These are the 3 elements of a happy retirement

1. Finances. I watched immoderate of Berkshire Hathaway’s BRK.A, -0.27% BRK.B, -0.32% yearly gathering recently. As usual, Warren Buffett was a maestro teacher. He showed the apical 20 companies in the satellite arsenic of 1989. His point? Not 1 of those companies is successful the apical 20 today.

He besides showed the apical 20 companies today. It’s an awesome list. We mightiness deliberation of them arsenic large companies to ain for the adjacent 30 years. But if past offers immoderate lesson, it’s that most—and possibly all—will suffer their dominance.

That made maine deliberation astir my ain finances. I astir apt person an actuarial beingness expectancy of 20 years oregon so. My woman is simply a fewer years younger, so—to beryllium conservative—I deliberation we should usage a 30-year concern readying clip horizon. Given the demise of the 20 largest companies implicit the past 30 years, what’s a bully program for managing our vulnerability to stocks implicit the adjacent 30 years?

Buffett’s illustration made wide the compelling logic of owning low-cost index funds that put successful each publically traded stocks. As immoderate elephantine companies fall, others volition emerge. As scale investors, we volition nett by participating successful this creative destruction. We volition ain the adjacent Amazon AMZN, -1.11% oregon Apple AAPL, +0.79%.

Buffett has said his estate plan calls for trustees to put 90% of his assets successful a low-cost S&P 500 scale SPX, -0.35% fund. My portfolio has a small much diversification, including a full satellite banal scale fund. As innovation and prosperity dispersed to different countries, it makes consciousness to maine to diversify extracurricular the U.S.

One caveat: I don’t privation my day-to-day measure paying to beryllium connected banal marketplace performance. That would beryllium excessively stressful. I similar a status income program that besides uses Social Security, any pension income and different fixed income-like annuities to wage ongoing bills.

2. Wellness. Humans person nary uncertainty looked for a fountain of younker ever since they discovered they were aging. But it’s reached a caller frenzy with babe boomers similar me. I’ve been done capable diets, supplements and workout routines to constitute a book.

The pursuit of eternal younker is epitomized by the $1 cardinal that’ll spell to the victor of the Palo Alto Longevity Prize. It’s called “a subject contention dedicated to ending aging.” To my knowledge, nary 1 has collected yet.

Read: These ‘super seniors’ are surviving longer, healthier lives

If there’s a mode to clasp disconnected the frailty that comes with aging, I’d similar to participate. But—aware that frauds enactment astir efficaciously with those looking for miracles—I besides cognize that selling anti-aging wares tin beryllium a fertile tract for scammers.

My advice: Treat this taxable the aforesaid mode you grip your finances. As an investor, I support an oculus connected existent events. But I seldom enactment connected thing but proposal from fiscal experts I trust.

Similarly, determination are breathtaking developments successful anti-aging that are worthy keeping an oculus on. I’m intrigued by the emerging subject of senolytics that tries to region harmful cells that afflict the elderly. It shows immoderate promise, but it’s astir apt years distant from being thing that you and I tin payment from.

Read: Retired but anxious to prosecute part-time work? How to find the close gig

On the different hand, there’s a batch of trusted, actionable proposal we tin instantly implement. A symptom doc told maine his healthiest patients are hikers. I often spell for agelong hikes, arsenic good arsenic regularly visiting the gym. Nutritionists consistently counsel eating tons of earthy foods for their vitamin and mineral content. That’s besides bully advice.

But whenever we’re tempted to bargain into a caller wellness craze oregon an unthinkable concern opportunity, it’s bully to retrieve the communicative of Stephen Greenspan. He wrote a publication on gullibility, including however to debar it.

Unfortunately, soon aft the publication was published successful 2008, it was revealed that helium was an investor in Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. If a gullibility adept tin beryllium duped, intelligibly the remainder of america request to beryllium connected our guard.

3. Managing time. I emotion nary longer going to the bureau 5 oregon six days a week. But I request thing to look guardant to each greeting too coffee. Among the unhappy retirees I’ve talked to, astir are bored due to the fact that they don’t person thing to do. That tin usually beryllium fixed.

Read: When should I assertion Social Security? When bash I request to motion up for Medicare?

If you’re searching for ideas for however to walk your time, deliberation astir aged interests you weren’t capable to prosecute successful the past. My quirky desire: Learn much astir Western philosophy. I’m up to my cervix trying to recognize Thomas Aquinas’s presumption of earthy law. I’m definite that sounds weird to astir people, but that’s the constituent of retirement. We tin prosecute interests unsocial to who we are.

This file primitively appeared connected Humble Dollar. It was republished with permission.

Joe Kesler is the writer of Smart Money with Purpose and the laminitis of a website with the aforesaid name, which is wherever a mentation of this nonfiction archetypal appeared. He spent 40 years successful assemblage banking, assisting tiny businesses and consumers. Joe served arsenic main enforcement of banks successful Illinois and Montana. He presently lives with his woman successful Missoula, Montana, spending his clip penning connected idiosyncratic finance, serving connected 2 slope boards and hiking successful the Rocky Mountains. Check retired Joe’s previous articles.