The Retirement Wisdom Podcast

What mindset are bringing to this winter season? Kari Leibowitz joins us to discuss her book How to Winter: Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold, Dark, or Difficult Days with interesting and useful ideas on how to make this winter special. Yes, special. Kari Leibowitz joins us from Amsterdam. ____________________ Bio Kari Leibowitz, author of How to Winter, is a health psychologist, speaker, and writer. She received her PhD in Social Psychology from Stanford University, served as a US-Norway Fulbright Scholar, and taught the “Mindsets Matter” Stanford Continuing Studies Course. Leibowitz combines scholarly expertise with practical strategies to help people understand and harness the power of their mindsets and find joy in winter. Her writing on the power of the wintertime mindset has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, and many other publications have reported on her work including The Guardian, The Financial Times, BBC, and The Telegraph. She has taught winter workshops to businesses, universities, non-profits, and organizations around the world. ______________________ For More on Kari Leibowitz How to Winter: Harness Your Mindset to Thrive on Cold, Dark, or Difficult Days Website ______________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Happier Hour – Cassie Holmes, PhD Edit Your Life – Elisabeth Sharp McKetta The Joy Choice – Dr. Michelle Segar _________________________ About The Retirement Wisdom Podcast There are many podcasts on retirement, often hosted by financial advisors with financial motives, that cover the money side of the street. This podcast is different. You’ll get smarter about the investment decisions you’ll make about the most important asset you’ll have in retirement: your time. About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy. Connect on LinkedIn ______________________ Wise Quotes On Slowing Down “…it’s objectively true that winter is the darkest season, it’s the coldest season, it may be the wettest, windiest season, depending on where you live. But I think that there are so many opportunities in the cold and in the darkness. And I think one of the things that we can really appreciate is winter as a time of year when we get to slow down, and when it really can feel good to slow down. So I think a lot of people who struggle with winter are struggling with feeling the effects of the darkness on their energy with feeling more tired, or maybe less motivated or a little bit down. But when we see this not as a problem, but a natural response to a change in our environment, we can really embrace that as winter as a time for being cozy at home for reading that file of books on our nightstand or catching up on our TV shows or artistic pursuits, cooking and baking. So I think part of what we need to do to rehab winter’s PR image is to start appreciating the season for what it is and asking what feels good when it’s dark and cold out and how can we help people embrace and enjoy those activities for this time of year?” On Mindset “So a lot of listeners might be familiar with Carol Dweck’s work on the growth and fixed mindsets about intelligence, whether our intelligence is something sort of set or fixed about us or whether it can grow with effort. And another of my mentors at Stanford, Aliyah Crum, who runs the Stanford Mind and Body Lab, has really expanded on that work to look at mindsets in health and mindsets in performance and mindsets in wellbeing. And, I think it’s really easy to look at mindsets as something magical. I adopted this mindset that winter is wonderful and all of a sudden my life changes and the season changes and everything is sunshine and rainbows. But what I love about Carol’s work and my mentor, Aliyah Crum’s work, and really being a psychologist who studies mindset is that you can unpack of the mechanisms by which mindset influences our health and well-being. So our mindset influences things like our attention, what we notice. So when we make an effort to try to have a more positive mindset about winter, to see winter is full of opportunity, then rather than attending to every time we feel cold or having to shovel our driveway when it snows or how tired we feel when the sun sets earlier, we might attend to different things. We might attend to how beautiful the world looks in the snow or how the cold air can feel crisp and refreshing and sort of wake us up in the morning or you know make us feel more ready to come in and get cozy and get ready for bed at night. We might notice how the darkness is an opportunity to eat dinner by candlelight or have intimate conversations with family or friends. And so when we start thinking about cultivating a more positive wintertime mindset, it changes what we notice, which is then going to change what we’re motivated to do, how we interact with the world around us, which is going to change how we experience the season.” On How to Winter “What are the things that maybe I don’t have time for in other seasons or things that feel good in the darkness or in the cold. I would recommend leaning into those things and prioritizing them because when you have things that you look forward to doing that feel special to the winter they really help you reclaim the season. I think that doing this with just a little bit more intention and with a little bit more of an eye towards trying to embrace and celebrate the season can really change your experience of these winter months. The first step of cultivating one of these more positive mindsets is to just notice your mindset about winter and set that intention to start noticing things a little bit differently and trying to attend to the parts of winter that you find enjoyable.”  

