Donna

Sample plan

Registered Nurse · 58 · Columbus, OH

single, 29 years on med-surg

Her feet say stop; her identity says taper. Two per-diem shifts a week turn out to be the difference between money lasting to 87 and 95.

Earns now

$92k

per year

Saved

$90k

nest egg

Spends

$78k

per year, incl. health

Retirement income

$39k

SS + pensions

The outcome as-is

Runs short in the 70s as-is — the plan is how you close the gap

Income streams

Nursing (full-time)work

active now → age 60

$92,000/yr

Per-diem — 2 shifts/weekwork

starts age 60 → age 64

$38,000/yr

Hospital pensionretirement

starts age 65 → for life

$14,000/yr

Social Securityretirement

claim at 67

$25,200/yr

Brokerage (taxable)$12,000

401(k) / IRA (tax-deferred)$78,000

Living budget$5,583/mo

Health bridge (pre-65)$917/mo

Total, pre-65$6,500/mo

12 months out
Design the glide: full-time to 60, then per-diem two shifts a week to 64. The shifts nearly cover the health-insurance bridge by themselves.
9 months out
Price the benefits cliff honestly — per-diem means marketplace insurance. Enter it as a real expense line, not a hope.
6 months out
The claiming rule that shapes every glide: earning while claiming Social Security early means benefits get withheld. So the shifts run first, Social Security waits until they stop.
1 month out
Pension paperwork for 65 confirmed as its own income line — three income bands arriving in sequence: shifts, then Social Security, then pension.

Open the What-If board with Donna’s exact numbers — drag a lever and watch the earliest age Donna can actually retire.