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Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life

Bill Perkins

3.73 · Rating details · 560 ratings · 124 reviews

A Common-Sense Guide to Living Rich….Instead of Dying Rich

Imagine if by the time you died, you did everything you were told to. You worked hard, saved your money, and looked forward to financial freedom when you retired.

The only thing you wasted along the way was…your life.

Die with Zero presents a startling new and provocative philosophy as well as practical guide on ...more

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Hardcover, 240 pages

Published July 28th 2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

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Feb 15, 2021 David rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audiobook, self-help, philosophy, psychology

This is a thought-provoking book about how to use your money during your lifetime. The book really changed the way I think about money.

The book is not about how to make money. It is not about how to run a business. And--it is very easy to get the wrong idea about the book; Dying with Zero does NOT mean that you shouldn't give money to your family, your heirs, or to your favorite charities. Instead the book IS about what to spend your money on, and when to spend it.

What is your most val This is a thought-provoking book about how to use your money during your lifetime. The book really changed the way I think about money.

The book is not about how to make money. It is not about how to run a business. And--it is very easy to get the wrong idea about the book; Dying with Zero does NOT mean that you shouldn't give money to your family, your heirs, or to your favorite charities. Instead the book IS about what to spend your money on, and when to spend it.

What is your most valuable possession? It is you memories! Your memories are your most treasured possession, the one thing that defines who and what you are. Consequently, spending money to build up memories is the best use of your money. One should spend your money acquiring experiences, not things. These experiences can be alone or with friends or with family. Whatever your preference. Your experiences will define who you are, so think about what experiences you will appreciate. Also, think about when it is best to acquire these experiences. A road trip--staying in hostels or other inexpensive places--might be best at a young age. Arduous treks are also best when you are young; you might enjoy hiking the Appalachian trail, but if you are out of shape it might not be best when you are 70 years old. Think about your "go-go", "slow-go", and "no-go" years. The author deeply regrets not going with his friend through Europe, staying at hostels, in his early 20's. At an later age, he would not have appreciated such a trip as much.

What about giving money to your family--say, your children. For them, too, receiving an inheritance would be much more useful at an early age, such as when buying a first home, rather than at a retirement age. The idea is that if you die of old age with money in your bank account, you have lost it; you haven't used it to acquire experiences. And while you could will it to your heirs, they will not receive it at the best age to take advantage of it.

I highly recommend this book--it was quite an eye-opener for me. ...more

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Jul 29, 2020 Jen Juenke rated it really liked it

Shelves: non-fiction

WOW! Ok, as part of the FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) Movement, I was eagerly awaiting to read this book.
I grew up in extreme poverty. I am a saver due to the circumstances in which I was raised. I have a VERY HARD time spending money. Its gotten a bit better and the author argues that I should spend money on experiences and end my life with ZERO money in the bank.
Its a great idea and made me think alot about aging, gift giving, and money in a new way.
I really liked that he had re ...more

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Aug 11, 2020 Jeff Heuer rated it liked it · review of another edition

Like many books of this genre, it could stand to be more concise, but it does offer a provocative reassessment of typical thinking around saving, spending, retirement, inheritance, etc. For most, it will not be simple to put the thinking here into practice. Nonetheless, the book will ask you some challenging questions about how you want your life to unfold, and encourage you to live each year you have deliberately.

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Aug 01, 2020 Lin rated it really liked it

Shelves: audiobooks, 2020

This book gave me a new perspective. Instilled the importance of spending more time on experiences than making money. Your life is measured by your experiences. Though most of his tips are meant for people who are already wealthy and have extra money to spend the general ideas he mentions can apply to anyone. Take more chances when you’re younger because you can. Spend more money when you’re younger because as you grow older the amount of money you make will generally increase. Don’t let work st ...more

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Feb 06, 2021 Erin Clemence rated it liked it

Shelves: first-reads, non-fiction-biography

Thank you to the author for providing me with this novel, in exchange for an honest review.

Bill Perkins is a CEO and former Wall Street trader who made his money in energy stocks. His novel, “Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life” is a financial self-help book of sorts, but not entirely. Perkins suggests tips to “live a full life” and “be your true self” by focusing more of your attention on experiences, and less on money.

This concept is hard to grasp for most of u Thank you to the author for providing me with this novel, in exchange for an honest review.

