Skip to Content News Archives Economy Energy Oil & Gas Renewables Electric Vehicles Mining Commodities Agriculture Real Estate Mortgages Mortgage Rates Finance Banking Insurance Fintech Cryptocurrency Work Wealth Smart Money Wealth Management Investor Personal Finance Family Finance Retirement Taxes High Net Worth FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials More Innovation Information Technology FP500 Podcasts Small Business Lives Told Tails Told Shopping Financial Post Store Obituaries Place a Notice Advertising Advertising With Us Advertising Solutions Postmedia Ad Manager Sponsorship Requests Classifieds Place a Classifieds ad Working Profile Settings My Subscriptions Saved Articles My Offers Newsletters Customer Service FAQ News Economy Energy Mining Real Estate Finance Work Wealth Investor FP Comment Executive Women Puzzmo Newsletters Financial Times Business Essentials HomeInvestorPersonal FinanceRetirementThere are three phases of retirement: 'Go Go, Go Slow and No Go’Martin Pelletier: If your financial plan is not gradually converting capital into freedom, then something is off, really offLast updated 36 minutes ago You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.At its core, your time is your real wealth, and the returns you experience in life come from how you choose to allocate it. Photo by EpicStockMedia/Getty ImagesWhen it comes to managing wealth over many years, I have come to realize that its true value extends well beyond money. Building a nest egg to support a desired lifestyle in retirement is a common and worthwhile goal but the problem is that the habits we rely on to get there often end up standing in the way of finally enjoying it.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman, and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.Exclusive articles from Barbara Shecter, Joe O'Connor, Gabriel Friedman and others.Daily content from Financial Times, the world's leading global business publication.Unlimited online access to read articles from Financial Post, National Post and 15 news sites across Canada with one account.National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on.Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorTime is by far your most valuable currency, and its importance sharpens with age, especially as it seems to accelerate. I wrote about this before in a piece titled, If life gets shorter, like a roll of toilet paper, why do we work so long? It sounds flippant, but the point is quite serious. The closer you get to the end, the more aware you become of just how finite your time really is.A friend of mine, one of the coolest institutional investment professionals I have ever known, sent me a note after unexpectedly retiring. I had asked him why he pulled the rip cord so abruptly.Canada's best source for investing news, analysis and insight.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of Investor will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again“Sorry I jumped without saying goodbye. At this stage of my life, time is worth more than money. There are three phases of retirement: Go Go, Go Slow and No Go. I didn’t want to cut into the first phase anymore.“I’ve been busy. Gaspé snowmobiling, cat skiing in Kazakhstan, an 8,000-kilometre motorcycle ride from London to The Gambia through the Sahara Desert, hitchhiking to Guinea Bissau then Cape Verde, Belfast. I’m leaving this morning to ride offroad from Mexico to Utah. Next year I plan to cycle from Beijing to Istanbul.”There is something honest and raw in that decision. My friend recognized that delaying any longer meant trading away his most valuable years of freedom and he actually took a risk and did something about it.The challenge for most people is that we get comfortable, and comfort is often the enemy of progress. This does not mean you need to cross deserts on a motorcycle, but it does raise reasonable questions: Why not push yourself to actually enjoy the fruits of your labour? Why not start allocating your time differently once you have built the financial foundation to do so? Waiting until “Go Slow” almost guarantees you will run into “No Go” sooner than expected. There will always be reasons to maintain the status quo, but that usually comes at the cost of deferring what matters most.For younger people earlier in their careers, this perspective can feel completely out of reach, especially given the rising cost of living and worsening affordability crisis. Yet the idea is not to abandon discipline but to rethink how you measure return on your time and your money.I recently encouraged a younger colleague in the investment business to share his own experience. Instead of chasing expensive vacations, he had been more intentional and directed with how he spends his time. He posted this on LinkedIn:“Yesterday, I spent an entire afternoon building a sandbox for my 1 year old and 4 year old. Three hundred dollars. Hours of assembly. Back pain. Sand everywhere. And it might be one of the best investments I have ever made.“As I sat there with my kids, music playing, Chocolate by The 1975 on repeat, perfect weather, something shifted. I was transported back to a family vacation two years ago. My daughter and I on a beach in Mexico with no agenda, no deadlines, just presence. I felt that same feeling again, right there in my backyard. I have not felt that way in a long time.“We spend so much of our lives chasing the next milestone, the next deal, the next achievement. But the moments that actually fill us up are usually the simplest ones. A sandbox. Some music. My kids laughing. That is it. That is the whole return.“Sometimes the best investments are not in your portfolio. They are in your presence.”It is hard to read that and not pause for a moment. We spend our professional lives quantifying returns, optimizing portfolios and compounding capital, yet some of the highest returning investments in our personal lives never show up on a statement.This is where the conversation comes back to investing. The goal of investing is not simply to accumulate more, it is to create optionality; it is to give you control over how and when you spend your time. If your financial plan is not gradually converting capital into freedom, then something is off, really off.A well-constructed portfolio should do more than grow. It should support a transition from accumulation to utilization. That transition rarely happens cleanly because the behaviours that build wealth — patience, discipline, deferral — are the opposite of those required to enjoy it. Many investors stay fully in accumulation mode long after they have already won the game and one day they wake up and it’s “No Go.”At its core, your time is your real wealth, and the returns you experience in life come from how you choose to allocate it. Every day we are deploying our time across work, family, health and experiences. Some of those decisions compound in ways no market return ever could. And so, what are you going to do about it?I choose sandboxes and motorcycles.Martin Pelletier, CFA, is the author of Investing Through the Storm and a senior portfolio manager at TriVest Wealth, a team that is part of Wellington-Altus Private Counsel Inc. TriVest provides discretionary risk-managed portfolios, investment audit/oversight and advanced tax, estate and wealth planning. The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Wellington-Altus._____________________________________________________________If you like this story, sign up for the FP Investor Newsletter. 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