Dale
Sample planElectrician · 58 · Thornton, CO
single, S-Corp of one — employee of his own company
Dale's knees are done after 32 years of panels and crawlspaces. Twelve months to his last invoice — here's the order of operations.
Runs short in his 70s as-is — the 12-month plan is how you close the gap
Income streams
Savings — $80,000
Spending
The 12-month glide
- 12 months out
Get the real Social Security number from ssa.gov — don't plan on a guess — and price the health-insurance bridge to 65 FIRST. Then route every good month's surplus to cash until there's 18 months of spending set aside.
- 9 months out
Consolidate stray retirement accounts and set the withdrawal order: taxable first, retirement accounts later. Taxable-first also keeps insurance costs down in the bridge years.
- 6 months out
Knee surgery NOW, while the work plan's deductible is already met. Then test Social Security claim ages by dragging the lever — watch the money-runs-out age move, not the monthly check.
- 1 month out
Health-insurance enrollment, and circle the 59½ date on the calendar — not one retirement-account dollar before it. The early-withdrawal penalty is money Dale doesn't have to pay.
Now run Dale’s plan.
Open the What-If board with Dale’s exact numbers — drag a lever and watch the earliest age Dale can actually retire.
Explore Dale’s What-If →