How One Overlooked Issue Can Sink Your Retirement
Caffeine And Cash Flow with Michael Schulte
Release Date: 02/15/2024
Caffeine And Cash Flow with Michael Schulte
When the market feels unpredictable, your plan shouldn’t be. If you’re worried about the volatility and how you’re invested, now might be the time to step back and reassess your strategies to ensure we are adequately prepared for whatever the market throws our way. In this episode, Michael shares a structured, three-bucket approach to help investors navigate volatility and prepare for retirement with confidence. Drawing on lessons from the 2008 financial crisis and current market headwinds, we’ll explain how to allocate your assets across growth, guaranteed income, and liquidity to...
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Tariffs are back in the headlines—and so is market volatility. But is this a reason to panic or just another chapter in a long financial story? In this episode of Caffeine & Cash Flow, Michael Schulte walks through five historical periods of U.S. tariffs—from the Smoot-Hawley Act of the 1930s to recent measures under Presidents Trump and Biden—and reveals how markets performed during each era. The good news: it’s not all doom and gloom. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: 📉 What happened during the 1930s Smoot-Hawley tariffs 📈 How the market reacted under...
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You’ve heard the term “diversification” countless times—but are you actually doing it right? As the financial landscape continues to evolve, understanding how to properly diversify your investment portfolio is more crucial than ever. In this episode, we’re going to get into the investing fundamentals we consistently stick to in order to help achieve the highest probability of success. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: 📊 Diversification ≠ Just owning a few different stocks 📉 Most portfolios are too heavily tilted toward large-cap tech 🏦 Own the full...
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March Madness is here, and just like filling out a bracket, picking individual stocks can feel like a thrilling gamble. But the odds of winning big are slim. In fact, history shows that most stock picks, like most brackets, end up busted. Many investors can’t resist chasing big wins, even though diversification is a smarter play. One economist, Hendrik Bessembinder, analyzed the returns of nearly a century of stock performance. Let’s compare to and uncover what March Madness can teach us about investing! Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: What Hendrik...
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Today we’re going to piggyback of our conversation in the last episode by focusing in on recency bias and show you how the concept plays itself out among investors. As Michael will explain, recency bias is the tendency to give more weight to the most recent information when making decisions, which can often lead to skewed perceptions and poor financial choices. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: A look at the numbers from stock returns since 1928. Treasury bill rates are indicative of what you could be receiving inside money market accounts. We're almost right at historical...
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As we begin a new year, it’s helpful to reflect on our financial habits and the biases that may influence them. By understanding and mitigating these biases, we can make more informed decisions and set ourselves up for greater financial success. In this episode, Michael will highlight the most common cognitive biases that he sees in people, which is a topic that could reshape how you approach your financial decisions. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: Why biases play a huge role in what we do with finances and there are actually 175 cognitive biases. The fear of...
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In this festive episode of Caffeine and Cash Flow, Michael guides you through the 12 Days of Financial Wellness. Discover essential tips on managing assets, liabilities, protection, and cash flow as you prepare your balance sheet for the new year. Whether you're planning for personal property, savings, investments, or understanding liabilities, this episode provides practical advice to enhance your financial health. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: Protecting your balance sheet. The different categories of assets. How to view different types of debt and other liabilities....
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As we approach the new year, it's essential to stay informed about the financial changes that could impact your retirement planning. The latest episode of the Caffeine and Cash Flow podcast will provide you with updates for 2025, focusing on pension and retirement plan contribution limits. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: The maximum amounts you can put into different types of IRAs. Should you be maxing out the catch-up contributions? Something that’s brand new for 2025. Social Security COLA increase and other changes to benefits. The gift tax exclusion is going up as well....
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We’ll continue with part two of our conversation on how the economy has grown under previous presidential administrations. In the previous episode, we discussed some of the more recent administrations, but this time we’ll go back deeper into history and take a good look at older data. Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: How inflation factors into growth for certain asset classes. How WWII tied into the economic recovery out of the Great Depression. Stock markets generally stayed strong during the Depression and through the war. Building a portfolio that’s resistant to...
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With the election behind us, we now know that former President Trump will have another four years in the White House. While that could mean policy shifts in all sorts of areas, we want to focus on how it may impact the economy so Michael will take a deep dive into the data on different economic growth factors, and what the numbers have looked like under both Republican and Democratic administrations over the years. In part one of this two-part conversation, we’ll break down how the stock market and the economy are not necessarily the same thing, and how they don’t always go hand in hand....
info_outlineImagine your retirement plan as a ship sailing toward a horizon of rest and relaxation. But what if one leak could sink it all?
In today’s episode, we spotlight some of the single oversights that could send your dreams to the bottom. We'll share key strategies to plug the gaps, ensuring your financial ship stays buoyant and on course. Tune in to protect your future from the one mistake that could derail everything.
Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:
- The possibility of outliving your money and planning strategies that help you create steady income in retirement.
- How do you address the relentless creep of inflation.
- The importance of considering long-term care costs in retirement planning.
- The potential impact of market volatility and the investment strategies to help mitigate risk.
- The threat of rising taxes on retirement.
Learn more: https://caffeinecashflow.com/
Get in touch with Michael-
Web: https://www.westpacwealth.com/team/michael-schulte
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 702-767-4897