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Some key life decisions can have consequences that reverberate for years. And as you plan for retirement, there are big decisions ahead. What lessons can we learn from emerging research on how to make big decisions? Our guest, Dr. Adrian Camilleri, has engaged 657 Americans (from 20 and 80) on the ten big life decisions they’ve made so far. _________________________ Bio Dr. Adrian Camilleri is a senior lecturer in marketing at the University of Technology Sydney. He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a Master’s degree in organizational psychology, and a Ph.D. in psychology, all from the University of New South Wales. He completed postdoctoral training in management and marketing at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. Adrian is an expert in the fields of cognitive, organisational, and consumer psychology. __________________________ Wise Quotes On Big Career-Related Decisions “One of the categories of big decisions that I focused on was career-related decisions. And so these involve questions like starting a new job, quitting a job, starting a business, closing down a business, joining the military, leaving the military, and then retirement. And so when important results from the interviews that I conducted was to look at how these different categories of big life decisions changed between those of different age groups… So leaving a  position is also often a very big life decision…And obviously, these career-related decisions culminate in what’s usually the final career-related decision. Quite a number of people. who are about the age of 60, in my survey, had actually decided to retire.  So retirement is certainly one of life’s biggest decisions for those who have managed to the point where they’re considering concluding their working career. More than half of those above the age of 60 years old had mentioned explicitly retirement as one of their biggest life decisions…So, when we look at lifestyle satisfaction, those who had already retired, who made that big decision, rated high on life satisfaction compared to those who are not [retired]. Now again, I put the sort of caveat on correlation data. So it could be that those who are already happy with their life are much more likely to retire. But there’s something to be looked at there because I have seen all the research suggesting that those who retire, many of them end up kind of feeling aimless and bored, even unhappy.” On Self Development Decisions “And what we see is that self-development type decisions don’t frequently make it onto the list of biggest life decisions, but they do tend to increase over time. So those who are in their sixties and seventies tend to be making more self-development decisions than those who are younger. And as I have mentioned, these self-development decisions tend to be ones that are evaluated more positively. Another follow-up question that I asked participants was how much time did you spend thinking about the decision before you made it? And there’s a nice contrast here between self-destructive and self-development decisions. So those who are making these self-destructive decisions such as committing a crime, taking drugs or something like that, were often thought about for seconds, perhaps minutes. In contrast, self-development decisions were often thought about for months, if not years. And we can think about these self-development decisions in terms of the more positive ones, like pursuing your religion or philosophy or engaging a new hobby or learning a new skill. But certainly reading through the stories that I was presented within these survey results, there were a number of people who were of age 60 and older, who had big life decisions related to seeking treatment. So whether they were deciding to get an operation or to do with cataracts, or arthritis or whether to get a knee replacement or not ” ___________________________ For More on Dr. Adrian Camilleri  The Conversation.com: I asked hundreds of people about their biggest life decisions. Here’s what I learned Psychology Today: How to Make a Good “Big” Decision ___________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like The Skill Set for Life’s Transitions – Bruce Feiler Retired, But Not Done Yet – Dr. Cynthia Barnett Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans With the Freedom to Retire, Where Will You Plant Your New Tree? – Don Ezra Why People Make a Career Change with Purpose Top of Mind – Chris Farrell How Life Hacks Can Help Make Your Retirement the Best Time of Your Life – Sam Horn ___________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com    

                              Retirement Wisdom’s Joe Casey will be a special guest host at  Wade Pfau’s Retirement Researcher Webinar  April 8th at 2:00 PM Eastern | Register Today _________________________ What was your career plan when you were graduating from college? You probably didn’t leave college equipped with the skills to make a career change midlife. So if you’re considering a second career, a career change at 50 or a career change at 60, our guest today has valuable information you’ll want to hear. If you have family members, colleagues, or neighbors who ask you for career advice, you’ll find this conversation very helpful. _________________________ Bio Mark Herschberg is the author of The Career Toolkit, Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You. From tracking criminals and terrorists on the dark web to creating marketplaces and new authentication systems, Mark has spent his career launching and developing new ventures at startups and Fortune 500s and in academia. He helped to start the Undergraduate Practice Opportunities Program, dubbed MIT’s “career success accelerator,” where he teaches annually. At MIT, he received a B.S. in physics, a B.S. in electrical engineering & computer science, and a M.Eng. in electrical engineering & computer science, focusing on cryptography. At Harvard Business School, Mark helped create a platform used to teach finance at prominent business schools. He also works with many non-profits, including Techie Youth and Plant A Million Corals. He was one of the top-ranked ballroom dancers in the country and now lives in New York City, where he is known for his social gatherings, including his annual Halloween party, as well as his diverse cufflink collection. _________________________ Wise Quotes On Career Changes Midlife “This is my third recession and I’m only mid-career. So I, I very much see and understand what they’re going through. In fact, during the great recession, I helped teach at a program sponsored by New York’s Economic Development Council, in which we were taking people who lost not simply their job, but their career. Their entire career was getting displaced and not coming back post-recession. And New York said to us: We can’t have them sitting on the sidelines. These are capable people. How do we get them back to work? We looked at where the jobs were being created and the nature of those jobs, typically the people being displaced were coming from large corporations. So certainly coming out of 2008, 2009, lots of financial services, lots of big companies where you had multiple layers of bureaucracy. The jobs being created were in tiny companies in startups, in companies, less than 50 people, sometimes less than 20 people. The biggest change was trying to get people to see those jobs and feel comfortable in those jobs. It wasn’t so much a domain skill challenge. It’s not that. If you’ve been at big corporations, your whole life, look at these small companies and then recognize that cultural difference. So if you’re in a big company of 30,000 people, you’re used to having the pre-meeting to plan the meeting, to coordinate the meeting for the meeting to discuss something. So at six months later, decisions made when you’re at these tiny 20 person startups, and you say, Hey, I have an idea. So you turn around in your chair and you’re talking to the boss, who’s sitting three feet from you in another chair because there are no offices here.  And the boss says, okay, that sounds great. Well, that was the meeting. Those were the six months condensed to a six-minute conversation and understanding these cultural differences, how the businesses operate, that you can move fast and break things, which is very different from these big traditional corporations. That was the biggest challenge. And so to people who are saying, I need to find something different. It’s not just the same job with a different company. Look at different types of companies and understand it’s not just going to be the mechanics of the role, but understand the cultural differences. And if you can set yourself up to succeed in that, both recognizing how you’ll operate, but also how you sell yourself into working in those networks, in those types of organizations and cultures, then you can have a very successful career and find a lot of options.” On Career Planning “Eisenhower famously said: Plans are worthless, but planning is everything. And we have to recognize a career plan is not simply a plan you make and now you’re stuck to it. Forevermore, all of us in our jobs have been planning. If you think about any project you’ve worked on, could you ever have gone to your boss and said, Hey, listen, boss, I know we’re going to work on this for six months. We’re not going to bother with a project plan. We’re just going to kind of wing it. That sounds good to you because your boss is going to say No way! You have to create a plan. I want to know where this is going. What are the risks? What are the opportunities? How might this unfold? Now we also know when you’re doing this six-month project or a year-long or however long project, it’s never going to work exactly. As you expected, things go over budget over time. Something was harder. Occasionally something’s easier. But when you have that plan, you can start to say, Well, we’re going to now vary the plan. We’re going to update the plan. We’re off the plan. But maybe that’s a good thing because we realize that plan was wrong. But you created that plan in the first place. Your career is a lot bigger than a six-month project. You need to create that plan, but much like the plans, we have for our projects, you’re not set in stone. If it’s not working, you can throw it out. You can create a new plan and the act of planning itself of thinking about what are the risks, what are the opportunities? Where are the things I need to focus on? Where are the areas that are less important now, as things change now, as things come up, as you’ve thought through it.” On Networking “You want a large network. You also like a broad network, too many people think, well, I’m in Medicine. So I only need to know people in Medicine. In fact, you want to meet people in other areas because the diversity, it adds to your network leads to new opportunities that you might not have gotten otherwise. Because remember when you’re connected to someone you’re connected to everyone they know. And you never know when you need to get into a new area where you don’t have yourself, a deep bench, or maybe it just turns out this person, their cousin happens to also be in medicine and it circles back to how it can help you. But the biggest mistake people make is they just think, Well, I’m just going to add connections and they don’t foster that relationship. I always talk about how adding someone on LinkedIn and saying that they are now in your network. It’s like swiping right on Tinder and saying this person’s now your significant other. We all know you can’t just swipe right. And say, now I have a girlfriend, now I have a wife, right? You have to build that relationship. And the same is true for our professional relationships. So that instant connection that gang, the business card or adding on LinkedIn, that’s step one. That’s a swipe, right? What you want to do is invest in building that relationship. Now you may not have done that in the past, but you can start doing that today. And it doesn’t take that long. Even a few months of starting to build up that relationship. Now that network is warmed up. So when you need help down the road, whether finding a job, finding a candidate, finding a supplier, a partner, just getting information, that network has been warmed up and now you can go to it. And you’re not reaching out to someone you haven’t talked to in 20 years. It’s someone you last spoke to three months ago. So start today, reach back out to people. It’s a great time. Now, as we’re getting out of the pandemic, reach out and say, Hey, glad we’re getting through this. How are you doing? What’s coming up for you? How can I be of help? And even if you’re not working, even if you don’t have a job, we can all be of help to other people. So reach out connect, say, how have you been? What are you looking forward to? How can I be helpful to you and warm up those networks?” __________________________ For More on Mark Herschberg The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You (in my opinion, this is an excellent graduation gift to consider ____________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like How’s Your Network? – Kelly Hoey How to Future Proof Your Career – Jeff Gothelf How to Build a Portfolio Career – Kate Schaefers Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans I’m Not Done. Are You? – Patti Temple Rocks Best of The Retirement Wisdom Podcast – On Second Acts _________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com  

Retirement’s about much more than money. Your planning should be, too. Joe Casey, Retirement Wisdom, will be the special guest host of a Free Webinar at Retirement Researcher.com Learn more & sign up: https://buff.ly/3m54yEM April 8 at 2:00 PM ET #RetirementPlanning ____________________________ We help you balance your retirement planning. No other podcasts cover this side of retirement planning in-depth. Here’s a recap of what we learned in the second month of our 4th season of The Retirement Wisdom Podcast: Barbara O’Neill, A Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University and author of Flipping the Switch: Your Guide to Happiness and Financial Security in Later Life. J. Kelly Hoey author of Build Your Dream Network. Lance Oppenheim, a filmmaker from South Florida, on his first feature film: Some Kind of Heaven ___________________________ You can listen to the full conversations here: When Will You Flip the Switch? – Dr. Barbara O’Neill How’s Your Network? – Kelly Hoey Some Kind of Heaven – Lance Oppenheim ___________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring from their primary career – and aren’t done yet –  discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how our Designing Your Life® coaching programs can help you make yours great. ______________________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com  

