Recession.

We've seen the headlines, in all their dramatic glory.

Today's episode isn't about defining "recession" and all its complexities (a topic on which no one ever seems to agree!). Instead, it's about the reality that recessions are simply a part of the economic cycle and, more importantly, that it's something everyone has to deal with when it does come.

We have no control over the economy, and that's okay. What we can—and must—control is our economy. Stephanie and Kevin share how we can do just that, from dealing with scary stock market fluctuations, to having a Plan B in case you lose your job (or your spouse loses theirs), to creating more financial flexibility and tapping into your assets, and more!

Key Topics:

• "What the heck is a 'recession'?" (1:50)
• The importance of having a long-term view of the stock market (5:34)
• Losing your job during a recession (10:21)
• Increasing your flexibility (12:49)
• Your Plan B (17:19)
• Health insurance (19:12)
• Tapping into your assets (20:53)
• Loans from retirement plans (27:04)
• Health savings accounts (28:59)
• Life insurance and social security benefits (30:04)
• Our closing thoughts (31:46)

Resources:

• Take Back Retirement Episode 20: Women + Roth IRA's – What Should You Be Aware Of?
• Take Back Retirement Episode 21: Simplifying Medicare: What's Important For You To Know with Susan Sloan
• Take Back Retirement Episode 29: How Much Cash Should I Have and Where Should I Be Putting It?
• Take Back Retirement Episode 42: What Women Need to Know When the Stock Market Goes Down
• Take Back Retirement Episode 55: Lessons from the Career of Janet Yellen with Jon Hilsenrath, Author

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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Today, we sit down with Lindsay Bryan-Podvin, social worker, financial therapist, speaker, and author of The Financial Anxiety Solution. Lindsay reflects on how her own lived experience led her to choose financial therapy as a career path.

Listen in as Lindsay shares how she aims to close "the gap in how we talk about money," highlighting the importance of having regular conversations with those you trust "about how money makes you feel."

We also discuss the need for more people to be open about sharing their money stories in order to collectively send the message that no one is alone on their financial anxiety journey. Lindsay speaks on where affirmations fall short and why it's much more productive to create neutral-to-positive associations with money.

Finally, Lindsay talks about the often-overlooked value of getting in touch with your body in order to create a stronger relationship with money, and she gives some super practical tips on how to ask for a raise.

Key Topics:

• What led Lindsay to choose financial therapy as a career path (3:21)
• Why we need to talk about money (7:58)
• Giving people the tools to address their own needs (10:31)
• Seeing your "financial anxiety journey" to the end (12:39)
• Nipping bad money beliefs in the bud (15:05)
• Why building a healthy relationship with money involves getting in touch with your body (18:48)
• Inviting the client on a journey before trying to solve their problem (24:03)
• "Procrastination is the other side of the coin from perfectionism." (30:46)
• Our final takeaways (35:43)

Resources:

Where to find Lindsay Bryan-Podvin:

• Podcast
• Website
• Instagram
• Book

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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Today, we sit down with Jon Hilsenrath, a senior writer for The Wall Street Journal, where he has written about economics and finance since 1997. We're going to learn a little economic history but also a very human story of a woman's career in a male-dominated field, and of a couple unconventionally sharing family responsibilities long before that was common. Jon has been a Pulitzer Prize finalist several times.

Jon is here to talk about his new book Yellen: The Trailblazing Economist Who Navigated an Era of Upheaval. It details the storied career of former Federal Reserve Chair and now U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who is regarded as one of the most influential economic policymakers of her generation.

Listen in as Jon dives into the story behind the writing of the book and his biggest takeaways from his research on the life and times of Janet Yellen and her husband, distinguished economist George Akerlof.

After offering his four lessons on breaking the glass ceiling, Jon does a deep dive into Yellen's involvement amid the country's most pivotal economic downturns in recent times, namely the Global Financial Crisis and the COVID lockdowns.