Bill Perkins is a CEO and former Wall Street trader who made his money in energy stocks. His novel, “Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life” is a financial self-help book of sorts, but not entirely. Perkins suggests tips to “live a full life” and “be your true self” by focusing more of your attention on experiences, and less on money.

This concept is hard to grasp for most of us. Since childhood, we are told to “understand the value of a dollar” and to “work hard to earn what you want”. Perkins turns these tenets on their heads and forces us to look at money in a new way- use it to experience life now, because the older you get, the less chances you will have to use it in the best ways possible.

The novel itself is very well written, and each chapter covers a different aspect of Perkins’ theory. Not every chapter will relate to everyone but there is something for everyone somewhere in this book.

It was very difficult for me to relate to Perkins. Although I can appreciate his values and his belief system, it is hard to accept financial and life advice from someone who flew his entire family (and all of his friends) to the British Islands for his 45th birthday (and has a laissez-faire attitude about it) , and is a millionaire at the age of 50. It is extreme examples like this that make it hard for me to find a connection with him. He does gives example in this book of “normal” people (i.e. non-millionaires) and how they can use his theories as well, but they don’t relate with me. Not everyone starts at one job and then advances (and continues to make wage increases with those advances) . The possibility of staying at the same job until retirement is high in these risky times, and the likelihood that we will go from “rags to riches” is next to impossible, for the working class of the world (you know, the majority of us).

I appreciated Perkins’ life advice, and it does make a lot of sense. To spend money while we are young on experiences that would be both foolish and irresponsible when we get older, for example. There are definitely a lot of experiences I missed out on as a youth because I was too focused on making money. It also connects that we need to focus on the memories we leave behind, and not on the financial windfalls we leave our relatives.

Perkins does state often that he is “not” a financial advisor, and it is best to leave our financial decisions into the hands of those who are (he definitely touts the benefits of annuities and insurance, though, for someone who isn’t a “financial advisor!”).

“Die with Zero” is an interesting take on how we, as a society, look at money, and the skewed importance we give to it. Since it completely went against everything I have ever been taught (and even against a lot of my current practices with the money I have now) , it definitely took a lot of open-mindedness to get through this book, but Perkins definitely has some good ideas.
...more

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Jan 21, 2021 Sarah rated it it was ok

*Blinkist*

I’m not sure what I think of this book based on reading the Blink. Some statements I agreed with, while others I did not (some statements to me seemed like irresponsible advice, that people could easily take as license to spend money they don’t have or not save enough, for example).

The numbers in one example scenario in the Blink didn’t add up:

“Meet Elizabeth, for example. She’s a 45-year-old woman without children, and her annual net income is $49,000. But Elizabeth only spends $33,00 ...more

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Oct 12, 2020 Dylan Murray rated it it was amazing

Just finished this book. I think this is one of those books everyone should read. Bill offers a unique and thought provoking look at savings, money and overall life. The idea is to not die with money. Why would you ? You can't take it to the grave and your kids and charities would benefit from it sooner rather than later. A must read for everyone ...more

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Dec 28, 2020 Whitley Huelskamp rated it really liked it

Fairly quick read with a casual tone. Perkins talks about the side of things that most finance books ignore: actually spending money.

Good book for anyone who is or grew up frugal. I would start elsewhere for someone who is already careless with money.

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Jan 08, 2021 Monika rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction

We all know that only money is not the most important thing in life. But do we do anything about it? In #Diewithzero @BillPerkins reiterates the fact that we all know, important of health, time, money & happiness. But he tells it in a way that it actually gets into the heads of the readers. I wouldn’t say this personal finance book offers exceptional advice on how to manage your money and time, but it for sure will give a head start by putting rational thoughts in you.

There are several things I ...more

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Dec 31, 2020 Kira added it

The book’s main motive is not only to prioritise spending money on experiences but it is also a criticism of today’s Western society in which we are all pressured and taught to work until our fingers are bare to the bone, regardless of physical health or mental wellbeing. Any money that we do make is usually meant to be saved for a rainy day, as opposed to being enjoyed in the moment.

“Your real legacy isn’t money”
(Bill Perkins, Die With Zero, p.89.)