What are your images of retirement? How do you picture yourself enjoying your hard-earned freedom? It’ll take savvy holistic planning to achieve your vision. It starts with holistic financial planning, but it includes planning for the non-financial aspects as well. Trusted advisors can be valuable assets in your holistic planning for retirement. Our guest is Chad Willardson, President, and Founder of Pacific Capital.  I talk with Chad about his observations on retirement planning and: Why he founded Pacific Capital Why he does what he does What key differences he sees between people who are successful in retirement and those who struggle Common mistakes to avoid in planning for retirement What surprises his clients most about life in retirement The challenges entrepreneurs face in planning for retirement What people should look for in a financial advisor Key takeaways from his book Stress Free Money – and a preview of his upcoming second book Chad joins us from Southern California. __________________________ Bio Chad Willardson is the President and Founder of Pacific Capital and is a Certified Financial Fiduciary®, Accredited Wealth Management Advisor and Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor. Before founding Pacific Capital, he spent 9 years at Merrill Lynch, where he ranked in the top 2% of over 16,000 Financial Advisors nationally. Chad is the author of the Best Selling Book: Stress Free Money: Overcome These Seven Obstacles to Find Financial Freedom. Chad is passionate about financial education and believes that with the right tools and resources, people can be empowered to make smart money decisions. He loves to help people organize their financial life, clarify their goals, and make decisions that lead them to a successful and fulfilling life. A native of Orange County, CA, Chad and his wife of 17 years live in Corona, CA with their five children. _________________________ Wise Quotes On Purpose & Meaning in Retirement “People who are successful in retirement have a lot of meaning and purpose. They don’t just stop cold turkey. Most of them have other ideas or pursuits, whether it’s hobbies, businesses, charitable giving, charitable time, and spending time with their grandchildren in a productive way. I feel like the people who actually retire to something rather than retire from something are much more successful. It’s one thing to say, I’m going to stop work at age 60. It’s another thing to say between age 60 and 70 here are my 10 big goals or the big things on my bucket list that I really want to focus on. And I’ve seen people really, really thrive after they stopped their primary career and even explore new opportunities that they never thought they could do, like starting a business with a grandson or learning how to do something new, like getting into cycling or getting into art or traveling with your family. There are so many things that I’ve seen people do in retirement. That shows me that you really need to have a game plan. It’s it could be a 10,000 days journey. And to, to just simply think, well, I don’t have to do anything anymore, you’re kind of setting yourself up for failure.” On Priorities in Retirement “I think people, once they get to retirement, they realize that there were a lot of things they weren’t doing often enough, like self-care and taking care of their health. I’ve seen many people just work themselves so hard, work so many hours, with so much extra stress, that they’re finally able to really take better care of themselves. And relax and do things that are more fulfilling than doing something just for a paycheck. It’s definitely on the unfortunate side, but I think the healthcare costs are typically a negative surprise. It costs more than they expect on the positive side. And I feel like people are busier than they would ever have dreamed of. My parents, when I talk to them, they have a full schedule. And to me it’s sometimes it’s like Well, how do you have a full schedule? You’re totally retired. But when you go through their activity list on their calendar, they’ve got so many things that they’ve planned and committed. And they’re excited about that. They’re just doing a lot more than they ever thought they would.” On An Exit Strategy for Entrepreneurs “I think entrepreneurs often assume that there’ll be able to work until they are done and just easily decide and pick up and leave. But most entrepreneurs actually don’t make it to that point. There could be many reasons. It could be something that happens in their industry. If you look at COVID, many businesses have adjusted or had to be closed because of the extended restrictions on the ability to stay open. So there are a lot of things that people just don’t realize it’s not as cut and dry when your paycheck depends on you. So you’ve got to really have a plan, not only for your business and your business succession or your exit strategy but also personally, when you’re going to stop working and begin to live a retired lifestyle if you will, it’s a lot of different things to plan for. If you’re an entrepreneur, I’d say my advice for those crafting an exit strategy is to engage with professionals who have helped others transition before. So there’s no reason to try to do everything by yourself, definitely work with a team of professionals who’ve helped other people execute their own exit strategies, because there are a lot of things you don’t think of –  especially if it’s your first time selling a business or retiring. There’s going to be a lot of things that come up that you just hadn’t prepared for. And if you can seek great professional counsel beforehand, you’ll have more of a sense and you’ll have more confidence as you’re making those big decisions.” ___________________________ For More on Chad Willardson Pacific Capital Stress Free Money: Overcome These Seven Obstacles to Find Financial Freedom ____________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like When Will You Flip the Switch? – Dr. Barbara O’Neill What Are The Keys To A Successful Retirement? Fritz Gilbert What’s Your Exit Strategy? – Ashley Micciche Are You Ready to Follow Your Own Path in Retirement? – Bob Lowry If You Love Your Work, What Challenges Will You Face in Retirement? – Michelle Pannor Silver Who Will You Be in Retirement? – David Ekerdt ______________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com  

Creating a second act in mid-life and beyond takes reinvention. But our guest today tells us it’s only part of the story. Wendy Marx, author of Thriving at 50+: The 7 Principles to Reinvent & Rebrand Yourself, notes that it’s wise to also update and upgrade your personal brand. We discuss with Wendy: The biggest challenges that people 50 + face today The story behind how her book came about What it takes to reinvent yourself in a mid-career or second career context The ways people cultivate the mindset necessary for reinvention How people find a new purpose What a personal brand is – and why it’s so important today for those of us who are 50+ Her stories of people’s reinvention and rebranding Wendy’s personal story of how she reinvented and rebranded yourself Her advice on how to reinvent yourself Wendy Marx joins us from Connecticut. _________________________ Bio Wendy Marx is an award-winning public relations and marketing communications executive who helps B2B companies and executives become well-known brands. Her ability to take SMBs from “Anonymity to the New York Times”™ has driven the growth of Marx Communications. Her book, “Thriving at 50 Plus” draws on over 30 years of experience, and her own career reinvention (times 5!). She’s helped hundreds of people go from anonymity to influential thought leaders For the last 20+ years, she has served as president of Marx Communications, which has helped numerous companies become industry icons. Her firms’ PR efforts have directly led to companies inking major partnership deals with Dow Jones, The NASDAQ and other major organizations, and spurred their being acquired. Among her achievements, Wendy planned and executed the original public relations strategy that helped fuel the spectacular growth of Peppers and Rogers Group, the world’s preeminent customer relationship firm. Her technology and business articles have appeared in the New York Times, Information Week, and Computerworld and she has written advertorials for Fortune and Forbes on technology subjects. She blogs on public relations and marketing leadership issues for Fast Company. She is a cum laude graduate of Brandeis University, holds an MBA from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. ___________________________ Wise Quotes On Reinvention “Realize that you don’t reinvent yourself by snapping your fingers and going, I’m going to reinvent. It’s actually a time-consuming process. It’s not just a straight upward trajectory. And in the process of writing my book, I interviewed many, many people who had successfully reinvented and rebranded themselves. And based on that, I developed a framework that I call my seven principles. And that includes everything from having a Growth Mindset, to being uncomfortable, a willingness to learn, finding your purpose, storytelling, personal branding, and social media and mentoring. And by following those steps, you can truly have a successful reinvention and rebranding.” On Why You Shouldn’t Go it Alone “One is that if you’re stuck like that, it’s often helpful. When I actually did this myself to hire a coach, somebody who can, I like to say, give you a Swift kick on the behind so that you’re able to start checking yourself a little bit and making some changes. If you don’t want to hire a coach, another thing is to be part of a support group where you’re with other people who are contending with some of the same challenges you are, and you can mutually help each other. Also doing some volunteer work. Often times you start doing something and that ends up changing you. What psychologists and researchers have found is that just sitting on the couch and musing about your life and ruminating and wondering What can I do? What did I do wrong? doesn’t get you anywhere. You need to take action.” On Storytelling “Storytelling is a powerful tool. If it’s done correctly, it’s another way of getting people to engage with you. If you simply reel off some facts, most of the time, the facts are not interesting.  But if you weave together your life story into a story that has a natural arc to it, people are going to want to engage with you. That’s why we love to read books. We love to read especially non-fiction books that are written more like fiction. We love movies because they all have a natural story arc. And in this case, you’re the hero of your story.” _______________________ For More on Wendy Marx Thriving at 50+ Follow on Twitter: @wendymarx Contact: wendy@thrivingat50plus.com _______________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like How to Future Proof Your Career – Jeff Gothelf How’s Your Network? – Kelly Hoey How to Build a Portfolio Career – Kate Schaefers Advice for Successful Career Women Transitioning to Retirement – Helen Dennis I’m Not Done. Are You? – Patti Temple Rocks How to Build a Non-Profit Encore Career – Betsy Werley ___________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com    

