I'm convinced that the most stressful part of planning for and living in retirement is that we don't know how to balance living well today, while not sacrificing tomorrow. As a result, most of us live out of balance.  Some of us are so worried about tomorrow that they sacrifice their current life in order to be "prudent". Others "live for the day", assuming without a thought for their future.  both are wrong. In this episode, I talk about my #1 retirement planning tool to help other find this delicate balance. Invest Wisely--Investing Potholes in November and December 

If you're planning on making large investments in your taxable accounts be careful. 

In December, most pooled investments, like mutual funds, distribute to shareholders the capital gains and dividends they've accumulated throughout the year. If you buy one of these products in a taxable account before this distribution, you could have a tax liability for capital gains that were realized before you even owned the fund. 

In this episode, I discuss how this works and some things you can do to avoid a potential nasty tax surprise. Plan Well--My #1 Retirement Planning Tool to Help People Find Balance 

These are some of the frustrating questions that people struggle with every day as they plan for retirement. About 16 years ago, I discovered a tool to help me help people answer these questions and confidently live a more balanced life.It's called Monte Carlo engine. 

Today, I've integrated it into my Plan Well process to help other make smarter financial decisions and find some balance between living well today without sacrificing their tomorrow.

Like most tools, some are better than others and much of it's usefulness is dependent upon the skill of the user.

In this episode, I use a planning example to demonstrate how I use it and some of it's advantages and drawback. 

Note: Normally just read these show notes, it's best to listen to this one. Just click on the audio play at the bottom of this post. Here is the Fact Set for John Smith 

To see the full report that I discuss, click here. How Not to Use It 

How to Use It 

There is no tool that will solve for all the uncertainty in your life or the world.  The best we can do is acknowledge what we don't know (can't know) and use a sound compass to help guide our life's journey. 
 
"He who is enslaved to his compass, will enjoy the freedom of the seas" 
Ken Davis
 Are You Confident in Your Compass?