I believe that a lot of what is covered in this ...more

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Feb 02, 2021 Nathan Shuherk rated it it was ok

At only about 200 pages, this is simply too long. The ideas presented could’ve been a 15 minute TEDtalk (possibly where the idea originated). I could pick apart the different sections of this book, but I will simply say this: the only people this book is really written for is people in a certain income or net worth zone. The ideas kinda fall apart when applied to the very (not even ultra) wealthy and people without much chance of a retirement - the majority of this country. Aside from a narrow a ...more

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Jan 29, 2021 Jenny rated it really liked it

As a personal finance aficionado I have heard this book all over the place, and was excited to pick it up and hear what it was all about. While, as advertised, it does introduce some seriously radical thinking, (you should aim to die with nothing), it really concentrates on living an examined life, and truly fulfilling what you want to get out of life, through the use of money. While I can't say that this book convinced me to go all in and spend down to the last penny on my deathbed, it is a gre ...more

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Nov 17, 2020 Lindsay rated it really liked it

I was generously gifted a copy of Die with Zero, by Bill Perkins, in exchange for my honest review. This book aims to solve a problem I will probably never have: how to make sure you don’t die with a bunch of money! To be fair, in the Author’s Note, Bill Perkins very specifically makes the disclaimer that if you are somebody who doesn’t really have disposable income and you are largely just surviving (financially), you may not get as much out of this book as somebody who has amassed any sort of I was generously gifted a copy of Die with Zero, by Bill Perkins, in exchange for my honest review. This book aims to solve a problem I will probably never have: how to make sure you don’t die with a bunch of money! To be fair, in the Author’s Note, Bill Perkins very specifically makes the disclaimer that if you are somebody who doesn’t really have disposable income and you are largely just surviving (financially), you may not get as much out of this book as somebody who has amassed any sort of wealth.

That being said, I DID get something out of this book, and I believe everyone can, regardless of financial stature.

Perkins identifies three major components that impact our ability to enjoy various life experiences: health, time, and money. When you are in your early 20s as a young adult, you typically don’t have much money, but you likely have health and time on your side. As you age, your health declines, as does your free time, until you’ve retired, when you likely have more money and more free time, but poorer health.
As your health declines, you are less able to participate in or enjoy physical activities, like backpacking through Europe or hiking Machu Picchu. You physically can accomplish these things in your 20s, 30s, 40s, and maybe 50s, but your ability to enjoy these and like activities diminishes with age and failing health. We need to be realistic about our limited time on Earth and our physical limitations to ensure we get the most out of life!

Because of these real limitations, it’s important to be cognizant of our work, spending, and saving habits. Perkins explains that we should be mindfully spending money sooner, when we are still young and healthy enough to enjoy the experiences we want to have, rather than waiting for retirement.
Perkins introduces the concept of “time buckets,” where one creates a list of experiences they want to have in their life, and then creates “buckets of time”, usually a period of 5-10 years, where they would most enjoy having those experiences. We can then appropriately break up work and play, to make sure we don’t inadvertently miss out on things we want (likely because we prioritized work).

According to Perkins, dying with excess money means we wasted our life energy and time accruing income and we never translated that money into experiences that would have enriched our lives. I agree with that.

Perkins also explains that “dying with zero” means, if you intend to leave an inheritance for friends or family, you simply give them the money sooner instead of willing it to them upon your death. Perkins claims that for most people, money is more useful now than later. Most people become more financially stable with age, so a monetary gift now to your 30-year-old daughter, is likely much more helpful today than it could be 20 or 30 years from now, after you’ve died.

This book is not the genre I typically gravitate to, but I feel like I got some solid information from reading it that will help me maximize my finite life. Whether you are flush with cash, or a broke bitch like me, I think this book serves as an important reminder to find balance in work and play, and not feel guilty when we mindfully spend money on truly life enriching experiences. ...more

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Dec 13, 2020 Dana rated it liked it

"My overarching goal is to get you to think about your life in a more purposeful, deliberate manner, instead of simply doing things as you and others have always done them. Yes, I want you to plan for your future - but never in such a way that you forget to enjoy the present."

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So, Bill Perkins and I have very similar philosophies when it comes to saving and spending money. I consider myself a pretty financially stable and secure person. He touches early "My overarching goal is to get you to think about your life in a more purposeful, deliberate manner, instead of simply doing things as you and others have always done them. Yes, I want you to plan for your future - but never in such a way that you forget to enjoy the present."

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So, Bill Perkins and I have very similar philosophies when it comes to saving and spending money. I consider myself a pretty financially stable and secure person. He touches early on the FIRE method, something that defined my financial life when I was younger. It's the method that helped me pay off $77K in college loans in 6 years. I agree with the philosophy that socking away money for the future is futile if you forget to live along the way. I love the concept of memory dividends and investing in experiences that enrich your life along the way. I've chosen a job that helps me accomplish that goal, paying for me to travel around the world but I actively work to maximize those opportunities. I am not waiting til I retire to see the world and you shouldn't either. You may have the money but you won't have the health or the drive.

