Welcome to week 2 of Retirement Plan Live 2021! Last week, in episode 359 , you got to meet Trish who was unexpectedly laid off last year. She had been hoping to retire within 5 years, but with this layoff, she is exploring the idea that maybe she can retire now. Over the next few episodes, we will walk her through the steps I take with clients to create and test a retirement plan. “You are never too old to set another goal or dream another dream,” -- C.S. Lewis. What is a goal? Before we begin,...
Jan 13, 2021•41 min•Ep. 360
Welcome to the Retirement Answer Man show, this month we’ll be doing a Retirement Plan Live! The Retirement Plan Live series allows you to take an in-depth look at a person’s goals, resources, and net worth to determine whether they are ready to retire. At the end of the month, on Thursday, January 28th, we will wrap it all up with a live webinar that you can join to see how it all works out. Register for that event at LiveWithRoger.com . Make sure you are signed up for the 6-Shot Saturday newsl...
Jan 06, 2021•41 min•Ep. 359
Today we finish up The Parent Project. This has been an important theme to tackle and fortunately, we had 5 weeks to spend learning how we can help our parents age gracefully. If you haven’t listened to the other episodes in this series you can start here . To wrap up The Parent Project, Christine Benz from Morning Star joins me to discuss how you can help manage your parents’ finances. Not only is Christine a financial expert, but she has had firsthand experience taking the reins of her parents...
Dec 30, 2020•44 min•Ep. 358
There may come a time in your parents’ life (and in your own) when they begin to lose their agency. They may no longer have the ability to act upon their own path. Do you know what steps to take if that happens? In this episode of Retirement Answer Man, we’ll investigate when, what, and how to take over when the time comes. Today, I have 2 guests joining me who will share their firsthand experience with the process of caring for a parent. Join me for the 4th installment of the Parent Project ser...
Dec 23, 2020•1 hr 17 min•Ep. 357
Welcome to the third installment of the Parent Project series. As your parents age, they may need you to pick up the reins and help out a little -- or a lot. Helping your parents get older with grace and dignity can be fulfilling, but at the same time challenging. The more prepared you are for this challenge the easier it will be. After you listen to this episode make sure that you are signed up for the 6-Shot Saturday newsletter so that you can receive all of the FREE resources to help you prep...
Dec 16, 2020•54 min•Ep. 356
Have you had the talk with your parents or loved ones? You know the one. Maybe it pertains to their driving or their finances, or it could be about their health or living situation. Whatever the conversation is about; it is uncomfortable for everyone involved. What if there was an easier way that you could address these subjects with your parents? On this episode of Retirement Answer Man, you’ll learn how you can talk to your parents or loved ones about the matters that are so important to discu...
Dec 09, 2020•34 min•Ep. 355
Over the next 5 episodes, we’ll be tackling an important series that I call The Parent Project. No parent wants to be a burden to their children, but as longevity increases with advances in healthcare, your parents may need you to help them out as they age. Are you helping to care for a parent or an aging family member? My goals for this series are to help you help a parent prepare for this stage of life, to help you prepare for this stage in your own life, and to share bits of wisdom along the ...
Dec 02, 2020•41 min•Ep. 354
This is a time of year when many people give thanks for what they have. On this episode of Retirement Answer Man, I explore the definition of thankfulness and gratitude with our Rock Retirement Club retirement coach, BW. He even brings us 5 tips that can help us to cultivate gratitude on a regular basis. Tanya Nichols joins me again to help answer listener questions. You’ll learn what you can do if you are worried about a market crash, what to do if you think you are too old for long-term care i...
Nov 25, 2020•34 min•Ep. 353
There are so many things to take care of in retirement. It can all feel overwhelming. Many people worry about their jobs, the state of the world, retirement, and their uncertain future. On this episode of Retirement Answer Man, you’ll learn what you can do to ease your worries about the unknown as well as discover the answers to questions from listeners like you. Join Tanya Nicols and me as we answer questions about an early retirement package, what to do when you have a significant portion of y...
Nov 18, 2020•33 min•Ep. 352
Do you use an HSA? If not, you may want to start one after listening to this episode. Find out how you can use an HSA to help lessen healthcare costs in retirement and stick around to hear the answers to listener questions on this episode of Retirement Answer Man. Are you trying to figure out how to deal with an unexpected retirement? Would you like to come on the show? We are looking for a volunteer for the next Retirement Plan Live coming up in January. If you would like some help in navigatin...
