The Retirement Café Podcast

Laura Black successfully climbed the corporate ladder to become a successful attorney. When retirement hit, her descent down that same ladder was marked by loss and marginalization. She no longer possessed the CEO status she placed so much of her worth in, her children fled the nest for lives of their own, and she had to cope with the decline and eventual deaths of her parents.

Plus, well, aging, which is hard in itself.

In a nutshell, Laura discovered that as a mature woman, mother and wife, it can be harder to find true happiness after leaving a long-term career.

Laura's first book, Big Butts, Fat Thighs, and Other Secrets to Success, empowered women to accept and use their vulnerabilities in forming critical business relationships.

Laura's latest book, Climbing down the ladder, a journey to a different kind of happy investigates how woman can keep their identify after losing their business card.

In this episode Kathy & Justin chat about the important changes to the lifetime allowance announced in the Chancellor's budget in March. It's fair to say that the extent of the changes has taken the financial advice sector by surprise. It was widely anticipated that the lifetime allowance would be increased, but not fully abolished.

We aim to clear up any confusion about what this latest change to pensions legislation means for you, by reminding you first of the annual allowance rules and when the Tapered Annual Allowance and Money Purchase Annual Allowance take effect. The contribution limits for these two allowances have increased from £4,000 to £10,000, so it's important to understand if you're affected.

We also go into detail about the impact of scrapping the Lifetime Allowance Tax Charge, the change to tax-free cash levels (also known as the Pension Commencement Lump Sum), the anticipated scrapping of the Lifetime Allowance itself, and what this means if you have fixed protection in place.

We don't have all the answers as yet, so this episode covers what we know to date.

I want to help my clients make the best possible decisions about their financial future, so over the years I've done a lot of research into how to make smart decisions. I'd like to share some of the insight I've gathered in this podcast.

The topic of decision making is vast, so I'm going to focus on one specific set of tools which I feel are incredibly powerful – that's Mental Models.

I first came across Mental Models from Warren Buffet and Charlie Munger of Berkshire Hathaway fame. I share a story of Charlie using one of the models I share in this episode as far back as 1943, that of Inversion. The pair are renowned for using Mental Models to inform their decisions about which companies to invest in.

Mental Models are powerful tools that can help us make better decisions and navigate complex situations, as they provide a framework for understanding the world around us.

In this episode Kathy and I share three models: Inversion, Backcasting and Compounding, and how you can apply them to the decisions you make everyday.

Robin Wigglesworth is editor of FT Alphaville, the Financial Times' financial blog, where he focuses on the biggest trends reshaping markets, investing and finance across the world.

Robin is also the author of a book called 'Trillions – How a Band of Wall Street Renegades Invented The Index Fund and changed Finance Forever'. It's been described as the definitive book on the past, present and future of passive investing.

Trillions is a riveting read for anyone interested in the story of index funds, which is a topic I've discussed with several guests on the podcast over the years.

Robin describes the index funds as one of the most disruptive inventions in the history of investing and he joined me on the podcast to explain why, with humorous anecdotes and stories, including Warren Buffet's famous bet against any active manager to beat the index over a 10 year period.

We also chat about a concept known as index hugging or closet indexing, different types of index funds available, where Robin shares the story of value stocks, and how building a judicious portfolio can help make for a successful investment experience. Oh, and Robin shares the secret of FT Alphaville's success (it's free!).

Have you ever wondered how to go about tackling the tricky subject of getting older with loved ones who are doing just that? How to start those taboo conversations about whether dad should hang up his driving gloves, or what happens when an elderly friend or relative become incapable of living alone?

Then this episode is for you.

My guest, geriatrician Dr Lucy Pollock's speciality and passion is the care of older people, and she has written a wonderful book – The Book About Getting Older. A book which gives its readers the power to have these difficult conversations.

We explore the important topics of movement, frailty, the ethics of getting older and how to ensure people retain their sense of personal power as they age. Part of that is recognising that older people are really repositories of history that we can all learn a huge amount from.