I will admit I skimmed chapter 5, I don't have children and don't want them. If I don't achieve Perkins' goal to Die with Zero, our nephews will get whatever is left but I'm not looking to sacrifice my life for that. I'd prefer to lavish them with things while I'm still alive and they can use it. So in principle I agree with this chapter even though I didn't read it word for word.

This book is full of great ideas for living to maximize your finances and what you use them for along the way. I'd say this falls much more into the self-help category as it's about your mindset than the financial category, so don't feel intimidated that you will be overwhelmed with calculations or financial terms that are hard to understand. It's very readable and easily actionable, there's also a handy app and an upcoming course to help you integrate all of this into your life.

Thanks so much to @outreachdiewithzero and author @billperkins for sharing this book with me in exchange for my honest opinion. ...more

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Jan 28, 2021 Angelica King rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed

Perkins poses some really interesting and challenging questions that make you critically think about how you really want your life to unfold, and encourage you to live every moment you have deliberately. As well as the many well-argued points, the book is also very quick and easy to read with a great casual tone. It’s also written in a way that makes it easy to dip in and out of which is great as it is the type of book which you can and should refer back to. The text wasn’t filled with jargon wh ...more

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Dec 06, 2020 Suzy Baba (readaholicmom) rated it it was amazing

As I finished reading Die With Zero, I had one of those AHA nostalgic moments. I sat there thinking about how true the message this book shares with it's readers on so many levels. As humans, our brains are automatically wired to believe that we need to work hard for most of our lives in order to save as much money as possible and have a secure future. We are socially taught that "enjoying life" comes later when we are much older instead of "enjoying life" now while we are young and healthy.

Thr ...more

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Jan 24, 2021 SKIM rated it really liked it

The book provides good unconventional food for thought. The gist is that we are all dying and our health is declining day-by-day so best to enjoy your $ and have experiences before you are too old to enjoy it and the goal is to use all your money for yourself and your loved ones before it's too late. ...more

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Jan 22, 2021 Zhivko Kabaivanov rated it really liked it

Die with Zero (2020) explores the benefits of spending more and saving less.

It bust the myths that surround the concept of delayed gratification and comfortable retirement.

They also explain how everyone can squeeze out more enjoyment from their money.

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Dec 17, 2020 oohlalabooks rated it really liked it

Shelves: nonfiction, self-help

I’ve read many finance books and this one is completely different - it’s refreshing, entertaining, and it doesn’t make you feel guilty about your choices! The mantra “work hard play hard” may need to be changed to “work easy play easy”?! Enjoy some of your earnings now, go check off something from your bucket list! Thank you to Outreach and the author for a gifted copy. This is my honest review.

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Nov 16, 2020 Jen rated it really liked it

This was an eye-opening concept for me for sure: how to not only spend and save your money wisely but to get the most out of your most livable years by allocating your savings properly. He covers all the initial questions such as, "what about money I want to leave for my kids" and "what if I live longer than my savings?" He likes to talk about how much wealth he has amassed over his career but it is forgivable in that he is talking as a money specialist and financial advisor. It's easy to unders ...more

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Feb 02, 2021 Hope Helms rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2021

A bit repetitive with some fascinating ideas: life energy, making memories vs. making money etc. Definitely written from a hedonistic perspective but a lot to be gleaned for the Christian wanting to be a good steward.

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Aug 03, 2020 Byron Snapp rated it really liked it

Shelves: self-development, audible

Many parts of this book are really for those that are already doing at least fairly well saving money towards their retirement, but the two things I got most out of this book are actually the ones that would apply to even those with less retirement savings.

1) The experience/memory dividend. Basically the idea that great experiences can bring you joy again later reminiscing over the experience. Over time those little amounts of additional joy can actually sometimes even be greater than the origin ...more

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Oct 04, 2020 Lynee rated it really liked it

The message in this book resonated with me, especially the discussions about health, experiences and life energy. It really is a more of a life enhancing book than a financial one. However as the author notes in the first chapter, this book (especially when discussing money) is probably best suited to the to upper middle class and higher earners. But the overall message about memories and how we spend our lives is applicable to all audiences.

