The retirement question most people ask backwards

 There is one question I hear all the time, and every time I hear it, it makes me slightly shudder. Not because it is a bad question, but because the people asking it are usually looking for the wrong kind of answer.

The question is: "How much money is enough to retire?"

It sounds reasonable. It sounds responsible. But most people don’t realize that the answer they’re hoping for, a single, magic number, isn’t actually very helpful. It creates anxiety. It invites guesswork. And it treats your retirement savings like a finish line, rather than what they really are: an engine.

A better question is this: What does your retirement income look like in layers, and which of those layers do you need to fund from your own savings?

I think we all intuitively understand the idea of layers. Your retirement income isn’t one big pile of money; it is a stack of building blocks. Let’s look at them from the ground up:

• Layer 1: Government Programs. This includes the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS). These are your foundation, income that arrives whether you save a dime or not.
• Layer 2: Workplace Pensions. For some, this includes company-sponsored pension plans (defined benefit or defined contribution).
• Layer 3: Registered Savings. This layer includes your Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs) and Tax-Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs).
• Layer 4: Personal Savings & Assets. This is the money you have saved outside of registered accounts, plus assets like a paid-off home that could be downsized to free up funds.

When you see retirement this way, the question shifts. You stop asking, "How big does my single pile of savings need to be?", blindly hoping you’ll like the answer, and instead you ask, "How much income do I need each year, and which layers are going to provide it?"

Most of us will have a mix of income sources in retirement. The common mistake is looking at each layer in isolation, rather than seeing how they stack together to form your total retirement income.

Let’s look at how the math works for a typical Canadian.

The Government Foundation (Layers 1 & 2)
For most retirees, the first layer, CPP and OAS, will provide a base of income. Here is the current breakdown:

• Canada Pension Plan (CPP): The CPP is designed to replace about 25% of your average lifetime earnings, up to a maximum limit. It is based on what you contributed during your working years, not your final salary.
• Old Age Security (OAS): OAS is a monthly payment available to most Canadians 65 and older, regardless of work history (though it is subject to a claw back at higher income levels).

When you combine these two government programs, they typically replace between 30% and 40% of your pre-retirement income for the average earner.

Financial experts often suggest that to maintain a similar lifestyle in retirement, you should aim to replace about 70% of your working income. Some years you might need more; some years less. But 70% is a solid target.

If the government layers are providing 30–40%, that leaves a gap of roughly 30–40% of your working income that needs to come from your own savings, workplace pensions, or other assets.

That gap is where the magic happens.

This is where the concept of growth becomes critical, and why reviewing your savings early matters so much.

Money you save doesn't just sit there. It grows. Through the power of compound growth, your savings earn returns, and those returns earn returns of their own. Over time, this effect turns small, regular contributions into substantial income streams.

Consider this: If you have $100,000 saved at age 55 and you leave it invested earning a modest average annual return of 5%, by the time you turn 65, that money could grow to nearly $163,000, without you adding another penny. That is the magic of compounding.

But compounding needs time to work. The sooner you review your savings; the more time you give your money to multiply. Waiting until the year you retire means you lose those precious years of growth.

For many people approaching retirement, there is another layer worth considering: part-time work. I worked part-time for the first 15 years of my retirement, and then I stopped.

Work does not need to be full-time, and not forever. But even a small amount of income in the early years of retirement can make a massive difference to your long-term security. I  worked part-time for fifteen years and earned a lot of money. This was money I did not to withdraw from my savings. My investments stay intact. They kept compounding. They kept growing.

By the time I stopped working entirely, that money had several extra years (15) to grow, giving me a larger cushion for the years when you need it most. I worked for a number of reasons, one of which is I did not start saving for retirement until I was 50 years old.

So, let's bring it all together. The question you should be asking isn't, "How much do I need to save?"

It's this: "How much income will I have from CPP, OAS, and any workplace pensions, and how much of the gap do I need my savings to fill?"

Once you know that gap, you can look at your savings and ask the next logical question: "Based on what I have saved today, and assuming it continues to grow over the next 5, 10, or 20 years, how much income will it generate?"

That is a question you can answer. That is a plan you can build.

If you are approaching retirement, I urge you: do not wait to have this conversation with yourself.

It is easy to avoid the numbers because they feel overwhelming. It is easy to tell yourself you will look at it next year. But every year you wait is a year of compound growth you leave on the table.

You don't need to have all the answers today. You just need to start asking the right questions. Look at your layers. Understand your gap. And give your savings the time they need to grow into the retirement income you deserve.

