The Retirement Success in Maine Podcast

Finding Your Purpose Through Volunteerism with Mary Marin Taylor

EP 009: On this episode of The Retirement Success in Maine Podcast, we are joined by Mary Marin Taylor. Mary Mary is the Executive Director of Literacy Volunteers of Bangor which is a local nonprofit organization that provides free English language tutoring services to Bangor area adults.  Why are we talking about volunteerism in regards to Retirement Success? It seems many of the clients we work with have found that by donating their time in retirement to local nonprofits, they have become more fulfilled and find a purpose by seeing their time directly impacting a local cause.  But is it that easy? What are some things to know about volunteering in different parts of the State?  How does someone identify a good volunteering opportunity for them versus one that won't be a fit?
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Introduction of Mary and her background [2:16]
Discussion about Literacy Volunteers of Bangor, the organization and the services they provide. [10:30]
A conversation about the volunteer experience. How do Literacy Volunteers support its volunteers? What resources are available to the volunteers? [23:14]
Volunteer success stories that Mary has seen in her time at Literacy Volunteers. [35:35]
How can someone, without experience, get involved in committees or boards? [42:02]
What is Mary’s personal idea of Retirement Success? [47:33]
Closing thoughts [49:55]

Facing & Fighting Mental Illness in Retirement with Dr. Clifford Singer

EP 008: On today’s episode of the Retirement Success in Maine Podcast, we are thrilled to be joined by Clifford Milo Singer, MD, DFAPA, AGSF, Chief, Geriatric Mental Health and Neuropsychiatry at Northern Light Acadia Hospital to have an in-depth conversation about mood/emotional and cognitive disorders that aging individuals may face. Some of the questions we ask Dr. Singer in this episode include:
*With many of our client conversations, our clients seem to have a lot of concern of developing mental illnesses as they age. How founded is that concern with the general population in aging? Are there higher risks based on certain factors?
*Are there certain behaviors or concerns that are more unique living in the Northeast, or specifically Maine?
*Can you describe each of the conditions, how they’re developed, and how the symptoms become apparent to yourself or your loved ones? If someone is noticing those symptoms, what’s the best way to address it with your loved one? It seems like that would be a hard topic for a family member to address. How early can some of these aging diseases be detected? How does early detection change how someone lives with the disease? 
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Introduction of Dr. Cliff Singer and his background. [2:20]
A conversation about the program that Dr. Singer launched at Acadia Hospital [8:54]
Discussion about the overall concern(s) about developing mood/emotional and cognitive disorders and how founded those concerns are. [18:40]
How do I know if I’m developing mood/emotional or cognitive disorders? If so, what's next? [23:16]
Is it tough for people to admit vulnerabilities like facing their own mortality? [27:44]
When developing cognitive (decline) disorders, like dementia, are there warning signs? How does it progress? Can anything be done to delay the decline? [37:30]
What does the Geriatric Mental Health and Neuropsychiatry field look like over the next 30 years? [54:03]
What is Dr. Singer’s idea of Retirement Success?[57:57]

Exiting Your Business Ownership & Allowing Yourself to Retire with David Jean CPA

EP 007: In this episode of The Retirement Success in Maine Podcast we are joined by David Jean, CPA, Director at Altus Exit Strategies.   In a previous episode, we discussed how hard it can be for owners and executives of businesses to exit to retirement with Susan Ware Page. We wanted to explore that conversation from another angle with David as his business is focused around helping those in this position - emotionally and financially. Some of the questions we discuss in this episode include: What is exit planning and who should be thinking about it? When should one start to engage with an exit planner and what steps are necessary to make an exit from an organization go smoothly? Are there certain characteristics of the state, both economically and demographically, that present challenges to this population? What are some themes around exit planning in Maine? Give the show a listen to find the answers to these and more!
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Welcome David to the show and a conversation about him and his background. [1:30]
Introduction to Albin, Randall,& Bennett and the relationship with Altus Exit Strategies. [8:30]
A conversation about retirement success, and the elements of success needed as an owner transitions out of a business [12:20]
Discussion about succession plans. What are the barriers to people? [18:30]
Specific to Maine, what are the trends with businesses and succession plans? [29:30]
Switching to retirement success, how does David see business owners approach that success? [36:29]
Are business owners sacrificing their own personal retirement success in favor of the business’s success? [41:42]
How does David see his own retirement success?[47:10]

Augmenting Your Retirement Income With Investment Properties with Abigail Doody, CFP

EP 006: On this episode of The Retirement Success in Maine Podcast , we are joined by our teammate, Abby Doody. Abby is an Investment Consultant and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) at Guidance Point. Abby also has a personal interest in income-producing real estate. Why are we talking about real estate in regards to Retirement Success? It seems many of the clients we work with have an affinity towards buying properties with the idea of providing sustainable income over the remainder of their lives.  But is it that easy? What are some things to know about buying properties in different parts of the State?  How does this work to sustain her version of success in retirement?
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Introduction of Abby and her origin story. [2:03]
Discussion about Abby and her husband’s interest in real estate. [10:46]
What should one think about when finding the right tenant and location for the property? [15:12]
Abby talks about property #2. What led Abby and Casey to purchase another property? [24:50]
Will Airbnb affect/play a role in their properties? [28:35]
Discussion about Abby and Casey’s a-typical situation when it comes to their property locations. [35:19]
Abby discusses their third property and the “master plan”.[37:11]
What happens when the math just doesn’t add up?[42:25]
Moving to retirement success, how does the selling of rental properties work? [46:38]
Abby’s personal idea of Retirement Success in Maine. [53:55]

