Six Minutes of Wisdom

This podcast is a series of conversations between members of the JS Group at Baird. The team members include: Randy Stary, CFP® and Senior Investment Consultant at Baird; Cynthia Schoen, CFP® and Ross Johnson, CFP®. Six Minutes of Wisdom focuses on investments, financial planning and personal finance. The intent is to keep the conversations short and meaningful.

Headline Havoc 03/17/2025

Headline Havoc We’ve seen a lot of volatility in the market this year and the headlines in the news are only inflating concerns. Ross and Cynthia take this opportunity to touch on navigating the negativity and maintaining composure in uncertain market conditions. /episode/index/show/stary/id/35699855

One Year Look Back 02/18/2025

One Year Look Back It’s been one year since Randy’s retirement. On this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Randy joins Ross to look back on his process of succession planning and retirement. /episode/index/show/stary/id/35289045

Reflections and Resolutions 01/16/2025

Reflections and Resolutions With the new year upon us, Ross and Cynthia discuss the process of reflection on the past and forming new habits to generate positive change for the future. /episode/index/show/stary/id/34851700

Crucial Conversations 12/19/2024

Crucial Conversations As Christmas quickly approaches, Ross and Cynthia reflect on some of the conversations that may arise while gathering with family and friends during the Holiday season. While these conversations can sometimes be difficult, they are crucial to ensuring our loved ones get the care they need. /episode/index/show/stary/id/34488055

Giving Thanks 11/15/2024

Giving Thanks The season of Thanksgiving is upon us once again! On this month's episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross, Cynthia, Kristi and Preston discuss what they're most thankful for this year. /episode/index/show/stary/id/33931062

Snowbirds 10/21/2024

Snowbirds On this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross and Cynthia are joined by a special guest that discusses his considerations and experiences on becoming a “snowbird”. /episode/index/show/stary/id/33504642

Estate Planning Essentials 09/16/2024

Estate Planning Essentials On this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross and Cynthia are joined by Senior Estate Planner Jim Guckenberg to discuss some of the essentials to the estate planning process. /episode/index/show/stary/id/32947487

Handling Volatility 08/15/2024

Handling Volatility With the recent volatility in the market, Ross and Cynthia take this opportunity to discuss some of the reasons behind this volatility and how to appropriately handle it. /episode/index/show/stary/id/32516717

To Break, or Not to Break? 07/15/2024

To Break, or Not to Break? Let’s play a game! In this month’s installment of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross and Cynthia discuss some common rules of thumb on managing finances and they both weigh in on whether or not these rules should be broken. /episode/index/show/stary/id/32113482

The Downside of Delayed Gratification 06/17/2024

The Downside of Delayed Gratification In this month’s installment of Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross and Cynthia discuss the delicate balance between delayed gratification and spending your savings to reap the benefits. /episode/index/show/stary/id/31751077

529 Day 05/15/2024

529 Day May 29th is 529 day! Tune in to this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom where Ross and Cynthia discuss 529s, financial aid, and some of the recent regulation changes. /episode/index/show/stary/id/31217007

Magic Number 04/17/2024

Magic Number How much money do you need to retire? How long will it take to get there? Tune in to this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom where Ross and Cynthia discuss the topic of the “Magic Number”. Click the picture below to listen! /episode/index/show/stary/id/30751608

Considerations for Tax Season 03/18/2024

Considerations for Tax Season With tax season in full swing, this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom features Ross and Cynthia who discuss a few topics to consider when it comes to taxes. /episode/index/show/stary/id/30292328

The Early Days of Retirement 02/15/2024

The Early Days of Retirement On this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, special guest Randy Stary joins Ross and Cynthia to discuss his transition into retirement. /episode/index/show/stary/id/29906733

The Good and the Bad 01/16/2024

The Good and the Bad Tune in to this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom. This time, Ross and Cynthia discuss some of the highlights and lowlights of last year and some things to look forward to in the year ahead. /episode/index/show/stary/id/29509058

