cjordan's blog

Two significant challenges of the Covid-19 reality are a loss of personal connections and a real burden on charitable organizations to meet the increasing needs of people around the world. We are all learning how to adapt to a more virtual world in building and investing in relationships.

For those planning for retirement, the events of 2020 have been especially worrisome and disruptive. We can't control pandemics, market fluctuations, or social unrest. But, we can focus on the blocking and tackling of retirement planning. Here are the three drills you can run...

While ensuring your documents and your household are in order is a critical step, it's only one part in the process of "finishing well." A fruitful and often ignored step is engaging in conversations with our family and friends about our thoughts and wishes for our living and dying. Here are recommendations for the who, what, when, where & why of end-of-life discussions.

One thing that has become abundantly clear through the pandemic is the fundamental role of technology in our lives. Technology has helped to bridge some of the gaps between us, our loved ones, and our communities. Thanks to video chat, you’ve been able to check in on family across the country and participate in birthday parties and graduation celebrations. You’ve used streaming services to watch movies and listen to music. You’ve used online news services and social media to keep up with current events and essential healthcare developments. These were likely things you did before, but like many trends, they rapidly accelerated in 2020.

When it comes to your financial lives, ignorance isn’t always bliss, especially when it leads to procrastination, avoiding hard decisions, and not accepting the limitations of your resources. Living in ignorance or denial is not a healthy, long-term posture for financial success. But 2020 has been an unusual year, to put it mildly. I would imagine we have all had an ostrich moment or two in the last few months as many of our usual escapes - sports, social events, vacation, etc.  - are not available.

Things are different than you planned. The assumptions of your plan have changed. That may require a new approach and a resetting of what your “retirement dream” will be. Use this time to refocus on what matters most in your life. Use the strength of your experience to craft a work-life and retirement around that purpose.

In our Retiring Well content, we talk a lot about health and wellness. It should come as no shock that healthcare and health-related costs make up a significant portion of both potential retirement expenses and anxiety levels.

Few of us had heard the phrase “social distancing” at the beginning of the year. But now, maintaining safe, hygienic spaces that help limit the spread of the coronavirus is part of our lives. I hope this is short-lived, but in the meantime, we should do everything we can to thrive during this time.

Believe it or not, we are nearly two full months into 2020! How are those New Year's resolutions going? If you are like most of us, you have a goal of improving your health in some way this year. In case your motivation is waning, let me give you one more reason to focus today: your retirement years.

If you were busy shopping for that last-second Christmas present or just enjoying an egg nog with family, you may have missed that Congress recently passed an interesting bit of legislation. On December 19th, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act – you can't make that up – was attached to a year-end appropriations bill keeping the government open for business, signed into law by President Trump effective January 1, 2020.