The Net Worth Trap
We've all internalized the same financial script: save as much as you can, spend as little as possible, build up that net worth, and maybe—if you're lucky—enjoy it when you're old.
Perkins calls BS on this entire mindset.
He points out something we all know but rarely talk about: money has different value at different points in your life. A thousand dollars in your twenties, when you're healthy and adventurous, is worth way more than a thousand dollars in your eighties, when your knees hurt and you need a nap after lunch.
Yet we spend our most energetic, healthy years grinding away, delaying experiences, postponing dreams, all so we can pile up money for... what exactly? For when we're too old to climb that mountain or take that trip or learn that skill?
Memory Dividends 📸
Here's one of the book's most powerful concepts: experiences pay "memory dividends."
When you spend money on an experience—a trip, a concert, learning to surf, whatever—you don't just get that moment. You get the anticipation beforehand. You get the experience itself. And then you get decades of memories and stories that you revisit again and again.
That trip you took in your twenties? You've probably relived it hundreds of times in conversations, photos, and memories. That's compound interest, but for life experiences instead of money.
Meanwhile, that extra $5,000 sitting in your retirement account? It's just... sitting there. Earning a few percent. Not creating memories. Not enriching your life. Not giving you stories to tell.
Perkins argues that we're way too focused on the numbers in our accounts and not focused enough on the experiences that actually make life worth living.
The Seasons of Life 🌱
Not all experiences are available at all ages. This might be obvious, but we don't really live like it's true.
Your twenties and thirties are for adventures that require physical stamina. Backpacking through Southeast Asia. Learning to snowboard. Dancing until sunrise. Your body can handle it, and you've got the energy.
Your forties and fifties might be about experiences with your kids or diving deep into hobbies and passions. Different energy, different priorities.
Your sixties and beyond? Maybe that's finally the cruise or the road trip or the mellow pursuits that suit that season.
The point is: there's a time value to experiences, just like there's a time value to money. Some windows close. And once they're closed, no amount of money can reopen them.
Perkins pushes us to think about what experiences belong in which decade and to actually do them during the right window—not to postpone everything until retirement.
The Retirement Myth
Here's where Perkins really challenges conventional wisdom. We're told to save aggressively for retirement, to have enough money to maintain our lifestyle indefinitely.
But he asks: Do you really think you're going to spend as much at 85 as you do at 55?
Study after study shows that spending naturally declines as we age. We travel less, eat out less, buy less stuff. We physically can't do as much. Yet we're saving like we're going to need the same income at 80 that we needed at 50.
Perkins isn't saying don't save for retirement. He's saying don't over-save to the point where you're sacrificing your present for a future that might not play out the way you imagine.
He introduces the idea of a "survival threshold"—the minimum amount of money you need to live on. Once you're above that threshold and have enough for your later years, why are you still accumulating more instead of living now?
Your Life in Buckets ⏰
One of the practical frameworks in the book is the "time bucket" exercise. Perkins suggests dividing your remaining life into 5 or 10-year buckets and thinking about what experiences you want to have in each one.
What do you want to do in your 30s that won't be as meaningful or possible in your 40s? What's on your list for your 50s? Your 60s?
Then—and this is the key—you start spending money and time to make those things happen in the right buckets. Not "someday." Not "when I have more money." But in the actual season of life when they'll mean the most.
It's a forcing function to stop postponing your life.
The Charity Argument đź’ť
Perkins extends this thinking to charitable giving. If you care about a cause, why wait until you die to donate? Your money can have more impact now. You can see the results. You can be involved.
Giving while you're alive isn't just more satisfying—it's often more effective. You can adapt based on what's working. You can support causes that matter to you in real time, not through a will that gets executed when you're gone.
Plus, let's be honest: experiencing the joy of giving is part of the point, isn't it?
The Inheritance Question
This is where the book gets really controversial. Perkins argues that the standard approach to inheritance—leave everything to your kids when you die—is backwards.
Think about it: your kids probably need financial help most in their twenties, thirties, and forties. When they're starting careers, buying homes, raising their own kids. Not in their sixties, when they're finally getting the inheritance and their own peak earning years are behind them.
He suggests giving your kids money earlier, when it can make the biggest difference in their lives. Help them with education, a down payment, starting a business—when they actually need it.
This is a tough pill to swallow for a lot of people. We worry about spoiling our kids or giving too much too soon. But Perkins makes a compelling case that strategic, earlier giving is both more helpful and more aligned with actually wanting to help your children thrive.
The Autopilot Problem 🤖
One of the book's most insightful observations is how we get stuck on autopilot. We reach a certain income level, and we just keep going. Keep earning. Keep saving. Keep accumulating.
But we never stop to ask: What's this all for? When is enough, enough?
Perkins challenges readers to figure out their "enough" number. How much do you actually need for your later years? Once you know that number, why keep grinding to add to it if you're sacrificing the present?
This doesn't mean quit your job and blow all your money. It means being intentional. It means sometimes choosing the experience over the extra year of work. It means spending deliberately on things that enrich your life now, not just padding your accounts for a future that's never quite here.
Living in the Present
The book's philosophy ultimately comes down to this: optimize for life experiences, not account balances.
Money is a tool for living, not an end in itself. The purpose of working and earning is to enable experiences—and those experiences are what create a rich, full life.
We act like dying with a huge bank account is winning. But is it? What if winning is actually using your resources—your money, your health, your energy, your time—to create the most fulfilling life possible, and then checking out having fully lived?
The Pushback ⚖️
Let's be real: this philosophy isn't for everyone, and Perkins knows it.
Some people love working and would be miserable retiring early. Some people find security in having a large cushion. Some people genuinely want to leave a legacy for their kids or causes.
The book doesn't say there's one right answer. It says there should be a conversation—with yourself, with your partner, with your family—about what you're actually optimizing for.
Are you saving because you genuinely value security and it makes you happy? Or are you saving out of fear, out of habit, out of not knowing what else to do?
Are you postponing experiences because you don't actually want them? Or because you think you "should" wait?
The Math of Life
Perkins, being a numbers guy, actually tries to quantify this stuff. He talks about "life energy"—the combination of your health, free time, and money at any given point.
Early in life, you have health and free time but no money. In your working years, you (hopefully) have health and money but no free time. In retirement, you might have time and money but declining health.
The sweet spot—where all three align—is actually narrower than we think. And it's probably not when you're 70.
The book argues for shifting resources toward that sweet spot. Maybe work a bit less in your peak earning years if it means having time and health to actually enjoy life. Maybe spend more in your fifties and sixties when you can still do the things you dream about.
The Ultimate Question 🎯
"Die With Zero" really boils down to one question: What's the point?
What's the point of money if not to create a life worth living? What's the point of working if not to enable experiences and relationships that matter? What's the point of saving if you never spend it on what makes you come alive?
Perkins isn't advocating recklessness. He's advocating intentionality. Know your numbers. Plan for your needs. But then—and this is critical—actually live.
Don't postpone your life indefinitely. Don't let fear keep you from using your resources to create experiences. Don't work yourself to death to leave money you could have used to actually live.
The Freedom in Spending
There's something deeply liberating about Perkins' message. In a culture that tells us to always earn more, save more, accumulate more, he's giving us permission to actually enjoy what we have.
Not in a reckless, irresponsible way. But in a thoughtful, intentional way that recognizes that experiences and memories are actually what we're here for.
Your net worth isn't your worth. Your experiences, your relationships, your memories, your growth—that's what makes a life rich.
And you can't take the money with you. So why not use it while you're here? ✨
The tombstone that says "He had a great 401(k)" isn't much of a legacy. The tombstone that says "He lived fully" is everything.