<prompt> Human: Interesting article I came across in the Wall Street Journal this morning regarding the 4 rule; which is commonly prescribed in this sub as guidance for income in retirement. Many financial advisers are revisiting the age-old advice in the face of financial markets with inflated asset values, which may mean lower returns in the coming years. Heres the article paywall warning.Instead, the article posits a couple of solutions. First is a 3 safe withdrawal rate. This is obviously much safer than the 4 threshold most of us are currently expecting. While safer, this would also mean that youd need to save 33 more for retirement to achieve the same standard of living that you would need under a 4 withdrawal rate regime. The second is a guardrail approach which provides more discretion in whenhow much you withdraw from your retirement balances. From the article: Say you retire with 1 million in a portfolio with 60 in U.S. and foreign stocks and 40 in bonds and withdraw 5, or 50,000, in year one. At year-end, you must recalculate your withdrawal amount as a percentage of your new balance. Assuming your portfolio declines 20 to 800,000, your 50,000 withdrawalplus an annual adjustment for inflationnow represents more than 6 of your new 800,000 balance. Any time your withdrawal rate rises above 6, the rule imposes a 10 pay cut for the next year, says Jonathan Guyton, a financial adviser and co-creator of this strategy. As a result, after adjusting the 50,000 initial withdrawalto 51,000, assuming 2 inflationthe method imposes a 10 pay cut, of 5,100, to produce a 45,900 withdrawal in year two.  <response>: I dont actually understand how expecting lower long term returns means we need a lower savings rate.The stock market average return is 7. Part of the reason we recommend a 4 withdrawal rate is to account for fluctuation and inflation.Part of the reason people expect lower returns long term is because weve been in an era of extraordinarily low inflation.Sure, maybe the stock market average drops to 5-6, but thats because inflation also dropped. Which means you dont need to give yourself a raise next year, which means a 4 return rate still leaves you with a net gain... 