Happy New Year! What will make you happy this year? Our guest today, Stephanie Harrison, author of New Happy, believes that it’s time to retire the old beliefs about happiness. If you’re moving on from full-time work, you’ll want to hear her research-based ideas to reimagine what happiness will be like in this new phase of life – and how to move on from the “old happy.” In addition to her book, I highly recommend her newsletter, and join over 1 million people who also love her work. Stephanie Harrison joins us from California. _______________________ Bio Stephanie Harrison is author of New Happy: Getting Happiness Right in a World That’s Got It Wrong and the creator of the New Happy philosophy and an expert in the science of well-being. Her company, The New Happy, teaches millions of people around the world how to be happier every day. She has a Masters Degree in positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, where she was later an instructor. Previously, she was the head of Learning at Thrive Global, where she directed the development of science-backed programs for well-being that reaches millions of employees at Fortune 500 companies around the world. ________________________ For More on Stephanie Harrison Read New Happy: Getting Happiness Right in a World That’s Got It Wrong  The New Happy website Sign up for the free weekly Newsletter ________________________ Mentioned in This Episode How To Become A Wiser Person _________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Happier Hour – Cassie Holmes, PhD Living Like You Mean It – Jodi Wellman The Power of Fun – Catherine Price The Good Life – Marc Schulz, PhD _________________________ About The Retirement Wisdom Podcast There are many podcasts on retirement, often hosted by financial advisors with financial motives, that cover the money side of the street. This podcast is different. You’ll get smarter about the investment decisions you’ll make about the most important asset you’ll have in retirement: your time. About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy. Connect on LinkedIn ________________________ Wise Quotes  The New Happy vs. Old Happy “I now define happiness in a very different way than I did when I was younger…It’s the state of being connected to yourself, others, and the world around you. That’s how I would describe the experience of it. And then I define the pathway to getting that as having these two pillars of being who you are and then using who you are to help other people. So that, which I just said, is the New Happy. And then Old Happy is what society teaches us about happiness – what we need to do and achieve and become in order to experience that state of well-being that we’re all looking for. And Old Happy tells us that if we want to be happy, we have these three core tasks that we have to accomplish. We have to perfect ourselves, essentially optimize ourselves in every possible way. We have to achieve certain societally approved goals, things that are venerated or celebrated in our society. And three, we have to do everything alone. We are separate from other people and we have to do these things without leaning on them, without asking for help, without being a part of a community.” On Retirement & Identity  “…if your identity is entirely centred upon your workplace role and your title, then of course it feels incredibly destabilizing if that’s taken away. It’s like you’re trying to live in a house with the foundation ripped out. It’s not going to work very well. And I think that there are different things that you can do depending on what stage you’re in, whether you’re approaching retirement or already in a state of retirement. But if you’re already retired and you’re experiencing that loss of identity, what I would tell you is that you have so many wonderful, amazing gifts that just need a new location to be used. They don’t have to be used in the same way that they were before. So if you were working at a job and you had this amazing career and you developed all of these skills and talents, then that gives you something to use. And those things are very much needed in the world, in our communities, in nonprofits, in our families and all of these different environments. And so what I would say to you is separate yourself from the job, identify the skills that you now possess through all of that work, and then think about where could I use these? Where could I be of service and use these to support other people? And that’s going to help you to rediscover who you are, but also to bring you that sense of meaning that often disappears with retirement.” On Purpose “I think purpose is inextricably tied to happiness. I’m not sure that there’s a real experience of happiness that’s divorced from purpose. I say that because scientists often break up happiness into these two different dimensions. There’s hedonic happiness, which is essentially pleasure, feeling good and then there’s eudaimonic happiness, which is what I’m talking about. And that’s essentially  living at your fullest capacity and cultivating yourself in a way that contributes also to the world around you. And if you’re doing that, then you’ve inevitably found some sort of purpose in your life. And I think that the purpose is what gives us a much more stable experience of happiness.  Your purpose is something where it drives you every single day. It provides you with meaningful feedback and the opportunity to grow, and the chance to see how your efforts matter and make a difference. We can find purpose in our jobs, of course, but there are so many other venues that it can be found in as well, whether that’s through sharing your knowledge and your wisdom with people who are younger than you, who desperately need it, who are looking for these answers and don’t know where to find it.”