What can you learn about Early Retirement and the FIRE movement from someone who retired at 41 over three years ago? We catch up with Chris Mamula, of  Can I Retire Yet.com. We first talked with Chris two years ago on his emerging lessons learned, how his early retirement lifestyle is evolving, and his recommendations for listeners who are considering an early retirement plan. He’s written a book since we last spoke (Choose FI: Your Blueprint to Financial Independence) and he shares his thoughts on why preparing for the non-financial side of early retirement is important. ________________________ We discuss with Chris: His story of deciding to retire at 41 What his life is like now 3+years later What he knows now that he wishes he knew then What he’s learned about priorities, uncertainty, and change The pros and cons of semi-retirement as an option How the FIRE movement is evolving in the pandemic His book Choose FI – and the experience of writing it. Advice on an early retirement plan Chris joins us from Utah. ______________________ Wise Quotes On Life in Early Retirement  “Day-to-day life, it really couldn’t be any different. So we were living in this small town in Pennsylvania. Now we live in a ski town in Utah. Back then I was working a 40 plus hour week with a commute a half hour each way. Now, I still do some work. I write the blog and I’ve written a book since I left. So, I do some work, but it’s really all on my schedule because we live in a ski town. So in the winter, we ski four or five, sometimes six days a week.  And in the summer I’m out hiking, mountain biking, doing things kind of every day. And, my family and I, we kind of fit work in around life. Whereas before I felt like we were just kind of always trying to squeeze life in wherever we could around our work schedules. So, from that perspective, it’s, it really couldn’t be much different.” On What He Knows Now That He Wish He Knew Then “I was certainly writing about the softer side of retirement, like purpose and meaning and structure, and all these things that we’re talking about. But I kind of wish I would’ve spent even more time on that part because I think the financial part gets a lot of the emphasis in retirement planning. There’s a lot of stuff you can’t know as far as like future market returns and interest rates and inflation and all that stuff. But you know, you can kind of play in and have contingencies. But, I just found that there’s just not a lot of information [about the softer side of retirement] I think it’s very individual for everybody on how you’re going to adapt and adjust and find purpose and meaning – and find that structure. Everybody’s a little bit different and I wish I would have focused maybe even a little bit more on that – or at least maybe had a little more grace for myself, as far as like having a little bit less expectations for retirement and just kind of going with the flow a little bit more.” On Risks and Mitigation in an Early Retirement Plan “I think a lot of times you can mitigate those risks. And another strategy that I kind of use is just taking little bite-sized steps…on something like retirement, which is so overwhelming. And so,  doing something like semi-retiring and doing something like my wife dropping down to part-time work. We still made some massive changes. I let my license go. I’m not a physical therapist anymore. We moved across the country. Those are…kind of one-way decisions. But we also gave ourselves a lot of Slack and leeway,  just by making more moderate and gradual changes in other areas. I mentioned how I love being in the mountains and I rock climb and I’d done high-altitude mountaineering and I’m a skier. And I think people look at that as this high-risk thing. But I think when you’re doing those types of activities, it really teaches you risk management and risk mitigation. And there’s a quote I love: “Getting to the top is optional and getting down is mandatory.” And it kind of just reinforces that whole idea of risk management and remembering what is most important – and what things can you not afford to lose. And then you can mitigate those risks – and you know the Mountain is always there. You can always go back to it, but your life? You only get one time.” ___________________________ Bio Chris Mamula regularly writes about financial independence while expanding the conversation around what retirement is and can be at CanIRetireYet.com. His articles have been featured on MarketWatch, DoughRoller, and Business Insider. He achieved financial independence and retired from his physical therapy career in 2017, at the age of 41. In addition to writing, he now focuses on being a dedicated husband, stay-at-home dad, and dirtbag/ski-bum depending on the season at his home in the mountains of Utah. ____________________________ For More on Chris Mamula Website Chris’ Book: Choose FI: Your Blueprint to Financial Independence Our first conversation with Chris Mamula ____________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like The Skill Set for Life’s Transitions – Bruce Feiler What Are The Keys To A Successful Retirement? Fritz Gilbert When Will You Flip the Switch? – Dr. Barbara O’Neill How to Retire Early and Live Your Life Fully – Leif Dahleen With the Freedom to Retire, Where Will You Plant Your New Tree? – Don Ezra Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans ___________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com    

How do you maintain cognitive health as you age? Our guest today is Dr. Krystal Culler and she shares a range of useful practices for brain health and staying sharp. We discuss with Dr. Culler: How she became interested in Gerontology and Health & Wellness How she defines brain health The misconceptions she sees people having about brain health The relative importance of lifestyle factors versus genetics in cognitive health What people should do to foster brain health The role habits play in cognitive health What we should know about neuroplasticity and lifelong learning A book that’s had a big impact on her Where people should start in cultivating better brain health Dr. Culler joins us from Ohio. _________________________ Bio Dr. Krystal Culler is a Doctor of Behavioral Health with a background in the behavioral sciences (psychology of aging, gerontology, and sociology). She is a Senior Atlantic Fellow with the Global Brain Health Institute, where she was the first scholar from the United States to complete her residency training at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland on dementia prevention and the social determinants of brain health. She has an unwavering commitment to promote brain health equity to individuals of all ages and the communities she serves. Dr. Culler is the Founder & Creative Director of the Virtual Brain Health Center. Krystal has spent nearly 5 years in Executive-level positions with health non-profit organizations and has 15 years of experience working with individuals with brain health concerns, their families, and advocacy organizations. Under her leadership, the centers have received 4 international and national awards from leading organizations in the aging care sector for innovation in brain health programming and community impact including honors from the International Council on Active Aging, Mather Lifeways Institute on Aging, the American Society on Aging and the Southern Gerontological Society on Aging. Additionally, she has been recognized through the receipt of 4 personal leadership awards for her contributions to the field including the Global Brain Health Leaders Award (2019) from the Alzheimer’s Association, Alzheimer’s Society, and Global Brain Health Institute, and Crain’s Cleveland Business 40 Under Forty (2017).  _______________________ Wise Quotes On Lifestyle versus Genetic Factors “One of the most fascinating things about our field is how fast things are growing. So usually we were saying it is about 70% lifestyle and 10% genetics. And Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s new book was just released early this year. And the research is actually slanting a little bit more where now 90% of our lifestyle is in our hands and it’s 10% genetics. So I like to think that’s really empowering for us to know that there are variables that we are able to control own [rather than] inherit, but for the most part, there are many things that we are able to manage and think about in a mindful way to move us forward on our personal brain health and wellness journey, all across our lives.” On How to Cultivate Brain Health “We have different reports that have come out over the years that pinpoint about 15 different factors. And the Lancet report shows that when we look at these different lifestyle factors and we talk about dementia, risk reduction across the world, we can prevent about 40% of those cases. And what we tend to think about kind of categorizing these factors. If we were to think about them in terms of your brain, your body, and your environment with your brain, you want as much education as early in life as you can. You want to stay stimulated, protect your brain, minimize stress or ongoing chronic stress sleep well, minimize depression, or if you’re having a low mood and it’s ongoing, reach out for help. And monitor your hearing loss and protect your ears from loud noises and exposure. And if you’re thinking about it, your brain moves down to your body.” On Neuroplasticity “I like to think most people should know that neuroplasticity is our brain’s ability to adapt and change. And it’s been one of the largest myths of aging that, that is solely reserved for young children and the youth. Neuroplasticity occurs all throughout our life, really up until we are no longer here. Do we have the ability to grow and build new neurons? It’s an ongoing process for us. So we are not stuck with the brains we have. I feel that we are very lucky for this ability for us as humans, we’re constantly reorganizing information throughout our lives so we can make new connections, adjustments, and changes. So if we’re really thinking about lifelong learning and we are seeking out high-quality, lifelong learning programs, you’re looking for three core principles. You want something that’s new, something that’s novel, and something that’s an appropriate level of challenge for you. I know that might sound counterintuitive, but it is because all of us are so different. So we want to engage in tasks and exercises, where we were to visualize a ramp and we’re at the bottom. We have to keep climbing that ramp all throughout our lives and so tasks that we may have enjoyed when we were younger and that we can revisit and do eat more easily, serve a purpose that may help us relax or unwind. So if you play music, that is fantastic. You may want to try a new instrument to really stretch your brain. If you like to crochet or knit, it would be a new pattern or trying a completely different medium, sand the same thing for artists. It would be trying something outside of your wheelhouse. And you’ve got to just keep pushing that ball up the ramp. Basically, if you were going for a physical workout, you’re trying to make your own brain sweat. And so that ramp for all of us is very individualized because we have been exposed and engaged to many different things, but being a lifelong learner is really what it sounds like. We can do it through formal opportunities or informal opportunities, but we want to just keep making our brains stretch and sweat so they’re more flexible. And we can engage in neuro-plasticity throughout our lives.” ________________________________ For More on Dr. Krystal Culler Website ___________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Be Interested In Successful Aging – Daniel Levitin Can You Grow Younger? – Marta Zaraska How Can You Be Better with Age? – Alan Castel Is Working Into Retirement Good for Your Brain? – Dawn Carr Tiny Habits Can Lead to Big Changes – BJ Fogg The Mind-Body Connection and The Rabbit Effect – Kelli Harding _________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We hope you enjoy this retirement podcast. We help people who are retiring but aren’t done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com          

About 5% of older adults live in retirement communities in the United States. What’s life like behind the gates of retirement communities? Filmmaker Lance Oppenheim looks at life in The Villages, a retirement community in Florida with 130,000 residents, in his new documentary Some Kind of Heaven. We discuss: How he came up with the idea for the film How he selected the four main characters The arc of the stories that unfolded in the documentary His thoughts on what the film says about aging in America today The lessons younger generations can take away from the film The level of intergenerational relationships he observed One of his earlier short films – The Happiest Guy in the World What’s next for him Lance Oppenheim joins us from Los Angeles. _________________________ Bio Lance Oppenheim is a filmmaker from South Florida. Lance was a 2019 Sundance Ignite Fellow, named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s “25 New Faces of Independent Film 2019,” and is the youngest contributor to The New York Times Op-Docs. He was featured on Variety’s “Power of Young Hollywood” list in 2020. He graduated from Harvard University’s Visual and Environmental Studies program in 2019. His first feature, SOME KIND OF HEAVEN, premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. The film was produced by Darren Aronofsky, The New York Times (the paper’s first feature film production), and the Los Angeles Media Fund. It will be distributed by Magnolia Pictures in 2021. _________________________ Wise Quotes On Grower Older “…when you’re in a world like The Villages that does have this radiant optimism – and sometimes it does feel a little bit manufactured –  this kind of artificial construction, the way people were spending their time. I very much connected and empathized with the stories of folks who found themselves at odds with the ethos of the community. And I found that to be relatable if you’re in a place where everyone is having the best time of their lives and you’re not having the best time of your life, but you’re constantly being told that you need to be having the best time of your life. And you have this ticking clock in the back of your head, that’s telling you ‘I only have maybe 20, 30, more years of life to live’ that will do something to you. And that’s a really distressing and stressful and confusing feeling. And that was something ultimately that I wanted to make a film about. It was not a movie that was more concerned with statistics or information. I wanted to make something that was far more expressive about this kind of existential condition that I was interested in and saw quite a bit of throughout my time there.” On What Attracts People to Retirement Communities “I think we all have our own ways of living inside of bubbles, whether it be people my age [or older adults]. I live in a total bubble in many different ways. The people I spend my time with, the articles I read online, the things I do in my digital life is not dissimilar from the ways in which residents of The Villages choose to unplug –  and live in a place where everyone has more or less imaginative beliefs, ideas and ways of living. I think I also relate to and I understand why it’s so wildly popular. There really aren’t a lot of places like The Villages that exist that do give you that many opportunities to just kind of find yourself again and be whoever you want to be.” On Intergenerational Relationships “We haven’t figured out how to more naturally allow for these kinds of relationships to blossom between those who are younger and those who are older. It’s a shame that I think in some ways, the reason that we have places like The Villages, and the reason why they’re so popular, is because we don’t have any alternatives where elderly folks can go where they don’t feel invisible. I think that was a common theme that I was hearing from so many people who felt like they were no longer interested in appearing invisible to people who had more or less ageist viewpoints on who they were. So it’s a shame. And it’s obvious there are some very interesting kinds of phenomenons that are happening now. And I’ve heard about experiments, social experiments, where college campuses are creating little spaces now for elderly residents and to try and foster those kinds of intergenerational relationships. And I think that’s really fascinating. And I would be curious to see how that works.” _________________________ For More on Lance Oppenheim & Some Kind Of Heaven Lance Oppenheim’s Website Some Kind of Heaven Website Some Kind of Heaven Trailer The Happiest Guy in the World (10-minute short film – The New York Times Op-Docs) Heaven on Earth? A New Documentary Looks at Life in The Villages – Next Avenue ________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott What Can You Do to Age Better? – Anna Dixon With the Freedom to Retire, Where Will You Plant Your New Tree? – Don Ezra Are You in the Driver’s Seat? – Cindy Cox-Roman Retirement Planning Includes Getting Good at Getting Older – Rabbi Laura Geller What Do You Really Want to Do?- Melissa Davey Do Your Retirement Strategies Account for 6 Stages & Community? – Ted Carr Can You Grow Younger? – Marta Zaraska ________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring from their primary career – and aren’t done yet –  discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you make yours great. ______________________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com             __________________________    

