The Master’s Minute

Helpful Tools and Tips

The Master’s Minute – Mastering Bucketing: Your Retirement Time-Segmented Strategy

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The words "income streams" on a post-it, for retirees considering creation of reliable income.

Retirement isn’t a single event—it’s a journey that unfolds over time, with evolving needs, goals, and market conditions. That’s where bucketing, a time-segmented investment strategy, becomes invaluable.   By dividing your assets into distinct “buckets” based on time horizon and purpose, you can align investments, withdrawals, and risk in a way that brings clarity, confidence, and control.  Last week, we explored two retirees, Bob and Alice, who had identical investor… Read More

The Master’s Minute – Same Returns, Different Outcomes: Retirement Risk Awareness (Sequence of Returns)

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Retirees talking to their advisor about the sequence of returns risk

Bob and Alice are fictional retirees who will help us explore how market conditions can impact even the best planned retirements. Both retired after working hard and following careful saving strategies for their later years.   Both of them are values driven and both of them are investing in the same things. They even enter retirement with the same amount of money.   However, Bob is facing the results of… Read More

The Master’s Minute – Maxed Out Your Retirement Account? Here Is What You Should Do Next!

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High earning professionals talk to their financial planner about their maxed out retirement accounts.

For most high-income professionals, the first step in a long-term savings strategy is to fund an employer-sponsored retirement account (such as a 401K or SIMPLE IRA).  There are several ways that you can position the income you have earmarked for retirement savings, often in accounts that have tax advantages, such as Traditional and Roth IRAs, but there are other options as well.   Each of these options offers unique benefits… Read More

The Master’s Minute – It’s Time for a Family Meeting!

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Older adults talk to their adult children during a family meeting regarding financial health.

Several weeks from now, Colleen and I will host our children and their spouses for our inaugural Family Financial Meeting. We feel it is the right time to start this valuable practice!   They are all in the 30-40 age bracket, making wise financial decisions, and living lives consistent with our faith and values. During this time together, we will share our financial story, talk about God’s faithfulness, and the… Read More

The Master’s Minute – Navigating Adversity: A Journey of Reflection and Renewal

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Couple approaching retirement smile together, they faced adversity well.

Adversity looks different to many of us, from a lost job or new career path to health issues and natural disasters that impact our business or family. What the term holds in common for all of us, though, is that we will face situations that are difficult to resolve. I recently met with a couple reflecting on their journey. About eight years ago, the husband unexpectedly lost his well-paying corporate… Read More