Planning for 30-plus years of retirement is significantly different than planning for two to five years of retirement. Today's retirees are the healthiest and best educated in history. In the first stage of retirement, many want to play and travel, "a very expensive time of life," warns financial planner Michael Stein.

So how does one plan for the new paradigm of retirement, taking advantage of our improved health and increased wealth?

Carefully! First, I suggest eliminating the word retirement from your vocabulary. Look up the word "retire" in the dictionary. The definitions are "to dispose of" or "withdraw from active participation." Why would a healthy and vibrant 60-year-old want to be disposed of or withdrawn? Perhaps that is why studies show that 35 percent of people over 65 are in a chronic state of depression.

Freedom Via Financial Independence

I suggest we abandon our thinking around the current paradigm of retirement, and make plans for retirement freedom via financial independence, which will allow us to embrace a vision of true freedom...and service. Because even after we retire, and stop "working for a living," our work is not yet done. We still have a purpose for being here.

For much of recorded history, every person knew that when their hair began to turn gray, they were moving into the most important and purposeful time of their life. They had "done their time" at the livelihood grindstone, and they were now blossoming into a time where they could detach from a lot of "should and have to." It was a time of stepping into the role of the elder, a time to begin to create their legacy, and to look at "why am I here?"

The new paradigm of retirement freedom has three stages. The first is a period of play. You worked hard all of those years and you deserve to "put your feet up for a spell."

After a while, something ancient and ancestral begins to tug at you, saying, "It's time." You know you need to do something, so you move to the second phase of retirement freedom. Many people, even though they are already financially free, go back into the workforce to bring purpose back into their life. Others use this time to look back over the map of their life - all of the freeways, back roads and detours, and answer the question, "What will I be remembered for?" They begin to create or solidify their legacy by following their inner calling.

The last period of retirement freedom is the last five or so years of life and is characterized by deteriorating health. Financially, health care is your most expensive consideration in this period.

You Need a Savings Plan

For these three phases of retirement freedom to become your reality, financial independence is a necessity. What do you specifically need to do to make retirement freedom and financial independence a reality for you? First, you need a savings plan. The longer we live, the more assets we need to accumulate to support us through our years of financial independence. Women even more so than men, as their life expectancy is longer.

Second, you need a financial planner to help you sort through your goals and strategies and find what works for you. In that first period of kicking up your heels, you'll still need to budget and prioritize. Otherwise, you may be setting yourself up for failure.

Third, you will need to become educated and/or hire a trusted investment advisor. You will likely keep more of your portfolio in stocks than prior generations. The old recommendation to invest in bonds and live off the interest simply does not work in a long-term "retirement" reality.

Fourth, you may need a life coach. When you enter the second phase of retirement freedom, you have the opportunity to do what you love and fulfill your dreams. The challenge for many of us is that we aren't sure what our dreams are. For so many years, it was just about making a living. Quiet time and reflection will help clarify your intention.

And last, get educated on health issues. Exercise, and learn to prepare healthy foods, and in doing so, improve your chances of living a fulfilling and vibrant stage four. Learn to walk past the pre-packaged food in the grocery store, and drive by the fast food restaurants, opting instead for "slow" and healthy food at home.

The new paradigm of retirement freedom and financial independence is one of excitement and creativity. It requires that we get out of our old ways of thinking and embrace new ideas and choices.