The evergreen subject of retirement planning is something that we prioritize here at the Rational Reminder Podcast, and today we have a very interesting conversation in which we explore the topic from a slightly different perspective. We are joined by Gordon Irlam, who is a notable researcher with a wealth of experience from the world of tech and beyond. We have the chance to ask Gordon about bonds, annuities, and optimal allocations for different outlooks, and also get his perspective on charitable giving, effective altruism, and different spending plans. Gordon has conducted some amazing research and even developed his own tools to help investors calculate the variables of their situations. This episode is a great gateway for listeners to explore these concepts, as well as make use of Gordon's resources. Our guest's personal story is equally fascinating, after working with Google early on, and subsequently starting a company that was then acquired by Google, Gordon has leveraged his experience and finances in order to continue asking questions that interest him and will definitely interest our listeners. So for this standout conversation with a great mind, be sure to take a listen. Timestamps: 0:00 Intro 3:18 Gordon & Google 7:16 The effective altruism movement and charitable investing 18:30 Differences between a typical practitioner approach and the economist approach to financial planning. 22:57 Reinforcement learning exercise and retirement planning 33:15 Is there an optimal solution? 34:25 Thinking about retirement spending 36:50 Reversion in stock returns? 41:05 Key message for using traditional planning approaches 44:09 The next portfolio problem 47:07 How do you define success in your life? Links From Today’s Episode: Rational Reminder on iTunes — https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-rational-reminder-podcast/id1426530582. Rational Reminder Website — https://rationalreminder.ca/ Shop Merch - https://shop.rationalreminder.ca/ Join the Community - https://community.rationalreminder.ca/ Follow us on Twitter - https://twitter.com/RationalRemind Follow us on Instagram - @rationalreminder Benjamin on Twitter — https://twitter.com/benjaminwfelix Cameron on Twitter — https://twitter.com/CameronPassmore Gordon Irlam — https://www.gordoni.com/ Back of the Envelope — https://www.beguide.org/ AACalc — https://www.aacalc.com/ AIPlanner — https://www.aiplanner.com/