Die With Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life

In Chapter 7, Perkins introduces the concept of “time bucketing” as a strategy for life planning. He begins with a personal anecdote about watching Pooh’s Heffalump Movie with his daughters, noting how one day his younger daughter suddenly lost interest in it. This experience illustrates an important life lesson: Many phases of life end without warning or ceremony.

Perkins argues that humans experience multiple “deaths” throughout their lives as different versions of themselves fade away. The teenage self, the college student self, the new parent self—all eventually disappear. Unlike scheduled transitions such as graduation or retirement, most of these endings occur without recognition. This creates a problem: People often delay experiences, assuming they will have unlimited time to enjoy them later, when in reality each life phase offers unique but limited opportunities.

Perkins compares life stages to different swimming pools at a resort. Each pool has specific rules about who can use it (children, teens, adults, seniors), and once a person ages out of a particular pool, they cannot return regardless of their desires or abilities. Similarly, some life experiences are best suited to—or only possible during—specific ages or life stages. Many physical activities are more enjoyable or only feasible when people are younger and healthier.