Is Dying Broke Really a Good Money Goal to Aim For?

If you’ve ever read the book Die With Zero by Bill Perkins you probably already see the benefit of spending all your money before you die. If you haven’t it might seem like the most irresponsible goal ever, but hear me out.

If you do it right, dying broke really might be a good money goal to aim for. Planning to spend your money before you die isn’t necessarily a selfish or irresponsible goal. In fact, it’s something that some estate planners might even encourage you to do, depending on your circumstances.

Here are some of the points Perkins makes. At the very least, they’re worth understanding.

Investing in Experiences Still Brings a ROI

Perkins suggests you take your money and invest it in having amazing experiences, while you’re still young enough to enjoy them. You’ve probably heard about studies that show that experiences make you happier than things. But who needs studies, really? If you’ve had amazing experiences in life you already know. Experiences make us who we are.

Perkins suggests that we start early with investing in experiences, because ultimately, your life is the sum of the experiences you have. Those experiences result in memories that last a lifetime, not to mention knowledge, wisdom, opportunities, contacts, and other intangible (and unbankable) things that nevertheless contribute to our non-financial wealth stores. As Perkins puts it:

“Your whole point in earning money is to be able to spend it on the experiences that make your life what it is.”

You Don’t Have to Die to Leave a Legacy

You can just as easily give money to your kids, grandkids or much-loved charities while you’re alive. There are even tax advantages to doing so, though you’ll have to talk to a tax advisor about how best to do this given your specific circumstances.

People talk about wanting to leave a legacy for their “kids” yet most of those “kids” are in their 50s, or older, when that inheritance arrives. Ironically, they may be fairly well established at that point. Whereas at a younger age they could perhaps have done with help to buy a house, start a business, or have a dream vacation. Maybe they’d rather have a dream vacation with you, every year, rather than a big inheritance in the future.

Donating money to a charity or cause that you really care about can also be done while you’re alive, usually with tax benefits. There are few worthy causes that couldn’t benefit from having the money sooner rather than later, and you get the added joy of actually seeing the difference your donations make. In short you’re aiming to give your money away at the point when it will have the most impact.

Know When to Stop Growing Your Wealth

The accumulation of wealth is such an obvious and widely accepted goal that it’s hard to acknowledge that we should actively plan to stop growing our wealth. But there is an argument to be made for the fact that there really does come a point when you have enough. It will be different for everyone, of course, and dependant on many other factors. The point is that it should be planned. Perkins pinpoints this as the point at which his advice diverges from what most people do:

“You should find that one special point in your life when your net worth is the highest it will ever be. I call that point your net worth peak, or just ‘your peak.’”

If you choose to accept this, you take on a new goal. From that point on your actions are no longer about accumulating money, but about spending it in the very best way possible, for you and your loved ones.

Dying Broke Takes Planning

If you’re breaking out in a sweat over the concept of dying broke, you’re not alone. I’m right there with you to be honest. The fear of “running out of money” is in most of us, to a greater or lesser extent. That’s why you really do have to absorb the ideas in the book, then tailor the concept to your own circumstances and your personal appetite for risk.

You might need to consider an annuity vs a traditional pension plan, look carefully at your health insurance options, and make an end-of-life care plan. Your ultimate aim here is to find the balance. You want to avoid outspending your savings, while also not wasting your life energy amassing wealth you don’t need and can’t use, especially if that wealth can benefit those you care about.

Interested in the concept of dying with zero? You can find the book here.

Karen Banes is a freelance writer specializing in entrepreneurship, parenting and lifestyle. She writes articles, website content, ebooks and the occasional award winning short story. Her work has appeared in a range of publications both online and off, including The Washington Post, Life Info Magazine, Transitions Abroad, Brave New Traveler, Natural Parenting Group, and Copia Magazine. Learn More About Karen