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Get a Life: You Don't Need a Million to Retire Well

by Attorney Ralph Warner

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Price:   $21.20

Summary

The financial-service industry wants you to believe that in order to avoid financial destitution, you need to put aside huge amounts of money that you -- let's say it together -- "should have begun saving years ago."

Not true, states Warner, the author of Get a Life. Although a sensible savings plan makes good horse sense, many other actions and decisions will determine whether you enjoy your retirement years.

Get a Life shows you how to beat the anxiety surrounding retirement, and to develop a plan to make your golden years the best of your life by:

• developing family relationships
• maintaining and creating friendships
• improving health
• keeping active
• developing a robust curiosity for the world
• realistically calculating how much money you need and how to secure it

The 5th edition provides the latest research and studies that show physically and mentally active retirees live longer and enjoy happier lives.

Press Reviews

"Offers sound advice for achieving both financial success and developing areas of your life that will truly make a difference in retirement..." Chicago Tribune

"This inspirational book discusses how people can have a successful retirement without a lot of money as long as they have strong relationships, decent health and absorbing activities to keep them going." Liz Pulliam Weston, Los Angeles Times

"Hard work and a lifetime of savings are the prescription for a good retirement, right? Think again... U.S News & World Report

"Some books slice through the media noise with clarity. Get a Life is one of them. Its author advises a life-enriching retirement plan." Fort Worth Star-Telegram

"If you're in your 40s or 50s and find yourself spending too much time worrying about how many hundreds of thousands (or millions) you will need to retire, I have a suggestion. Do what I did... Put in a rush order for [Warner's] book Get a Life." Scott Burns, Houston Chronicle

"One of the best retirement books to come out in recent years... puts money and the other essentials of retirement life in its place." Linda Stern, Reuters

"On my scale of one to 10, this great book rates an off-the-chart 12." Robert Bruss, nationally syndicated columnist

"Those who really want to retire can figure out ways to live that will cut their expenses while enhancing their experience of life. " San Antonio Express-News

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. What Will You Do When You Retire?

Plan to Keep Busy
The Importance of Thinking Ahead
Making an Action Plan
Working Part-Time
Volunteering for a Good Cause
Pursuing Personal Interests
Continuing Your Education
Can You Buy an Action-Packed Retirement?
A Conversation With Ernest Callenbach

2. Health and Fitness

Some Immediate Ways to Improve Your Health

Stop Smoking
Clean Up Your Diet
Maintain a Healthy Weight
Control Your Blood Pressure
Control Your Cholesterol
Prevent Brittle Bones
Manage Stress
Get Needed Medical Tests
Embrace Sex and Prayer
Exercise Often

Finding Time to Exercise

Make the Commitment
Work Less
Cut Down Commute Time
Squeezing Out a Few Hours to Work Out

A Conversation With Arthur Levenson

3. Family

The Value of Close Family Ties
How Healthy Is Your Family?
Ways to Improve Family Functioning

Spend More Time With Your Children
Work for a Family-Friendly Employer
Keep Your Family Unit as Extended as Possible
Don't Take Family Leadership for Granted
Try to Develop a Sense of Humor About Lifestyle Differences
Don't Give Up on Black Sheep

For Couples: Improving Your Relationship

Bernie and Bob Giusti
Getting Close Again

For Men Only: Look Beyond Your Paycheck
For Women Only: Avoid a Lonely Old Age
A Conversation With Henry and Althea Perry

4. Friends

Make Some Younger Friends
Make Friends Outside of Work
Forming New Friendships
Couples: Make Sure Your Friends Are Really Yours
Why It's Wise to Join Early
A Conversation With Yuri Moriwaki Shibata

5. Loving Life

Embrace Life, Not Money
Retirement Role Models
Dare to Be Authentic
A Conversation With Hazel Peterson

6. Reaching Out for Help to Create Your Successful Retirement

Find Positive Mentors
Look Inward

Participate in a Group Process

Forming a Geezer/Geezelle Group
A Conversation With Carol Thompson

7. Nursing Homes: How to Avoid Them, or Pay for Them If You Can't

Staying Out of a Nursing Home

Guard Your Health
Strengthen Your Family Relationships
Support Community Efforts to Provide Senior Services

Long-Term Care Insurance

The Cost of Long-Term Care and of Long-Term Care Policies
Are Long-Term Care Policies Lousy Deals?
Who Should Consider Insurance?
How to Find a Good Long-Term Care Policy

A Conversation With Cecil Stewart

8. How Much Money Will You Need When You Retire?

A Closer Look at the Retirement Industry
How Much Retirement Savings Is Enough?
Estimating Your Retirement Needs
A Conversation With Afton Crooks

9. Where Will Your Money Come From After Age 65?

Social Security Retirement Benefits

How Much Will You Receive?
Social Security and Working After Retirement

Pensions and Individual Retirement Savings Plans

Employer Pension Plans
Individual Retirement Savings Plans

Continuing to Work
Income From Savings and Investments

Why Many Scare Stories Are Wrong
How Much Extra Do You Really Need to Save?

Inheritance

Talking to Your Parents
How to Think About Inheritance Uncertainties

Gifts
Early Retirement Incentives and Buy-Outs
Withdrawing Equity From Your House

Rent Out One or More Rooms
Move to a Less Expensive House
Sell Your House and Become a Renter
Get a Reverse Mortgage

A Conversation With Babette Marks

10. How to Save Enough—Even If You Think It's Impossible

Credit Card Interest: How the Poor Pay the Rich
Looking at Your Credit Habits

Practical Ways to Break the Credit Habit
Using a Home Equity Loan or Borrowing From a 401(k) Plan to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

Plan to Avoid Car Payments

How to Buy a Decent Used Car for Cash

Prepay Your Mortgage

Comparing Mortgage Prepayments to Other Investments
Where Will Money to Prepay Your Mortgage Come From?

Adding Up the Savings
A Conversation With Peter Wolford

11. The Savvy Peasant's Investment Guide

How to Invest Like a Savvy Peasant
Your Investment Choices

Bank Savings Accounts
Bank Certificates of Deposit
Money Market Accounts
U.S. Government Inflation-Adjusted Securities
U.S. Treasury Bills
U.S. Government Bonds and Notes
Municipal Bonds
Corporate Bonds
Stocks
Stock Mutual Funds
Mutual Fund Basics
Variable Annuities
Immediate or Fixed Annuities
Real Estate
Precious Metals and Exotic Investments

Index

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