Christina Wallace, an author and expert in building a meaningful retirement, shares insights from her book, The Portfolio Life. She discusses the emotional challenges of transitioning from a professional identity and the importance of self-discovery. Wallace introduces the '100 Wishes' exercise, encouraging listeners to envision their future aspirations and find purpose beyond career achievements. She emphasizes balancing various life domains and the need for intentional living to thrive in retirement, inspiring a reflective and fulfilling approach to this new chapter.

Larry Kotlikoff, a seasoned economist and author, shares invaluable insights for 2025. He discusses the critical need for changes in Social Security to combat poverty and navigate inflation's impact on retirees. Kotlikoff warns against the costly mistakes of claiming Social Security too early, emphasizing it as essential longevity insurance. He also introduces his innovative software, MaxiFi, designed to revolutionize financial planning by promoting strategic budgeting and optimal Roth IRA conversions for a secure financial future.

Make the New Year Your Best Year Free 2-part Workshop to build 3 new habits January 3 and 10th  – 12 Noon Eastern – 1 hour via Zoom Sign Up here _______________________ As the year winds down, it’s time to reflect – and look ahead. Carol Orsborn, author of the new book Spiritual Aging: Weekly Reflections for Embracing Life, explains why it’s a wise move to continue that practice  with weekly reflections to tune into the spiritual side of aging. Carol Orsborn joins us from Tennessee. _______________________ Bio Dr. Carol Orsborn is the best-selling author of over 35 books including her forthcoming Spiritual Aging: Weekly Reflections for Embracing Life. Her body of work includes The Making of an Old Soul: Aging as the Fulfillment of Life’s Promise.  Older, Wiser, Fiercer: The Wisdom Collection  and 2015 Gold Nautilus Book Award winner in the category of Consciously Aging: The Spirituality of Age: A Seeker’s Guide to Growing Older (with Robert L. Weber, Ph.D.) She has recently launched the Spiritual Aging Study and Support Group (SASS) at Spiritual Aging@ Substack.com.  She founded the Conscious Aging Book Club in conjunction with Parnassus Books and now housed at CarolOrsborn.com, and the Sage-ing Book Club run in conjunction with the leading organization in the field Sage-ing International Carol is curator of Fierce with Age:  The Archives of Boomer Wisdom, Inspiration, and Spirituality, housed at CarolOrsborn.com and a leading voice of the conscious aging and spirituality and aging movements.  For the past decade, she has also blogged about the Boomer Generation for Huffington Post, BeliefNet.com and PBS’s Next Avenue, among others. Dr. Orsborn received her Masters of Theological Studies and Doctorate in History and Critical Theory of Religion from Vanderbilt University with post-graduate work in Spiritual Counseling at the New Seminary in Manhattan. She is an internationally-recognized thought leader on the fulfillment of the human potential through all life stages. For the past forty years, Dr. Orsborn has been a leading voice of her generation, appearing on Oprah, NBC Nightly News and on The Today Show among many others. Her blogs have appeared regularly in Huffington Post, Beliefnet, NPR’s Next Avenue and McKnights, among others.  She has been  a frequent speaker at conferences and events such as the American Society of Aging, Sage-ing International Conference, Boomerstock, the Positive Aging Conference, Omega Institute and the American Academy of Religion. Dr. Orsborn established her reputation as a generational expert as co-founder of the first global initiative by a top ten PR company dedicated to helping brands such as Ford, AARP, Prudential and Humana communicate with Boomers. She has brought her talks and retreats on resilience, spirituality and aging to such venues as Omega Institute, American Society of Aging, Positive Aging Conference, Vanderbilt University Hospital and many other aging, healthcare, spiritual and religious groups. Dr. Orsborn received her Doctorate in History and Critical Theory of Religion from Vanderbilt University, specializing in adult development and ritual studies, including intergenerational values formation and transmission. She has served on the faculties of Pepperdine, Loyola Marymount and Georgetown Universities.  