One unique way to enhance the traditional bucket approach in retirement planning is to introduce cascading coverage for discretionary expenses. Instead of covering 100% of discretionary spending for the next 5 or 10 years, coverage gradually declines — 100% in year one, 90% in year two, 80% in year three, and so on — with a predefined minimum floor, such as 50%.

This structure better reflects real retiree behavior. Discretionary spending is flexible and naturally adjusts during market stress. By formally incorporating this elasticity into the plan, we improve capital efficiency while maintaining early-stage protection when sequence risk is highest.

A smarter way to align math with behavior.