OUR COURTSHIP WAS both ripe with joy and fraught with tumult. One scene is emblazoned in my memory. Alberta and I had just finished lunch on the grass in front of the campus cafeteria. I was slumped over, exhausted by the frantic academic scramble to get published and disillusioned by the political intrigues.
Alberta read my mood and rested my head in her lap, as she ran her hand softly through my hair. Schooled by my parents to keep an eye out for retirement and advancing age,

MY DAD’S FINANCIAL ledgers were key sources of information for my article yesterday about my parents’ retirement journey. In these binders, my father kept track of a wide variety of financial information, all entered in his impeccable handwriting.
I have no doubt Dad would have loved Excel spreadsheets as much as I do, had they been available earlier in his life. When he was in his 80s, he purchased his first personal computer and was able to perform some rudimentary tasks.

SAVINGS YIELDS SOARED in 2023—and all that interest income is now showing up on people’s tax returns.
Forbes published historical average money-market rates based on FDIC data. The average rate in 2020 and 2021 was 0.1%. That jumped to 0.15% in 2022 and 0.59% in 2023. But remember, those are averages, and it isn’t difficult to find higher yields. For instance, interest rates on high-yield savings accounts are up sharply since spring 2022.

DAD WAS AN ACCOUNTANT. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, taking classes at night while working full-time. He also studied engineering at another Philadelphia college, again taking classes at night. Dad would have enjoyed being an engineer, but he could only take on so much while working a day job. He never completed that degree.
Being sharp at math and having an organized mind, accounting was a good fit. Dad eventually became president of J.S.

ARE YOU READY TO swap your office chair for a rocking chair? Hold that thought.
Before you dive into the world of endless vacations and gardening, consider that keeping a toe—and perhaps your whole foot—in the workforce might be the secret ingredient to a fulfilling retirement. Don’t believe me? Here are seven compelling reasons to keep working at least part-time.
1. Stay young at heart. Remember the excitement of landing your first job?

WE’VE ALL HEARD THE maxim that “without risk, there’s no reward.” Over the years, we’ve all taken countless risks—big and small, financial and otherwise—to get to where we are today.
Every activity has a risk associated with it, and that includes retirement. It’s best to be aware of these risks and, when prudent, take steps to limit them. Here are nine risks that retirees face.
1. Health. Even if we’re fortunate to enjoy a long,

WHEN I WAS IN MY 20s, I didn’t think much about money. My spending wasn’t lavish. I didn’t go to high-end restaurants or wear expensive clothes.
Still, if I wanted a book or a compact disc, I bought it. I wasted money on fast food instead of cooking at home. I blew money on electronics like a fancy CD player and bought a bigger, more expensive television than I needed. For somebody who considered himself reasonably bright,

BOXING CHAMPION Mike Tyson famously said, “Everybody has plans until they get hit for the first time.”
I’ve only been punched in the face once in my life. It occurred in sixth grade. I was alone in the boys’ bathroom when a bully came in. He said something to me and didn’t like my response, so he attempted to kick me.
I saw this happening out of the corner of my eye and I lifted his leg up,

RETIREMENT CAN—ironically—take work. It requires us to restructure how we think about both our time and our finances. That rethinking extends to tax planning, which tends to move to center stage once we quit the workforce. Already retired or approaching retirement? There are several tax strategies worth considering.
But before we review specific strategies, it’s worth pondering a more fundamental change wrought by retirement. During our working years, the usual goal is to minimize our tax bill each year.

I’VE BEEN CHALLENGED—by Mr. Clements, no less. Jonathan didn’t actually say it, but his challenge was to defend my unorthodox views on investing and retirement, and the actions I’ve taken as a result.

Some of my decisions will seem illogical to others. Some don’t maximize investment returns. Some are very conservative, others not so much.

I don’t like math. I don’t like details. I haven’t used a spreadsheet in 30 years. I focus on the big picture and long-term goals.

AS ALWAYS, DR. SEUSS said it best: “Oh, the places you’ll go and the people you’ll meet.”
In making this statement, the good doctor could have been talking about the benefits of volunteering. Since inheriting some money in 2011, I haven’t had to work multiple jobs, as I did in graduate school and during the three years that followed. From 2012 on, I’ve had mostly full-time work, leaving me with time to volunteer for causes I care about.

WHEN I WAS YOUNG, my parents converted our basement into an indoor playground for the neighborhood kids.
My friends could listen to Elvis belt out Hound Dog or croon Love Me Tender on the Seeburg jukebox. Some chose instead to light up the Bally pinball machine. Others would challenge my father to a game of pool. Meanwhile, my mother would create mini-pizzas for everyone, with a slice of Swiss cheese drenched in tomato sauce on half an English muffin.

WE’RE A SINGLE-INCOME family with five children, so the prospect of paying for college for all our kids is daunting, to say the least. Yes, our oldest is now in her second year of college. But we still have a long way to go before they’ve all crossed the finish line.
Our kids are ages 19, 17, 12, nine and six. We’ve been homeschooling them since the beginning, with a few brief exceptions, including one daughter in a Department of Defense high school in Korea for a year and another daughter in a private high school for two years.

MY WIFE NEEDED KNEE replacement surgery a few years ago. Her health plan, which was provided through the school district where she worked, was a preferred provider organization with a large network of doctors. After some research, my wife decided she wanted her operation done at New York City’s Hospital for Special Surgery.
I love hearing about people’s lives. I’ve long read biographies to learn how others gained their fame or fortune, hoping for pointers that would help me with my own life.

WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I felt immortal. We all did. It’s natural and likely hardwired into our brains. Such feelings of immortality have an evolutionary advantage, encouraging us to take the risks necessary to succeed.
When I planned for retirement, the notion of immortality was front and center. I consider myself in excellent health. I eat right. I’m not overweight. I stay active. I have a close circle of friends and an active social community from which to draw strength.