Nov 11, 2020•32 min•Ep. 351
November is finally here and Nichole is back! That means it’s time for listener questions. This month is my planning month where I take the time to map out the next year so that I’m not just drifting along. I try to be intentional about where the show is going and where my practice and life are going too. Listen in to hear what’s in store for 2021 on the Retirement Answer Man and find out the answers to several listener questions. How to balance enjoying life now with planning for later A listen...
Nov 04, 2020•34 min•Ep. 350
What do you do if you lose your job but you’re still not ready to retire? Whether it’s personally, professionally, or financially, if you’re not ready to retire then you’ll have to take action to find new employment. How do you fill that gap between this job loss and retirement? On this episode of Retirement Answer Man, we’ll brainstorm some ways that you can take action to find your next job. What happens to you when you lose your job? Losing your job sucks. It never feels good to get pushed in...
Oct 28, 2020•41 min•Ep. 349
A result of the infamous year 2020 is that companies are looking left and right for ways to cut costs. One way many companies are trimming the fat is by offering early retirement packages to their most experienced team members. There are many questions you should ask yourself if you have received the offer of an early retirement package. Listen in to discover what you need to be thinking about in this situation. Even if you have been planning to retire you may not be ready just yet You may have ...
Oct 21, 2020•31 min•Ep. 348
Retirement brings an onslaught of life-changing choices, so one thing you can do to help you rock retirement is to become a better decision-maker. If you are wondering how you can do that, then you’ll want to listen to this interview with Annie Duke. Annie Duke is the author of Thinking in Bets and she just released a new book called How to Decide . She knows that people can improve the quality of their decisions and she’s here to teach us how. Press play to learn how you can make better decisio...
Oct 14, 2020•50 min•Ep. 347
The Coronavirus pandemic has brought about so many disruptions to our daily lives. In addition to all the health precautions we must take, many of us have had to deal with job loss as well. Whether it was a furlough, layoff, or early retirement, the results are the same. You used to be working and now you’re not. During this entire month, we will discuss what you can do when you are retired unexpectedly. On this episode, you’ll learn 5 things you can do when you are suddenly retired. What is tri...
Oct 07, 2020•39 min•Ep. 346
The retirement decisions that you make today will impact you for years to come. This can be a scary thought since we don’t know what the future holds. The Medicare decisions that you make now can affect your future self so you don’t want to take these decisions lightly. For the past 4 episodes, we have discussed the inner workings of the Medicare system which has given us a good basis of knowledge to work from. Danielle Roberts from Boomer Benefits joins us one last time to help us understand ho...
Sep 30, 2020•43 min•Ep. 345
Danielle Roberts from Boomer Benefits joins The Retirement Answer Man Show again to help us understand the nuances of the Medicare system. She has a new book coming out soon called 10 Costly Medicare Mistakes that you won’t want to miss. In this episode, you’ll learn from Medicare horror stories, the biggest mistakes you can make with Medicare, and why you need to check your plan every year. Make sure to sign up for 6 Shot Saturday to get free resources by Danielle Roberts, our Medicare expert! ...
Sep 23, 2020•42 min•Ep. 344
Over the past few weeks, we have talked about the different pieces that make up our Medicare system. Medicare is a fairly complex system with a lot of nuances to be aware of. One of the things you may have noticed is that there are some gaps in Medicare coverage. Today Danielle Roberts from Boomer Benefits is back to help us understand these gaps and what we can do to fill them. Medicare isn’t the only place we see gaps in retirement. Often time there are other places where we have gaps in our r...
Sep 17, 2020•50 min•Ep. 343
Medicare Part D has similarities and differences to Parts A and B. On this episode of our How Does Medicare Work? series, we’ll explore Part D. We’ll also discuss what Medicare doesn’t cover. How much do you know about Medicare and how it works? Are you trying to figure out how this new type of insurance will be different from what you are used to? Make sure to listen to the whole series to help you understand the changes that enrolling in Medicare will bring to your life. Live a life without re...
Sep 09, 2020•41 min•Ep. 342
I cannot believe that this is our first time doing a monthlong series on Medicare! Thankfully, this is a five-week month, so we can really dive deep into this complex topic. Let me lay out the month for you. This week we’re talking about Medicare Part A and B. During the next episode we’ll discuss part D and all the things that Medicare doesn’t cover. Following that episode, we’ll discuss Medigap and Medicare Advantage as well as mistakes we can make with Medicare. Finally, we will dive in deep ...
