to retire early in their own style. Cashing In On The American Dream. The first book I ever discovered about early retirement by someone who had actually done it was Cashing In on the American Dream: How to Retire at 35, by Paul Terhorst, (now out of print). This book had me daydreaming in my office to the point that I was unproductive for several days. In the book, Terhorst chronicles life as a perpetual traveler, living in retirement without a home base. While some of the book is outdated such as the parts advocating putting your nest egg primarily in fixed income investments the book still contains much to inspire those planning to retire, early or otherwise. The Terhorst's are still at it, reporting in from time to time on their website. Living the Good Life. Even before Terhorst, there were people out there exploring an alternate to the 24/7 wage- slave mentality that now defines American culture. In 1954, Helen and Scott Nearing wrote Living the Good Life: How to Live Sanely and Simply in a Troubled World. In their book, they chronicle their journey to nirvana in the Vermont countryside. Part of the back to the land movement, which they helped popularize, the Nearings didn’t retire in the traditional sense. Instead, they shifted their entire life paradigm to reject industrialization, which they believed brought only unnecessary “complexity, anxiety, waste, ugliness and uproar,” and the work ethic it mandated. After moving to rural Vermont, they diminished the importance of work, making it a minor part of a rich life. Their concept of living was to work hard but no more than four hours a day, leaving the rest to leisure and learning activities. In that way, they retired every day and made retirement coexistent and co-equal with occupation. Adventurous Retirement. Another couple, Billy and Akaisha Kaderli, retired at age 38 and wrote The Adventurer's Guide to Early Retirement, published electronically and on CD and now in its third edition. As perpetual travelers like the Terhorsts, they report living a rich life traveling the world on very little money. Premature Retirement. Then there are people like Rodney Rothman, a former writer for The David Letterman Show, who moved into a retirement community at age 28. He chronicled his experience in the book Early Bird: A Memoir of Premature Retirement. Life in a retirement community is a lot like high school, according to Rothman, although it lasts a lot longer. In a segment on the PBS program Life – Part 2, he also reports the retiree lifestyle to be far from sedentary. In fact, Rothman found it “exhausting,” but concludes that the generation that's currently retired has “got things right.” Albeit heartwarming, Rothman's tale was really about playing at retirement. For all the laughs, the book does not deal seriously with the many issues that people will need to resolve in order to retire, especially if they plan to retire early. Also, he was living in a fairly posh retirement community which doesn't come cheap and will not be affordable for many retirees. In reality, financing early retirement takes some sound financial planning. Since the average lifespan of Americans has increased to over 78 years of age, an early retirement is going to last a long time and will take resources. How much you will need will depend on your lifestyle. As outlined in the book, Who Said You Need Millions? Retirement Strategies for the Rest of Us, whether your focus is an early retirement or retirement at “normal” retirement age (whatever that is), it's better to focus your efforts on trying to find a retirement lifestyle that will fit your budget than on trying (and most likely failing) to amass the multi-million dollar nest egg needed to live lavishly in retirement. Want to learn more about retirement and retirement strategies? Then order Who Said You Need Millions? - Retirement Strategies for the Rest of Us. (c) 2008 by Jonathan D. Edelfelt. All rights reserved Was this article helpful? |
| Trailblazers Of Early Retirement by Jonathan D. Edelfelt |