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Aug 23, 2020 Miguel rated it liked it · review of another edition

My priors on this had low expectations but I was pleasantly surprised to hear the ideas that Perkins discussed regarding one’s wealth (or lack there-of) management over a lifetime and how to try to optimize spending vs. saving. As opposed to the FIRE doctrine of maintaining a SWR (safe withdraw rate) of 2 to 4%, Perkins suggests that one should instead be less conservative and aim to have just enough to last one’s lifetime. (Note, for him this equates to 0.7 x Annual Spending x # Yrs Til Death.) ...more

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Aug 09, 2020 Amanda Seifried rated it really liked it

A light easy read that I listened to as an audiobook (a little over 5 hours). I enjoyed hearing about the authors experience with money and feel that he offers a different perspective on some of the commonly held philosophies. However, I’d be concerned for anyone who takes his advice literally and think there is a healthy financial balance between what he suggests and more commonly held beliefs. (Reminder that with the power of compound interest it’s important to save in your early working caree ...more

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Jan 17, 2021 Sarah Huffman rated it liked it

Shelves: 2021-book-picks

Die with Zero by Bill Perkins is a financial planning strategy that focuses on using your wealth while you can, and making sure that when you die, there isn’t anything left over. The philosophy is to use your money while you can, give it away while you and others can appreciate the actions, and live life to its fullest. The idea of this strategy is intriguing, and even though this isn’t a genre I usually read, I tried to keep an open mind.

Let me start this review by thinking outreach@diewithzer Die with Zero by Bill Perkins is a financial planning strategy that focuses on using your wealth while you can, and making sure that when you die, there isn’t anything left over. The philosophy is to use your money while you can, give it away while you and others can appreciate the actions, and live life to its fullest. The idea of this strategy is intriguing, and even though this isn’t a genre I usually read, I tried to keep an open mind.

Let me start this review by thinking outreach@diewithzerobook.com and @billperkins for the gifted copy of Die With Zero in return for an honest review. I really appreciate the opportunity to read this book.

I had a lot of mixed feelings about this book, and overall, I gave it 3 stars. I learned a lot and started to think about savings and money in a different kind of way, however, this book just wasn’t really for me for a few reasons. For this review, I have to write it in two parts, the bad and the good. I’m going to start with the bad first, 1. to get it out of the way, and 2. because it will make the book make more sense and help readers decide if this is really a book for them.

So here’s what I didn’t like.

This book was written for a specific reading audience (FYI I do not fit into that category). Right away, the author talks about how his target audience is a financially well off person who has more money than they know what to do with, ideally they work too much, and are too focused on saving as much as they can for as long as they can. So, right away, I was a little put off, and actually thought, “why would they ask me, a stay at home mom from a lower end middle class blue collar family with more debt than income ratios, to read this book about spending all the money you’ve needlessly stacked up”? I just feel like they were looking for anyone to read this book and weren’t really paying attention to who they were asking to read it, even though the author directly says he has a target audience right in the beginning of the book.

The second thing I didn’t enjoy about this book was the writing style. I don’t read a lot of books in this genre because they just don’t hold my interest, this book wasn’t any different. It took me forever to read because I would just get bored, there was only less than 200 pages of written content, and it took me almost two weeks to get through a book that would usually take me maybe 12 hours. It didn’t help that the writing style seemed very monotone, I sometimes felt like if Perkins were talking instead of writing it would have been in that teachers voice in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, you know the one, he’s super monotone and drawn out, kind of makes you want to fall asleep. It just had a very dry tone, and a lot of that feeling is probably because I don’t put a huge importance on money and finances in my life, so reading about them really isn’t exciting for me.

Even though I struggled to get through it, I ended up learning a little and changing my thoughts on savings vs experiences quite a bit. I realize the importance of saving for the future and why it is necessary, but I also didn’t know that saving in excess was happening on the scale it was or so often. I knew people saved, and wealthier individuals could save more, giving large quantities to charities, inheritances, trust funds, etc, but I didn’t realize that a large number of wealthy individuals were not spending any of what they were earning out of a fear of running out before dying.