Dr. Orsborn lives in Nashville, Tennessee and Toronto, Canada. ________________________ For More on Carol Orsborn Spiritual Aging: Weekly Reflections for Embracing Life Website Substack ________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like The Vintage Years – Dr. Francine Toder Slow Living – Stephanie O’Dea From Role to Soul – Connie Zweig Getting Good at Getting Older – Rabbi Laura Geller ________________________ Thinking of retiring? Start here with our Best Books on Retirement summaries _______________________ About The Retirement Wisdom Podcast There are many podcasts on retirement, often hosted by financial advisors with financial motives, that cover the money side of the street. This podcast is different. You’ll get smarter about the investment decisions you’ll make about the most important asset you’ll have in retirement: your time. About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy. Connect on LinkedIn _______________________ Wise Quotes On Purpose “…my doctorate is in History and Critical Theory of Religion. And I looked at the phenomenon of meaning and religion and spirituality through every academic lens that there is – sociological, anthropological, philosophical. And when I came to the end of all of the scientific explanations, there was something that I think William James called something more. What is the something more? There’s always something more that you can’t explain. And that is the world of spirit. Some people are more comfortable with the word spirit than spirituality. But I think we all know what it means to, to have your spirit intact, to feel like there’s something more, and that you’re here for a purpose…And if you’re aging, my favorite theory that I practice is that aging is not just a problem to be solved. Aging itself is a spiritual experience. So where is that something more?” On Unretiring “But why I ended up unretiring three times now is because after a long period of time of having freedom, having quality relationships with my friends, going slower, sitting by the river, reading the classics, whatever it is I wanted to do, I would hear a voice in my mind that I recognize as being called. And I was called to write three books. And so I came out of retirement for each of the three books. And I’m really proud of these three books, but the most recent time was the current book, Spiritual Aging: Weekly Reflections for Embracing Life.” On Solitude and Freedom “I was alone, but I wasn’t lonely. And what I was was practicing solitude, a contemplative lifestyle. And what we are in society is uneducated about the things that are unpopular or not talked about much in society, how they can be held differently. And there’s vast literature out there about the joys of solitude and the benefits of it. And some for short term and some as a lifestyle. And what we have to do is stop judging ourselves and judging others. And I go to Ram Dass who taught me, there is no right or wrong way to age. There’s only your way. So if I am finally giving myself permission to spend long periods of time alone, you know, not trying to be popular, not going to every party, and not worrying about fear of missing out. What a blessing to me. That’s freedom.” _________________________  

Make the New Year Your Best Year Free 2-part Workshop to build 3 new habits January 3 and 10th  – 12 Noon Eastern – 1 hour via Zoom Sign Up here  _______________________ It’s a great time of year to slow down. But what about next year? Is it time for slow living? Stephanie O’Dea, author of Slow Living: Cultivating a Life of Purpose in a Hustle-Driven World, shares her personal experiences with slowing down, the benefits of living a different lifestyle and how to get started. Stephanie O’Dea joins us from California. __________________ Bio Stephanie O’Dea is a New York Times best selling author, host of the Slow Living Podcast, and a mom of three. She writes, coaches, teaches, and speaks about all things Slow Living. In 2008, Stephanie made a New Year’s resolution to use her crockpot slow cooker every day for a year and write about it online. This simple idea resulted in 10 books, a spot on the New York Times best-sellers list, and a job that she loves — and one she can do at home, in her pajamas. Stephanie has appeared on Good Morning America, The Rachael Ray Show, featured in Real Simple Magazine, Woman’s World, and Oprah.com. She is a contributing editor to Simply Gluten Free Magazine and is featured in the infomercial for the Ninja Cooking System. For a more comprehensive press listing, please visit her online home at stephanieodea.com. _______________________ For More on Stephanie O’Dea Slow Living: Cultivating a Life of Purpose in a Hustle-Driven World Website Podcast _______________________ Podcast Conversations You May Like Edit Your Life – Elisabeth Sharp McKetta The Power of Saying No – Vanessa Patrick, PhD We’re All Ageing. Are You Up for a Bolder Approach? – Carl Honoré ________________________ Wise Quotes On Habits “And so if you have a long list of New Year’s resolutions or things that you want to change about yourself or habits you want to start or habits you want to stop, that’s okay. If for some reason, you have ‘fallen off the wagon’ on March 1st, it doesn’t mean you’ve failed. It just means that you’ve taken a little bit of a pause. And so I’m a huge fan of like 30 day challenges and things like that. But what I joke with my coaching clients is who cares if it took you 45 days to meet a 30 day goal in the great big, huge scheme of things and the trajectory of your life, it’s just