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I’M TURNING 70 THIS year, and that’s got me thinking about the legacy I’ll leave behind. Legacy for me involves much more than bequeathing money to the kids. It’s about the contribution I’ve been able to make and the people I’ve helped along the way.
Since retiring, I’ve been on a mission to help folks have a better retirement. This resulted in me co-authoring three books on the subject. In addition to my family, the books and what I do with them will be my legacy.
With that in mind, my plan is to give away the three books for free in exchange for readers posting an honest Amazon review about the books. Why am I asking for reviews?
For me, writing books is really hard and it takes me a long time to finish. I’m not a natural-born writer—more plodder than anything. I can’t tell you the number of times I feel like quitting while working on a book. It’s lonely to spend months and months locked away in my home office. It gets to me sometimes, especially during the summer months, when there are so many things I’d rather be doing.
What keeps me from quitting is reading the reviews posted by readers. I take pride in knowing that the books I co-authored helped someone, and that gives me the strength to get the next book done.
Another benefit I gain from reading reviews—both the good and the bad—is that I learn from them. Yes, there are bad ones, and I’m pretty sure one was written by my ex. Here’s a brief overview of the three books I’m offering:
Victory Lap Retirement. If you were intrigued by the ICE, or “I’ll continue earning,” approach to retirement that Jonathan Clements recently wrote about, you’ll enjoy this book. In it, we introduce a new model of retirement based on a combination of work and play that’s built on a foundation of financial independence.
Retirement Heaven or Hell. This book coaches you on how to successfully shift into retirement and avoid the stress that comes with this huge life change. It also outlines the nine key principles for a happy, healthy, fulfilling retirement.
Longevity Lifestyle by Design. After reading this book, you’ll understand what causes retirement shock and how it can be avoided. It’ll also teach you how to create a unique retirement lifestyle that’ll work for you.
Once you decide which book you’d like to read—you can read all three if you like—email me at michael.drak@yahoo.ca and I’ll send you an electronic copy. The rest is up to you.
Ernest Hemingway once commented that writing is hard. Very hard.
Hemingway was right! Writing a book was one of the hardest things I ever attempted except maybe trying to convince my wife to marry me.
Jim Kerr and I were chatting about this the other day below his article. I enjoy writing and do it for fun (like here and for a baseball blog), but books ARE a lot harder. Thanks for your generosity in sharing your work.
My pleasure DrLefty.
Mike, We are in the same age group as I’ll be reaching 70 this year also. Your books are on my wish list, but my reading has slowed mainly due to too many forums of interest taking up my time. I’m slowly backing away from some of the forums; even backing away from some of the authors on HD who don’t respond to readers who make a comment to the author.
I’m not a writer and don’t like to write, so I can imagine how time consuming writing a book would be. I like that you mentioned all three of your books. The second book is of particular interest as the title describes what I probably went through, and I’ll either purchase the book or check the library.
Have appreciated your past articles on HumbleDollar!
Olin just send me an email and I will email you an electronic copy of the book you are interested in. Like you I’m in the process of cutting back on a number of things to free up more time for the good stuff!.
Mike, that’s kind of you to offer the book electronically, but I have difficulty reading a book in that format. An article is okay to read online, but not a book. Trying to get my eyes off of the blue light.
Olin, may I suggest trying the Accessibility features on your device to have it “speak” ebooks to you?
Mike, I appreciate an author with a clear vision of why he became an author! I read Longevity Lifestyle by Design, coincidentally two weeks after my official retirement. I will leave a review. And, as a specialized text author, I can’t agree with you more about the importance of solid reviews (especially posted on Amazon).
Jeff my vision wasn’t so clear when I first starting writing but it’s pretty clear now. I really enjoy giving away my books to help others. With respect to the reviews I use the feedback to both improve the quality of my work plus they make me feel good when I’m having one of those bad writing days.