If there’s one thing Americans fear more than death, it might be outliving their savings. That’s one finding from an annual survey by the Allianz Center for the Future of Retirement. It found that 67% of Americans worry more about running out of money than death. Americans fear this retirement setback more than death – https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2026/05/04/retirement-fears-outliving-savings/89897704007/

Yes dear reader, yet another post in the never ending series of random thoughts on retirement. For the curious, here’s a link to some previous posts https://lifeunderwriter.net/tag/retirement/. I am an Old Guy who is old enough to be retired but isn’t retired and still working. After many mornings spent in deep contemplation and many posts where I think out loud I’ve finally accepted my fate and come to a deeper understanding of why I do what I do.

I’ve spent a lifetime working in risk management. Finally, the light bulb came on.

I am actively managing my longevity risk. It’s what I do. I manage risks.

The majority of our friends are retired. I’m always asked when I’m going to retire. My answer was always “Don’t know”. I subsequently modified my response to “Two to four years”. This has been my answer for the past two years. But now when someone asks when I will retire, my answer will be:

I am managing my longevity risk. I am managing future inflation risk.

Imagine you retire at 65, feeling confident. You’ve budgeted $80,000 a year to live comfortably — travel, dining out, covering healthcare, the works.

Fast-forward 25 years.

At age 85, you’re still spending about $80,000 a year … but that no longer buys what it used to.

• That nice dinner out that cost $100 now costs about $210
• A $5,000 annual vacation is now closer to $10,500
• Groceries that ran $10,000 a year are now over $21,000

In other words, your $80,000 lifestyle now costs roughly $168,000 to maintain.

But if your income hasn’t kept pace — if it’s still around $80,000 — your lifestyle has effectively been cut in half. Inflation Is the New Fixed Expense in Retirement https://www.kiplinger.com/retirement/retirement-planning/inflation-the-new-fixed-expense-in-retirement

Economist Teresa Ghilarducci is of the opinion working longer is not a plan but an illusion.

My colleagues Anthony Webb, Michael Papadopoulos and I called it an illusion. In paper The Illusory Benefits of Working Longer on Financial Preparedness for Retirement, we found that older workers with insufficient savings are routinely advised to delay retirement — but that this advice collides with the reality of what the labor market actually offers aging workers. 62-Year Old Works His Whole Life. He Has No Savings. He’s Not Unusual. – https://www.forbes.com/sites/teresaghilarducci/2026/05/21/62-year-old-works-his-whole-life-he-has-no-savings-hes-not-unusual/

Ghilarducci is spot on with her assessment. My plan on working longer wasn’t really a plan so much as it was a set of assumptions. Everything had to go as “planned” or forget about working longer. The two major variables were continued good health and finding an employer that values older workers.

I got lucky. My illusion is working (pun intended).