Building Agile Retirement Goals

13 snips

Oct 15, 2025

Explore the art of creating agile retirement goals focused on personal self-discovery. Discover how to set meaningful low-stakes goals that allow for experimentation in your retirement journey. Learn about the importance of revisiting values and building a solid foundation for fulfillment. Roger discusses the differences between high-stakes and low-stakes goals, and how to leverage your year-by-year experiences to find what truly brings joy. Tune in for insights on navigating your retirement with confidence and flexibility!

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INSIGHT

Fulfillment Follows Conditions

Happiness in retirement is a byproduct of the conditions you set, not a target you chase directly.
Roger argues goal-setting should create environments that let fulfillment emerge naturally.

ADVICE

Begin With Values And Reflection

Start goal-setting by revisiting your values and journaling moments when you were at your best.
Use those reflections to design goals that align with your chosen values.

ADVICE

Calculate Your Base Great Life

Define a 'base great life' number that covers housing, healthcare, food, and modest engagement.
Wire that baseline into your planning so Maslow-level needs are resilient and feasible.

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In this episode, Roger Whitney continues his four-week series on retirement goal setting, focusing on the importance of building agile retirement goals. He emphasizes creating the right conditions for discovering what you truly want in retirement, rather than fixating on specific desires. Roger shares insights on self-discovery, the anatomy of goals, and the significance of establishing a solid foundation for a fulfilling retirement. Tune in to learn how to navigate your retirement journey with confidence and purpose!

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE RETIREMENT ANSWER MAN

(00:00) This week Roger talks about building agile retirement goals.

PRACTICAL PLANNING SEGMENT

(03:10) The intent is to build goals that are more meaningful to you so you can rock retirement.
(07:00) How do you set goals that are meaningful to you in an agile way?
(07:39) You want to start with self-discovery and establishing or revisiting your values.
(09:53) Focus on creating conditions to explore your values and build a life where fulfillment naturally follows.
(13:43) You have to experiment to determine what is right for you.
(18:30) Roger talks about the anatomy of a goal, specifically low stakes goals that maximize optionality in retirement planning.
(21:08) Roger talks about high stakes goals.
(25:04) Low-stakes goals help you experiment, make confident decisions, and discover what truly supports a fulfilling retirement.

LISTENER QUESTIONS

(27:30) Roger answers Melissa’s questions about rolling over an IRA without penalty and whether to trust a flat-fee fiduciary firm that offers to manage her accounts.
(33:06) Greg asks Roger to revisit healthcare before Medicare.
(34:17) Rob asks about deferring Social Security to age 70 and whether he still receives COLA increases in addition to the 8% delayed retirement credit.
(36:03) Chris asks about using only a total world stock and bond index for his portfolio.
(40:20) Roger advises keeping a local contingency fund so you always have accessible cash and don’t feel “cash poor.”

SMART SPRINT

(43:20) Go back to your retirement goals and the plan you’ve put together. Look at them through the lens of our recent discussion

RESOURCES

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