a teeny, tiny blip. So I don’t want people to think that they’ve failed when they’ve really just stumbled in real life. There’s there’s ups and downs and all arounds and we’ve got hurricanes and natural disasters and the roof blows off and and and that’s real life.” On Creating Your Mood “…Mindset + Action + Consistency = Success. So when you’re in a good mood, that’s mindset, For me, I like… journaling, yoga, going on long walks, spending time in nature. That’s how I get myself in a good mood. And it is different for everybody. Although I will say that if you’re getting yourself in a good mood by a vice that might not be healthy for you in the long term, pay attention to that. Find your good mood in healthy ways. And then ask yourself these open-ended questions. And the answers that come back are the action steps to take. And then consistency is doing the things you told yourself you would do on a consistent basis. And it also means that sometimes you might not want to do those things, but you sort of convince yourself to do them anyways. Real life. Lots of variables that you can’t control. So humans like to feel as if they can control things. So in order to get that sort of feeling of control, many times the first step is s to sort of declutter things that aren’t working for you. And it could be physical items in your home if they’re creating kind of this brain noise every time you look at your desk, it makes you feel stressed out. Okay, that’s something to pay attention to. It could be too many obligations on your calendar. And that means that for a while you need to declutter and start saying no to things just so you have a little bit more space in your day-to-day. It could also be particular people and relationships that you need to declutter. And maybe not forever, but maybe you hit the pause button and no one needs to know either. And then later, when you start to feel calmer and more, quote unquote, in control, you can begin to add things back into your life.” On Redefining Success “It’s a great question because I think sometimes markers are of success. People are looking for external validation. And so, if you’re a doctor or a lawyer or something like that, you’ve quote unquote made it in life. and you’re successful. I would ask for you and your listeners to write out what their version of success looks like. For some people that’s living in a high-rise in Manhattan. For some it’s living on a farm with some sheep and goats and walking the property every morning and feeling the dew on their boots. The accolades have to come from within. I would like for you to climb into bed each night feeling content and feeling at peace and knowing I did my best. Maybe there’s no one to see it but if there’s food in the fridge and happy kids and happy relationship and I can crawl around on the floor with my grandchildren great that’s success.  You may never be internet famous. You may never have a Tesla. And that’s OK. You get to decide what success looks like for you.” On Starting Now “I know since you talk about the idea of retiring into something instead of leaving, it’s not this like clear, thick, dark line, like this was Former Me and this is Future Me. I would want you to start to envelop your new habits now while you’re still working. So, if you think, Oh, when I retire, I’m going to start doing yoga every single day, okay, great, but you can also start doing yoga now and see if you’re even interested in it. 10 minutes and 20 minutes completely counts when you’re trying on a new habit or hobby for size.” _______________________ Thinking of retiring? Start here with our Best Books on Retirement summaries _______________________ About The Retirement Wisdom Podcast There are many podcasts on retirement, often hosted by financial advisors with financial motives, that cover the money side of the street. This podcast is different. You’ll get smarter about the investment decisions you’ll make about the most important asset you’ll have in retirement: your time. About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy. Connect on LinkedIn        

It’s time to catch up on any of our best podcast conversations you may have missed this fall. Listen to any of the full podcast conversations below: Retiring: Creating a Life That Works for You – Teresa Amabile The Good Life – Marc Schulz The Art of the Interesting – Lorraine Besser, PhD Passion and Purpose – Jim Ansara How to Retire – Christine Benz __________________ Other Best Of Episodes: Best of 2024 – Part Two Best of 2024 – Part One Best of 2023 – Part Three _______________________ About The Retirement Wisdom Podcast There are many podcasts on retirement, often hosted by financial advisors with financial motives, that cover the money side of the street. This podcast is different. You’ll get smarter about the investment decisions you’ll make about the most important asset you’ll have in retirement: your time. About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy.        