Join our Free Webinar on March 4th: Design Your Next Phase It’s been a year since the pandemic began. How have your networking relationships evolved? Is it time to rethink how you approach networking? Our guest is J. Kelly Hoey, the author of Build Your Dream Network, and she encourages people to think of networking differently. It’s not about networking events, it’s about cultivating the right relationships. If you’re looking to build a second career, Kelly Hoey’s networking tips will change your mindset and your approach to networking. __________________________ We discuss: Her journey from a legal career in Toronto and New York to what she’s  doing today How economic downturns created opportunities How we should think differently about networking – beyond networking events The most important word to remember about networking Where specificity can give you an edge The Do’s & Don’ts of networking approaches – from the receiver’s point of view The advantages introverts bring to networking that they may not realize How she thinks of the social media platforms she uses What can be learned from networking in the pandemic How to leverage your network in creating a second career _________________________ Bio Kelly Hoey is obsessed with changing the way we understand and approach networking. She’s the author of Build Your Dream Network: Forging Powerful Connections In A Hyper-Connected World (Tarcher Perigee/Penguin Random House), a modern, practical guide to the necessary (and frequently dreaded) task of networking. Kelly has worked with top companies, brands and conferences. She’s appeared on CNBC’s Power Pitch, co-created and moderated the “Meet The Innovators” speaker series at Apple, and contributed to publications such as The New York Times, Forbes.com, Fast Company, and Inc. Kelly’s insights have been featured in Real Simple, Working Mother, Good Morning America, AARP, Vogue.com, Brit & Co, The Muse, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, CBC Radio, Monster.com, AARP, The Ladders, Parade, Business Insider and many more, as an authority on networking. A former attorney and active participant in New York’s startup community, Kelly has been lauded from Forbes (“1 of 5 Women Changing the World of VC/Entrepreneurship”) to Fast Company (“1 of the 25 Smartest Women On Twitter”) to Business Insider (“1 of the 100 Most Influential Tech Women On Twitter”) and Inc. (“1 of the 10 Most Well-Connected People in New York City’s Startup Scene”). EBW 2020 included her on their list of the “100 Most Influential Global Leaders Empowering Women Worldwide”. __________________________ Wise Quotes On Why It’s Not About Networking Events “I think what people need to think about networking is you need to ditch the schmooze. You need to ditch the notion. When you need something like a job lead or a career lead, you need to think about it more in the sense of How do I interact with people every day? And well before the events of 2020, things we were doing every day – we’re texting and tweeting and maybe posting on Facebook, maybe we’re sending a birthday note or an anniversary wish. All that is part of your networking arsenal if you’re someone who has been or had been in the workforce a long time. When I think about your networking, how have you shown up every day for your colleagues and co-workers? Were you a good mentor? Were you someone who was a good project manager? All of those activities to me are part of our networking reputation – and network building – that we have done throughout our lives. So for the listeners who may be thinking about a change or some evolution in their career, this is where I’d say sit back and think about how you’ve been showing up for your network every single day.” On Generosity “Well, I think there’s this underlying notion with networking: Give before you get. And I think there is this notion that people hold on with sort of an outdated version of networking reciprocity you feel as transactional in the sense of, Oh, Joe has made an introduction for me. I must make an introduction for him. And that’s sort of a very linear way of thinking – rather than thinking about networking in a much more kind of bigger picture than a one-off situation. And so generosity for me is how we respect people. It is how we show other people we are grateful for what they’ve done for us. It is how we can extend our thanks. It’s how we can create a stronger relationship.” On Wide or Deep Networks “Women’s networks have been more narrow and deep in the sense of it might not be as big, but there’s a greater depth in terms of the investment of time that women have spent getting to know people. And what you’ve seen over the course of the pandemic is that the women’s networks, the narrow deep ones,  have been what we’ve really needed in terms of people to turn to, to help us with the stress and the strain and shoulder the worries. And where we’ve actually seen decreases in networks has been in those sort of shallower [ones], the relationships with less depth. And so a lot of men have experienced network shrinkage because of those more casual relationships. We haven’t had the environment to reinforce those. So it kind of behooves all of us going forward to really think about that dynamic – and how and where you’re finding ways to nurture and grow both of those types of networks. Because you need both of those to have a strong network. You need both of those types of dynamics to have the right sort of composition of people around your career, your ambitions, your career transitions and your dreams.” __________________________ For More on Kelly Hoey Kelly’s book: Build Your Dream Network: Forging Powerful Relationships in a Hyper-Connected World Kelly can be found (frequently) online: Website: https://jkellyhoey.co/ BYDN Podcast: https://apple.co/2klTSGM BYDN Course + Community: https://www.buildyourdreamnetwork.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/jkhoey Clubhouse: @jkhoey LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kellyhoey/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jkellyhoey/ _________________________ Podcast Episodes You Might Like How to Future Proof Your Career – Jeff Gothelf How to Build a Portfolio Career – Kate Schaefers Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans How to Build a Non-Profit Encore Career – Betsy Werley A Second Act after The Law – Mark Shaiken Navigating An Unexpected Career Change – Maggie Craddock __________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring from their primary career – and aren’t done yet –  discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you make yours great. ______________________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com

  Is it time to discover What’s Next after your primary career comes to an end? Is there something you always wanted to do? Is there a problem or challenge that your skills and experience could help solve? Is there something calling you? This mini-episode of our retirement podcast highlights three stories of people who are making a difference – in new ways. Cynthia Barnett found her career in education coming to an end prematurely. She spotted an important problem. Girls were not entering educational pathways that would prepare them for careers in high-growth fields in science, technology, engineering, and math. Deciding that she was retired, but not done yet, she dove in and created an award-winning program to inspire young women to consider and prepare for STEM careers. Melissa Davey was an executive in health care when a chance encounter led her to conversations that inspired her to retire – and follow her dream to become a filmmaker. Steve Javie was at the top of his game as an NBA referee when a chronic injury curtailed his career. A period of intensive self-reflection, conversations, and discernment lead him to become an ordained Deacon. Their experiences underscore how valuable an open-mind can be. What could you discover? __________________________ Listen to our full conversations – and their advice: Retired, But Not Done Yet – Dr. Cynthia Barnett What Do You Really Want to Do?- Melissa Davey From the NBA Hardwood to the Altar – Steve Javie ___________________________ You May Also Be Interested In: Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans How to Build a Portfolio Career – Kate Schaefers _____________________________ Interested in designing a second-act career that’s right for you? Check out our one-on-one coaching program based on the principles of Design Thinking. Schedule a free call to learn more about our new upcoming six-week Group Coaching program starting in March.

What are the keys to happiness in retirement? It goes beyond financial security. And if you want to retire happy, what should you focus on? Our guest today is Dr. Barbara O’Neill, author of Flipping the Switch: Your Guide to Happiness and Financial Security in Later Life. Although she is not a fan of the word retirement, she’s researched what it takes to make one of life’s transitions and retire happy. I discuss with Dr. O’Neill: The story of her next chapter (so far) after leaving Rutgers University How the pandemic will impact retirement, short-term and longer-term What areas people are the most – and least – prepared for in later life Why she doesn’t like the R-word – and what she prefers to use instead Why letting go and looking forward are both important – and how they can be challenging in life’s transitions What she thinks are some of the most challenging switches to flip What she’s learned in navigating her own life transition Her alternative approach to FIRE (FIND) When people should begin to start planning for life after full-time work She joins us from Florida. __________________________ Bio  Barbara O’Neill, Ph.D, CFP®, CRPC®, AFC, CHC, CFEd, CFCS, CPFFE, is the author of Flipping the Switch: Your Guide to Happiness and Financial Security in Later Life. As the owner/CEO of Money Talk: Financial Planning Seminars and Publications, Dr. Barbara O’Neill, CFP®, AFC®, CRPC®, writes, speaks, and reviews content about personal finance. A Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Rutgers University, after 41 years of service as a Rutgers Cooperative Extension educator and personal finance specialist, Dr. O’Neill has written over 160 articles for academic publications and received more than 35 national awards and over $1.2 million in grants to support her financial education programs and research. Employed by Rutgers since 1978, she provided national leadership for the Cooperative Extension programs Investing For Your Future and Small Steps to Health and Wealth™ for over a decade. Part of her work time is bought out to provide personal finance training for military family service professionals (for the eXtension Military Families Learning Network) and for New Jersey financial educators as part of a state Department of Education contract. She is also the author of two trade books, Saving On a Shoestring and Investing On A Shoestring, and co-author of Money Talk: A Financial Guide for Women. She is a certified financial planner (CFP®), chartered retirement planning counselor (CRPC®), accredited financial counselor (AFC), certified housing counselor (CHC), and certified financial educator (CFEd). She also holds the CFCS (certified in family and consumer sciences) and CPFEE (certified personal and family finance educator) credentials from the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS). Dr. O’Neill received her Ph.D. in family financial management from Virginia Tech, a master’s degree in consumer economics from Cornell University, and a bachelor’s degree in home economics education from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Oneonta. She has received over three dozen awards for personal or program excellence, including a 2016 AAFCS Distinguished Service Award, and over $1 million in grants and contract funding to support her financial education programs and research. In 2003, she served as president of the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education (AFCPE). From 1996-2000, Dr. O’Neill directed the five-year MONEY 2000™ Cooperative Extension savings and debt reduction campaign in the 1990s that resulted in over $20 million of documented economic impact nationwide. In addition, she has delivered almost 300 national/regional conference presentations throughout her career and over 70 webinars for eXtension, AAFCS, and other professional organizations. In addition to being an AAFCS board member from 2016-2019, she serves as Academic Editor of the Financial Planning Association’s Journal of Financial Planning. Dr. O’Neill is an avid Twitter user and tweets personal finance information and research findings using the handle @moneytalk1. ____________________________ Wise Quotes On FIND (Financial Independence New Directions) versus FIRE “Well, FIRE is fine – Financial Independence Retire Early. And the biggest proponents of that are people who are trying to exit the workforce in their early forties and mid-forties. And it’s gotten a lot of attention. I actually watched that documentary film that was produced a few years ago, called Playing With Fire. All I can think of is: [if] you exit the workforce at 40 or 50, you’re going to have all those same Flip Switches that I wrote about in my book that people often face when they’re a bit older. And I’m thinking: What are you going to do with the next 50, possibly 60 years of your life, if you truly use the word retire or you really ‘kind of’ retire? And in fact, many of the leading proponents of FIRE are people who have just transitioned to self-employment pretty much like I have. So I just think FIND as a whole better acronym because it’s Financial Independence New Directions –  and you get to choose those directions.” On Abrupt Transitions  “When you’ve been in a career pattern, let’s say for…40 years. And then all of a sudden, you’re not. It’s kind of like jumping off a cliff – and you’re going to this unknown place. Whether you call it retirement or you call it leaving Rutgers or whatever it is, it’s a different place than you had before. So anything that’s new and uncertain can often be stressful… and that’s like anything in life. I think also as you leave a career and you’re in the later stages of your life, you’re also thinking about mortality [and] possibly thinking about doing things for the last time. Have I gone to Broadway in New York City for the last time? I don’t know the answer to that question I may have. So you think about those things.” On Creating a New Structure “… I found, when I was researching the book, there’s that whole concept of having some big rocks in your day. If you remember the Stephen Covey analogy, you put the big rocks into the jar first, and then you kind of put the sand in the small rocks around it. Well, what works out pretty well for people when they’re trying to structure their days in later life is to have some big rocks. And again, it doesn’t have to be work. It could be volunteer work, it could be caregiving for grandchildren. It can be whatever brings you joy and happiness, but it’s also something that’s going to take a lot of your time. Because I wrote in the book that when you leave a full-time job, you’ve got to fill that 2,500 hours a year. That’s a lot of hours to fill and having some things that you really enjoy doing that can kind of anchor your days will be really important.” On Other People’s Social Clocks “…People have this tendency to impose what researchers call a Social Clock on other people. And a Social Clock is a perception of what people should do at a certain age. So people will talk to maybe a son and daughter-in-law who were married and maybe they’re in their early thirties. And it’s like, Well, when are you going to give me your grandchild?’ They’re imposing their Social Clock on their children and that’s not right. And neither is saying to somebody at a certain age, Well, when are you going to retire? or How come you haven’t retired yet?” __________________________ For More on Dr. Barbara O’Neill Get Flipping the Switch: Your Guide to Happiness and Financial Security in Later Life Follow on Twitter: @moneytalk1 Website ___________________________ Mentioned in This Episode Stephen Covey’s Big Rocks (Highly recommend – I’ve used this for years … very helpful) ____________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Successful Aging – Daniel Levitin Are You Living Gratefully? – Kristi Nelson Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott Advice for Successful Career Women Transitioning to Retirement – Helen Dennis The Skill Set for Life’s Transitions – Bruce Feiler If You Love Your Work, What Challenges Will You Face in Retirement? – Michelle Pannor Silver How Life Hacks Can Help Make Your Retirement the Best Time of Your Life – Sam Horn ____________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We hope you enjoy this retirement podcast. We help people who are retiring but aren’t done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com    

