A License To Spend Money In Retirement with Michael Finke

Summary

Today’s conversation is with retirement investing, income planning and life satisfaction expert, Michael Finke 

Michael is a professor of wealth management and Frank M. Engle Distinguished Chair in Economic Security at The American College of Financial Services.  

He received a doctorate in consumer economics from the Ohio State University in 1998 and in finance from the University of Missouri in 2011. He leads the O. Alfred Granum Center for Financial Security at the American College and is a research fellow at the Retirement Income Institute, and a member of the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association Academic Advisory Council.  

He is an internationally known researcher in the areas of retirement income planning, retirement spending, life satisfaction, and cognitive aging. He is a frequent speaker at financial planning conferences and was named one of the 25 most influential people in the field of investment advising in 2020 and 2021 by Investment Advisor Magazine. 

In this conversation, Michael and I discuss the importance of mindset and positivity in retirement planning. We explore the correlation between health and financial behaviours among retirees and the role of positivity in driving savings and spending behaviour. We also discuss the benefits of annuities as a way to ensure a guaranteed income in retirement and how the psychological impact of spending from income versus spending from assets is often a licence to spend for many retirees. The conversation emphasizes the need to align money with values and goals to maximize happiness in retirement. 

Takeaways

• There is a strong connection between health behaviors and money behaviors, as both involve making decisions to defer gratification and invest in a better future.
• Retirement income planning should involve considering both spending and legacy goals, and giving oneself the agency to choose how much of their savings to spend and how much to pass on to others.
• It is important to recognize and accept our own mortality when planning for retirement, and to design a plan that allows us to spend the money we've saved for the purpose of enjoying a better lifestyle.
• Retirement should be viewed as an opportunity to bring forward the ability to give money to loved ones and causes we care about, rather than waiting until the end of life.
• Spending money in retirement can bring more happiness and satisfaction than simply accumulating wealth, and it is important to prioritize experiences and social interactions that provide joy.
• Designing a retirement plan should involve envisioning the future and creating a financial structure that supports the desired lifestyle, rather than solely focusing on numbers and spreadsheets. Mindset and positivity play a crucial role in retirement planning.
• Health and financial behaviors are correlated among retirees, and positivity drives savings behavior.
• Annuities provide a license to spend and allow retirees to spend more from income than from assets.
• Aligning money with values and goals can lead to greater happiness in retirement.

Sound Bites

"What is wealth? Wealth is a store of future spending. It is a store of future happiness."

"The goal is lifestyle. That's why you save the money in the first place. Let's design a structure so that you can have the lifestyle that you want to live."

"Recognize that you had a choice and your choice was: Do I want to spend the money that I've saved that I've sacrificed to be able to build or am I going to be happier passing it on to someone else?"

"How we view retirement and how positive we are about our years going forward is going to shape the way we want to spend our money."

"People who think that life is going to be more pleasurable in their 80s are more motivated to ensure that t