The Secure Retirement Method Podcast

I’m Back!  As you know, I’ve been out of pocket for four months. Today, in my first episode since returning to work, I sit down for a personal interview with my friend Steve Gordon to discuss the shocking health crisis that both sidelined me and required me to make a life-changing decision with no time to weigh my options.  Steve and I go deep into facing adversity head on and how I made peace wit...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast , April Schoen talks about the importance of tax diversification in retirement. April discusses the three different types of retirement investments, offering examples of each type of account, how you can contribute to them, and their tax implications. Listen as she explains:  Tax-deferred accounts Taxable or tax as you go accounts Tax-favored...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast , April Schoen joins us to take a deep dive into the five financial risks you will face in retirement and how to overcome them. Additionally, April discusses retirement planning and what balance looks like in retirement.   Listen in to learn more about the retirement red zone as well as: Mitigating financial risks Retirement planning: what wo...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast, April Schoen joins us to discuss the best ways to pay for health care in retirement. We detail the key considerations you need to remember when it comes to Medicare, and go over how to create your detailed plan for what is usually the number one concern for anyone approaching retirement. We have an episode packed with valuable information to...

This week, I’m joined by fellow North Florida Financial advisor, April Schoen, for a live seminar on Social Security. Over the course of the seminar, we're going to be talking about how social security works, what you need to know around the program, different payment scenarios, and also issues that surround the program. April and I have over 50 years of combined experience in retirement planning...

On this week’s episode of the Secure Retirement Podcast, we speak with Bonnie Bevis, a retiree with 35 years of work with Highway Safety under her belt. She began her career as a license examiner, and shares with us how she spent her years in public service while raising three children, as well as how she occupies her retirement time now.  We chat with Bonnie about her extensive public service car...

Our special guest on this week’s episode of the Secure Retirement Podcast is Helen Livingston. Helen was a teacher, a high school counselor, and a principal in Alabama, and earned both her Master’s and PhD, all while raising four children. She was also an integral part of opening the Medical School at Florida State University. Helen has had an extensive career in education and continues to stay bu...

In our ninth and final episode of our series for members of the Florida Retirement System, Steve Gordon once again hosts our very own John Curry. We discuss an aspect of retirement that is necessary for absolutely everyone approaching this stage of their life to consider, mindset, and dive into how to successfully execute John’s Secure Retirement Method. We chat about the real motivations behind r...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast, we approach the end of our Florida Retirement System series. The information in this episode will be valuable to our viewers nationally, even if you are not a member of the Florida Retirement System, as these laws apply across the country. We address the universal Required Minimum Distributions and offer ways to prepare for them so you aren’...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast, we focus on healthcare coverage, particularly Medicare Parts A - D, as we continue to address the key issues that affect members of the Florida Retirement System. With Medicare available from coast to coast, the information in this episode will be valuable to our listeners nationally, even for those outside of the Florida Retirement System....

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast, we continue addressing the key issues that affect members of the Florida Retirement System with a special focus on Social Security. Even if you are not a member of the Florida Retirement System, this episode will be particularly useful because Social Security touches everyone nationally.  John says, “For many people, Social Security is reall...

On this week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast, we continue our special series focused on the specific concerns of members of the Florida Retirement System.  “Some people say they have the ability financially to retire, but they don't have the ability mentally to retire. And I call that part of the mindset,” says John. “When it comes to the subject of drop, it's not just about money. It's...

On this week’s episode of the Secure Retirement Podcast, we continue our series on the concerns of members of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), focusing this week on the mindset of retirement and what that means for your planning process. And, if you’re not a member of the FRS, stay tuned because the information provided in this series is still applicable to any recent retirees, or those in the...

On this week’s episode of the Secure Retirement Podcast, we dive into the third episode in our series on the Florida Retirement System. Today we talk about an important topic that many people choose to avoid—  factors to consider while thinking about tax deferral. We also ask the important questions you need answers to before making your final decision. “We're looking for opportunities to minimize...

On this week's episode, we speak about properly planning your secure retirement based on your personal financial situation. John explains the four FRS options, what they mean, and how each is designed to suit a specific situation. The discussion, while aimed specifically at members of the Florida Retirement System (FRS), gives valuable insights to anyone in the process of planning their retirement...

This week’s episode of The Secure Retirement Podcast marks the beginning of a special series focused on the specific concerns of members of the Florida Retirement System. However, the key topics covered in this series will still relate, in principle, to any retiree, regardless of whether they are a member of the FRS.  “I have clients from across all walks of life— doctors, lawyers, business owners...

We don’t know with any kind of certainty what tax rates will be in the future, which means that planning your finances into retirement can be both stressful and intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. This week, John and April discuss tax diversification and how a wide range of investments now will afford you more choices later in life.  April says, “The main thing that we want our clients to hav...

Retirement can come with an amount of financial uncertainty attached, even for people who have taken the time to plan. This week, John and April aim to alleviate some of the stress that comes along with retirement planning by discussing the five biggest financial risks in retirement and how best to avoid them. Together, they have over 50 years of combined experience in helping clients plan for ret...

On this week’s episode of the Secure Retirement Podcast, we speak with my good friend, Bill Landing, a retired professor from Florida State University who is currently studying environmental chemistry and chemical oceanography. Bill has over 50 years of experience as a scientist and joins us to talk about the facts and fictions surrounding the pandemic. “The training that you get to be a scientist...

COVID-19 is the hot topic in the news right now, and in this special episode we give our own take on the situation. There’s no special guest today, but we do think this episode is needed amid the chaos out there in the world. Specifically, we take time to reflect on other hard times in the past and discuss how we got through them, along with speculating what the future may hold.  Most importantly,...

In today’s episode, we chat with retired teacher Elizabeth Gladden. After grieving the death of her husband, Elizabeth was inspired to go back to teaching as she craved the normalcy and routine of going back to school.  “There were some days when you think ‘I just can’t face the world.’ And I think that’s perfectly normal to have days like that,’” says Elizabeth while remembering what it was like...

For something so important for our retirement, it’s a shame that there is so much confusion and misinformation about social security out there.   As a result, many people are sabotaging their social security benefit… and receiving much less than they could… because they make bad decisions during their retirement planning process.   When you should start taking social security is one of the most im...

John Dunwoody returns for a preview of his upcoming boating adventure on the Down East Loop and shares highlights of his eight-month trip on the Great Loop, which traverses some of the country’s most iconic inland waterways.   Journeys of this length take some real planning and preparation, and John shares how he gets himself and his boat in shape for long voyages. He also talks about the places h...

Everybody’s idea of a dream retirement is different. It could include cruises and vacations, volunteer work, more time with the grandkids…   But whatever you’re looking forward to… you have to take some precautions now to make sure your golden years are protected from things like inflation, taxes, healthcare costs, and more. We outline some solid strategies to make sure your financial and personal...

They say that there are two certain things in life: death and taxes. And when it comes to your retirement accounts, taxes definitely come into play.   You may have thought you were saving big-time on taxes with this method. But here’s the thing: required minimum distributions mean you really only deferred those taxes. And when it comes time to pay, the amount could be surprisingly high.   We talk...