Julie wanted to help kids.
So she got a degree in education and went to work for the public school system.
Over her career, she watched as her friends in corporate jobs bought nice homes and fully funded their
kids’ college.
She and her husband Bob (also an educator) couldn’t afford those types of things, but they weren’t too
bothered by it. After all, they were doing what they loved.
PLUS, the state teachers’ pension was pretty darn generous and the income they would receive would be
more than enough to support them once they retired.
So they kept their head down until they maxed out their pension benefits and retired at age 60.
Life was good. They were enjoying their retirement and spending lots of time with their grandkids, until…
The first sign of trouble popped up at a few years later.
They saw a headline about how the state pension was underfunded.
They didn’t think too much of it at the time.
But over the next couple of years the headlines got worse and worse then they got notification that
their pension benefits would be reduced.
It wasn’t much at first, but then they got another reduction. And another one. And another one. Finally in
their 9th year of retirement, their pension benefits were 25% of what they were in Year 1.
They spent the rest of retirement “just getting by.” They could afford one vacation every 3-4 years.
Christmas for the grandkids was slim. And dinners out were few and far between.
Where did they go wrong?
They relied on someone else for their future.
Pensions can fail. Social Security could go bust. Inheritances can go “poof”.
You CANNOT rely on someone else for your future and be financially free.
For that reason, we do NOT include pensions, Social Security or inheritances in calculating your Financial
Zen Number.
If you are going to retire SUPER EARLY, you need to be in full control of your passive income.
And if you DO get that pension, Social Security or inheritance, well you’ve got some more vacations to
take!