Key Topics:

• Why Jon wrote a book about Janet Yellen (2:51)
• "Why do we care about the Federal Reserve?" (7:14)
• Janet Yellen's relationship with her husband, Nobel-prize winner George Akerlof (13:01)
• "Lean in, but only when it counts." (20:39)
• "Have a higher purpose" (23:21)
• Keeping our eyes open to the evolving landscape to help us adapt to it (26:14)
• Yellen's role in the American Rescue Plan (30:12)
• Looking to our common identity as Americans (39:42)
• The two biggest surprises Jon encountered when doing research for the book (41:50)
• Our final takeaways (53:00)

Resources:

• Jon Hilsenrath's new book, Yellen: The Trailblazing Economist Who Navigated an Era of Upheaval

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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In this quick bonus episode, Stephanie and Kevin wrap up their multi-episode series on why women need to know about divorce, being that divorce is a very common topic that they see with their clients.

Divorce is a big financial issue that most people don't plan for, making it all the more difficult and scary to navigate.

That's why Stephanie and Kevin created this lineup of professionals to touch on different areas around divorce and finances. These professionals save people money by providing mediation so people don't have to go straight to the "robes and gavels."

Check out the video version of this episode!

Check out all six episodes in the series:

• 48: Why Women Need to Know About Divorce (a special series)
• 49: What Women Need to Know About Divorce from a Forensic Accountant with Tracy Coenen
• 50: What Women Need to Know About Divorce from a Divorce Coach with Sheila Brennan
• 51: What Women Need to Know About Divorce from a Mediator, with Ellen Morfei
• 52: What Women Need to Know About Divorce from an Estate Planning Attorney with Rebecca Sallen
• 53: She Did It! Real Divorce Stories with Monica Scudieri

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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Today, Stephanie and Kevin are joined by Monica Scudieri, who successfully navigated her way through a financially difficult divorce into retirement. Fifteen years ago, Monica divorced, acquiring hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt, with two children to care for in a difficult job market. She quickly had to learn to manage her money, and to stretch her paychecks after a long period of not thinking about finances.

Monica soon came to understand that, to her, security meant not relying on a singular paycheck. Without consistent job security, she found adopting additional income provided her with the solace of knowing she could pay bills and provide for her family, even if her salary suddenly disappeared.

She cites the FIRE movement (Financial Independence, Retire Early) as a turning point in her approach to money management. She talks about overcoming the shame and guilt of struggling to provide, which is especially prevalent among women. Retirement is not on the top of the minds of younger people in the workforce, and it's important to consider what your needs are and will be. Identifying what you want and need is essential to engaging with your motivation. Monica shares the moment in which she felt faith in her journey, which marked a turning point in her financial wellness.

Monica again emphasizes the value of secondary incomes, especially ones that are fulfilling to you. She herself has pursued real estate as a means of additional income, explaining that it's something that is intellectually engaging for her, and fits within her lifestyle. She uses the pie as an analogy for building out streams of income: Everyone needs a primary source, or crust, that looks fairly similar across the board, but everyone's filling is different, and dependent on their tastes, or interests.

Stephanie and Monica note the importance of identifying your financial priorities before breaking down what you need financially. Monica shares the initial inspiration for her book, Grab Your Slice of Financial Independence. In addition to her book, she offers individual consultations as a financial coach to help clients plan their financial futures, and shares anecdotes of moments where her work felt most meaningful.

Key Topics:

• Financially working through divorce (02:21)
• Persevering through financial difficulty (09:01)
• The FIRE movement (11:22)
• Building knowledge around retirement (13:59)
• Finding motivation (19:10)
• Identifying your turning point (22:03)
• Secondary incomes (26:09)
• Identifying financial priorities (33:10)
• The ideation of Grab Your Slice (34:09)
• Monica's work as a financial coach (36:52)

Resources:

• Grab Your Slice of Financial Independence

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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Our series on navigating divorce continues in this episode as we sit down with estate planning attorney Rebecca Sallen.

Having gone through her own divorce, Rebecca brings important insights into why hiring an estate planner is absolutely worth the investment if you're going through a divorce.

Plus she covers commonly-overlooked considerations amid divorce, including the importance of having trusts (if you're a parent), having preparations in place in case of disability or even death before the finalization of the divorce, and caring for the mental health of both yourself and your dependents during and after the whole process.

Rebecca founded her own law firm in 2011, serving families and individuals in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Her team provides individual wills and trusts to decrease the costs and other headaches related to estate administration. She also teaches estate and tax law to attorneys, accountants, and other professionals, and is a published author in a number of legal journals.

