You've heard the advice before, and it makes complete sense. Buy low. Sell high. Duh. But hardly any of us successfully do it when it comes to investing in the market. The problem is that most of us let our emotions rule our decision making and we have no "sell discipline". As Brian tells us on today's show, it's only gotten worse with the improvements and advancements in technology over the years. With recent market volatility, it's a good idea for us to bring this topic back to the top of the stack and lean on Brian to remind us why it's always good to have a system in place and to listen to it during times of upheaval.
Read MoreYou've heard of the Great Resignation. The Great Reset. The Great Georgia Bulldogs. Well now comes the Great Hodgepodge Episode of 2022. To kick off the new year, we're tackling several different headlines, news items and concepts across the financial planning landscape. We'll break down some impacts of the Great Resignation, talk about Social Security, inflation, supply chain issues, and see why Brian's previous baby boom suggestions have actually come to fruition. Join us as we set the stage for what you need to know to understand the economy and major headlines as we go head first into the new year.
Read MoreAs the year hurtles toward its finish a lot of folks are thinking about deadlines they have to meet, gifts to buy, ways they can spread generosity and many more things. On this episode, Brian will encourage you to make room for one more thing... thinking ahead just a little bit about taxes. We're going to talk about gifting, how to simplify it and do it a smart way with regard to tax implications. We'll cover Donor Advised Funds, SALT, RMDs, the standard deduction vs. itemizing, and lots of other nuances that you might just be able to leverage to your advantage (and to the benefit to the people and organizations you support). So don't miss some great discussion on our final podcast of the year!
Read MoreIt might not be as exciting as the stock market, but when you consider how much money can be saved if you properly plan for taxes the subject of tax planning should create a little more energy in all of us. On this episode, we'll talk about Brian's Tax Planning Checklist that you should review before we move the calendar to 2022. You might find some important actionable items that'll help you get the most out of your IRAs, 401(k)s, and overall financial plan.
Read MoreWhen there's so much focus in the financial world on the numbers, it's easy to neglect the items that seem like small, insignificant details. But it's actually in these small details that we see some of retirement's top mistakes. On this episode, we'll explore how and why things like account titling, beneficiary designations, powers of attorney and health directives are often overlooked and the grave consequences that are just around the corner if you aren't handling these issues properly.
Read MoreWe continue our series on top retirement planning mistakes. This week: we look at cases where people may have the savings for retirement, but those savings are in the wrong financial vehicles. Brian will detail how you can make sure your retirement portfolio is invested in the right places, at the right times.
Read MoreOur first retirement mistake was discussing doing something too early (taking Social Security). It's the opposite situation today. We'll go over why it's often a mistake to wait too long to take IRA distributions from your portfolio. Brian will show us how the risk of running out of money is tied into various withdrawal rates, why it's important to understand time periods for your withdrawals, and how to take taxes into account as you figure out the best way to fill your income gaps in retirement.
Read MoreIn part 1 of our series about top retirement mistakes, we're going to tackle the topic of claiming Social Security early. It's tempting to grab that money as soon as it's available to you. But are you really hurting your future financial health by doing so? Is it better to wait to full retirement age or even to 70 years old? Brian will walk us through the debate and show us how Social Security decisions can impact other areas of our financial plans.
Read MoreThis episode is inspired by a couple of clients who recently met with Brian and came armed with lots of questions about their retirement plans. Social Security, Long Term Care, Pensions, Annuities and other topics were all on the table. Brian will tell us why it's important to recognize that you have to evaluate these kinds of financial questions all together, not individually, because there's so much overlap with each decision. We'll also use this episode as a springboard into an upcoming series on the top retirement mistakes (and how to avoid them).
Read MoreJamal Mahmood of MSFS joins the show again to discuss with Brian the journey, pros, and cons of moving from a big-box firm to an independent advisory practice. They'll compare and contrast how products are treated, who values name brands and what is revealed when it's removed from the equation, and explore what the actual framework of a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional looks like. If you've ever wanted to understand some of the differences in working with a big-name national firm vs. an independent financial advisor, this episode is for you.