This a special mini-episode of The Retirement Wisdom Podcast. It’s a quick recap of what we learned in the first month of our 4th season of the podcast. To kick off Season 4, the focus was on topics front and center for many people at the beginning of a new year: Healthy living Working longer (in different ways) Lifelong learning ___________________________ You can listen to the full conversations here: Take Charge of Your Well-Being – John La Puma, MD How to Future Proof Your Career – Jeff Gothelf Learning is a Lifetime Sport – Tom Vanderbilt _____________________________ You can browse and access all of our episodes from all 4 seasons of our retirement podcast here – and you can subscribe so they’re delivered to you as we produce them. While you’re there, check out the Designing Your Life coaching program – create your next phase on your own terms.  

  What comes to mind when you hear the phrase lifelong learning? Formal classes, with homework, delivered over Zoom? That’s part of it. But there’s another dimension that our guest Tom Vanderbilt, the author of the new book Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning, highlights. He writes about learning a new skill, as opposed to acquiring knowledge. And he’s not focused on professional skills. His book is about learning new skills – for fun. Intrigued by his daughter beginning to learn chess, he decided to learn along with her. And that began a journey of learning how to surf, sing, draw and juggle. His book shares his experiences and explores the science of learning, including why cultivating a Beginner’s Mind is key for adults committed to lifelong learning. We discuss: The story of how his daughter learning chess led to this book The benefits of learning a new skill Why being a beginner is more challenging for adults Why  a ‘Beginner’s Mind’ is helpful What gets in our way What he learned about unlearning The advantages of learning a new skill in groups How couples can benefit from learning a new skill together Why juggling can be a good learning experience Why these times are perhaps the best of times for lifelong learning ________________________ Bio Tom Vanderbilt has written for many publications and is a contributing editor of Wired (U.K.), Outside, and Artforum. He is the author of Traffic: Why We Drive the Way We Do (and What It Says About Us) and Survival City: Adventures Among the Ruins of Atomic America. He has been a visiting scholar at NYU’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management, a research fellow at the Canadian Centre for Architecture, a fellow at the Design Trust for Public Space, and a winner of the Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant, among other honors. Tom Vanderbilt writes on design, technology, science, and culture, among other subjects, for many publications, including Wired, Outside, The London Review of Books, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Wilson Quarterly, Artforum, The Wilson Quarterly, Travel and Leisure, Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, Cabinet, Metropolis, and Popular Science. He is contributing editor to Artforum and the design magazine Print and I.D., contributing writer of the popular blog Design Observer, and columnist for Slate magazine. He has consulted for a variety of companies, from ad agencies to Fortune 500 corporations, and has given lectures at a variety of institutions around the world, from the Eero Saarinen Lecture at Yale University’s School of Architecture to the Australasian Road Safety Conference in Canberra. He has appeared on a wide variety of radio and television programs around the world, including NBC’s Today Show, ABC News’ Nightline, NPR’s Morning Edition, Fresh Air with Teri Gross, the BBC’s World Service and The One Show, MSNBC’s Morning Joe, Fox Business, and CNN’s Business Today, among many others. He is a Visiting Scholar at New York University’s Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management, and has received fellowships from the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visiting Arts, the Design Trust for Public Space, and the Canadian Centre for Architecture. He is also a member of the U.S. Department of Interior’s Cold War Advisory Committee, a group studying the identification of sites and resources significant to the Cold War. __________________________ Wise Quotes On Learning a New Skill “…As my daughter was sitting there learning this new thing, I thought, why shouldn’t I also try to learn this thing? …And so this little experiment was born in which we were, these two people separated by four decades of age, trying to learn the same thing. We were beginners at the same skill, but coming to it from a totally different place. And that experience I went through just opened my eyes as to just how long it had been since I’d really take it on a new skill and, and how sort of exhilarating and energizing I’ve found it. And getting over all of those inner voices telling you not to do that.” On Learning to Sing “I’m in my fifties. You sort of reach a certain point where you’ve kind of defined by a series of nouns. Let’s say: I’m a writer, I’m a father, I’m a husband, I’m this, I’m that. And you sort of treasure these things, but at some point, you begin to feel a little bit, maybe a certain status [hit] there and you start to wonder: Are there ways I could change my life? That would be interesting, (but things that aren’t too radical). And one of the easiest ways to do that is to simply take on learning a new skill. And this thing happens where at first you’re sort of trying to do the thing. Let’s say one of the things I tried was singing and you’re going through this whole process…And for many of us, it can be daunting. No one likes to look bad out there. But at the same time, it’s a very sort of powerful experience just to reset and then climb that learning curve again. And you feel that sort of reward and satisfaction as you see those incremental improvements. And I didn’t set out to be some sort of amazing singer. I just thought I might enjoy the process of learning in a deliberate way. And then at some point, you go from the verb of singing to the noun.” On Couples Learning Together “I saw that couples who had engaged in these shared learning experiences, particularly when they were novices – this could be something like ballroom dance classes or learning a new language together –  that they were experiencing higher levels of relationship satisfaction afterward. And what the researchers speculated was that they both suddenly had this new, bright, shiny novelty in their life that was bringing them pleasure and meaning, and also enjoyment. And they sort of transfer that because they were doing it together. They sort of grafted a little bit of that feeling back onto themselves and the relationship. So it’s sort of like kick-starting if you will.” __________________________ For More on Tom Vanderbilt Website Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning on Amazon Smule: The Social Singing App mentioned in our conversation Sean Morey, the street performer/juggler I mentioned, on The Tonight Show way back in 1980 __________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Are You Thinking About Going Back to School in Retirement? – Nell Painter Successful Aging – Daniel Levitin Tiny Habits Can Lead to Big Changes – BJ Fogg How Can You Be Better with Age? – Alan Castel __________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com  

