Can You Save Too Much?

Recognizing when you have enough in retirement

Mel Schlesinger
Crow’s Feet

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NOTE: This article is for those of you who are near retirement or already retired. The advice I share in the article is not meant for those 50 or younger.

On September 2, 2024, I published the article The Truth About Savings and Retirement, where I answered the question, “Is there a magic number.” My main objective in that article was to give my readers an easy formula for deciding if they can afford to retire.

Last week, my wife and I had a somewhat different discussion. As many of my regular readers know, my wife was recently diagnosed with a rare soft tissue cancer. Even though that cancer has a high five-year survival rate, it was a wake-up call of sorts.

For the last two years (2023 and 2024), our plans have all but vanished. In February 2023, we returned from Mazatlán, Mexico, because I needed back surgery to correct lumbar spinal stenosis. We were sure that by July 2023, we would return to Mexico, continuing our retirement adventures. Sadly, I developed an infection which required a second surgery in July, followed by four months of antibiotic therapy. It was December before I was finished with everything related to my back surgery.

We were sure that 2024 would be better. And it started great. In February, we spent our…

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Mel Schlesinger
Crow’s Feet

Sort of retired. I am obsessed with happiness. As I write the last chapter of the story of my life, I want to share ideas on being happy.