Give us a call! 303-922-4304 www.AnnVanderslice.com Hours: 8-5 M-F
JUNE 2018
HEALTHY, WEALTHY,
&Wise
1 Denver Federal Center Building 45, Entrance E-9, Room 1050 Lakewood, CO 80225
How to Maximize
YOUR RETURN ON RETIREMENT
I recently invited Dr. Alex Pattakos and his wife, Elaine Dundon, to give a talk to federal employees about creating meaning within public service. They wrote a book called “The OPA! Way: Finding Joy & Meaning in Everyday Life & Work” and are experts on providing tips to people struggling to find purpose in their work. While their wisdom applies to people from all walks of life, I think it’s especially instructive to those working in public service. Federal employees often feel they are in a profession where things happen to them. Policies change, administrations turn over, and there’s no promise that tomorrow will be the same as today. That’s a lot to reckon with, but you can overcome these challenges with the right mindset. If you focus on the factors you CAN control rather than those you can’t, you’ll find it much easier to recognize the joyful aspects of your work. Everyone has managers over their work on some scale, and very few of us have total autonomy. Remember that the next time work has you down. After their talk, I realized how much of Alex’s and Elaine’s talk could be applied to people who are transitioning into retirement. I can’t tell you how many people I speak with who struggle with enjoying their post-work years. You would
think that would be the easy part, but all too often it’s not. Much of this mindset comes down to the way we’re taught to think about retirement.
Instead of thinking about life after work exclusively in economic terms, I encourage people to consider their retirement as a return on an investment. You’ve saved all this money for many years. When will you enjoy it? In my experience, there’s no better time than when you retire to turn that faucet on. I’m not saying you should spend wildly and without discretion. Instead, ask yourself what’s important to you and how your savings can work toward that. Maybe it’s charitable giving, helping out your grandkids, or traveling. Money doesn’t have value unless we use it as a tool to live the life we want. When I speak to clients, I sometimes feel like they’re seeking permission to spend. The bottom line is that if you’ve saved smartly, you’ve already given yourself that permission. The best years of life are right in front of you. Don’t let them go to waste. In closing, I want to ask you what your return on retirement looks like. Find that purpose, that thing you’ve been waiting to do, and do it. Otherwise, you may look back on the years immediately after you retire wondering what could’ve been. It’s up to you to make that meaning and live life to the fullest. So what are you waiting for?
When we’re working, retirement planning involves saving as much as you possibly can. Like it or not, we usually think of retirement in terms of economics. Will I have enough money to take care of myself and my loved ones? Will I outlive my savings? What happens to my savings if I get sick? These are all valid questions, but they shouldn’t cloud the fact that retirement should also be about joy. WORK YEARS. YOU WOULD THINK THAT WOULD BE THE EASY PART, BUT ALL TOO OFTEN IT’S NOT. I CAN’T TELL YOU HOW MANY PEOPLE I SPEAK WITH WHO STRUGGLE WITH ENJOYING THEIR POST-
–Ann Vanderslice
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From a Great Job to a Great Retirement With nearly 45 years of public service in the field of natural resources, it’s clear that Don Bruns had a fulfilling career. “I loved my job,” he says. “In fact, DON BRUNS ISN’T LOOKING BACK
I stayed on as long as I did hoping to see projects three great colleagues and I were working on succeed.” Even when you have a rewarding, fruitful working life, there comes a time when you’re ready to begin your next chapter. “I received a belated birthday call from a friend not long after I turned 65,” Don recalls. “In his message, he said something
that stuck with me: ’Watch your time.’ I wasn’t quite sure what he meant, so I brought it up when I called him back. ‘You don’t have as much time as you may think,’ he told me. That message made me think again. Eventually, Don felt the time was right and made the decision to retire.
Rekindling his dormant passion is far from the only thing keeping Don busy. “I’ve been spending a lot of time reading, teaching some Bible studies, and getting some outdoor recreation in,” he adds. “I want to learn music, too. More generally, I’m enjoying seeing my house during daylight hours and getting reacquainted with my wife.” Does Don feel like retirement has allowed him to devote more of his energy to family time? “You’d have to ask Cheryl about that,” he says. Cheryl, Don’s wife of 43 years, concurs. “It’s so nice to do more things together,” she replies. “I still work a few days per week, but our time together has increased so much.” That’s right, even with a more-than-full plate, Don has been working with Littleton residents attempting to preserve the defining character and natural beauty of his city. “In fact,” he tells us, “I may be spending a little too much time on that.” Don came to know Ann through a seminar. “To be perfectly honest, most of us who work in natural resources are stupid when it comes to finances,” Don says. “Our HR department would bring in speakers to help, but most felt like hucksters to me. Ann was obviously different: she understands federal employees as well as finances inside-out. I’ve asked her a million questions, and she’s never been anything but honest and always extremely helpful. She’s given me all sorts of tips and tactics to make the most of the money I’ve saved. She’s even helped Cheryl plan for her retirement. Whenever I see Ann, I tell her, ‘Don’t you dare quit.’” Ann and the entire team at Retirement Planning Strategies are honored to work with clients like Don and Cheryl Bruns. Seeing people make the most of their lives after work is one of our main goals as a company. There’s no doubt that Don is doing just that.
