Rock Your Retirement Show

Let's take a look at why Bill Manassero chose to volunteer overseas. You can listen to the show by clicking on the arrows below or finding it on your podcast app in your Smartphone.

Volunteering Overseas: How it can give you a better retirement

Bill Manassero is the President and Founder of Child Hope International. It's a charitable organization that works with orphaned, abandoned, and at-risk children on the streets of Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. The Manassero family's unique ministry, helped street children get off the streets, and build a promising life for themselves in the Haitian society. Bill and his family served as missionaries in Haiti from 2003 to 2015. Transitioning back to the states for retirement, he began investing in real estate as a means to fund their retirement and help fund their Haitian Mission. He now shares his real estate knowledge with other seniors through his Old Dawg’s REI Network – a website, blog, and weekly podcast.

Bill tells us some amazing and touching stories of his time spent Volunteering Overseas.

Before Bill and his family went to Haiti, they had a children's music ministry. They traveled all around the world doing family concerts for various camps, schools, and groups. Bill noticed one of his daughters saving money. He asked her what she was saving for. His daughter said she wanted to build an orphanage, a school, and a church in Haiti. She was only nine years old at the time! This was the catalyst to start their Haitian Mission.

His organization is very much volunteer-driven — A good majority of the volunteers are retired. The volunteers commit to anywhere from 1 week to 2 years of service. The volunteers help with things such as teaching life skills such as baking and sewing. They also show the children how to set up a business so they can become self-sufficient. The volunteers feed hundreds of children every week. It was fascinating to hear how much volunteering overseas has impacted not only the Haitian Children but the volunteers as well.

We asked, “What do you think people should know BEFORE they retire?” and he responded with:

Look forward to it. Prepare yourself for a new adventure to do anything you want to do. Take a look at the spiritual and emotional side.  Start getting excited. Don't get hung up on the money aspect. Focus on the freedom you will have.  You can use that freedom to help others and help yourself.

What advice would you give to a retiree who feels stuck?

Try to change your perspective on your retirement. Spend time with those in need.

Contact Information: [email protected] or www.childhope.org

Download TODAY's freebie at http://RockYourRetirement.com/volunteeroverseas

This article on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com.

Janelle  Anderson helps people discover their pathways to a fulfilling life in retirement.

Ms. Anderson works with women find a fulfilling life in retirement.  She is a Certified Professional Coach through her business, Emerging Life Coaching. Janelle typically works with women who are transitioning into a new season in life, whether that is from the “busy mother raising children season” to an “empty nest” season or from “busy career life” to the season of retired life. And…she helps them discover a new game to play and who they truly want to be in this “third act of life.” Her work with clients includes one-on-one private coaching sessions, as well coaching groups, workshops and personal development classes.

She developed a retirement transition course called “Pathways to a Fulfilling Life in Retirement.” This course was featured in Virginia Tech’s Lifelong Learning Institute this past Spring.

She has created a personalized coaching program from this course called “Redefine Your Retirement.”

Janelle's Pathways to a Fulfilling life in Retirement course is a 6 week course that goes through the following:

* Week 1 – Assessment. This is spent doing various types of assessments to determine where people are in their transitions. She uses “REC” which means:

* Release – Letting go of your past life

* Explore – What do I want to do now

* Create – Setting out steps and goals to create a new life in retirement

* Week 2 – Envisioning which is setting the vision of where you want to go and who you want to be. Dream and paint a big picture of what’s possible.

* Week 3 – What’s stopping you? “GAILS”

* Gremlins

* Assumptions

* Interpretations and

* Limiting beliefs

* Week 4 – Work on removing the roadblocks in your life. Create possibilities and figure out how to write a new story for your life.

* Week 5 – This week is spent looking at key relationships in your life. Where are they?  Are they draining you? Are they energizing you?

* Week 6 – Create your best life by coming up with a plan, action steps, and goals to create the life you want to live in retirement

I'm not unhappy, I'm doing things I enjoy like gardening and going out with my friends, but I just keep asking myself is this all there is?

Janelle talks about her client Margie who was struggling with becoming an “empty nester” and she also talks about Sandra who felt unfulfilled in her retirement.

Margie had just entered the “empty nest” when she came to me. The last of her children had just moved out and she was really floundering with her life, not knowing what to do with herself.

Know that there is not just one transition that is going to happen. There are many transitions and that it is normal and you may need time to re-adjust to figure out where you are and what you want to do.