Retiring? Don’t drift into the lazy river. Design Your New (active and interesting) Life. Learn More _______________________ In days gone by, people used to think they were done – and headed off to retirement. Not any more. Now, the questions to ask yourself  are what’s my potential for the likely decades that lie ahead? And how can I live well – and wisely? Ben Lytle, former CEO of Anthem, and author of The Potentialist: The Pursuit of Wisdom, believes that wisdom and potential are our ideal adaptive responses for the interesting times we’re living in today. He also believes that wisdom and untapped potential reside in everyone, waiting to be released. Ben Lytle joins us from Scottsdale, Arizona. __________________ Bio Ben Lytle is a self-made serial entrepreneur and CEO known for being ahead of the curve. He is the author of “The Potentialist: Your Future in the New Reality of the Next Thirty Years,” a guidebook for success during the fast-changing, turbulent, and opportunity-rich times ahead. His new book in the series is The Potentialist: The Pursuit of Wisdom. Ben is best known as the founding CEO of Anthem, Inc. (NYSE), one of the leading US health plans with a market capitalization placing it in the top tier of the Fortune 500; and Acordia, Inc. (NYSE), which became the world’s sixth-largest insurance broker. He cofounded three companies with his entrepreneurial son, Hugh, and invests in technologies that address New Reality challenges, such as increasing productivity to offset declining populations, caring for the elderly, and preserving human legacies. Ben has extensive public policy experience at the state and federal levels and has held board leadership roles in a wide range of industries. His contributions have been recognized by numerous awards and in books and periodicals. He has been a speaker and university guest lecturer on health, healthcare policy, entrepreneurship, and human potential throughout his career. Beyond his career, Ben’s passions include his family of three adult children and eight adult grandchildren, along with lifelong avocations for physical fitness, travel, reading, human potential, the future, and education. ________________________ For More on Ben Lytle The Potentialist: The Pursuit of Wisdom Website – potentialistfuture.com ________________________ Mentioned in This Podcast Episode The Many Ways WSJ Readers Use AI in Their Everyday Lives ________________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Retiring: Creating a Life That Works for You – Teresa Amabile The Art of the Interesting – Lorraine Besser, PhD Turning the Page in Retirement – Stephen Riggio Your Next Act – Robert B. Tucker __________________________ Wise Quotes On Refining, Not Retiring “…this started about 20 years ago. I had recently stepped down. I’ve never really retired. I have refined and I’ll explain that. But I had stepped down from Anthem and I was asked to write an article about what it was like to be running this gigantic enterprise and then suddenly go be doing startups and all other kinds of things, wilderness hiking and all kinds of things. And I wrote the title of the article, and ended up being in search of a phase name because I felt that at that time I didn’t have the word yet. But I said, you know, I don’t see anybody retired in the industrial age concept. The concept was you work, you retire and then you die about three or four years later, but you have a few years there. Well, it’s not that way anymore. First of all, we live a lot longer. And so we’re essentially increasingly changing careers or changing our direction in life in in midlife, almost midlife or at the two-thirds point. You’re not down within the 10 yard line. And so it’s really