin Campbell on the Honestly Podcast about How to Live After Profound Loss. Campbell experienced the unthinkable, losing both of his teenage children simultaneously in an accident when their family’s car was struck by a drunk driver. 

This conversation is a must listen to learn strategies for dealing with grief and to be better able to walk with friends and loved ones dealing with grief. Unfortunately, 100% of people reading this have dealt and/or will deal with both these scenarios at some point in their lives.

Loneliness is a massive challenge for many people as they age. Richard Eisenberg writes How to thrive as a solo ager in retirement.

Taking Care Of Your Physical Health

I recently reviewed Dr. Peter Attia’s new book about developing strategies to improve health, live longer, and thrive into old age. The next two articles build on the concepts I discussed in that blog post.

From Attia’s blog comes a powerful story: A case study on the importance of taking charge of one’s own health.

One of the big take home messages from Attia’s book is the importance of regular exercise. However, most people will need more instruction to learn to exercise safely and effectively.

Rich Roll interviewed physical therapist Kelly Starrett and his wife Juliet about Becoming a Durable Human. Their approach to exercise intrigued me enough to order their book, which I’ll review on the blog if it merits. In the meantime, this is a worthwhile discussion for those looking to develop a more active lifestyle to improve health and function.

Protect Yourself

Like many of you I’m sure, I’ve been taken aback by footage of the fires ravaging Maui. Natural disasters like this are one of my biggest fears living in an area that is at risk for both wildfires and earthquakes.

For most of us not directly impacted by this tragedy, Michelle Singletary writes How to protect your financial life from wildfires, extreme weather.

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[Chris Mamula used principles of traditional retirement planning, combined with creative lifestyle design, to retire from a career as a physical therapist at age 41. After poor experiences with the financial industry early in his professional life, he educated himself on investing and tax planning. After achieving financial independence, Chris began writing about wealth building, DIY investing, financial planning, early retirement, and lifestyle design at Can I Retire Yet? He is also the primary author of the book Choose FI: Your Blueprint to Financial Independence. Chris also does financial planning with individuals and couples at Abundo Wealth, a low-cost, advice-only financial planning firm with the mission of making quality financial advice available to populations for whom it was previously inaccessible. Chris has been featured on MarketWatch, Morningstar, U.S. News & World Report, and Business Insider. He has spoken at events including the Bogleheads and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants annual conferences. Blog inquiries can be sent to chris@caniretireyet.com. Financial planning inquiries can be sent to chris@abundowealth.com]

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