How Long Have You Got Left?

 

 

 

As 2021 moves toward its conclusion, most of us are not thinking about how we all are doing the same thing. We know when 2021 will end. Our own conclusion is unknown to us. But if you are curious about how much more time you have, there are a number of life expectancy calculators online that would be happy to ballpark it for you. 

Some, like the free calculator available on the Social Security Administration web site, are overly simplistic but quick to use. Others will analyze the personal information that you provide on your family, health and lifestyle and provide an eerily specific result.... sometimes right down to the day you can expect to...err, conclude.

If you want a quick (less than 5 minutes) and reasonably good estimation, try the unfortunately named Death Clock. With just a few quick questions it will let you know when to call the undertaker. (March 22, 2043 for me.)

If you want a much more accurate forecast, and don't mind spending a bit more time answering questions (about 15 minutes), the Living to 100 Life Expectancy Calculator is for you. Unlike many of the other calculators, this one will give you personalized feedback on your answers, customized lifestyle change suggestions and specific things you could review with your healthcare provider.

For the ultimate in life expectancy forecasting, try the Actuaries Longevity Illustrator. Developed jointly by the US American Academy of Actuaries and the UK Society of Actuaries, it will evaluate your answers against the databases used by insurers to set life insurance premiums. Since there is money involved, you can expect it to be as accurate as something this inherently inaccurate can be.

Besides morbid curiosity, what would be the point of doing this?

For me, I find knowing my "use before date" to be personally motivating. It is much harder for me to justify wasting even one day when I know that I have only 7,747 of them left. Yeah it sounds like a lot of days, but once one is gone, its gone for good.

It may also motivate you to make changes that can add more days to your clock. As Ebeneezer Scrooge said to the Spirit of Christmas Yet to Come when faced with his own gravestone, "Men's courses will foreshadow certain ends, to which, if persevered in, they must lead. But if the courses be departed from, the ends will change."

Happy New Year.