The chaos around us may be loud, but your financial future doesn't have to be chaotic. It just needs a plan. And the best time to start that plan was twenty years ago. The second-best time is today.

The Ministry of Minutes: How Ordinary People Steady the World

I was reading a post by Todd Mafifin https://todmaffin.com/ (The world between minutes) and as I have been thinking about time, it lead me to these ideas.

A few months ago, I sat down with a small group of dedicated Board members to apply for a grant. It was the kind of administrative task that doesn’t feel particularly glamorous, endless forms, budget projections, and carefully worded mission statements. We did it because that is what you do when you care about something. You put in the work, you cross your fingers, and then you wait.

A few days ago, the news arrived: we received the grant.

In the grand scheme of a world that feels like it’s spinning off its axis, a single grant for a local seniors’ organization might seem like a small thing. But here is the truth I am holding onto right now: it is not a small thing. It is everything. This funding will allow us to host seminars, run programs, and bring connection to hundreds of seniors in Port Coquitlam. It means that for a few hundred people, the week will look a little brighter, the isolation will lift just a little, and the message will be clear: You are seen. You matter.

We are living through a tonne of bad news. It arrives in our pockets constantly, delivered in neat little rectangles of light. The notifications stack up, political turmoil, environmental dread, economic uncertainty, human suffering. It is easy to feel like the world is unravelling, and it is even easier to feel powerless to stop it. The chaos is loud, relentless, and it demands our attention.

But here is what I have noticed lately. The good news doesn’t arrive in a push notification. It shows up in smaller, quieter doses. It doesn’t shout; it simply persists.

Teachers still show up. They stand in front of classrooms, day after day, shaping young minds and offering stability in a world that offers very little of it. Volunteers still show up. They ladle soup in community kitchens, sort donations at food banks, and sit with the elderly. Nurses and First Responders still take their shifts. They walk into the emergency room, the long-term care facility, the ambulance, and they do their jobs with steady hands and tired eyes. They don’t fix the whole world, but they steady the minute in front of them.

And that, I believe, is the secret we have forgotten.

We do not control the chaos. The news cycle will spin whether we watch it or not. The world will continue to throw curveballs. We cannot stop the storm, but we can decide how we hold the umbrella. We can decide what the next minute looks like. We can choose to make that minute kind. We can choose to make it productive. We can choose to make it about someone other than ourselves.

By taking control of the minutes, we take control of the hours. And by taking control of the hours, we take control of the day. And by taking control of the day, we take control of how we approach our lives.

I was talking to a senior the other day, one of the wonderful humans we have the privilege of serving. He told me that he is now the longest-living member of his entire family. He has outlived his parents, his siblings, and even some of his friends. I expected to hear sadness in his voice, perhaps the weight of so many goodbyes. Instead, I heard something else entirely.

He said, "I take every day as a blessing. I wake up, and I am just happy to be in the moment."

Here is a man who has seen more chaos than most of us can imagine. He has lived through wars, economic crashes, personal losses, and the relentless march of time itself. And yet, his secret to longevity wasn't a diet or an exercise routine. It was gratitude. It was the choice to see each new sunrise as a small miracle.

That conversation stopped me in my tracks. Because if he can find joy in the moment, despite everything, then what is our excuse?

The truth is, we are surrounded by small miracles. We just don’t call them that anymore. We call them "ordinary." We call them "routine." We forget that the reason the world hasn't completely fallen apart is that millions of ordinary people are quietly choosing to hold it together.

The teacher who stays late to help a struggling student. The neighbour who shovels the walkway of the elderly couple next door. The friend who sends a text just to say, "I was thinking of you." The Board member who donates their time to write a grant application. The senior who wakes up and decides to be happy.

These are the acts that form the invisible architecture of a functioning society. They don’t make the news. They don’t trend on social media. But they are the reason any of us make it through.

So, if you are struggling with the chaos around us, and let’s be honest, who isn’t? I invite you to try something. Put down the phone for a minute. Stop doomscrolling. Stop trying to solve the problems of the entire world all at once. You can’t. None of us can.

Instead, look at the minute in front of you. What can you do right now? Can you make a cup of tea and breathe? Can you send a kind word to someone? Can you show up for a shift, for a friend, for yourself?

The grant we received is not going to change the world. But it is going to change the world for a few hundred seniors. It is going to give them a reason to get out of the house, a reason to connect, a reason to smile. And that is enough. That is more than enough.