Read MoreRetirement is often the first opportunity to live wherever you want. Although that sounds amazing, for many people it can be overwhelming to have almost limitless options on the table. Brian will walk us through the 4 P's of his retirement planning process to show how following them can help you answer key questions about where you want to retire and so much more.
Read MoreThere's a new spin on letting your values and beliefs dictate, or at least exclude, certain investments in your portfolio. In the past, it was relatively simple to exclude stocks and investments that profit from the sale of alcohol or tobacco. But that effort has picked up steam and morphed into something more complex in recent years. Today, ESG Investing where environmental, sustainability, and governance issues impact investment choices. And sometimes what includes or excludes an investment from someone's portfolio isn't an issue with the product or the service it provides, but more nuanced things like the makeup of its board of directors or whether the company meets certain diversity, equity, or inclusion standards. Brian takes a look at these developments with a warning to those who prioritize other factors over the fundamentals of an investment.
Read MoreThere is a new top concern in the financial world, at least temporarily. You've probably seen it mentioned numerous times on the national evening news, top headlines in newspapers, online, and maybe even Facebook posts about it from your friends. We're talking about inflation. Known as the "silent killer" of financial success, but often infrequently discussed and insufficiently planned for, inflation is something that we all need to understand better. Especially in times like these, we'll rely on Brian to sort through the noise and clutter to really assess inflation's current and future impact on our finances.
And don't forget to take the Make The Dough Rise Quiz for your chance to win fabulous cash and prizes! Take the quiz by visiting livingworth.com/big50 to enter for your chance to win.
Read MoreWe're celebrating the 50th episode of Make The Dough Rise by giving away fabulous cash and prizes on today's show. Listen to find out how you can win. And using 50 as our inspiration, we'll highlight some of our best episodes from the past two years that are particularly worth a listen for those of you in your early-to-mid fifties. We'll talk a little about investing rules of thumb for accumulators, annuities, long term care, taxes, early retirement and much more.
Read MoreBrian's daughter, Hannah, makes her podcasting debut on this episode. Hannah takes a break from studying for AP exams to fill us in on how to decipher the lingo of teenagers these days, a youthful perspective on money and investing, and talks about how receptive she's been to the money lessons Brian has taught her over the years. Some good laughs on this episode as we try (and fail) to sound cool in front of a teen, but learn some valuable lessons on how to pass on some great financial knowledge to the next generation.
Read MoreThe last year has been tough with handling a worldwide pandemic and changing our everyday routines. However, many people now have their vaccines and are wanting to get out and spend the extra money they have stashed away over the course of this pandemic. We thought this would be the perfect time to revisit an old episode idea of funding the fun fund.
Read MoreTrillion is the new billion. And that could be a scary thing for all of us if we don't know how to navigate the ever-changing financial markets we're facing in 2021 and beyond. On this episode, Brian is joined by Jamal Mahmood and Mike Minter of Main Street Financial Solutions (see episode 45 for the prior roundtable discussion on Modern Monetary Theory) to discuss debt, inflationary forces, and how various asset classes are being impacted
Read MoreThe multitude of ways the government can tax you is on the rise. Or, at least Brian has uncovered some additional "hidden" ways taxes can eat away at your income. On this episode we take a look back to show #6 from September of 2019 when we first discussed this topic. Brian gives us an update on some of the tax hikes we talked about then and adds several more items to the list that we need to keep an eye on. Could there really be a proposal to tax gains in your portfolio before you even sell the assets? You bet. Listen for details on that and much more.
Read MoreWith the $1.9 trillion stimulus package and our national debt rising with no end in sight, many people are asking what this means for our long term fiscal health. Some people are worried about future budget crises, program cuts, and inflation. But others point out that our bigger problems are deflation and unemployment, and that a little inflation would actually be good. There’s a relatively new school of economic thinking called Modern Monetary Theory that looks at our government spending in a very different way than most people are used to. Who is right about these fiscal challenges? We'll debate all these topics and more with special guests Jamal Mahmood and Mike Minter of Main Street Financial Solutions.
Read MoreBrian reacts to the $2 trillion stimulus bill and evaluates whether it strengthens or weakens us as a country. He'll put the impacts of the bill in perspective for those of us planning for retirement and address some of the ongoing threats to our financial futures.
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