Key Topics:

• Why talk to an estate planner if you're going through divorce? (2:10)
• Why having a trust is important if you have kids (6:48)
• "The prenup is a floor, not a ceiling." (12:00)
• Creating a disability panel (14:30)
• What if one of the spouses dies before the divorce is finalized? (17:50)
• The difference between Family Court and Orphans' Court (21:09)
• Why having mental health support is vital (25:45)
• Updating your beneficiary forms (27:05)
• Finding an estate planning attorney long after your divorce (31:35)
• "You do not need to do everything." (35:20)
• Our closing thoughts (40:15)

Resources:

• SallenLawFirm.com
• Contact Rebecca: 215-992-9662
• The SECURE Act videos
• Take Back Retirement Episode 31: What the Heck is a Trust, and Why Might I Need One?

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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In this episode, we welcome Pennsylvania-based divorce mediator Ellen Morfei. With years of professional experience in conflict resolution, Ellen has worked with many couples in getting to a good divorce. Ellen provides mediation, workshops, conflict coaching, facilitation, and consulting to businesses, individuals, families, and organizations.

She not only addresses a couple's specific issue, but also builds conflict competence to help them manage future conflict more productively. She also offers services to help prevent the development of unproductive conflict during challenging life transitions.

Listen in as Ellen dives deep into this crucial subject, as well as her biggest lessons learned along the way regarding relationships, money, and other juicy topics!

She explains who would most benefit from hiring a professional mediator, how to work with a mediator alongside a divorce lawyer, how to ensure a successful mediation by preparing well in advance, and the value of having a divorce mentor throughout this stressful process.

Key Topics:

• What Ellen does as a divorce mediator, and how to work with one alongside an attorney (1:46)
• How to choose a mediation-friendly attorney (6:00)
• Women, money, and divorce (10:50)
• "Who makes a good candidate for mediation?" (16:05)
• Ellen's approach to mediation and the type of relationship she wants to develop with couples (17:55)
• Addressing conversations around "fairness" during the divorce process (25:15)
• How to prepare for a successful mediation (29:59)
• "You have to advocate for yourself." (37:00)
• Finding a divorce mentor (40:05)
• Our closing thoughts (43:10)

Resources:

• The War of Roses
• Loretta Lynn - Rated "X" 1973
• Learn more about Ellen's work with Progressive Conflict Solutions at www.progressiveconflictsolutions.com

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

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Today, Stephanie and Kevin are joined by Sheila Brennan, a divorce coach, who after being thrust into divorce herself 15 years ago, chose to use her experience to help others who struggled with the process. A divorce coach, she explains, is a relatively new concept, which is most easily described as a wedding planner for divorces. She helps her clients piece together their ideal divorce plan, and prepares them to execute it.

Aside from the obvious (a lawyer), there are many different types of professionals that can aid one with a divorce, like a CPA and a therapist. Stephanie compares a divorce coach to a doula, as they act as a similar support element for clients. Sheila emphasizes the pragmatism she uses in her approach to her work, and how her objectivity can serve someone who is likely very emotional.

Sometimes, she says, clients come to her prematurely, at which point she'll advise them to take a beat before proceeding with divorce. Divorce means breaking a complex legal contract, and most people don't consider its nuances when signing it. While recently, divorce rates have gone down slightly at large, gray divorces (those for people aged 50 and older), have increased, and are more often initiated by women. With gray divorce, the financials are more sensitive as they can impact retirement funds, and the parties are outside of earning years in which they can make up for it. Sheila recommends consulting strategies outside of court, such as using a mediator. She cites children as a primary complication of divorce, explaining that even when they are adults, there can be complications.

Stephanie asks if it's easier for the initiator, as they've had more time to think about the divorce. Aside from the emotional elements, Sheila doesn't often see the initiator making plans beyond requesting the divorce. Often, when women are approached by their husbands about divorcing, she's noticed, they take initiative in actioning it, which she reminds them is not their responsibility. Sometimes, following the grieving part of a divorce, there's a transformative process, where the individual realizes their newfound freedom in decision-making.

