Why "Die with Zero" Is a Useful Counterweight for Corporate Savers
Most retirement advice is about how much to save. Bill Perkins asks what the money is for.
Most of what you read about retirement assumes the goal is to save as much as possible for as long as possible. Bill Perkins thinks that is a mistake, and he makes his case bluntly.
I will be upfront: this is the most provocative book on this page, and it could easily be misread. Perkins is not telling you to stop saving. He argues that money is only worth what it lets you do, and that some experiences have a window that closes.
Why include it on a site about closing a retirement gap? Because many readers here are disciplined savers who have spent decades putting things off. This book is a useful check on that habit.
The Core Argument
Perkins's central idea is that the money you earn represents hours of your life. If you die with a large amount unspent, you worked those hours for something you never used.
He is clear that this does not mean spending recklessly. You still need security. His point is that spending deserves the same careful planning most of us give to saving.
The Ideas That Matter Most
The ideas I would read first:
- Memory dividends: experiences keep paying out in memories for years afterward, which makes earlier experiences worth more.
- Time buckets: divide your life into periods and plan which experiences belong in each, because some things get harder with age.
- Give earlier: support for children or causes often does more good while you are alive than as an inheritance that arrives late.
- Know when to stop growing your wealth: plan for the point when you start drawing down your savings.
What This Means for You
Encore Income is about closing a gap, so this book does not replace that plan. It adds a question to it. Once you know your Freedom Number, what is any extra income for?
For some readers, the honest answer is simply security, and that is a perfectly good answer. For others, it might be a few years of travel while their health allows, or helping a grown child earlier than an inheritance would. Perkins pushes you to decide on purpose.
How It Fits With the Rest of This Section
The Simple Path to Wealth covers the mechanics of investing. The Psychology of Money covers the behavior. Die with Zero covers the purpose. I would read it last of the three.
What I Like
It forces a question most financial planning skips. Even if you disagree with Perkins, you will come away clearer about your own priorities.
Bill Perkins is a hedge fund manager, energy trader and poker player, and he writes with the directness you might expect from that background.
What I Don't Like
The author is very wealthy. Some of his examples reflect that, and they can feel out of reach. Focus on the principles.
It is easy to misuse. Read carelessly, it could justify overspending before your baseline is secure. Close your gap first.
Some ideas need family conversations. Giving to your children earlier is a decision to make together, not alone.
The Bottom Line
This book will not help you invest or plan taxes. It will make you think hard about what your savings are for.
Read it after The Simple Path to Wealth, and apply it only once your Freedom Number is covered. Used that way, it is a valuable counterweight to a lifetime of putting things off.
Get the Book
Die with Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life by Bill Perkins
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Start With Your Superpowers
Before deciding what extra income is for, find out where it can come from. The free assessment identifies your three core professional superpowers.
Take the Assessment (Free)Calculate Your Freedom Number
Perkins asks what your money is for. Start with the baseline: the calculator shows the monthly income gap you need to close first.
Calculate Your GapFortune favors the bold. But fortune also favors those who know what they are saving for.
Scott Fulbright
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