We asked, “What advice would you give to a retiree who feels stuck?”  She answered, “Appreciate the moment. Live in the present moment, live every moment to the fullest and learn how to find joy right now.”

Contact information: 540-391-0332  [email protected]  www.emerginglifecoaching.com

Today's Freebie can be downloaded at: http://RockYourRetirement.com/Roadblocks

Living in an RV sounds like fun! But how much does it cost? What if you have too much stuff? Jerry Minchey is with us today to give us an advice on how we can live in an RV. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/how-to-live-in-an-rv

On today’s episode of Rock Your Retirement, we’re learning about how to live in an RV!

Jerry Minchey, #1 Best-Selling Author, is the author of several books about the RVing lifestyle and about retirement living. He lives full time in his 34-foot Class A motorhome. He has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, an MBA from USC, and an OPM degree from Harvard Business School.

Jerry  has worked for NASA and worked for many years as a computer design engineer. He holds five patents, and he has a private pilot license with an instrument rating.  (Let's go flying!)

He has owned several engineering and marketing businesses, and he is the founder and editor of the website LifeRV.com.  How did he decide to live in an RV? He tells us on today's episode.

After Jerry retired, he bought a motorhome and started living full time in it.

He started following several RVing blogs and forums. After a couple of years of following the RV forums, he realized that there were a lot of people who had tons of questions about the RVing lifestyle, what's it like, how much does it cost, etc. That's when he decided to write his first RVing book (Motorhome and RV Retirement Living – The most Enjoyable and Least Expensive Way to Retire). Jerry has since written three more books about motorhome and RV living.  If anyone is an expert on how to live in an RV, it's him.

He sells his books (both the printed versions and the eBooks) through Amazon. He also has links to the Amazon sales pages for his books on his website www.LifeRV.com

Jerry says, “Probably the most interesting response I get from people when I tell them about living full time in an RV is that they say, “I could never live in an RV. I have too much stuff.”

“They say it with so much conviction it's like saying one leg is longer than the other one. They act like they were born that way and there's nothing they can do about it. Getting rid of your stuff is one of the most liberating things you can do.”

“Since I live full time in my motorhome, my typical day varies a lot depending on where I'm camped. Sometimes I'm in a campground and sometimes I'm camped in a state park or a National Forest all by myself. Either way, I do a lot of writing and I like to hike.”

Jerry gave us a lot of great information and we also created a freebie, 5 steps to living in an RV Full Time, that you can get by going to http://RockYourRetirement.com/RV

Jerry’s Book(s):

* Motorhome and RV Retirement Living: The Most Enjoyable and Least Expensive Way to Retire

* Advantages of Moving into a 55+ Park: How to Enjoy Your Retirement Even on a Budget

* Young RVers: How to Enjoy the Freedom of the RV Lifestyle While Making a Living on the Road Kindle Edition

* The Restaurant Marketing Bible: How to Market Your Restaurant on a Shoestring Budget

Joyce Richman is with us today to talk about Retiring Executive. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/what-a-retiring-executive-needs-besides-money

Are you a Retiring Executive?  Are you within 5 years of that goal?

There are special issues associated with a retiring executive.   Joyce Richman has worked with individuals as an executive

coach for more than 30 years. In addition to her private practice, Joyce has worked with hundreds of clients across the United States and internationally.

Joyce gave us some great advice that she specific uses with executives preparing for retirement, but anybody can use it really.

She said that if you are a retiring executive, you should really have the conversation a couple of years in advance.

So for example, if you are 60 years old, and planning on retiring at 62, you need to start talking about what your perfect retirement looks like, NOW.

A retiring executive should bring his or her spouse into the conversation.

Discuss what you expect, and be honest.  If you plan on traveling, discuss this with your spouse, who’s perfect executive retirement may have meant having you around the house and snuggling on the couch watching television.  Get these things worked out now.

Consider also what gives you energy.

What do you love to do naturally?  How does this play out?  If playing the guitar gives you a buzz, consider taking lessons or joining a garage band if you know other aspiring musicians.

Also, some executives don’t want to just stop working when they retire.

Their perfect retirement might mean volunteer work or business consulting.  A hobby might take up more of your time, but most of us can’t golf for 10 hours every day.

Consider the top challenges that married couples need to overcome as they move through retirement.