Is career management a priority in the second half of your career? Our guest today, Jeff Gothelf, author of Forever Employable, argues that it’s more important than ever to future proof your career. Taking a proactive approach can be beneficial if you want to strike out on your own someday, but also if you want to enhance your value to your current employer. As the world of work continues to evolve, he shows how you can stay ahead of the curve and future proof jobs. We talk with Jeff about how mid-to-late professionals can take a  proactive approach to career management: What inspired him to write his latest book Forever Employable His story of why he left corporate life to become an entrepreneur Why the first step in his 5-step process is so important The benefits – and risks – of creating an independent path What it takes to be successful on an independent career path The strategies that help people differentiate themselves in their space How he become a Recognized Expert – and how it helps his business His advice on where to start to create a second career as a consultant or freelancer that’s future proof Jeff joins us from Barcelona. __________________________ Wise Quotes On His Career Pivot  “And I was seeing some colleagues and friends of mine who were a few years older than me struggle to continue that upward mobility and that climb. And so I decided to get ahead of that. I decided that I wasn’t going to find myself at 40 years old, at 45, at 50, or beyond in a position where I’d hit a ceiling and there was nowhere else to go. And so at the age of 35, I made an explicit decision to change my career trajectory. Instead of following this path where I’m chasing jobs and opportunities, I was going to create a situation where those jobs and opportunities were chasing me. But it’s really ‘what’s the fear of not being able to stay employable and feed my family, pay the bills, pay the mortgage’ that type of thing.” Why You Should Plant Your Flag “So the ideas in Forever Employable are designed for folks who want to break out on their own and use their experience and their expertise to build a network and professional reputation and an audience around it. But it’s also for those who want to stay employed in-house and increase their value to their current employer. And the way that you do that, in either case, is Step One of the process –  which is Planting Your Flag. And planting a flag is essentially deciding what you’re going to be known for. It’s deciding what you’d like to base that reputation on that you’re going to build. Typically in most cases, that’s going to come from your professional experience and expertise. Although there certainly have been folks who have kind of branched into a second career who have leaned on their personal passions.” On Building Career Insurance “But it’s really supporting your current practice so that you are future-proofing your career. So what you’re doing is you’re building a safety net. You’re building career insurance really by building up this body of knowledge and this expertise that you’re sharing back with your communities. You’re creating content – whether that’s speeches or articles, blog posts, videos, presentations, infographics – whatever works for you. And you’re building up this reputation around yourself.  So that when change inevitably happens, you’re extremely valuable to the organization.  And they say, ‘Well, we’re not going to let Jeff go because he’s the guy who really knows this stuff and brings us great hires’ or you’re creating a situation where there’s a steady stream of inbound opportunities because people have gotten to know you and they recognize you as an expert in this particular field.” On Being Proactive Mid-to-Late Career “So if you’re perfectly happily employed and your organization’s doing well, everything’s fine. There is a steady inbound flow of opportunities so that you can make proactive decisions about how you want to move your career forward. And so it’s one thing to think about it because, look, especially if you’re kind of mid-career into the second half of your career, you have a tremendous amount of experience. You have a tremendous amount of expertise that you can share. And for those people to do that successfully, generally speaking, they struggle less to stay forever employable.” ____________________________ Bio Jeff Gothelf helps organizations build better products and executives build the cultures that build better products. He is the author of Forever Employable, co-author of the award-winning book Lean UX and the Harvard Business Review Press book Sense & Respond. Starting off as a software designer, Jeff now works as a coach, consultant and keynote speaker helping companies bridge the gaps between business agility, digital transformation, product management and human-centered design. Most recently Jeff co-founded Sense & Respond Press, a publishing house for practical business books for busy executives. _____________________________ For More on Jeff Gothelf Forever Employable Website _________________________ Related Podcast Episodes You May Like Will You Be an Entrepreneur in Your Second Act Career? – Dorie Clark What’s Next for You? – Jeff Tidwell Navigating An Unexpected Career Change – Maggie Craddock How to Make a Wise Career Switch – Dawn Graham Can Working Remotely Beat Ageism? – Kerry Hannon Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott What Do You Really Want to Do?- Melissa Davey _____________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com      

At the beginning of a new year, it’s natural to think about what you can do to live a healthier lifestyle. Are there changes you can make to enhance your holistic well-being? Our guest, John La Puma, MD is a leader in the practice of Culinary Medicine and EcoMedicine, preventative medicine approaches to create a healthier lifestyle through what we choose to eat and the health benefits of nature. We discuss with Dr. La Puma: How he came to combine medicine, cooking, and farming. The state of the medical profession today in embracing of Culinary Medicine. What he sees as the pillars of a healthy diet from the Culinary Medicine and EcoMedicine points of view as we age. How some major diseases may be preventable with the right lifestyle modifications, in his opinion. What he’s found works in helping people make changes in their lifestyle. The unique health challenges that men face – and what areas men should focus on. What role Nature and EcoMedicine play in a healthy lifestyle. ___________________ Bio John La Puma MD is Clinical Director and Founder of Chef Clinic; he’s also a professionally trained chef, organic and regenerative avocado farmer and a New York Times best-selling author twice. He has led clinical trials of nutritional interventions designed to improve burnout, obesity, hypertension, osteoarthritis, insomnia and diabetes, and pioneered culinary medicine. His mission is to help you get measurably healthier with what you eat and how you live. Dr. La Puma guest taught the first medical lecture on Nature Therapy at Harvard University’s Lifestyle Medicine course, and taught the first Nutrition and Cooking course for medical students in the US, at SUNY-Upstate with Dr. Michael Roizen of the Cleveland Clinic, and the first Culinary Medicine clinical course for medical students in the US, at DMU. He has authored over 50 peer-reviewed scientific papers and three medical books, including a CME book and the first peer-reviewed article about culinary medicine. His work has been published by the New England  Journal of Medicine, JAMA and the British Medical Journal. Four of his books–Refuel, ChefMD’s Big Book of Culinary Medicine, Cooking the RealAge Way and The RealAge Diet–have been bestsellers around the world, been translated into 8 languages and sold over a million copies. Dr. La Puma is a renowned speaker and demonstration cook. He delivered the first lectures at Harvard and at TEDMED on Culinary Medicine, and at the University of Chicago on Comfort Food. He has also presented at the prestigious TEDx and Gel Health conferences and is consistently rated among the very best speakers by the audiences he addresses.  He has been a consultant and spokesperson for CIGNA, Caremark, GSK and Kraft, among other partners, and founded Alternative Medicine Alert, an evidence-based monthly newsletter for clinicians on dietary supplements and integrative medical approaches. __________________________ Wise Quotes On The Benefits of Lifestyle Modifications “The CDC actually addressed that and they believe that 80% of heart disease, stroke and diabetes and 40% of cancer is preventable with lifestyle change. The CDC is about as conservative an institution in American medicine as exists. I think that almost all arthritis, particularly osteoarthritis is preventable. I think that loss of mobility as we age is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to decline quickly. Having major diseases become and be thought of as preventable problems that can be mitigated is really a game-changer…So having more control than you think means that you can make better choices – and that they will matter. And after 50, almost all of aging is your choices before 50. Your genetics have a lot to say, but if you make a decision, you can change your life….not just improve your longevity, but improve your quality of life. And of course your flexibility, your energy level, your curiosity, your cognitive alertness, your ability to communicate. There are a lot of amazing things you can do with lifestyle change.” On Men’s Health “…what we can do first and most controllably is change what – and how – we eat and do so with these behavioral strategies that I’ve identified. And in our research, this worked really well. And in the thousands of men who have read the Refuel book and written to me, the changes have been remarkable. People lose 10 pounds or more and have better muscle mass and strength and sleep better and just sort of get their lives back. And men have to be given permission for this. I think because it’s not expected of us be healthy – but that’s actually a sexy thing to a lot of women that healthy men take care of themselves and are proud of it. And so it’s been a privilege to help so many people get well, and I’m really proud of the work that we’ve done.” On Purpose “Leading a life that is purposeful – as an attitude- is probably the secret to longevity. These behaviors – and sleeping well, eating well, getting enough exercise, being outside, managing stress – are behaviors that improve wellness. But while…well-being starts with purpose, [it’s] understanding who you are as a person and what your role is in the world in relationship to both other people who you love and to others and to the planet itself.  Shadow journaling is one mechanism for reflecting on who you are and what your purpose is so that when you get up in the morning, it’s not just what there is to do, but the reason for doing it.” __________________________ For More on John La Puma, MD Website Refuel: A 24-Day Eating Plan to Shed Fat, Boost Testosterone, and Pump Up Strength and Stamina Cooking the RealAge (R) Way: Turn back your biological clock with more than 80 delicious and easy recipes The RealAge Diet: Make Yourself Younger with What You Eat  Follow on Twitter ____________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Be Interested In Successful Aging – Daniel Levitin The Mind-Body Connection and The Rabbit Effect – Kelli Harding Tiny Habits Can Lead to Big Changes – BJ Fogg The Joy of Movement – Kelly McGonigal Can You Grow Younger? – Marta Zaraska What Can You Do to Age Better? – Anna Dixon Are You in the Driver’s Seat? – Cindy Cox-Roman __________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com          

We’re all aging, but what do we need to know about successful aging? I reached out to the person who wrote a comprehensive successful aging book, Daniel Levitin, a noted neuroscientist, musician, and author, to find out. I discuss with Daniel Levitin: What led him to write Successful Aging How he defines successful aging Common misconceptions about aging How our brains change as we age What older brains are better at than younger brains The roles personality and mindset play in successful aging What he learned from the Dalai Lama Why you should consider working longer, and even never “retiring” How music can be helpful in successful aging What steps you can take to start to age successfully ________________________ Bio Daniel J. Levitin is an award-winning neuroscientist, musician, and best-selling author. His research encompasses music, the brain, health, productivity and creativity. Levitin has published more than 300 articles, in journals including Science, Nature, PNAS, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, and The Wall Street Journal. His research has been featured over 1800 times in the popular press, including 17 articles in The New York Times, and in The London Times, Scientific American, and Rolling Stone.  He is a frequent guest on NPR and CBC Radio and has appeared on Good Morning America, The Today Show, CBS This Morning, and CNN. His TED talk is among the most popular of all time. He is the author of four New York Times bestselling books: This Is Your Brain On Music, The World in Six Songs, The Organized Mind and Successful Aging, as well as the international bestseller A Field Guide to Lies. A popular public speaker, he has given presentations on the floor of Parliament in London, to the U.S. Congress, Microsoft, Google, and Amazon. He has consulted for a number of companies including Apple, Booz-Allen, Microsoft, the United States Navy, Sonos, Philips, Sony, Fender, and AT&T. Dr. Levitin earned his B.A. from Stanford in Cognitive Science, his M.Sc. and Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology with a Ph.D. minor in Music Technology from the University of Oregon, and completed post-doctoral training at Stanford University Medical School and UC Berkeley in Neuroimaging and Perception. As a musician (tenor saxophone, guitar, vocals and bass), he has performed with Mel Tormé, David Byrne, Rosanne Cash, Sting, Bobby McFerrin, Victor Wooten and Tom Scott. Levitin has produced and consulted on albums by artists including Stevie Wonder, Steely Dan, Joni Mitchell and on the films Good Will Hunting and Pulp Fiction, and has been awarded 17 gold and platinum records. Levitin taught at Stanford in the Departments of Computer Science, Psychology, History of Science, and Music, and has been a Visiting Professor at Dartmouth, and UC Berkeley. He is currently the Founding Dean of Arts & Humanities at the Minerva Schools at the Keck Graduate Institute, San Francisco, California, and James McGill Professor Emeritus of Psychology, Neuroscience and Music at McGill University. __________________________ Wise Quotes On Personality Factors and Successful Aging “One of the big ones is conscientiousness. It’s the biggest single predictor, much more so than socioeconomic status, of how your life is going to turn out at any age. Conscientiousness is a cluster of different things having to do with reliability, dependability exercising due caution, and rule-following, to some degree. A kid who’s conscientious isn’t going to cross against the light, and so, is less likely to get hit by a bus. An adult who’s conscientious is less likely to end up in prison – and an older adult who’s conscientious is going to see the doctor when something’s wrong. They’re actually going to do what the doctor tells them to do. My doctor friends tell me that, you know, 80% of their patients are non-compliant and, but a conscientious person is. So that’s the role of personality in all of this. Now there are other factors that influence life satisfaction and health besides conscientiousness, but that’s the big one.” On Mindset “You don’t like the way you are? You can change – you can change at any age. And that’s a mindset issue – you have to want to change. It’s like the old joke about the psychiatrist and the light bulb. How many psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb? The answer is one, but the light bulb has to want to change.” ___________________________ More on Daniel Levitin Daniel Levitin’s Website Buy Successful Aging – now available in paperback ___________________________ Related Podcast Episodes on Positive Aging How Can You Be Better with Age? – Alan Castel What Can You Do to Age Better? – Anna Dixon Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott Can You Grow Younger? – Marta Zaraska Are You in the Driver’s Seat? – Cindy Cox-Roman on Personal Agency  Is Working Into Retirement Good for Your Brain? – Dawn Carr Advice for Successful Career Women Transitioning to Retirement – Helen Dennis Retirement Planning Includes Getting Good at Getting Older – Rabbi Laura Geller ____________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com

