During a Game Night, Marylou’s brother-in-law recommended a book for her to read. “Smart Couple Finish Rich” by David Bach, which he had just finished. We were both in our mid-forties, pretty frugal, and have always tried to live within our means, so most of the information was familiar territory. But a question was asked that we never really talked or thought about, “What does retirement mean to you?”.
This started a long conversation (that continues today), which led to a lot of online research, travel, and finally, some decisions and trade-offs.
We had a hard talk about our own finances, where we each wanted to be individually and as a couple, and how we could achieve a life that we would both be satisfied and happy with.
We talked about; when we saw ourselves retiring or even if we would, where we would live, how we would live, or what we’re willing to accept or come to a happy medium.
These were and are a lot of hard conversations about wants and needs, but in the end, I think we both found that we agreed more than we disagreed, which helped us understand each other a little more. I think it made us healthier as a couple.