If you are a retiring executive, be sure to talk it through with your spouse.  Many people assume that their spouses wants to do what they want to do, and they are used to being in control.  Your spouse may be used to doing things at home, and now there is someone that they need to get used to in their territory.

Joyce's Book(s):

Author of Roads, Routes and Ruts:  A Guidebook to Career Success  co-author of Getting Your Kid Out of the House and Into a Job

What do you think people should know BEFORE they retire?

If in a marriage/committed relationship, couples should have candid conversations (preferably facilitated by someone objective) about “what’s next?”; what each person wants for those years free from the obligations of paid employment for self, and for each other. This conversation is in addition to planning with a financial advisor so there’s no misunderstanding around finances… what is within bounds… and what is outside those bounds. If single, (and in addition to financial planning) who and what do you need in your life to feel a sense of belonging and involvement in lives outside your own? What stimulates, energizes, focuses your attention in positive ways. Identify it.. all of it… and realize your role in initiating the outcomes you seek.

What if you feel stuck in Retirement?

Think back… to those moments and times when you have been most happy. What was happening? What were you doing? Who was there? What value or benefit came from that experience? You job now… is to find ways to recreate those experiences… if not for you,

Death is something everyone fears to discuss. Let's take a look at what happens before and after we die. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/the-silver-hour-what-happens-during-death

The Silver Hour – 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after death

In this episode of Rock Your Retirement we talked with Dr. Marilyn Stoner.

She is a professor at California State University San Bernardino, and before that she was on Faculty at CSU Fullerton. She was also the Vice President for Ramona Home Care and Hospice in Hemet, California.

Dr. Stoner’s  passion is about end of life care and she has been working with seniors and in the senior care industry since 1998. Her grandparents owned a funeral home so she is also familiar with death. She is a Professor now and has discovered something called the SilverHour which is the 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after death. She developed a unified vision of what the last moments of life and the first moments of death are so that every care giver knows what to do.

The Silver Hour includes three phases, namely dying, death, and dead:

1st 20 minutes (Pre-mortem)

* Loose conciseness

* Changes in body temperature

* Breathing changes

* Make sure family and care givers knows death is imminent

* Reassuring patient

Declared dead (Mortem)

* Position body

* Wash body/prepare body

* Position body

* Prayers

Post mortem

* Family begins life as grieving relatives

* Transport of body

Dr. Stoner also discusses that if you get some warning of death it is a gift. Use this time to have conversations with your loved one about end of life and what they would like. Start the conversations lightly and don’t try to discuss every detail all at once. Give your love one time and space if needed.Also, ask them if there is anything they would like to do. Complete items on a bucket list, or travel somewhere if they are able

Something people should know before they retire:

Think about what you want and start working on it. Research or watch YouTube videos and what you think you may like to do. Think about what your goal is.

How to get “unstuck” in your retirement:

Focus on how absolutely precious life is and it is not going to go on forever. Identify people you admirer. Is your life going to be spent on the couch or doing something?

Contact information for Dr. Stoner

Phone: (951) 534-9014

Email: [email protected]

Twitter and Pinterest: @drmstoner

Website: http://silverhour.info/

Links mentioned in the interview

POLST- http://www.polst.org/

Today's Freebie is 5 things you can do NOW to help your loved ones after you've passed away: http://RockYourRetirement.com/LoveGift

http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Marilyn_Stoner_060415_IFinals3.mp3

Retirement isn't just about money. Alan Spector is our guest for today's podcast episode to talk about retirement. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/non-financial-retirement-aspects

The basis of the Rock Your Retirement show is that retirement isn’t just about money.

This is basically the non financial aspects of retirement.

Alan Spector agrees.  He and his partner created the Critical Decisions Matrix and Crucial Conversations.  These ideas help everyone understand what the expectations are in retirement.  Alan co-authored the book, Your Retirement Quest with Keith Lawrence, and you can find the book on Amazon.  This is a great book to read if you are considering retirement in the next five years.

Alan wasn’t always a retirement coach.

He worked at Proctor and Gamble for 33 years as an executive. After that, Alan founded and managed three business, and authored five books.  Alan also blogs on retirement issues on three sites, and is deeply involved in his community.  He's also very active physically and likes to travel.

Alan and Keith interviewed their colleagues about their thoughts on retirement.  Shortly after they realized that they were dismayed at the results.  This started their quest to educate people about the non financial aspects of retirement so they started conducting workshops.  They kept getting requests for their book…but it hadn't been written yet!  So… they knew they had to write it.  And they did. They named the book “Your Retirement Quest”. This book talks about the non-financial aspects of retirement, and it includes well-being, connectedness, growth, and fun among other things.  Some of the other non-financial aspects of retirement include physical, emotional, mental, and something he calls “energy of purpose”.

