Good morning, Retirement Starts Today Community! Welcome to Every Day is Saturday, the newsletter reminding us that in retirement, every day is Saturday (including Thursday mornings).

​Click here to work with us!

8th Annual Listener Survey​
​
This is your chance, as a listener of the podcast, to influence the show for the next year. This quick survey takes less than five minutes and gives you the opportunity to anonymously share what you love, what you’d change, and what you'd like to hear more (or less) of on the show. I’d love your input. Thank you in advance!

​Click here to fill out the survey

Episode Breakdown:

This week’s episode is a little different. No Retirement Headlines, no listener questions—just something I’ve been mulling over that I think will resonate with many of you Super Savers.

If you’ve saved over a million dollars, you’re in rare company. But here’s the paradox: the very habits that got you here—frugality, discipline, saying “no”—often make it hard to spend your own money in retirement.

That’s what I wanted to unpack this week.

Why Super Savers Struggle to Spend Their Own Money
(0:00) Why “copy and paste” spending habits don’t work after retirement
(8:20) The two invisible constraints during your working years—time and wages
(15:40) A practical exercise to rewire your brain from saving to spending
(30:10) Honoring the contract your younger self made with your older self
(38:45) Why retirement isn’t about hoarding money—it’s about buying freedom

​Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple​

No retirement headline this week - practical planning instead:

This week, instead of covering a headline, we’re tackling a mindset shift.
Here’s the gist:

While you’re working, your spending decisions are constrained by (1) your paycheck and (2) your limited vacation time. Retirement flips both of those upside down. Suddenly, you may have more money and more time than ever—but if you copy and paste your old spending habits into this new reality, you’re not honoring the freedom you worked so hard to earn.

A Practical Exercise for Super Savers:

1. Look back at a trip you’ve taken in the last 24 months.
2. Write down every spending and time decision—flights, hotels, meals, activities.
3. Triple each line item on paper.
4. Brainstorm 2–3 ways you could spend that new amount.
5. Rate each idea “Hot,” “Lukewarm,” or “Cold.”

This isn’t about reckless spending—it’s about data. You might discover that first-class flights light you up… or that your joy has nothing to do with money at all, and everything to do with being at the lake or escaping a Midwest winter. Either way, that’s valuable insight.

Final Thoughts:

Super Savers often feel like spending money betrays the frugal self who built their nest egg. But the truth is the opposite: your younger self made sacrifices so your older self could enjoy freedom.

That freedom doesn’t come from watching your account balance grow forever. It comes from buying experiences, creating joy, and living out the retirement you envisioned.

Resources Mentioned

• ​Click here to order my book, Retirement Starts Today: Your non-financial guide to an even better retirement

​

I need your help...

I will be starting a new segment on my podcast: Retire TO something, not FROM something.

The segment will be brief at the end of the show and will share a fun retirement idea, along with links to learn more. Volunteer work and part-time “fun” jobs will be a common theme.

​Click here to share your ideas!

That's it for our three hundred and ninety-fifth installment of "Every Day is Saturday." As always, I read (and usually reply to) every listener email. Got a question? Hit reply—you just might hear your name on the show.

Enjoy your “Saturday,”
​Benjamin Brandt

​