Sep 02, 2020•47 min•Ep. 341
This whole month of August we have talked about improving decision making. Retirement brings about hundreds of choices. If you aren’t well-prepared to make those decisions you might simply revert to the default choice. Do you really want your retirement to be set to default? In this episode, you’ll learn how to create a framework to make tactical decisions. If you’re ready to learn how to make decisions that will help you rock retirement then press play now. What is the difference between strate...
Aug 26, 2020•38 min•Ep. 340
We’ve been talking about decision making for the past several episodes and today I want to help you build a framework to rely upon when making decisions in retirement. This framework for better decision making will help ensure that you are living the life you really want. If you are ready to create a strategy that reflects your values so that you can rock retirement then press play now. Why do you need to build a decision-making framework? Have you really thought about your values? A person’s va...
Aug 19, 2020•37 min•Ep. 339
What is your retirement strategy? Do you have one? A strategy is born from a process and tactics are born from that strategy. This is why it is so important to make sure that you have a process and strategy in place when planning for retirement. Your strategy will help you drive those important decisions. Your decisions during the accumulation phase of life were much different than they will be in retirement. This is why I’ve got Dan Miller joining me to discuss his book 48 Days to the Work and ...
Aug 12, 2020•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 338
I’m excited to share with you this next series of episodes. Over the next 4 episodes, we will explore how to make better decisions for yourself in retirement. Today we’ll examine what a decision is and think about all the different choices you have to make in retirement. Learn how to evaluate your decision-making process and discover how to make better retirement choices on this episode of Retirement Answer Man. Decision fatigue can wear you down Every day we are faced with so many choices. Have...
Aug 05, 2020•45 min•Ep. 337
Have you ever had to deal with closing an estate? Mark Ross happens to have the unfortunate experience of helping to close out 4 different estates in a short period of time. Since experience is the best teacher, Mark joins me today to discuss his experience with the probate process. He’ll share how he dealt with his feelings during the process, how long it took, how he managed, and what he thinks you can do to organize your own estate. Give your heirs the gift of an organized estate by learning ...
Jul 29, 2020•35 min•Ep. 336
By now you know how important estate planning is in retirement. But what is also important is to organize and communicate your wishes to your loved ones. In this episode, you’ll learn how to organize and communicate your estate planning wishes. We’ll chat with Sarah Bunnell from Everplans who will let you know how and why organization and communication are so important. Listen in to hear her expert take on these matters. And make sure you are signed up for the 6-Shot Saturday email so that you c...
Jul 22, 2020•42 min•Ep. 335
Many people choose to give to charity as a way to give back to their community. If you are overfunded you may decide to give to charity while you are still alive as well as part of your estate after you pass. On this episode of Retirement Answer Man, we’ll continue the estate planning series to discuss different ways that you can give charitably now and as part of your estate. Stick around to hear the Q&A session with my esteemed guest Peter Lazaroff. What is a charity? U.S. citizens are kno...
Jul 15, 2020•56 min•Ep. 334
Retirement is often the time when people begin to think more about estate planning. On this episode in the Estate Planning series, we’ll talk about giving. You want to be able to give to your loved ones but you also don’t want to rob them of their problems. That’s why we’ll discuss how you can give without enabling and you’ll discover how to optimize the impact of your gift. You’ll also learn how to decide whether you have enough to give. When you begin to think intentionally you’ll see that the...
Jul 08, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 333
One important aspect of retirement that not everyone is prepared for is estate planning. People avoid estate planning for various reasons, but a properly done estate plan is more than just documents. An estate plan is a way of continuing relationships and loving those people you leave behind in ways that you may not even imagine. Today we are kicking off our monthlong series on estate planning and we are starting with the basics. Listen in to hear what kind of documents you should have in place ...
Jul 01, 2020•55 min•Ep. 332
Do you think your own behavior affects your retirement investment management? If you said no, you may want to think again. The most significant risk to your finances is not market volatility or inflation, it’s your own behavior. Over the past several episodes we have explored how our own cognitive biases affect our financial choices and this episode continues that journey. On this episode, you will learn what you can do to make better decisions to ultimately protect your money from its own worst...
Jun 24, 2020•37 min•Ep. 331