What it took me most of the book to realize is that most “successful” or wealthy people, according to Perkins, spend so much time focusing on saving for the future that most don’t live the day to day for the experiences and they just don’t value said experiences the same way. Perkins touches on the ideas that money is only good when you are alive and healthy enough to spend it, and when we get older and less able to do things we tend to rely on our memories, so why not spend your earned money making memories while you can. For me, growing up in a lower middle class, blue collar family, experiences were everything, and they still are. We didn’t have money to travel or buy expensive things or fancy dinners, BUT we did find moments where we created amazing memories, it's just a natural way of life. Even now, being a stay at home mom while my significant other works a blue collar job, a lot of our money is focused on paying debts so that we can then work on saving for retirement, an idea Perkins says is important but that we both know we aren’t truly prepared for. In the meantime, we focus on making memories while we can, everything is about the experience the kids get to have and the memories they can take with them. We strive to not focus on the stuff (except when it comes to books), but instead we focus on the moment and the experience. I take for granted the ability to worry less and make memories now, because I didn’t realize there was a whole other side of life where money was more important than experiences.

The book is full of interesting facts that I didn’t know. For instance, did you know the average age of acquiring an inheritance is 60? Perkin’s thought process is if you want to give your kids an inheritance, do it when they need it most, don’t wait until they are already financially stable enough to not need the extra money. I couldn’t agree more to this philosophy. Looking back, I would have been able to use an inheritance more when I was in my 20-30s when I was in college, leaving college, starting a family. I feel like now that I am in my mid 30s, I not only need the money less, but I also understand finances on a different level, so my responsibility toward income is different, I don’t spend quite as frivolously and I don’t have quite as much debt. That being said, I also feel like I could have used this book 12 years ago when I was fresh out of college and needed a good lesson on living life and making and spending money. I was let to this way of thinking, so I feel like I missed out.

I also really liked the idea that Perkins has about “regret free living”. This is the idea that each phase of life “dies” so you should do the things you can/want to do while you still can/want to do them. For instance, take your kids to disney while they are still young enough to appreciate the experience instead of waiting until they are too old to enjoy the little things (I mean my first Disney experience was in college and I acted like I was five so it didn’t make a difference to me, but to each their own). He talks a lot about filling time buckets, lists of experiences you want to have at each phase of your life to maximize the amount of memories you have. This intrigued me because he makes the valid point of it’s more likely you will be able to skydive in your 20s than you’ll even want to attempt it in your 70s, so why keep waiting until you have “enough money in savings” to have that experience and instead, spend the money now to have the experience that you can look back on later. It all goes back to dying without regrets, a very relatable scenario. I actually enjoyed the last half of the book more because it focused on this philosophy as a way of living and it intrigued me to make my own time buckets.

Needless to say, there were aspects of this book I hated, and some that I very much found useful. Overall, my experience with this book was “ehh”. I wasn’t the target audience, so it was hard to relate to some of the ideas, however, I was able to take some perspective and thinking from these ideas and figure out a way to make them work for me. I can’t dismiss this book altogether, but at the end of the day, it just wasn’t for me.
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Aug 31, 2020 Taylor Smith rated it it was amazing

This book was recommended to me by the most unlikely of sources, so I had to take a look. I found Die With Zero to be thought provoking and contrarian in a really great way. I've had rich conversations about the concepts in this book with both family and friends - I can say that the ideas are interesting enough and broad enough to engage a ton of different people.

At a bare minimum, this book is worth a read just for the thought experiments it'll put you through. You may not agree with everythin ...more

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Jan 12, 2021 Charmin rated it liked it

Shelves: money

HIGHLIGHTS:
1. Death wakes people up, and the closer it gets, the more awake and aware we become.
- It makes no sense to let opportunities pass us by for fear of squandering our money. Squandering our lives should be a much greater worry.

2. Decide what makes you happy and then convert your money into the experience as you choose.
- To get the most out of your time and money, timing matters.
- A person's ability to extract real enjoyment out of the gift declines with their age. This happens for the ...more

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Feb 19, 2021 Constant rated it it was amazing

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Not the best written book but the underlying premise was impactful (at least for me). Built on a foundation of common sense, the idea is to live your life trying to optimize happiness and to die with zero dollars in the bank.

This does not mean you cannot give anything to your kids or charities, but that you should plan to do that during your lifetime (also makes quite a bit of sense).

Most inheritances are likely to happen at death at much later ages when the dollars are less important (i.e., ne Not the best written book but the underlying premise was impactful (at least for me). Built on a foundation of common sense, the idea is to live your life trying to optimize happiness and to die with zero dollars in the bank.

This does not mean you cannot give anything to your kids or charities, but that you should plan to do that during your lifetime (also makes quite a bit of sense).

