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Retirement Reboot: Commonsense Financial Strategies for Getting Back on Track

Americans approaching retirement age today have experienced some particularly frightening economic waves. During the Great Recession in 2009 and the COVID-19 pandemic of the early 2020s, older Americans experienced higher rates of job loss than younger ones – and many never fully recovered. Today, the uncertainty caused by high inflation and the possibility of another recession has led to exceedingly difficult economic circumstances for millions.

Retirement Reboot: Commonsense Financial Strategies for Getting Back on Track walks readers through a short course of decisions that you can make now to improve your financial security in retirement —even if it’s just a few years away.

You’ll learn just how critical it is to make a retirement plan – and the critical importance of timing your retirement. How to optimize Social Security and Medicare benefits. How to build savings – even late in the game. I also explore ways to tap home equity, how older workers should approach career management and financing long-term care needs.

Miller’s knowledgeable guidance will offer both reassurance and an action plan. Buy this book!

-Helaine olen, the washington post

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Listen to a podcast series about my new book, Retirement Reboot

Listen to a series of podcasts focused on the key themes of Retirement Reboot: Commonsense Financial Strategies for Getting Back on Track. The six episodes feature conversations with expert guests discussing Social Security, Medicare, saving for retirement and more. Listen to the podcasts using the links below – you’ll need to sign up for my free Substack newsletter. Or, subscribe to the podcast anytime on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or IHeart Radio.

• Introduction: An overview of the book featuring a conversation with Chris Farrell, senior economics contributor for Marketplace, the public radio program. Chris wrote the foreward to Retirement Reboot.
• Let’s Make a Plan. Far too many people don’t take the time to make an actual financial plan for retirement – and that’s a real misstep. If you don’t have a plan, it’s impossible to know whether you are on track to meet your goals. My guests are Steve Chen, the founder of New Retirement, and Steve Vernon, the well-known retirement educator and author.
• Optimizing Social Security. For most of us, Social Security will be the most important retirement benefit – full stop. Decisions about when to claim can make a big difference in your lifetime income. For this episode, I invited two of the most knowledgeable people I know on the topic of Social Security claiming. Mary Beth Franklin is a contributing editor at Investment News magazine, specializing in Social Security, Medicare and Retirement income. Bill Reichenstein is a professor of investment management at Baylor University, a co-founder of Social Security Solutions – a company that has developed a terrific set of online software tools that help individuals and financial professionals sort through claiming decisions. He is the co-author of a book titled Social Security Strategies: How to Optimize Retirement Benefits. 
•  Navigating Medicare. Along with Social Security, there’s nothing that will have a more important impact on your retirement security than making smart choices about navigating Medicare. Joining me are two top Medicare experts: Tricia Neuman, executive director of the Medicare program at the Kaiser Family Foundation, and Fred Riccardi, president of the Medicare Rights Center.
• Building Savings. Starting as early as possible is the name of the game when it comes to saving for retirement. But if you’re getting close to retirement and haven’t been able to save much, don’t despair: it is still possible to build significant savings late in the game. Joining me to discuss catch-up strategies and smart, simple approaches to saving for retirement is Christine Benz, director of personal finance at Morningstar.
• Toward a New Social Insurance Era. When I hear from readers who are worried about the future of Social Security or Medicare, their questions and comments often take a passive tone—“what will happen to me if they cut my benefits,” or “what happens if they allow the Social Security trust funds to become insolvent.” But Retirement Reboot is a book about action steps you can take to improve your personal retirement outlook. Social Security and Medicare have both played critical roles in improving the lives of millions of Americans, but as has happened throughout their history, these programs need to change, and do more. Or, better put: We need to advocate for changes in these programs so that they can serve us better. Joining me are Nancy Altman of Social Security Works and Judith Stein, executive director and founder of the Center for Medicare Advocacy.

The best way to get the RetirementRevised podcast is by subscribing to my free newsletter – the podcast comes embedded in the newsletter, delivered direct to your inbox. You can also subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or IHeart Radio.

Retirement Reboot is the best book you can buy today about personal financial planning for retirement.

Terry savage, nationally syndicated financial columnist