How to Live Like A Millionaire on a Retirement Budget!

Elizabeth Dunkel is a writer, author and is here today talking about her journey in writing the book:  How to Live Like A Millionaire on a Retirement Budget!   I found Elizabeth through her website a couple of months ago! Her writing is wonderful and she tackles some great topics for us, women, over forty!  

Elizabeth starts by sharing how we think about retirement your entire life and dream of what it will be like for yourself and then you get to retirement and say, “ what is this?”  There is a fine balance between living a full life and preparing for retirement.  She says that in preparing to retire, you don’t want to air on the wrong on either side!  Elizabeth shares how your forties are a great time to get your financial house in order!  That first step is to become financially literate.  

She goes on to share that if you are not financially literate in your forties now is the time to get there!  The personal journey she shares about having gone through a financial crisis and learning more about the financial services industry helps us to understand and be able to move forward with a new story for women over forty! 

Elizabeth wanted to write her book so she could show how luxury and abundance is a mindset.  There are ways to live beautifully and luxuriously and like a millionaire on very little money!  It’s all about changing priorities.   It’s about living beneath your means but NOT scrimping!  

She goes on to say that luxury is all about developing your personal style and being authentically you. It’s about finding pleasure in the tremendous sensuality of life that is around you.  Elizabeth goes on to share that buying the perfect tomato and making a tomato sandwich with homemade bread is extraordinarily luxurious. It’s your care and time that went into making that sandwich that made it beautiful.   

Elizabeth shares that retirement is not a moment which is really how we viewed it long ago. You worked for a company and on a specific day, you received the gold watch.  Those days are over!  Retirement now takes a few years to ease into your mind and body.  She shares that it is a process of turning into a person who can truly pursue their passions. Elizabeth goes on to share the passions that she has discovered in this later season of life.  

In her book, she shares how to eat, travel, and dress like a millionaire and during our interview shares some of these lessons she has learned.  One great share from Elizabeth is that rushing is not luxurious!  Stop rushing to the airport!  It only creates and causes stress and makes you sweaty.  By leaving to the airport early you can arrive calm and have the time to relax and that doesn’t even cost a penny!  She shares many more examples in our conversation.  

We then have a great conversation about the process of aging and how we all have a special season of growth during each decade and how important it is to recognize and honor that journey!  It’s a beautiful conversation where Elizabeth shares her review of each season so that it may help us all to take a moment to enjoy ours!  

Elizabeth shares a great quote regarding fear:  “Fear is not an option”. – Diane Von Furstenberg.  There were plenty of times Elizabeth was afraid but she had to put her fear aside and take a risk to move back to the states and start a new life. You can live with fear but at some point, you have to put it aside so you can challenge yourself to move forward.  

Lastly, Elizabeth shares that being retired is like being a college student with money. You can read, sleep late, go to the movies. You are now a student of life!  How are you preparing for retirement and are you becoming financially literate?  Share in the comments!