Most inheritances are likely to happen at death at much later ages when the dollars are less important (i.e., necessary) or impactful. The argument is that this could be transferred to kids when they are 25-35 when they are building homes and families. Maybe that stretches into 35-45 but it's certainly not 50-80 when parents might normally pass. Similar idea for charitable contributions, do it actively while you are still alive and not bequeath millions upon death.

The book is not designed to provide investment advice, which is fine since that was not what I was seeking.

I think Perkins was able to make a cogent argument for not hoarding incremental dollars during your lifetime and the fact that some experiences are not practical late in life (diminishing returns in your 60's and 70's and beyond). Travel is an easy example, clearly made more challenging with age as I've seen with my own parents.

There is some tension between spending today to generate positive experiences (and compounding them) versus saving some money and compounding that (to allow for earlier retirement) but it doesn't distract from the main points of the book.

The book also lays out how one should equal weight time, money and health during the middle of one's life. This obviously is different earlier on and later in life.

One exercise I would like undertake is the "life buckets." Bit of a wish list and bucket list merged but categorized over an individual's own timeline. What's realistic when experiences can take place and the idea is that it will force you to prioritize (and optimize) near term activities.

Perkins also lays out some simple math about how much you need to save in the form of (annual burn multiplied by years left, but then adjusted by compounded earnings). Assuming 3% growth above inflation, the rule of thumb is 71% and at 5% growth, it's 58% of the total. And most people may assume too many years of life (the unknown factor) and the annual burn likely diminishes late in life (70's and 80's if you make it that long).

The book shows that most people reach peak net worth between 45 and 60 years old so that implies they should start spending down almost immediately (tough to get to zero otherwise). Perkins calls this the "challenge of decumulation."

One of the biggest questions that came out of the book was how to manage the HC expenses before Medicaid kicks in at age 65. That gap could be substantial (or prohibitive) for many.

I am curious to understand more about Perkin's own personal life and how much he is worth to put his comments in better perspective.
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Jan 29, 2021 Liz (liziphers_reads) rated it it was ok

*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

To put it simply, this book didn't need to be more than 100 pages. This book is extremely long winded, repetitive, and was lacking financial content. Each chapter ends in summarizing bullet points, and if you read nothing else but those bullet points, you wouldn't miss anything.

The author uses metaphors on metaphors on metaphors to emphasize his points...the same points...over and over. We get it, move on.

For a non-fiction o *I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

To put it simply, this book didn't need to be more than 100 pages. This book is extremely long winded, repetitive, and was lacking financial content. Each chapter ends in summarizing bullet points, and if you read nothing else but those bullet points, you wouldn't miss anything.

The author uses metaphors on metaphors on metaphors to emphasize his points...the same points...over and over. We get it, move on.

For a non-fiction of this sort, I really want to read from an expert. The author doesn't give much of his background in this book, and in turn, the author doesn't give evidence of his qualification to give this kind of financial advice. That was troublesome to me. At one point the author writes "I won't waste your time with the financial gobbledygook"...even though that's what I thought I was reading this book for.

Putting that aside, I was open to the idea he was putting forward. Spending the money you earn, and not saving money to just give it away after you die, I think this is a really important reminder for a lot of people who focus so intensely on having a full bank account. That being said...I don't know who this book is targeted for. Most of this book will not work for people living with very little, but it also isn't really for people who have a large amount of money. The author tries to relate to young and old in this book, and it kind of gets convoluted and unrelatable at points.

I was CRAVING some calls to action, some tangible actions a person could take in order to "die with zero" and I didn't get that many. The author wrote "Optimization across your life takes a lot of thought and planning" ... well tell me where to start. Tell me what to do and what to consider.

Some of the points in this book that I like were the comments about the ant and the grasshopper. There was also a lot of talk about tracking experiences in points, and deciding what is "worth it" based on how long it would take to "earn it". How many hours of work are things worth to you?
Additionally, in chapter three they give you a chart that breaks down a typical persons' finances throughout their life, and that was a helpful fall back point. It was also interesting to see put so plainly in chart form.

My favorite quote from this book was "I have never seen someone's net worth printed on their tomb stone." That is so true and can relate to so many different situations.

This review may seem a bit harsh, but unfortunately I just found myself confused about this one.
I didn't get any inspiration to consider finances. I don't know who I would suggest this book to. I appreciate the author for giving me a copy of their book, and I would be willing to read something else by this author, but unfortunately this one wasn't for me.

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