Are you living your core personal values? If you look carefully at how you’re spending your time, how aligned is it with your core values? It’s a great time to step back, take stock, and make some changes that can make a big difference in the year(s) ahead. Our guest Harry Kraemer, author of Your 168: Finding Purpose and Satisfaction in a Values-Based Life, highlights how self-reflection can help create greater alignment and flexibility. A Values Based Life Our conversation covers a lot of ground: Why 168 is his favorite number. After the books he’s written on leadership, what inspired him to write Your 168. What a life based on values looks like versus one that’s less so. Why self-reflection is so important – and how it’s part of his day. How planning and spontaneity can co-exist. What the transition was like for him when he retired  – and what led him to teach in the MBA program at Kellogg. What a friend and colleague learned from a wake-up call. The role habits play in a values-based life. Why genuine humility and making a difference are key parts of a values-based life. His involvement in the One Acre Fund. The best way to start if you want to make the most of your 168 starting in 2021. __________________________ Bio Harry M. Jansen Kraemer, Jr. is an executive partner with Madison Dearborn Partners, a private equity firm based in Chicago, Illinois and a Clinical Professor of Leadership at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He was named the 2008 Kellogg School Professor of the Year. Harry is the author of two bestselling leadership books: From Values to Action: The Four Principles of Values-Based Leadership and Becoming The Best: Build a World-Class Organization Through Values-Based Leadership. He is the former chairman and chief executive officer of Baxter International Inc., a $12 billion global healthcare company. He became Baxter’s chief executive officer in January 1999, and assumed the additional responsibility of chairman of Baxter’s board of directors in January 2000. Mr. Kraemer joined Baxter in 1982 as director of corporate development. His twenty-three year career at Baxter included senior positions in both domestic and international operations. In 1993, he was named senior vice president and chief financial officer, responsible for financial operations, business development, global communications, and European operations. Over the next several years, he assumed additional responsibility for Baxter’s Renal and Medication Delivery businesses. He was elected to Baxter’s board of directors in 1995, and was named president of Baxter International Inc. in 1997. Before joining Baxter, Mr. Kraemer worked for Bank of America in corporate banking and for Northwest Industries in planning and business development. Mr. Kraemer is active in business, education and civic affairs. He serves on the board of directors of Leidos Corporation, Dentsply Sirona, Option Care Health, Performance Health and Alcami, and on the board of trustees of Northwestern University, The Conference Board, NorthShore University Healthsystem and the Archdiocese of Chicago Finance Committee and School Board. He is a member of the Dean’s Global Advisory Board of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He is a member of the Council of CEOs, the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Economics Club of Chicago. He is a past member of the Business Roundtable, the Business Council, and the Healthcare Leadership Council. Mr. Kraemer graduated summa cum laude from Lawrence University of Wisconsin in 1977 with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and economics. He received an MBA degree in finance and accounting from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in 1979 and is a certified public accountant. For his outstanding leadership and service, he received the 1996 Schaffner Award from the Kellogg School of Management. Harry enjoys jogging, tennis, skiing and reading, especially world civilization. Harry, his wife Julie, and their five children live in Wilmette, Illinois. __________________________________ Wise Quotes On the Transition to Retirement “…When I first was announced that I was going to leave Baxter, my initial thought was: Oh, well, I guess, I’m going to run another company. And the good news was I talked to some really good people, Joe, who literally said, ‘Well, before you do that, think about this a minute. This is not like you’re 50. And over the next five years, you’re going to be sort of retiring. Harry, if you retire when you’re 50 or 55, you could actually be retired for longer than you were working. Harry, if you take care of your health, you may, God willing, have another 30 years.’And the questions I thought were really insightful, Joe – probably similar to the work that you do – that one fellow asked, ‘Well, Harry, before you jump into your next thing, what do you have to prove? And to whom?’ And I thought: Well, I’m at a point now I don’t think I have anything to prove anything to anybody. ‘Well then, Harry, why don’t you figure out what would make you happy? Why don’t you think of what would give you meaning? What do you feel like your calling would be? ‘And I thought: that’s interesting. And then the other great question, Joe, which I remember distinctly, [although] it is just now 15 years ago, was ‘Harry, what do you want your next role, your work, your workplace to be like?. Do you want to be that a singular event? Or do you want to collect a bunch of things?’ …And I thought: Well, you know what? If I collected several things rather than one main event, that would probably give me a lot more flexibility with the children, and with other things that are important…” On Self Reflection “…You will notice when you say you want to be self-reflective and be self-aware, you spend a little bit of time in self-reflection yourself. But as you know, Joe, you’ve got to find a few people that you can bounce this off of. Whereas my wife, Julie will say, ‘Harry, left to your own devices. You could convince yourself of anything. Do you want to know what I think now after 40 years? Joe, you and I know the answer to that is Yes! You may not think it’s Yes, but absolutely that’s it. And I really do believe having some people, Joe, –  it could be a sibling, could be a fellow roommate – but having people that’ll just say, ‘Hey, Joe, you know I hear you talking about your values. I hear you saying that, but Joe, I’m looking at your actions pal, and the words and the music aren’t working together.’ So I’m trying to get people to really do two things, Joe: to take the time to figure out what they’re doing and why –  and have a couple of people who can say ‘What are you living and [is it ] what you’re talking about? And I think that has an enormous impact.” ________________________________ For more on Harry Kraemer: Website Buy Your 168: Finding Purpose and Satisfaction in a Values-Based Life The One Acre Fund _________________________________ Related Podcast Episodes You May Be Interested In: The Skill Set for Life’s Transitions – Bruce Feiler The Joy of Movement – Kelly McGonigal Design Your Life and Get Unstuck – Dave Evans Tiny Habits Can Lead to Big Changes – BJ Fogg Why People Make a Career Change with Purpose Top of Mind – Chris Farrell How Life Hacks Can Help Make Your Retirement the Best Time of Your Life – Sam Horn _________________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com  

The benefits of gratitude are plentiful. Yet there’s a tendency to take things for granted, even what matters most. How can gratefulness be cultivated without the painful experience of a wake-up call? Our guest, Kristi Nelson, author of the new book Wake Up Grateful, shares her wisdom on how to develop the mindset and practices to be grateful in our day to day lives. Kristi and I discuss: The mission of her organization A Network for Grateful Living The distinction between gratitude and gratefulness – and why it matters The role gratefulness has played in her life Why gratefulness is especially important now How being grateful can help relationships Why Thanksgiving can be a springboard to gratefulness year-round Her new book: Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted What one thing you can start to do if you want to be more grateful in your life Kristi joins us from Massachusetts. __________________________ Bio Kristi Nelson is the Executive Director of A Network for Grateful Living (gratefulness.org).  She’s also the author of a new book Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted. Kristi has spent most of her adult life in non-profit leadership, fundraising, and organizational development. In a wide variety of roles, she has helped to lead, fund, and strengthen organizations committed to progressive social and spiritual change. In 2001, Kristi founded a values-based fundraising consulting and training, and leadership coaching business, and in this capacity worked with organizations such as the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, Buddhist Peace Fellowship, Spirit in Action, Wisdom 2.0, and The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. During this time, she was also founding Director of the Soul of Money Institute with Lynne Twist, Director of Development at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, and Director of Development and Community Relations for the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society. Kristi received her BA from UMass/Amherst, a graduate certificate in Business and Sociology from Boston College, and her Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in Leadership Studies, from Harvard University. Kristi is a stage IV cancer survivor who feels blessed to work with her beloved colleagues in sharing the gifts of gratefulness with people around the world. She lives in Western MA with her family, and gives thanks every day to be surrounded by the glories of the natural world and a vibrant, loving community. ______________________________ Wise Quotes On Gratitude versus Gratefulness “And I’ve done some pretty deep dives into the exploration because we love feeling gratitude. It’s a fantastic feeling and we love inciting gratitude and other people helping other people feel grateful and yet gratitude tends to be conditional it’s fleeting. It’s transactional. Often we wait for somebody to do something for us or for something to happen. As we said from the outset it’s something that is ephemeral and difficult for us to put our hands around. How do I get more gratitude inducing experiences? And it ends up being a little bit like the pursuit of happiness. I think in that way it’s elusive. And it feels out there gratefulness, as I was saying before, is something that we can cultivate as a practice, very similar to mindfulness. And it’s a beautiful way to weave together more moments of gratitude. And to learn how to find those experiences of gratitude and to uplift them and to deepen ourselves into them more often. So it’s not about being grateful for everything, but gratefulness as the ability to be grateful in every moment. And that’s something that we can learn.”   On What’s Essential  “So this has been a really tough year. I think it’s taught us what’s essential and helped us come home to that question of How do we value and really live into what is essential for us? Because we don’t take the next moment for granted. We say: This is the moment that’s mine. This is the day that’s mine. This is the life I’m living. How do I live gratefully into what is most important to me right here right now, and not count on anything else, because that’s the way we live a regret-free life. That’s really the way to live without regrets and not put anything off. And so I think that’s really come home to roost – as what’s essential. And I think the lessons are continuing to unfold.”   On Gratefulness as an Action “I will say that it’s not just feeling grateful. It’s being grateful. It’s an active verb. It’s like love. You can feel a lot of love. You can feel a lot of gratitude, but until you express it, it doesn’t necessarily transform your relationships. And so the invitation is to live it out loud. Don’t take the people in your life for granted. One of the things I say is that when we take things for granted, they become lifeless. They become literally kind of dead to us. We get into a trance. We sleepwalk. We walk past people who are miracles in our lives, and we don’t appreciate them. And we take a drive that we’ve taken off and in our lives.  And we don’t appreciate it because we’re asleep to it. And yet somebody who takes that same drive and goes by these trees and on this road might say, Wow, this is extraordinary! …But I think [with] the people who become invisible to us in some way, what we have to do is to be really awakened – and then actively express all of the appreciation that we feel. And one of the things that I’ve really experimented with is: Is it possible to really be too grateful for the people who we appreciate and whose presence in our lives matters deeply to us.? And I kind of have not found the threshold. I’ll just tell you there’s a huge amount of capacity for us to express appreciation.” ____________________________ For More on Kristi Nelson Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted on Amazon A Network for Grateful Living ____________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like The Mind-Body Connection and The Rabbit Effect – Kelli Harding Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott Is It Time to Break Up with Busy? – Yvonne Tally Tiny Habits Can Lead to Big Changes – BJ Fogg Why Settle for Happiness in Your Retirement? – Emily Esfahani Smith How Seniors Are Saving the World With Activism – Thelma Reese Not Exactly Retired – David Jarmul ___________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring from their primary career – and aren’t done yet – discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you make yours great. _________________________ Retire smarter. Explore retirementwisdom.com

