4 Lessons from Another ‘Faux-tirement’

Unscheduled free time, small daily joys are some of life’s great luxuries. [Morningstar](?utm_source=eloqua&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_improvingfinances&utm_content=55411&elqTrackId=ccd7d71169314ccb85257474999c9041&elq=ea93e860c3134e4c92c5ddba63f0d930&elqaid=55411&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=28135) [Improving Your Finances] Improving Your Finances with [Christine Benz]( [Christine Benz] One of the key takeaways from my forthcoming book, [How to Retire]( is that it’s valuable to experiment before you embark on retirement. What do you want to do with your newfound free time? Do you want to relocate or stay put? Are you even ready to be retired? It’s wise to sort out those questions before you make big life changes that could be difficult to reverse. In that spirit, I’ve been informally using my six-week sabbaticals from work—a perk offered to Morningstar employees after every four years of service—to peer into my own future and dabble in something akin to retirement for several weeks. My last sabbatical was back in 2017, and [I wrote about some of my key takeaways at that time](. Seven years and a global pandemic later, I was even more keenly attuned to using my recent sabbatical as a way to experiment with what retirement might feel like. In [this week’s column]( I shared some observations from my latest “faux-tirement.” A fact of life in actual—rather than a trial run—retirement are required minimum distributions, or RMDs, which kick in once you turn age 73. Susan Dziubinski and I discussed some little-known facts about RMDs in [this video]( including some ways to reduce them! In terms of investments, [Amy Arnott’s article]( about how to build and maintain an investment portfolio is a treasure trove of wisdom about how to select and rightsize your positions in everything from [small caps]( to [Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities]( to [gold](. I also appreciated [John Rekenthaler’s recent examination]( of why stock returns over the past decade were so much higher than many experts thought they would be. What did the experts miss, and are naysayers pointing to today’s high US stock valuations likely to be wrong about the next decade? Finally, Amy Arnott and I had such a fun and thought-provoking [conversation about money personalities and relationships]( with Scott Rick, author of Tightwads and Spendthrifts: Navigating the Money Minefield in Real Relationships. Money is one of the main topics partners fight about, of course, so it was helpful to hear why money opposites often attract and what spendthrift/tightwad pairs can do to bridge what might seem like an insurmountably large gap. With warm regards, Christine Benz [Lessons From Another ‘Faux-tirement’]( A six-week break from work brings insights into retirement and life. [Find Out More]( Share: [facebook]( [twitter]( [linkedin]( ADVERTISEMENT [media]( [media] [What I Learned From My 'Faux-tirement']( A six-week break from work provides takeaways for retirement--and the years that will come before. [Read More]( [8 Little-Known Facts About RMDs]( Understand the rules and common misconceptions about who needs to take required minimum distributions, when to take them, and how to efficiently manage them. [Watch Now]( [Portfolio Basics: How to Build an Investment Portfolio]( Your guide to creating and cultivating a portfolio that works for you. [Get the Details]( [How to Use Small-Cap Stocks in Your Portfolio]( What you need to know about the advantages and risks of investing in small-cap stocks. [Read More]( [How to Use TIPS in Your Portfolio]( What you need to know about the advantages and risks of investing in TIPS. [Find Out Now]( [How to Use Gold in Your Portfolio]( What you need to know about the advantages and risks of investing in gold. [Read More]( [US Stocks Beat Predictions Over the Past Decade. Can They Do It Again?]( The math behind the market’s surprisingly strong performance. [Check It Out]( [5 Common Errors to Fix in Your IRA Before the IRS Flags Them]( Audit your IRA before the Internal Revenue Service does. [Read More]( [Scott Rick: Are You a Tightwad or a Spendthrift?]( A researcher discusses what shapes our money personalities and how financial disposition affects relationships. [Listen Today]( Get Top Stock Picks and Market Insights Every Week on The Morning Filter. Every Monday morning, Susan Dziubinski sits down with Morningstar Chief U.S. markets strategist Dave Sekera to discuss what's on his radar, new Morningstar research, and stock picks or pans for the week ahead. [Watch Now.](morningstar/streams?utm_source=eloqua&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter_improvingfinances&utm_content=55411) Stay connected: [twitter]( [facebook]( [linkedin]( [instagram]( [YouTube]( [Apple News]( [View online]( | [See all newsletters]( | [Share your feedback]( [Unsubscribe]( from this newsletter. Or update your [email preferences](. © 2024 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 22 W. Washington St. Chicago, IL 60602