Figuring out how to retire isn’t easy.
Take me, for instance. I’ve been a student of the subject for nearly 60 years. I understand the math, the tools and the major issues. I’ve had the resources to be completely retired for 20 years. And I reached the age of 84 a week ago.
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I am one of the fortunate ones. Retirement isn’t still a problem for most men who were born when I was because nearly 80 percent have died.
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But I still haven’t “pulled the trigger” on actual retirement.
That leaves me in an awkward position. I can be an “age scout,” a term aging expert Ken Dychtwald used decades ago. I can report on aspects of impending retirement for readers. But I can’t report as a true retiree.
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Most readers want to avoid my fate. You’ll need to learn how to retire in a timely fashion. Like at a nice, tender age. Think 65. Or 67. No later than 73, the age when required minimum distributions are, well, required.
Query: Is there a way anyone, at any age, can learn about the process of financing their life, the whole enchilada?
There is, and her name is Christine Benz. Her book is titled How to Retire: 20 Lessons for a Happy, Successful, and Wealthy Retirement.
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Her name may be familiar because she is the director of personal finance and retirement planning for the Morningstar website. If Morningstar doesn’t ring a bell, please take your free ticket to the banquet. Morningstar is a website devoted to providing retail investors with unbiased information on any aspect of investing, personal finance and retirement, all written in language most people can understand.
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The subtitle is important. The book has 311 pages and 20 lessons, all written as interviews. That means you get to read easily understood conversational English. With an average length of about 15 pages, each lesson can be read casually. Each chapter ends with her “takeaways” and a few references for further reading, watching or listening.
Can it compete with TikTok or YouTube shorts for brevity? No way. But this is a real book. It is not to be compared with the fact-free drivel that dominates cellphone and website use.
Here are some of the things I particularly liked about the book:
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