One of the guys asks me ---- So what do I do if I'm 40 and have 25 years to retire? What do I do if I'm 50 and have 15 years to retire? What do I do if I'm 60 and have 5 years til retirement?
To me -- this is the best question ever....
My response:
What happens when you retire? Do you die?
Oh wait.... maybe you'll live another 25 years! So your REAL TIME HORIZON is 50 years if you're 40.... 40 years if you're 50.... and 30 years if you're 60!
That's the real way to think about it.... 'cause ya just don't up and die because you retired. Ask me how much more money I spend being retired than I ever did working. And ask me (retired some 22 years now) what things cost me 22 years ago versus now! Retirement isn't the end of spending and it isn't the end of you! Just keep doing. Keep doing what got you to retirement.
In the old days -- they advised people to switch from stocks to bonds and blah blah blah... to which I've seen more than my fair share of people "out live" their useful cash flow. Had they stuck with stocks and real estate -- they'd have lived a whole lot better.
That being said --- I don't invest in Faceybook -- or Netflix -- or any of the other "sure fired winners" either anymore. I stick to good old fashioned basics --- just like we've discussed here. You don't start (or continue) to gamble at 60 (which I'll be in August). But you don't up and die either!