What’s the ideal retirement lifestyle in today’s Baby Boomer retirement? I’ve had the opportunity to read Shifting Gears, the new book by Richard Haiduck. Through interviews with Baby Boomers in retirement, he paints the picture of the diverse retirement life different Baby Boomers are living today. Whether you’re planning for retirement or you’re in retirement, you’ll benefit from the stories and life lessons he’s captured and chronicled. Why he wrote Shifting Gears:50 Baby Boomers Share Their Meaningful Journeys in Retirement. The themes that emerged from his interviews  – and what surprised him Insights people shared about deciding when to retire Lessons learned from retirees on choosing where to live in retirement One of the many compelling stories in the book – and what it taught him How the stories he heard have influenced his own retirement What’s on his recommended reading list _________________________ Bio Richard Haiduck is the author of the new book  Richard is a former life sciences executive and mentor and now has an active retirement. He is becoming the Voice of Boomer Retirement Stories. He is immersed in challenging the boundaries of his own retirement while observing the experiences and areas of curiosity of his fellow retirees. At age 7, he was sure he wanted to be an author.  Now, 66 years later, that dream has become a reality.  The inspiration for the book came from hearing about the meaningful journeys in retirement taken by friends and colleagues. They were doing fascinating activities at this stage of their life, and often completely new directions from their prior careers.  The idea that these stories could become a book became a driving force for Richard. His 75+ interviews and his frequent social media interactions have developed his perspectives and insights on the retirement activities of the boomer generation.  Richard’s prior roles as both a leader and a mentor have been based on his ability to listen and to get people to share their feelings.  He uses a style of interviewing with short, open questions to get people to open up about their retirement stories. The result is Shifting Gears; 50 Baby Boomers Share Their Meaningful Journeys in Retirement. He graduated from Miami University and got his MBA from Xavier University.  He is happily married to his wife of 52 years and has 2 daughters and 4 grandsons. His own retirement has been hyperactive.  He learns new things through weekly interactions at Stanford, formerly via attending lectures and via Zoom during the pandemic.  Each year he reads about 100 books and bikes more than 3000 miles.  He mentors organizations serving refugees and small farmers in Ghana.  He combines family time with domestic and international travel. _________________________ Wise Quotes On the Freedom to Retire – and Trial & Error “While you’re working, there are things that you don’t have the time to do, but you want to do. And they may be things from when you were seven years old. This guy who was fishing, my guess is he may have been fishing when he was seven years old and always wanted to do more. And I think through some of the other stories as well, people decided to go back to an earlier passion, an earlier hobby, an earlier goal – and rejuvenated it in retirement. You get to do whatever you want in retirement if you can deal with the health and wealth challenges. If you’re not broke, and you’re not sick, then you get to do whatever you want. And that means if you’ve got a passion for something, then go do it. And that passion can be whatever is important to you, but you’ve got the freedom and you’ve got the freedom of trial and error too.  You can try something. One of the guys in the book said, ‘I know I’ve got certain wishes, but I don’t know exactly how to do it. I’m going to do trial and error until I get this right.’ And in his case, he was looking for the ideal volunteering opportunity. And he went through four different ones in a fairly short period of time until he found the one that was perfect for him. Because he says, ‘That’s what I get to do. I’m retired. I get to do trial and error. And if I don’t like something, I move on and do something else.” On Baby Boomer Retirement “There’s a generational theme. That’s probably not surprising, but it’s more pronounced than I thought. And that is Baby Boomers are going to continue to be Baby Boomers in retirement. You know, we’ve been an active generation. We were protesting in the sixties. We were inventing things in the seventies. We were doing all sorts of things that were breaking new ground. So, you know, some would think, well, this generation has accomplished a lot. It’s been an interesting generation when it retires, it will just slow down and relax wrong. That isn’t the way it’s been at all. This generation has continued to innovate, continue to have new passions, continued to do things, to have a retirement that isn’t like our parents’ retirement or retirement that has. And they’re not all earth-shattering kinds of things. So of the things are, are more personal and what’s something someone wanted to do all their lives. One of the guys moved to a place near Yellowstone national park. He’s within an hour’s drive of four great rivers. And he goes fishing every day. He said, and he said, well, once in a while, I’ll miss a day if the event, but he says, Oh, I love it. And I, that is my passion. And it’s just neat to see how much joy he gets from that and how important that is to him and what it means to him in terms of his own satisfaction.” On How the Stories Have Influenced His Retirement “I like to think of myself as open-minded and listening and all that sort of thing. But you hear a story like the one about Bruce and Jill and you say, Wow, they’re out there doing something really amazing! And asking myself, what can I do differently? What influence does this have on my behavior? I think it’s given me a stronger sense of wanting to give back. And I do mentoring of social enterprises that are trying to solve major social problems, mostly in the developing world. And I think I’ve gotten a lot of reinforcement from the interviews that I’ve had with people who are doing similar kinds of things.” On Work in Retirement “Work in retirement? I don’t think is an oxymoron. I think work can do a lot of things for people. It can provide income if that’s necessary or income to do special things –  like I’ll work a little bit so I can take that special vacation or I can go out to dinner to a fancy place on Saturday night. So it’s almost financing a luxury. I think it provides mental stimulation or physical activity that is important to some people. But I think the thing that there are two stories [in the book] that I just was really very gratified to hear about working in a way that the job looks like a hobby, but the job is like  I’d do this even if I wasn’t getting paid for it.” ___________________________ For More on Richard Haiduck Buy Shifting Gears: 50 Baby Boomers Share Their Meaningful Journeys in Retirement – Available now Richard’s website  __________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott Retirement Planning Includes Getting Good at Getting Older – Rabbi Laura Geller The Skill Set for Life’s Transitions – Bruce Feiler Not Exactly Retired – David Jarmul How Life Hacks Can Help Make Your Retirement the Best Time of Your Life – Sam Horn Are You Thinking About Going Back to School in Retirement? – Nell Painter What’s Next for You? – Jeff Tidwell __________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring from their primary career – and aren’t done yet – discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you make yours great. _________________________ Retire smarter. Explore retirementwisdom.com      

What second career ideas are you considering? The best second career jobs aren’t often posted on job sites – you create them. One approach is to build a portfolio career, consisting of several activities that leverage your skills, experience, and interests. Our guest, Kate Schaefers, shares her story of how she created a portfolio career – and her observations on how Baby Boomers and organizations are evolving. I discuss with Kate: What led her to build a portfolio career. How the Advanced Careers Initiative at the University of Minnesota was created – and how it works. What attracts people to the program. The benefits, and perhaps challenges, of multigenerational groups. Her perspective on working in the second half of life. The role of lifelong learning. What innovative organizations are doing to tap into the skills and knowledge of older workers. The mission of The Encore Network.  Her advice on how to create a portfolio career/life. Kate joins us from Minnesota. __________________________ Bio Kate Schaefers weaves a portfolio of work into a career with one unifying theme: to help individuals and organizations shine. She is Executive Director, University of Minnesota Advanced Careers (UMAC) Initiative, a gap year for experienced professionals as they transition from career jobs into meaningful post-career lives. She is a psychologist and leadership coach, partnering with leaders and organizations to strengthen leadership competencies and organizational effectiveness. She is an adjunct psychologist and coach with The Bailey Group. Kate is a skilled educator, facilitator and trainer. She has taught graduate-level courses at both the University of Minnesota and the University of St. Thomas and was part of a team of educators that designed a coaching certificate program. Kate is actively involved in nonprofit and community work. She is Volunteer State President of AARP-MN, convening the AARP Executive Council and contributing to local and regional strategies for the organization, especially around the aging workforce, intergenerational teams and caregiving. Kate was appointed to the Citizens Commission on Minnesota’s Aging Workforce. She is a member of the Encore Network, a founding board member of SHIFT, and a member of Pollen Midwest. She received the Jules Kerlan Outstanding Achievement Award in 2012 from the Minnesota Career Development Association for contributions to the field of career development. __________________________ Wise Quotes On Building a Portfolio Career “It’s hard to find a ready-made cookie-cutter job when what you’re wanting to do is something new – and something that there’s no job description for. So this is how I ended up coming to a portfolio career. I looked at my skills, I tried to distill down what am I good at? What stands out with me? How do I make sense of all of the things that I can do – and create this brand around what I want to do? And so, I struggled with that for a while. I ended up saying yes to a lot of things. Some of them were from paid work, just to broaden my horizons, some was unpaid work and some was volunteer work…So I just took all of these things and tried to look at what skills do I have? How do I redeploy them? And then how do I tell a story about the work I want to do next?”   On the Multigenerational Teams “Our workforce is intergenerational. So we have four generations in the workplace today – some say five. We still have some of the silent generation in the workplace. Yet most college students learn in an age-segregated environment. And so if we talk about even preparing them for the workplace, they’re not necessarily having those discussions and conversations in a way that reflects what they’re going to experience when they get out of college and then move into the workplace. And we also do know in the workplace that diversity is so important, including age diversity. It enhances performance and creativity. Multi-generational teams in the workplace tend to perform better. I do think some organizations are understanding that when you connect the generations, you can fuel innovation and productivity.”   On Following a Path with Heart & Generosity “You need to be curious, you need to learn from people, you need to reach out, and you need to build your network. Also, you need to have a level of trust. Trust that you’ll figure it out. You have to have a level of Okay, I may not know what I’m doing, but it’s okay – I’ll figure it out. Follow a path with heart, give back to others, tell your story in a compelling way, work with generosity,  pay it back, pay it forward – just put it out there, with generosity.” _________________________ Learn More Kate Schaefers on LinkedIn Twitter @KateSchaefers University of Minnesota Advanced Careers Initiative The Encore Network __________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like How to Build a Non-Profit Encore Career – Betsy Werley Are You Ready for The New Long Life? – Andrew Scott Advice for Successful Career Women Transitioning to Retirement – Helen Dennis Why People Make a Career Change with Purpose Top of Mind – Chris Farrell What Can You Do to Age Better? – Anna Dixon The Exciting Potential of Intergenerational Mentoring – Charlotte Japp ____________________________ About Retirement Wisdom We help people who are retiring, but not done yet, discover what’s next. A long retirement is a terrible thing to waste. And a meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. We help you design the life and/or the second career you want. Schedule a call today to discuss how we can help you. _________________________ Explore retirementwisdom.com