My boyfriend makes fun of me for reading AARP magazine — the bimonthly publication of the American Association of Retired Persons. It shows up in the mailbox at my 70-year-old parents suburban home, but I steal it away to my city apartment and devour it page by page. My parents never even get a chance.
But I’m 27 years old. Why the enthusiasm to read a magazine aimed at seniors?
What will you want to cultivate?
Quite simply, its because AARP Magazine is a window into the future: it discusses the issues that we young ‘uns have in store for us, whether we realize it now or not.
And by knowing what will weigh on our minds 50 years down the road, we can better prepare today.
So what gets discussed about in every issue? Two topics:
- Health
- Wealth
That’s it. Almost every article is devoted to one of these two topics: your health and your money. Which, by the way, are intricately related.
“Health” encompasses the broad spectrum of healthy living: from diet and exercise to living a purpose-driven, inspirational life. This blog spends a lot of time talking about the similarities between managing weight and managing money: both are highly psychological. Both are avenues where a little goes a long way. Both are harder as you get older.
“Wealth” encompasses your personal balance sheet: your assets, your liquid cash, your investments. On the surface, Afford Anything is centered around wealth-creation. Beneath the surface, Afford Anything is really about living a life that’s financially free.
AARP is an association of “retired” persons, but we’re redefining retirement. It’s not a mode you slip into at age 62 or 65. Retirement happens on the day you no longer need to work for money. The day your passive income sets you free. The day you can live off your investment returns and your rental properties. (Have you ever considered the similarities between a rental property and an annuity?)
So work towards financial freedom: when you’re a senior, you won’t have regrets.
Oh yeah — and if AARP is any guide, we might want to be monitoring our blood pressure, too.
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[...] (Yes, I’m 27 years old and regularly read AARP magazine – and I recommend you do, too. In this post I explain why. And no, I am not paid by them, sponsored by them, or otherwise receive any benefit from them). [...]
[...] “While wealth can provide you with more choices, it’s really having the ability to realize your dreams that leads to greater happiness,” study coauthor Ronald Fischer told AARP Magazine. [...]