changed. And so it does need a new definition. And so it hit me a few years ago about when I was writing the first book, the word refinement and to me, Joe, refinement means this is the age of discovery.” On Experimenting “Earlier in life we expect we can just do it because we want to do it. Find out what lights you up. Find that creative core. And then you have to be patient when you have to experiment. I experimented with a whole bunch of things before I found what I was going to do in this next part of my life. And it’s okay, but I didn’t like that. I didn’t like that. You know what? Okay, I like this. Take risks. One of the most beautiful things about this stage in life is I hope all your listeners hear, I know I am, I don’t care what anybody thinks.” On Wisdom “Wisdom to me is a very clear process. First of all, you can just clear off the table what it is not. It is not age. We speak of people wise beyond their years. We say out of the mouths of babes. So even children can express wisdom and that’s science. It’s also not knowledge. Like age, knowledge helps because you do get some barnacles just by living. You learn a little bit. That doesn’t make you wise. And we all know some older people who are definitely not wise. But it’s not knowledge directly either. Some people who are very simple people have a way of seeing life as it really is and living life as it really is. And they may be very uneducated, but they’re wise. And I know some of them very well. And they’re actually fascinating people. It’s not IQ. It’s not traditional measures of success, money, fame, power, social status. We can find fools in all of those. But what it is, it is what I love. The classical definition for wisdom is so beautiful. It’s poetic. It’s the art of living well. Is that fabulous? It’s the art of living well.” On Living Well and Wisely “Well, then that begs the question, how do you live well? You make wise decisions throughout your life, wiser than most other people, wiser than you would have ever made had you not pursued being wise. Okay, that’s good. Well, then how do you make wise decisions? It’s got two parts to it. One, if you develop the capacity for wisdom, that’s the preparation for wisdom. That’s where you can actually learn this stuff. So you develop this capacity for wisdom your entire life and you get wiser and wiser as you’re accumulating. And that’s where knowledge can play a part. But then in the moment of decision, you have to be free of those things that will cause you to act unwisely. And that formula right there is what causes even wise people like Gandhi to have made bad decisions at times, unwise decisions – not bad, unwise. Because our church here, they were incredibly wise people, but in the moment of decision, something got them and they got or distracted them and they didn’t act wisely. So what is the capacity for wisdom then that we’re developing? That’s perspective, learning to get above the day to day, the bird’s eye view, see the forest instead of the trees, look back in time to how I got here, look at today clearly, see reality clearly, and look forward. That’s perspective. That’s really important. I would say that’s the biggest missing element in most people when they act unwisely. The second is seeing reality. You think, Wow, I see reality. What are you talking about? Well, hang on a minute. Our good old ego, our not so good old ego, the negative part of the ego has around 20 plus distortions that it gives us to look at life through. So see the lens you’re looking at. Address those, either by your experiences or somebody helping you, or you can actually go out and read about them.” ______________________ About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy.