For someone considering divorce, she recommends learning the skills needed for negotiation, along with equipping yourself with knowledge about and access to finances. She closes by reiterating that divorce is costly, and employing specialists beyond lawyers not only better readies you for an ideal outcome, but saves both parties money.

Key Topics:

• What's a divorce coach? (02:11)
• Beyond the legal elements (05:17)
• Divorce doula (08:41)
• Pragmatics (10:20)
• Navigating, not overcoming (11:29)
• Avoiding divorce (11:53)
• The contract (13:47)
• Gray divorce (14:52)
• Nonfiscal problems of divorce (17:45)
• Is it easier being the initiator? (25:58)
• The transformation (31:20)
• The price of peace (34:59)

Resources:

• brennandivorcecoach.com
• [email protected]
• 484-254-4148
• Episode 26 The Importance of Negotiating, with Kathleen Burns Kingsbury
• Episode 31 What the Heck is a Trust, and Why Might I Need One?

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

Today, Stephanie and Kevin are joined by Tracy Coenen, a renowned forensic accountant whose work involved fraud investigations on both a corporate level and in divorces. Kevin asks if Tracy's work is as exciting as it seems in the movies. Her work, as she says, is to find the money and is exciting in a different way.

To kick off the Take Back Retirement divorce series of episodes, Stephanie inquires why forensic accounting is important in divorces. In many cases, one spouse has a clearer understanding of the state of their finances than the other, and for the spouse who is less involved, they can miss out on a significant amount of money in the division of the marital estate. Contrary to depictions in pop culture, offshore accounts and shell companies aren't all that common. Additional bank accounts unknown to one spouse, however, are far more likely to emerge.

A forensic accountant isn't always entirely necessary, Tracy explains, as much can be found by an individual, as outlined in her Divorce Money Guide. She emphasizes the importance of each spouse needing to have an adequate picture of finances to ensure a fair division of assets. She notes that sometimes, like with gambling or money spent on affairs, there is potential for money to be made back. It is not just money that is to be found in these investigations, but also debts that one spouse may not be aware of.

In an individual's pursuit of information, Tracy advises, it is important to go through legal channels, and not give a judge reason to question your behavior. Hidden income also can emerge in these investigations, which can easily be found in tax returns. Tracy shares a story of success with a client, where she found utilities being paid on a property the wife was unaware of.

Most forensic accountants bill hourly, but Tracy charges a fixed fee. They discuss their estimates of the frequency in which money is hidden from a spouse, and possible gender imbalances in whom money is being hidden from. Regardless of prospective changes in marital status, Tracy encourages less financially savvy spouses to make an effort to be more involved, and suggests how to approach your savvy spouse with questions, something she plans to address in her forthcoming Marriage Money Guide. She also recommends, as she has done, for the financially involved partner to develop contingency plans in the event they can suddenly no longer care for finances.

In part, Tracy created the Divorce Money Guide to aid those unable to afford forensic accounting.

Key Topics:

• Introducing Tracy Coenen (00:51)
• Is forensic accounting exciting? (02:44)
• Why is it important in divorce? (05:35)
• Where money is found (07:33)
• The Divorce Money Guide (09:03)
• Dividing assets (11:21)
• Retrieving missing money (12:31)
• Hidden debts (13:21)
• Keeping it legal (13:45)
• Hidden income (14:54)
• Anecdotal success story (16:43)
• Paying a forensic accountant (18:12)
• Building an understanding of finances (22:32)
• Expenses in divorce (29:50)

Resources:

• https://www.divorcemoneyguide.com

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

Today Stephanie and Kevin introduce a special multi-episode series on why women need to know about divorce, being that divorce is a very common topic that they see with their clients.

Divorce is a big financial issue that most people don't plan for, making it all the more difficult and scary to navigate.

That's why Stephanie and Kevin have created this lineup of professionals to touch on different areas around divorce and finances. These professionals save people money by providing mediation so people don't have to go straight to the "robes and gavels."

Check out the video version of this episode!

If you like what you've been hearing, we invite you to subscribe on your favorite platform and leave us a review. Tell us what you love about this episode! Or better yet, tell us what you want to hear more of in the future. [email protected]

You can find the transcript and more information about this episode at www.takebackretirement.com.

Follow Stephanie on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.

Follow Kevin on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and LinkedIn.