Don is now enjoying his retirement just as much as he did his career. “It’s going great,” he says with a laugh. “I don’t have to get up at 3:20 a.m. anymore!” Aside from sleeping a few more hours, Don has kept busy pursuing his passions. “I was supposed to be an architect,” he notes. “I escaped chronic asthma and found health in Colorado’s high country, and the rest is history. Yet I couldn’t get drawing and building out of my system. Since retiring, I’ve been able to redesign a deck rebuild, make some furniture, and catch up many home projects.”
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Improve Cognitive Function in Minutes
HOW MEDITATION HELPS YOU MAINTAIN BRAIN HEALTH
THE AMYGDALA Often called the fear center of the brain, the amygdala is triggered by stressful situations. But unlike the hippocampus, which shrinks in response to stress, the amygdala has been shown to become denser. In one study, people who attended mindfulness meditation classes showed a smaller stress response in brain scans compared to those who did not attend the classes. Meditation may help to decrease the density of the amygdala and therefore increase your ability to handle stress. Of course, in addition to these benefits, there’s a good chance that five minutes of meditation each day will simply make you feel better. People who meditate report an increase in overall well-being. Why not give it a try?
Meditation has often been touted by New Age gurus as a way to find inner peace and stillness. But what if meditating could reduce the effects of aging on your brain? According to research, taking a few minutes out of your day to meditate may improve cognitive function. As meditation’s popularity has spread, so have studies of the practice. The results of 100 studies examining the cognitive effects of meditation all show evidence of improvements in psychological and cognitive functions. Some of the results are intuitive, such as how meditation helps us deal with stress. But other results are incontrovertible, such as scans showing that meditation causes structural changes in the brain. For people facing age-related changes like memory loss, the results of these tests are especially relevant. Studies point to evidence that meditation can strengthen certain areas of the brain; the prefrontal
cortex, the hippocampus, and the amygdala — areas that weaken as we age.
THE PREFRONTAL CORTEX Your prefrontal cortex thins with age, which is associated with decreased cognitive function in your later years. However, meditation may reduce this age-related thinning. Dr. Sara Lazar, a neuroscientist specializing in the effects of yoga and meditation on cognitive and behavioral function, reports that long- time meditators don’t show a decline in the thickness of the prefrontal cortex. THE HIPPOCAMPUS Your hippocampus helps you process and form new memories, and it’s very sensitive to stress. In fact, research shows that your hippocampus will shrink in response to stressful situations as well as chronic stress. The remedy? Meditation. Dr. Lazar’s study showed a positive correlation between meditation and a higher concentration of gray matter in the left hippocampus.
Train Your
BRAIN!
SPICY CHIMICHURRI Grilled Cheese
Inspired by naturallyella.com
INGREDIENTS
For sandwiches: • 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 jalapeños • 4 green onions • 1/2 cup cilantro • 1 clove garlic • 2 tablespoons olive oil • Juice of 1 lime • 2 teaspoons honey
• 1 ripe avocado, cut into slices • 2–4 ounces fresh mozzarella • 4 slices whole-wheat bread
DIRECTIONS
each slice of bread. Place a layer of avocado and cheese between slices. 3. Cook gently until bread is crisp and cheese is melted. 4. Slice and serve.
1. Pulse chimichurri ingredients in a food processor or blender until combined but not puréed. Add extra olive oil as needed. 2. Heat grill or skillet to medium-low. Brush outsides of bread with olive oil. Smear 1 tablespoon chimichurri on
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issue INSIDE THIS
A Change of Mindset During Retirement PAGE 1
A Constructive Retirement Story PAGE 2
How Meditation Can Help the Aging Brain Spicy Chimichurri Grilled Cheese PAGE 3
Cut Down on Flight Costs With This Simple Rule PAGE 4 THE BEST TIME TO BOOK A FLIGHT
try to book 55–75 days out, and book on a Sunday. Many travelers swear by Tuesday and Wednesday bookings, but as Condé Nast Traveler reports, Expedia and the Airlines Reporting Corporation say that Sunday is the best day to book a flight, based on data from billions of transactions. Tuesday and Wednesday are usually the cheapest days to actually fly, though. The CheapAir.com study also pinpoints the absolute best windows for specific seasons: 54 days for winter trips, 75 days for spring, 76 days for summer, and 45 days for fall. Of course, these are averages, but if you stick to these guidelines and check fares regularly on sites like Kayak.com, SkyScanner.com, Momondo.com, and on the handy app Hopper, you can rest easy knowing you’re getting close to the best price possible.
In case you haven’t noticed, traveling is expensive . It can feel like you’re signing away your soul when you sit down to plan a vacation. But when it comes to flights, there’s good news: They’re getting less expensive! According to a 2017 report published by online travel company ODIGEO, long- distance trips across Europe fell seven percent last year. Luckily, the same trend is reflected in North American airfares as airlines engage in a price war to woo a growing base of ultra-frugal travelers. Save Big on Airfare With This Simple Rule
Still, a $600 summer flight to Honolulu isn’t exactly pocket change. What’s worse, flight prices are slippery; CheapAir. com’s 2017 Annual Airfare Study determined that the fares for any given trip go up or down an average of 71 times, about $33 each time there is a change. When you purchase your flight is nearly as important as where you’re going. But how do you choose a booking window that will maximize your savings? According to the CheapAir.com study, in which they evaluated 921 million airfares, the best time to book is, on average, 21–105 days in advance of your flight. If you want to get even more specific,
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