In retirement, retirees make the big switch–drawing on savings rather than contributing to them. This is often when the trouble comes–the psychological hurdle comes when it’s time to start spending your hard-earned savings. 

In this episode, you’ll learn how to understand the mental barrier that comes with the big switch and learn strategies to overcome it. Listen to learn how to use your retirement funds without guilt or fear of financial instability.

• [1:22] Will you need permission to spend in retirement?
• [4:06] Strategies to overcome your mental hurdle about spending
• [14:57] How do you handle the taxes from different types of income? 

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• Annual Listener Survey
• Morning Star article

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Knowing when to retire is not just an economic decision; it’s highly personal. In an era where your work is with your identity, deciding when to retire can feel monumental. So how do you know when the time is right? That’s what we’ll explore in today’s episode.

In addition to discussing this retirement headline, Bret Mulvaney joins the show again to help me answer our listener question. Press play to listen.

• [1:06] Retirement Starts Today updates
• [3:48] How do you know it’s time to retire?
• [12:35] Does bank health matter if it is FDIC insured?

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• Vox article
• Dan Sullivan - The Strategic Coach

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Do you feel pain when spending money? Or perhaps it’s the opposite, and you spend a little too freely without much thought, pain, or remorse?

In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll explore an article on how to make the most out of retirement by trying to land somewhere in the middle of the spending spectrum. Whether you find yourself to be a “tightwad” or a “spendthrift” you’ll find this episode to be a helpful exploration of gaining happiness from your retirement spending plan. 

• [1:22] The two types of money people
• [5:20] Pre-establish pivot points
• [11:45] How to deal with rising insurance premiums

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• The Wealth of Common Sense

• Get the Retire-Ready Toolkit:http://retirementstartstodayradio.com/
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It’s easy to make mistakes in your investment portfolio, but as you get closer to retirement, it becomes more important than ever to make sure you are maximizing your financial health so that you can achieve your long-term goals. 

In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll take a look at an article written by Christine Benz which highlights several common errors that investors make. Listen in to avoid these mistakes and learn the actions you can take to rectify the problems.

• [1:34] Are you making these common portfolio mistakes?
• [9:08] Does your asset allocation reflect your portfolio goals?
• [12:13] Amy is worried about staying invested, what can she do?

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• MorningStar article

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What would you say your retirement confidence level is? If you’re like many super-savers, it may be surprisingly low. 

In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll explore an article from Investment News that dives into a phenomenon where wealthier Americans who are confident in their money management skills still feel shaky about retirement and transferring their wealth to their heirs.

Listen in to learn how to become more confident in your retirement plan and stick around for the listener question where we discuss just how safe annuities really are.

• [1:22] Why are supersavers not confident in their retirement plans? 
• [4:18] How to become more confident in your retirement plan
• [7:56] How safe are annuities?

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• BOOK - Die with Zero by Bill Perkins
• Investment News article

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We may think of many things when it comes to rising interest rates, but often we fail to understand how that could lead to rising IRS penalties. 

In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll take a look at an informative article from the WSJ about how to avoid rising IRS penalties. 

Make sure to stick around for the listener questions segment where I answer Jeff’s question on how to bridge the income gap between retirement and Social Security.

• [1:42] Paying quarterly tax withholding
• [8:24] My two tips on avoiding penalties
• [11:48] On bridging Jeff’s retirement income gap

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• WSJ article

• Get the Retire-Ready Toolkit:http://retirementstartstodayradio.com/
• Follow Ben on Twitter:https://twitter.com/retiremeasap
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When was the last time you checked your beneficiaries on your retirement account? After listening to today’s episode, I guarantee you’ll be logging in to verify.

In the retirement headlines segment, we’ll check out a Yahoo Finance article titled ”They Broke Up In 1989, But Now His Ex-Girlfriend Is Inheriting His $1 Million Retirement Account After Nearly 40 Years.” How’s that headline for clickbait? It certainly got me to click!

Make sure to stick around to hear how a reverse mortgage could play a part in your retirement planning. 

• [1:52] How an ex-girlfriend ended up with a million-dollar retirement account
• [5:53] My takeaways
• [9:07] Using reverse mortgage in a positive way
• [14:45] Things to be wary of

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• Yahoo Finance article
• Wade Pfau
• BOOK - Die with Zero by Bill Perkins

• Get the Retire-Ready Toolkit:http://retirementstartstodayradio.com/
• Follow Ben on Twitter:https://twitter.com/retiremeasap
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While, for some people, the transition to retirement goes perfectly smoothly, that’s not the case for everyone. 

Most of us are counting the days until retirement. We’re excited by all the prospects this new stage in life will bring. However, some people struggle with the change. In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll look at a common issue with retirement from a psychological perspective with this article from Psychology Today.

In the listener question segment, I’ll touch on how to bridge the gap between the beginning of retirement and collecting Social Security and discuss how to invest for the short-term in retirement. It’s time to up your retirement game; press play to get started.

• [1:22] I just retired so why am I unhappy?
• [8:55] What the hapipest retirees do
• [11:00] How to generate income to bridge an income gap before Social Security
• [16:05] How to invest for the short-term in retirement

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• Psychology Today article

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It’s no secret that I want you to spend more money in retirement.

Why?

Because you’ve worked for it! 

Retirement is about living the life that you have saved for all these years, so I’m looking for any way I can find to help you get out there and enjoy it. 

One way that has been gaining popularity in recent years is semi-retirement. In this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll look at an article that shows how partial retirement has been shown to lead to an increase in spending levels in retirement.

• [1:22] How semi-retirement has led to a surge in retirement spending
• [6:15] Would part-time work increase your spending confidence?
• [7:48] Keep contributing to a simple IRA or cease contributions and move funds to a Traditional IRA

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• ThinkAdvisor article

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We’ve all heard the saying, “Money can’t buy happiness.” However, research suggests that while money may not buy lasting joy, it can certainly enhance our lives if spent wisely. The key lies in how we spend our money.

On this episode of Retirement Starts Today, we’ll explore a recent article on spending money to maximize your happiness. 

Stick around for the latest book update and sign up for the newsletter to learn how to preorder and stay up to date on book giveaways!

• [1:22] How we spend our money
• [5:18] Consider purchases you make
• [8:05] How to get more from your financial independence
• [10:25] Explaining inherited IRA rules

• The Retirement Podcast Network
• BOOK - The Myth of Happiness by Sonja Lyubomirsky 
• BOOK - Happy Money by Ken Honda
• BOOK - If Money Doesn’t Make You Happy Then You Probably Aren’t Spending It Right by Daniel Gilbert 
• Money happiness article

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