Alan recommends that you have written goals.  He recommends that you include the non financial aspects of retirement in these goals.

Mr. Spector says that if you write something down you are five times more likely to get it done.  Your written goals should include all of the ten elements of retirement into your life.

In addition to working with individuals, he and his partner work with financial planning firms to help them understand the non-financial parts of retirement.  Let’s hope he starts a movement with us.

Today’s Freebie is: The 10 Key Elements of a Fulfilling Retirement and you can get it at: The 10 key elements of a Fulfilling Retirement 

http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Alan_Spector_160621_Final2.mp3

On the 10/17/16 episode of the Rock Your Retirement show, Kathe interviewed celebrity Dave Jackson about his experience with Alzheimer's disease.

Dave Jackson runs the School of Podcasting.  Frances McGrogan, a previous guest, and I talked about how he helped us learn how to podcast in episode 21.

This chat wasn't about podcasting though. It was about his experience with Alzheimer's Disease, which is a form of Dementia.  Dementia is a heartbreaking disease, and Dave tells his story about how he was able to deal with it.

Dave told us about his father, and his experience with Alzheimer's.  The family thought that the symptoms were due to a mugging that he had experienced earlier in his life.   As his father got older, Dave and his brother realized that something was wrong.  Dad was always bringing up certain stories and repeating them. (But we all do that, right?)

Dad went to the hospital for colon cancer.  The hospital diagnosed him with dementia, and Dad couldn't be left alone.

The family had to do some quick planning.  They only had a week to find a place for him to stay.

A common side effect of Alzheimer's is inappropriate sexual behavior.  It's also common for Alzheimer's patients to form a new love relationship while they are in memory care. This can be a problem if the spouse is still alive.  Dave's Dad got “frisky” in the memory care unit.

Every time he visited, Dad gave Dave a tour.  it was brand new to Dad.  His Dad also introduced him to the nurses each time.  He also told him who was in the photos on the wall each time Dave visited.  This is also common in Alzheimer's patients.

The staff coached the family on how to deal with Dad.  “Don't correct him”, was one their advice.

It's difficult for the family.  People are bound to have mixed emotions.  Dementia patients need a lot of sleep. It is exhausting for them to try to do things, and their brains work differently than ours do.  So you go to visit, and Dad is asleep.  That's hard to deal with if you've come a long way to see him or her.  You don't want to wake them up.  Then when he wakes up, you get the tour again!

A great piece of advice from Dave:  There may be a day when your Dad might not recognize you.  Don't take things personally because it's not you, it's the disease.

To get the our free guide, ABC's of Dementia, just click HERE. You can also listen to the episode on your favorite smartphone podcast app, or click on the player at the top of this page.

http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/David_Jackson_160607_IFinal.mp3

Scammers are everywhere.

Here's Curtis Bailey in our today's episode to  discuss how we can deal with them. My interview with him was jam-packed with information, but here are a few things we discussed:

Preventing SCAMMERS from Scamming your loved ones

* Seniors need to have a team of professionals.

* Don’t let someone cut you out of your social circles because this is a common practice of scammers.

* Be sure and talk to your family members because they can help you determine if something is a scam.

* Scammers use emotions to scam people who are lonely. They also prey on fear, so let your rational side tell you what is happening.

*

Is someone overly nice and charming? Scammers can spend HOURS talking to seniors.

* Don't keep secrets because scammers often ask their victims to keep secrets.

* They may ask you to receive money from people you don’t know because then they'll have your banking information.

* We can protect our assets with a living trust, but the living trust can also be revocable.

*

You can create a Power of Attorney with scams in mind.

* Every year you can get a free credit report with each of the three credit rating agencies at http://AnnualCreditReport.com so you can see if your credit is being used by someone else.

* Allow family members to receive notifications if anything strange starts happening with your finances so that they can help you spot a scammer.

Mr. Bailey practices estate planning and elder law at Huffman Law Offices, PC, and he is a member of Missouri Bar Association and the Illinois Bar Association.  Curtis is also a member of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, and not only that, but he is also a member of the Advisory Council of the Area Agency on Aging of Southwestern Illinois.  He is very active in his community and is a member of his Chamber of Commerce and Rotary International.