Randy's Ruminations 12/15/2023

Randy's Ruminations As Randy’s time at Baird nears its end, he thinks back to some of the harder times and the lessons learned over the years. /episode/index/show/stary/id/29078828

Gratefulness 11/15/2023

Gratefulness It’s that time of year again! Tune in to this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom where the team discusses some of the things on their minds that they are grateful for this year. /episode/index/show/stary/id/28546037

I Wish I Knew Then... 10/16/2023

I Wish I Knew Then... You know what they say.. Hindsight is 20/20. Tune in to this month's episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom where Cynthia, Ross and Randy discuss some of the things they know now that they wish they knew then. /episode/index/show/stary/id/28280594

50! 09/15/2023

50! Join Ross, Cynthia and Randy for a special episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom! This time, the group joins guest speaker Michael Antonelli as they discuss pickleball, investing and more! /episode/index/show/stary/id/27949536

Back to School 08/17/2023

Back to School It’s almost time to send our kids back to school! With that in mind, Cynthia, Ross and Randy discuss a few different tax-advantaged strategies that can be used to save for college expenses. /episode/index/show/stary/id/27748551

The 40-Year Milestone 07/19/2023

The 40-Year Milestone On this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom, someone on the team is hitting an important milestone! Cynthia, Ross and Randy also touch on saving over time and the power of compounding. /episode/index/show/stary/id/27491826

First-Time Home Buying 06/15/2023

First-Time Home Buying This month on Six Minutes of Wisdom, Ross, Cynthia and Randy are joined by Preston to discuss the process of buying a home! The team discusses mortgage rates, house pricing and much more. *Disclosure: Baird does not provide tax, legal or real estate advice and does not provide or service mortgages.* /episode/index/show/stary/id/27137979

CD Laddering 05/15/2023

CD Laddering This time on Six Minutes of Wisdom, Cynthia, Ross and Randy discuss the strategy of laddering bonds and CDs and how effective this can be in an environment with high interest rates. /episode/index/show/stary/id/26815392

Spring Cleaning 04/17/2023

Spring Cleaning Tune-in to this month's episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom. This time, Ross and Cynthia are on to discuss the topic of Spring Cleaning as it pertains to our finances and a particular tool that Baird provides to help with this. /episode/index/show/stary/id/26522349

Tax Windfall - Save It or Spend It? 03/15/2023

Tax Windfall - Save It or Spend It? Are you getting a tax refund this year? What will you do with it? Tune-in to this month’s episode of Six Minutes of Wisdom where Ross, Cynthia and Randy discuss taxes and what to do with your refund. /episode/index/show/stary/id/26218137

Changing the Oil 02/15/2023

Changing the Oil Dentist appointments, physicals and the periodic oil change – there are many things in our lives that need our attention on a regular basis. One of those things that we should be checking in on is our 401k! In this episode, Ross, Cynthia and Randy discuss the importance of monitoring our 401k and what we can be doing to keep it running smoothly. /episode/index/show/stary/id/25749000

Retiring Into a Potential Recession 01/16/2023

Retiring Into a Potential Recession Randy’s retirement is now less than a year away! With that in mind, the team discusses the market outlook for the coming year and how a potential recession could impact retirement preparation. /episode/index/show/stary/id/25576917

Tales from the Crypt-O 12/19/2022

Tales from the Crypt-O With the recent news of the FTX debacle, Ross, Cynthia and Randy discuss cryptocurrencies and other speculative investments and stress the importance of sticking to the meat and potatoes. /episode/index/show/stary/id/25312776

Grateful 11/15/2022

Grateful Thanksgiving is nearly upon us! In the spirit of the season, the team discusses everything they have to be grateful for, the benefits of being grateful, and how they practice this virtue in the workplace. /episode/index/show/stary/id/24747978

Making Lemonade 10/14/2022

Making Lemonade With the recent market volatility, it’s easy to develop a negative attitude, but there are still things we can be doing to remain productive. Click the picture below to listen to Ross, Cynthia, and Randy discuss what we can be doing to make the most out of a bear market. /episode/index/show/stary/id/24607284

Six Minutes of Wisdom

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