“Dad, How Did You Get to Where You Are?”

By Drazen @ Adobe Stock

You know the phrase “time is money, and money is time.” And if you’ve followed Your Survival Guy, you know the road to retirement wealth is a snapshot of time well spent.

Because we all have the same amount of time in the day from our early 20s through our mid-60s. It’s what we do with that time that matters most, and how we transition to spending mode after a lifetime of saving is far more difficult than many expect.

When you no longer “need” to work, it is because you made good decisions. Good decisions compound into a body of work that is impossible to relive. You’re only 25 once. And even if one could do it again, would you? I know I’m happy I put in the time and effort when I did. Start over? No, thank you.

“Dad, how did you get to where you are?” I remember asking him when I was a kid. And in my conversations with you, I often ask, “How did you get to where you are?” A common refrain is “I don’t know, hard work mostly.” Others say, “I got lucky, or “I was fortunate.” It’s amazing how we forget the day-to-day effort. We all know there were some scary times, some kitchen table discussions, and some sleepless nights. That’s life in the hustle and bustle of long days and few vacations.

My dad was a realtor in our small town of Mattapoisett. And one fond memory I have was walking into the post office with him and how everyone knew his name, and he theirs. That doesn’t happen by chance. It took him decades to forge those relationships and create trust to be their real estate guy. Now that he’s retired, he’s still well known around town.

Now, you have all the time in the world and are still incredibly busy. And shifting from a producer to finally living off your savings is not easy. It’s hard. It’s hard because you know how hard you worked for every dollar, and now a dollar ain’t worth a dime.

It’s why you saved ‘til it hurt and worked for as long as you could. “But what is the right way to spend it? How much can I spend and not outlive my savings?” I’m asked. These are some of the most difficult questions a retirement aged investor will face.

But these are good problems to have.

Action Line: Thanks to your younger self, you don’t have to work in a world that looks nothing like it did way back when. That’s the gift of time. I’m looking forward to hearing how you did it, but I think I already know what you’re going to say. Email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com, and click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.