It’s Thanksgiving here in the US. And there’s always a lot we can be grateful for – if we’re paying attention. This Best Of episode spins through a few of our guests who shared their experiences, insights and wisdom about gratitude. Often they found gratitude to be extremely valuable in times of adversity in their lives. I think they just might inspire you to keep gratitude going long after your tryptophan-induced nap on Thursday. If any of the clips on gratitude intrigue you, click on the links below to listen to the full conversations. Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving! _____________________ Mentioned in This Episode Get ready for that relative coming to your Thanksgiving table who sees the negative in everything: Whatever It Is I’m Against It _____________________ Links to the Full Conversations Kristi Nelson – Wake Up Grateful Brad Aronson – Changing the World One Small Act at a Time Steven Petrow – The Joy You Make Michael O’Brien – My Last Bad Day ______________________ retirementwisdom.com Check out our recommended Best Books on Retirement

Is 2025 your year? Join our Design Your New Life in Retirement Program – two new groups start in January. Early registration discount ends November 30th | Only a few spots left. Learn more ______________________ When you’re retiring, you think of what you’re leaving. Your work. Your paycheck. Your office. Your colleagues. But what’s next? There are many benefits to taking on something new. Something that’s challenging, and maybe even out of the box. Stephen Riggio shares his experience. Stephen Riggio joins us from New York. _______________________ Bio Stephen Riggio is a visionary leader and former CEO of Barnes & Noble, where he played a crucial role in its transformation into the largest bookselling chain in the United States. His extensive career in the book industry, spanning over four decades, includes pioneering work in e-commerce and publishing. Beyond corporate endeavors, Riggio is deeply engaged in philanthropy, working with organizations like the National Book Foundation and the National Down Syndrome Society. In recent years, Riggio has turned his focus to translating and promoting classic Sicilian literature, especially the “Sicilian Avengers” series. _______________________ For More on Stephen Riggio Sicilian Avengers: Book One Sicilian Avengers: Book Two _______________________ Podcast Episodes You May Like Retiring: Creating a Life That Works for You – Teresa Amabile Passion and Purpose – Jim Ansara The Art of the Interesting – Lorraine Besser, PhD Unretired – Mark S. Walton _______________________ Wise Quotes On Turning the Page and Taking On Something New “I think what you can let go of is, fortunately, you let go of the stress. And you get all of the adrenaline of something that is new. When I refer to stress, I don’t mean the type of stress that is debilitating. People would often ask me when I was in business, it’s an age-old question, Steve, what keeps you up at night? And I would say a good book because business was an all consuming thing, but there’s a point where you do have to let it go to take care of your personal life and your family, your wife and kids. But I think it is true that once you do turn that page, you can let go of that stress. And it’s a type of freedom that is very uplifting. And then if you happen to be fortunate enough to find something that you can latch onto and dig into, then that adrenaline is something that is different than you experienced in work.” On Taking On Something New Together “A tragic event was the cause of me learning and getting back into the language. All happy families who are alike, all grieving families, breathe in their own way. What I was looking for was a way for my wife, Laura and I to move forward. It was a year or two after that that I came up with the idea of both of us studying the Italian language together. It would be something to do together, to jump into, and we did it.” On Opening New Doors “It does open up a new door to your life. In some respects, when you have a career, you’re pointing in a direction. Usually people like to climb the career ladder. They want more responsibility and greater financial rewards. In this particular case, it was a door that I opened that I didn’t know where it would lead. So with the idea of something that is a little bit uncertain and unexpected there’s a serendipitous aspect of it that I think is very appealing. When I started taking lessons with my wife, we did it together, we didn’t know that we would discover my ancestry going back 400 years, that we would meet distant relatives, they’d become very close to us that I would discover things about my family I never knew, and then that I would translate a book. So it’s a door that was open and I don’t know where it would lead.” _______________________ About Retirement Wisdom I help people who are retiring, but aren’t quite done yet, discover what’s next and build their custom version of their next life. A meaningful retirement doesn’t just happen by accident. Schedule a call today to discuss how The Designing Your Life process created by Bill Burnett & Dave Evans can help you make your life in retirement a great one – on your own terms. About Your Podcast Host  Joe Casey is an executive coach who also helps people design their next life after their primary career and create their version of The Multipurpose Retirement.™ He created his own next chapter after a twenty-six-year career at Merrill Lynch, where he was Senior Vice President and Head of HR for Global Markets & Investment Banking. Today, in addition to his work with clients, Joe hosts The Retirement Wisdom Podcast, which thanks to his guests and loyal listeners, ranks in the top 1 % globally in popularity by Listen Notes, with over 1.5 million downloads. Business Insider has recognized Joe as one of 23 innovative coaches who are making a difference. He’s the author of Win the Retirement Game: How to Outsmart the 9 Forces Trying to Steal Your Joy.