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Book Review: The Number02 01 06 20  30
-------- What it is, and What is For?
The book is not about how to amass the number. It is not about telling you what the specific numeric value of the number is. The book is about helping us to find out how we really want our lives to be during our Golden Years, and from that point, develop a plan on how to achieve it. On Lee's work you will find a much needed heavy dose of reality. It will give you a very complete walkthrough of the challenges retirees face: health, sense of purpose, living arrangements, tied up capital, and family impact. By reading the book we find out about the challenges we have building up The Number: debt, uncertainty, lack of guidance, tardiness in saving, lack of help managing it, longer "Golden Years" than previous generations, and shorter accumulation years due to extended education. Mr. Eisenberg also helps us explore topics that go beyond the numeric value: giving back to society, volunteering, simpler life, and our passions. Lee also teaches you how to choose financial advice - very valuable by itself. Most of the book is written in a documentary style format: interviews and stories about real and fictional people that illustrate the points the author wants to bring to our attention. It is written in a very witty and frank way that makes for easy reading even if not all at once. Eisenberg has enjoyed a very rewarding career (including being the Editor in Chief at Esquire magazine), as well as a soul searching career shift to get closer to the type of life he wants in his post-work years. The wealth of experience he has gained through life, plus the research study performed to create the book is invaluable. I recommend this book for people in their 40's and 50's. It may help refine their vision about retirement. It may make them postpone it due to a previously unrealistic goal, or help them make it an attainable goal, depending how in synch with reality the reader is. Either way, it will most probably help prepare for more fruitful post-work years. I do not think the book will be so interesting to young people or people still learning how to manage their finances. They may be best benefited by books that teach the value of saving and investing, as well as books that teach how to invest the capital. Young people need some experience before they get a feel for what amount of money they need to amass: initially they should know that those are the best accumulation years, and they should amass as much as they can - both in terms of money and experience. (The power of compounding is diminished later in life). The book isn't for people making the ends meet or for those deeply in debt either. Those need immediate financial help for right now, to get them back on track. As the author mentions on his work, there are no easy formulas to arrive at the Number. "The number is not something a thoughtful person should do on the fly". If you are looking for this kind of chart, formula, or workbook you will not find it there. He does, however, offer a hint as to how much you should save based on the 4 percent rule (after taking into consideration Social Security, pension benefits (if any), and any lump sums you expect to receive (like inheritances, for example). The 4 percent rule has only one caveat: it makes The Number last forever, which will leave money on the table after you are gone and may not allow you to enjoy life at the fullest. It is, however, a very safe way of handling retirement - and leaves a gift for future generations. Other reviewers of this book: Lee contacted me late November to offer me a preview copy of the book. I appreciate this, and have expressed my opinions on his work in my blog. |