I hope you enjoy my conversation with Lucy.

How, in today's world, where staying in touch with friends and family is easier than ever, are there STILL over 3 million chronically lonely people in the UK?

In my latest podcast I speak to Robin Hewings, Programme Director of The Campaign to End Loneliness. He sheds some light on why it is a serious and growing issue and what is being done to help re-connect individuals and communities.

You know, you could help lift someone out of loneliness with a simple wave or a quick hello, a more important gesture than you might think.

If you, or someone you know is impacted by loneliness then listen to discover the things you can do to help.

Cameron Passmore has been a leading advocate for evidence-based, systemic investing for over 20 years. He is Executive Chairman and Portfolio Manager at Canadian wealth management firm, PWL Capital and co-host of The Rational Reminder Podcast.

Cameron's hugely successful podcast has featured some incredible guests from the world of investing and behavioural finance and aims to help make listeners better, more rational investors. His guests include investing research gurus Professor Ken French and Nobel Prize winning Eugene Fama.

I loved my conversation with Cameron. Unsurprisingly, we focused on the power of the stock markets, the timeless wisdom of investing in the great companies of the world, and how the 'wisdom of crowds' applies to investing behaviour.

Cameron shares his definition of evidence-based, systemic investing and some fascinating stories and insights from his many conversations with experts in this field. He also points us towards episodes of his podcast that offer real depth of insight into what makes for a successful investment strategy for your retirement.

If you've followed the podcast for some time, you'll know that I've spoken with a couple of people from retirement villages about what they offer residents and why people should consider moving in. This week we will hear what it's like from the inside.

I am really pleased to share with you a conversation I had with clients of mine, Nick & Jane Crowhurst.

In 2022, Nick and Jane moved from their home in Highcliffe to live in a retirement village in Hampshire. Nick is now 73 & Jane 62. They made the move quite early in their retirement because they wanted to move somewhere future proof that also allowed them to have a nice lifestyle with a ready-made community. After looking at a few options, they found Bishopstoke Park in Eastleigh.

In our conversation we talk about the many advantages living in a retirement village has for them including new friendships, and more activities available than they have the time to do, as well as the buying process and ongoing costs. They share the good and the bad, warts and all, of life in a retirement community.

This week's interview is with three guests from the retirement home specialists, Inspired Villages. Lawrence Cramer is the People and Culture Director and was involved recently in setting up an initiative called Pensioner Personal Trainers with none other than the UK's most famous ski jumper, Eddie the Eagle.

Eddie is famed for his can-do spirit in the face of hopeless adversity, so was the perfect person to front the initiative aimed at inspiring residents to keep moving and keep fit.

A recent study showed the importance of mature personal trainers, as 37% of Brits are more likely to frequent the gym if there are trainers and customers of a similar age group. With nearly 39% agreeing that their communities don't have enough wellbeing and fitness facilities for the older generation (aged 65+), Eddie the Eagle came to the rescue to challenge this narrative and led a fitness session at Ledian Gardens, Inspired Village's scheme in Kent along with fellow PPTs Lynne Thompson (75), and Instepp's Julie Ford (68).

Julie and Lynne join our conversation and explain how older personal trainers can help make exercise more accessible for us as we get older.

Happy New year to you and thank you for joining me in 2023.

Let's start the New Year on a high note, by dispelling some of the more common held beliefs about how awful it is getting older.

I feel that many people make assumptions about ageing and what it's like to grow "old", or how older age will affect them. The reality is that we won't know until it happens to us, but some of our assumptions are probably true.

But so many of our beliefs come from socially accepted myths, and if you take the time to challenge them, you'll realise that, for the most part, they're simply not true. There's no evidence.

It's all too easy to pass by the positive aspects of ageing – of which I understand there are many. In this New Year episode Kathy will help me to bust 10 common misconceptions or beliefs related to ageing and older people.