StretchLearn Course

Retire on a Number You Can Actually Defend

Learn the accounts, the compounding math, and the withdrawal mechanics that turn savings into lifelong income.

Beginner9 hr 30 minSelf PacedRegistered

Course Overview

What this course is designed to develop

Most retirement advice stops at "save more" and never explains the machinery: which account holds which dollar, how compounding actually accumulates, and why the order of your investment returns can sink a portfolio that looked fine on a spreadsheet. This course covers RRSPs, TFSAs, 401(k)s, and IRAs side by side, the math of compound growth and inflation, sequence-of-returns risk, and how to convert savings into a durable retirement income strategy. You finish with a personal number, a funded account plan, and a written withdrawal policy.

Learning Outcomes

What the learner should be able to understand, build, or execute.

Calculate your retirement number using a real return rate, an inflation assumption, and a safe withdrawal rate

Choose the right account for each dollar across RRSP, TFSA, 401(k), and IRA based on tax treatment and your bracket

Project compound growth and show how fees and inflation quietly erode a long-horizon portfolio

Explain sequence-of-returns risk and build a cash buffer that protects early-retirement withdrawals

Design a withdrawal strategy combining the 4% rule, guardrails, and government benefit timing

Assemble a low-cost index portfolio with a glide path that de-risks as retirement approaches

Curriculum Preview

Inside the curriculum: a structured path from fundamentals to execution.

Preview the course structure, see how the modules build on one another, and understand the path this program is designed to take you through.

Module 1

Module 1: The Math That Builds Wealth

Before any account or product, you need the four numbers that drive every retirement plan: your return, inflation, your savings rate, and time. This module makes them concrete.

3 lessons

Compound Growth and the Cost of WaitingContent · 45 min

Preview Enabled

Inflation and the Difference Between Nominal and RealContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Your Retirement Number and Savings RateContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 2

Module 2: The Accounts: RRSP, TFSA, 401(k), and IRA

Tax-advantaged accounts are the containers that decide how much of your growth you keep. This module compares the US and Canadian options and shows which dollar belongs where.

3 lessons

Tax-Deferred vs Tax-Free: How the Containers DifferContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Contribution Limits, Matches, and Free MoneyContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Asset Location: Putting the Right Asset in the Right AccountContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Module 3

Module 3: Building the Portfolio

With the math and the accounts in place, you need investments inside them. This module covers low-cost index investing, fees, allocation, and the glide path toward retirement.

3 lessons

Why Low-Cost Index Funds WinContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Fees: The Silent Tax on Your FutureContent · 45 min

LMS Access

Allocation and the Glide Path to RetirementContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Module 4

Module 4: Turning Savings Into Retirement Income

Accumulating is only half the job. This module covers the drawdown years: sequence-of-returns risk, withdrawal strategies, government benefit timing, and writing a withdrawal policy.

3 lessons

Sequence-of-Returns Risk: Why Timing of Returns MattersContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Withdrawal Strategies: The 4% Rule and GuardrailsContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Government Benefits and a Written Withdrawal PolicyContent · 50 min

LMS Access

Built for Application

A complete learning path, not a one-off inspiration hit.

This program is designed around progression: focused lessons, structured modules, applied resources, assessments, and a course rhythm that turns information into usable capability.

retirement planningcompound growthRRSP TFSA401k IRAsequence of returns risksafe withdrawal rateasset allocationfinancial independence