WASHINGTON, D.C. (7News) — Americans are saving more for retirement than ever before, on average, close to 15% of their income every month.

A local financial planner, however, is flipping the script on what you think you know about retirement and he’s making waves with a bold new message: maybe you don’t need to save that much after all.

Derek Coburn is a Northern Virginia-based financial advisor and the author of the new book ‘Let’s Retire Retirement’. In the book, Coburn makes a compelling case for a radical shift in mindset: save less now and spend more on the things and people you enjoy today.

“We’re seeing this big ‘unretirement’ movement,” Coburn explains.

“People are going back to work, not because they need the money, but because they miss the connection. They miss the contribution.”

In fact, 25% of people who retire at 65 end up returning to work, often because retirement wasn’t what they expected. That statistic is central to Coburn’s message: maybe retirement doesn’t have to be a hard stop at 65, and maybe that traditional goal isn’t the one-size-fits-all plan we’ve been led to believe.

Rethinking the Magic Retirement Age

Coburn’s message is rooted in the idea that our obsession with age 65 as the finish line is outdated. He explains that the number comes from 1889 Germany, where retirement benefits were first envisioned, starting at 65, a time when life expectancy was roughly the same. The U.S. adopted a similar approach with the introduction of Social Security under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1935, setting the target retirement age at 65 when life expectancy in the U.S. at that time was 71.

But with people now living well into their 80s and beyond, Coburn argues that clinging to the 65-year milestone is not only unnecessary, it may be hurting our overall quality of life.

“How much thought have you actually given to why this age is appropriate for you?” he asks his clients. “Most people say they haven’t thought about it at all.”

The High Cost of Over-Saving

While financial security is important, Coburn says many Americans are now so focused on saving for a future they might not fully enjoy that they’re missing out on life today.

“There’s a very large percentage of people playing this money game,” he says. “They think they need to save a certain amount by a certain age, no matter what, but it’s costing them their relationships, their health, and their happiness.”

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Instead, ‘Let’s Retire Retirement’ offers an alternative approach: plan to work longer, not because you have to, but because it can offer more freedom in the short term.

“If people work longer, they don’t have to save as much now,” Coburn explains. “They’ll have more money to spend on the things and people that matter most today.”

A Reality Check for Retirement Dreams

The book is based on real, candid conversations Coburn has had with his clients, many of whom describe retirement goals that sound good in theory but fall apart under closer scrutiny.

“Someone will say, ‘I’m going to travel the world with my spouse,’ and I’ll ask, ‘When was the last time you went on a date with your spouse?’ Or they’ll say, ‘I’ll play golf five days a week,’ and I’ll respond, ‘You haven’t been to the gym in four years and just had hip surgery.’”

For Coburn, the goal isn’t to discourage dreams; it’s to encourage people to live more intentionally now, rather than postponing happiness for a vision of retirement that may never come to fruition.

Planning with Purpose—at Any Age

Coburn’s message isn’t just for people nearing retirement. He’s working to reach younger professionals, even those in their 30s, to start thinking now about what a fulfilling life really looks like.

“I’m trying to help people avoid the regret I see in so many 65- and 70-year-olds,” he says. “Regret that they didn’t travel, didn’t spend enough time with family, or worked jobs they hated just to hit a number.”

So maybe it’s time to reconsider the conventional wisdom. If ‘Let’s Retire Retirement’ teaches us anything, it’s that the real key to financial planning may not be saving more, but living better.

Coburn’s book, “Let’s Retire Retirement,” is available now at bookstores and online.