Curtis is the co-founder of Senior Scam Action Associates.  They help people recognize, prevent, and recover from scams.

Email: [email protected]

For today’s freebie, the 10 dead giveaways of a scam, go to http://RockYourRetirement.com/scam

This post on Retirement Lifestyle first appeared on http://RockYourRetirement.com.

http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Curtis_Bailey_160604_IFinalo.mp3

Steven Loring, award-winning filmmaker and screenwriter, filmed “The Age Of Love”, a documentary which follows 30 people in their 70’s and 80’s participating in a senior speed dating event.  New love can be found at any age.  Listening to Steven tell his story will definitely make you want to see his film!

After discovering that a senior speed dating event was to take place, Steven had the challenge of getting all participants to agree to his filming.  The responses surprised Steven and will surprise you as well.

Many seniors have resigned themselves to thinking that finding love is not possible.  There is a general feeling that after a certain age desire for both physical and emotional love fades away.  To make things worse, seniors tend to keep quiet about their feelings of loneliness.

In filming “The Age Of Love” Steven made the following observations:

* The desire for both physical and emotional love is still present regardless of age.

* The desire for something as simple as touch can cause feelings of loneliness and isolation.

* The need is much deeper than what society terms as “companionship.”

* Age strips away looks, status, and financial compatibility.  This leaves only the desire to connect with someone who understands us and who will be there we need it.

* You can feel the same emotional giddiness that we all have felt as teenagers!

People in more than 14 countries have seen it.  It moves past age, sex, economic level, and social background of the viewers.  Age is the great equalizer and it will affect all of us.

You can find the films at venues that have scheduled screenings, but it may be available in the future via streaming or DVD.

* Find a list of future screenings at:  http://theageoflovemovie.com/.

* Watch the trailer at:  http://bit.ly/1zntID1 or https://vimeo.com/61764746.

For more information please go to:

* Website:  http://theageoflovemovie.com/

* Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheAgeofLoveMovie

* Twitter: @AgeofLoveMovie

And don’t forget to get your free copy of “8 Senior Dating Tips” at http://rockyourretirement.com/love.

San Diego has it's own 9-1-1. Yes! You read that right! Alana Kalinowski will give us an idea on what it does and how it is a big help. You can listen to the show at http://rockyourretirement.libsyn.com/211-san-diego-find-your-volunteer-home

2-1-1 San Diego's mission is to help people by connecting them to services and provide vital data and trend information for proactive community planning.

Alana Kalinowski manages the Community Outreach Program at 2-1-1 San Diego. 2-1-1 San Diego is a resource and information hub that connects people with community, health and disaster services through a free, 24/7 service.  This service includes stigma-free confidential phone service, and it also includes a searchable on line database. It's also important to note that 2-1-1 serves the entire population of the County.

2-1-1 San Diego has a staff of 150 people who take about 1200 calls per day.

They have approximately 1,500 organizations in their database that they can refer people to. The majority of their referral sources are non-profit and government agencies. Their vetting process includes; checking licenses, certificates, and making sure they provide the services they say they provide.

98 % of the US is under 2-1-1 jurisdiction however, the programs can vary drastically in each state.

Just some of the referral services that 2-1-1 San Diego offers are:

* Cool Zones-residents can use the Cool Zones to escape the heat and reduce their own air conditioning use.

* It provides locations on where you can your taxes filed for free.

* 2-1-1 provides locations for flu shots.

* It also provides locations for free blood pressure checks.

* Fix-It Service -provides volunteers to help with minor home modifications or repairs.

* 2-1-1 provides Courage to Call-which is a veteran staffed helpline dedicated to assisting active duty military personnel, veterans, and their families.

* They have a seat at the counties information center and get real time information during a disaster to provide non-emergency resources.

* Health Navigation Program- this is a program that serves as a single access point information and referral system for San Diego County, connecting anyone to available health services.

For more information Call 2-1-1 or go to their website at: http://211sandiego.org/new/

To get today's FREEBIE,  “How Retirees can use 211 to find a place to volunteer” go to: www.RockYourRetirement.com/volunteer211

Click the link below if  you would like to download a copy of the 2-1-1 Disaster Response Checklist. Alana thought this would be a good tool for people to have.

211 Disaster Response

http://traffic.libsyn.com/rockyourretirement/Alana_Kalinowski_160601_IFinalo.mp3