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A Million Is Not Enough: How to Retire with the Money You'll Need

Michael Farr
Springboard Press (2008)
ISBN 9780446582230
Reviewed by Sandie Kirkland for RebeccasReads (6/08)

Michael K. Farr is a professional financial advisor who manages his clients' portfolios and gives them advice on how to grow their savings so that they can enjoy a stress-free retirement.  In A Million In Not Enough, he gives the reader the advantage of his advice and expertise.  Farr divides investors into three groups: The "Core Boomers" are those in their early to mid-fifties;  "End Boomers" are those in their early to mid forties, and are representatives of the last of the official Boomer generation; while those in their early to mid-thirties are the "Neo-Boomers," and could even be referred to as the older "Generation X".  Each group needs a different strategy to be successful in the goal of accumulating enough capital to fund retirement.  “End Boomers” tend to have more assets, while “Neo-Boomers” tend to have more time.  Each is important, but needs differing strategies.

A concept Farr uses throughout the book is the theory of “Abundance Guilt.”  That is the conflict over material success that many in the Boomer generation have, due to unprecedented success, incredible work ethics and the hard-driving pace this generation tends to set for themselves.  Farr insists that rather than feeling guilt at the success and material goods an individual has been able to attain, they should be proud of their accomplishments and the ability to fund retirement and leave a legacy to their heirs.

This book is full of excellent investment advice, guiding the reader through calculating their net worth, deciding how much risk they can handle, setting a budget, determining ways to save more, and ways to avoid taxes.  There are multiple charts and tables, showing various scenarios.  There are two specific concepts Farr advocates.  The first is the magic of compounding, and the other is the superiority of the stock market as an investment vehicle; over time, it has proven to outperform any other.  Farr gives a detailed explanation of how the market works, different ways of investing depending on the individual's desire to be in control, and how to research stocks.  He even gives specific recommendation on which stocks might be good to own, and which mutual funds tend to be top performers.

This book is recommended for anyone who doesn't have a good grasp on basic financial concepts, and shows how to apply these concepts to make sure that investments and retirement are successful.  The book has a forward by P.J. O'Rourke that I found jarring as it attempted to discuss the topic humorously, but outside of that, I found this book well worth reading.

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