We are living through a tonne of bad news. But we are also living through a tonne of quiet, persistent goodness. It is happening in the margins, in the moments no one records, in the hearts of people who simply refuse to give up.

Be one of those people. Steady the minute in front of you. Build what the next minute looks like. And remember, each one is a small miracle.

Its all in the timing

Lately I’ve been thinking about time, not in a grim, counting-down way, but with a quiet sense of wonder. Each additional year now feels like a bonus round, an unexpected gift. I love living, and I find myself glorying in how super-rich these years have become. I share my days with a loving partner, a beautiful family, and good friends. I’m healthy. I volunteer with organizations filled with generous, caring people. I still do fun things, laugh often, and wake up curious about what the day might hold.

Every day, I pause to give thanks for this quite extraordinary experience we call living. How lucky we are to be able to do that at all, and to do it in a place that feels, in so many ways, like paradise.

At the same time, there’s no pretending that the circle is thinning. Many of my oldest friends are already gone. More recent friends are beginning to struggle with the realities of aging, memory loss, neurological challenges, and bodies that no longer cooperate. Lately, it feels as if departures are coming in a rush. I’m not counting years exactly, but I’m very aware that I’m sliding farther along the curve of life expectancy.

I find myself hoping for five or six more good, healthy years. Maybe that’s optimistic. Maybe four is more likely. Either way, I’ve made my peace with not knowing. I’ve always liked uncertainty, the right amount of it. For me, uncertainty has never felt frightening; it’s felt fascinating. Even as a child, I carried a quiet confidence that whatever I did, I’d land safely. That belief hasn’t left me.

Most of my life still looks much the same: family gatherings, friendships, meaningful work, shared meals, small routines that anchor the days. Yet I also sense I’m in an in-between place, no longer fully where I was, not quite where I’m going next. And oddly enough, that feels less like loss and more like anticipation. I’m still expecting good times.

My wife helps me navigate this season. She listens, reflects, steadies me when my thoughts wander too far ahead. She’s a wonderful sounding board, and her presence makes these transitions gentler, warmer, more human.

I’ve noticed something else, too. I catch myself reading obituaries and noting ages. As if there’s a formula hidden there. Of course, there isn’t. None of us knows whether we’ll live longer or shorter than “normal,” whatever that means. Time doesn’t negotiate. But knowing that doesn’t drain the color from my days, it sharpens it.

These years feel precious not because they are numbered, but because they are full. And as long as I’m here, I plan to keep noticing, contributing, loving, laughing, and saying thank you. Right to the end.

Conclusion: Thriving in Your New Retirement – The Four Pillars United

As you and I have explored the Four Pillars, Health, Family, Purpose, and Finances, a central theme emerges: they are inextricably interconnected and mutually reinforcing. You cannot robustly address one without touching the others. This holistic view, grounded in research from Edward Jones and updated is the blueprint for the New Retirement.

The research offers both encouragement and a caution. The encouraging news is that most retirees are thriving, reporting good mental health, strong family satisfaction, and finding meaningful purpose. However, not everyone has the same chance at a high-quality life. 28% of retirees rate their quality of life as only fair or poor. What separates the two groups?

Consistently, those who thrive grade themselves highly across all four pillars. Conversely, those struggling report challenges in multiple areas. Life circumstances, like a serious health diagnosis or lack of family support, can be difficult to control, but the pillar framework empowers us to focus on what we can influence.

Your Actionable Takeaway: Conduct a Personal “Pillar Audit.”
Take a moment to honestly assess your retirement plan through this four-part lens:

1. Health: Are you proactively managing your physical and cognitive health? Have you discussed your care preferences with family?
2. Family: Have you nurtured your key relationships and defined your “family of affinity”? Have you had conversations about future care and financial generosity?
3. Purpose: Do you have engaging activities and goals that provide structure and meaning? Have you explored ways to give back or connect with younger generations?
4. Finances: Does your income plan support your desired lifestyle across the other three pillars? Is it resilient to shocks like health events or family needs?

The goal isn’t perfection in every area, but balance and awareness. Strengthening one pillar can help support another that may be wobbling. Investing in your health protects your finances. Nurturing family deepens your purpose. Solid finances give you the peace of mind to enjoy it all.

Retirement is no longer a single event; it’s a dynamic, evolving stage of life. By intentionally building and maintaining these Four Pillars, you’re not just planning for retirement, you’re designing a life of engagement, connection, and well-being. You are building the foundation not just to live longer, but to live better.

Here’s to your thriving New Retirement and I hope you join me as I explore new topics and have some fun.