Defending Your Retirement Success with an Estate Plan with Joy Trueworthy & Rachel Trafton

EP 005: In this episode of The Retirement Success in Maine Podcast we are joined by Joy Trueworthy and Rachel Trafton, Estate Planning Attorneys at Rudman Winchell.   In regards to our priorities at Guidance Point, we want to highlight the importance of this episode for our clients and the public. Many people that we meet with do not have an up to date and structured estate plan in place. It was important to our team that this podcast highlight some of the reasons why people do not spend time on estate planning and mistakes they make as they think about what estate planning means.  Some of the questions we receive from our client conversations include: how should an estate plan change for me during my life? What happens when a loved one passes away ~ what do I do?  How is estate planning going to change in the future and how should I be thinking about it? What are some themes around estate planning in Maine? Give the show a listen to find the answers to these and more!
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Introduction of Joy Trueworthy and Rachel Trafton [1:40]
Why is an  estate plan so important [10:00]
How does the estate planning process change as people age through their lives? [18:44]
Discussion about the structure at Rudman Winchell/Maine Elder Law and the services they offer. [25:52]
What are the 3 biggest mistakes made in regards to estate planning? [30:32]
What to expect when a loved one or spouse has passed away in regards to their estate? [44:03]
Discussion about the future of estate planning and how it may change. [49:30]
What does retirement success look like for Rachel and Joy? [58:45]

Balancing Your Retirement Success In A Multigenerational Family Business with Susan Ware Page

EP 004: In this episode, we travel to Rockland, Maine to have a conversation with the President of Maritime Energy, Susan Ware Page. What's interesting about Susan's story is that she's a 3rd generation business owner that has helped her father, John Ware, successfully exit the family business to find his own retirement success. What has she learned about helping her father find his retirement success that she is thinking about for herself? What pressure is there on Susan to sustain the business and hand the business to the next generation? Can she successfully do that as she stewards the company to the next family generation?
For more, see the full show notes at blog.guidancepointllc.com/4 . 
Chapters:
Introduction of our guest, Susan Ware Page, and the history of the business. [2:00]Discussion about the succession of Maritime Energy from Susan’s grandfather, Roland, to Susan’s father, John. [7:00]With Susan’s father, John, running the company, how did the business evolve? [14:12]How did Susan grow up with the business? How did she end up with Maritime Energy? [25:55]Discussion about Susan’s father, John, and his personal retirement success. [35:00]
Discussion around Susan's Mom, Karen, and how while even receiving medical care for Cancer, she wanted her family to help fight cancer to save other families from similar struggles. And how the family and company created the Energy 4 Life 501c3. [39:48]Discussion about how Susan’s experiences with her father and losing her mother will impact her own retirement success. [49:06]How does Susan define her own retirement success? [52:20]

Experiencing Your Travel Bucket List in Retirement with Keri Forbringer

EP 003: In this episode, we interview Keri Forbringer, Travel Advisor, from Luxury Travel Works.  Keri shares with us how she discovered her passion for travel throughout college and working abroad while planning trips for her family ignited a passion for planning travel for others. The interview launches into why someone would want to consider using a travel advisor, including a couple that planned on celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary traveling but never got around to going until they met Keri - two years later! We discuss how retirees or near-retirees should start thinking about their 'wander list' and how their travel needs may change as they progress in retirement. Lastly, we discover travel trends including multi-generational travel, going to less "tourist-y' places, and why "hot" is cold and "cold" is hot. For more, see the full show notes at https://blog.guidancepointllc.com/3/
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Introduction of Keri and her origin story. [2:16]
What is a travel advisor, compared to a travel agent? How do they work? [10:15]
Keri’s business, formation, and structure and how does align with her customers? [14:44]
How can travel and retirement work? [19:24]
Learn about multi-generational travel as a family. [35:30]
Who can afford a travel advisor? [40:04]
Keri’s thoughts on how the travel industry will change over the next 20 years.[46:55]

Maximizing Your Local Area Agency on Aging with Dyan Walsh

EP 002: In this episode, we interview with Dyan Walsh, Executive Director for Eastern Area Agency on Aging. Agencies on Aging act as a community resource hub for those that are in or near retirement AND community members supporting the retirement population. Dyan walks us through the history of Agencies on Aging, what they do, how to interact with them, and myths about her Agency. We also discuss how retirement has changed in Maine and some specific needs retirees will be navigating throughout the aging process, including healthcare, finding the right home fit as you age, lifelong learning, losing a loved one, and leisure. For more, see the full show notes at https://blog.guidancepointllc.com/2/
What You'll Learn In This Podcast Episode:
Get to know Dyan and how she found herself in a career around social work. [1:06]
Learn about the Eastern Area Agency on Aging and what it’s all about. [6:00]
What types of services does the Agency offer? How can people use them? [10:45]
The importance of planning ahead for retirement. [20:30]
What is the best-kept secret about the Eastern Area Agency on Aging? [32:00]
What do retirees do well (and not do well) in navigating retirement? [36:45]
Dyan’s thoughts on the term “Retirement Success” and what that means for her. [41:00]