It's Never Too Late: Getting Older, Wiser, and Worry Free in Our Golden Years

by Scott Page

Overview

"It’s Never too Late" could save (the rest of) your life.

We’re all going to die. Jolting, yes, but an important truth we must face because most people, when left to their own devices, choose the easier path of living in fantasy rather than reality. It’s high time we come to terms with our mortality because the outlook for many of us is one of overwhelming fear and horror about the reality of growing old in America. What’s worse, far too many of us are well aware of the dire forecast for our future but feel utterly powerless in its wake. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Towards getting ourselves back on track or helping elder parents and loved ones do the same, Scott Page gives us easy (and even fun) ways to develop a workable plan for living out our lives with greater peace of mind and security regardless of our current age and station in life—leaving us wondering why we didn’t do something about it sooner. With easy, fast-acting steps to restore hope and faith for our future, Scott offers a holistic methodology anyone is fully capable of following if they’re willing to get into motion.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781630476236
Publisher:	Morgan James Publishing
Publication date:	02/02/2016
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 7.80(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Scott Page represents a classic entrepreneurial success story, building a pioneering insurance industry business from the ground up and helping thousands of Americans improve their financial lives. During a 25-year business career, he raised millions of dollars in investment capital from Wall Street but always with an eye on helping average citizens. He is an ongoing contributor to The Huffington Post on retirement issues and a regular guest on Fox Business Network.

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER 1

Reality Check

As so often happens, my own wake-up call on the subject of living well in retirement was a personal one. I remember how devastating it was to witness the hope and faith my parents once had for their golden years shatter and dissolve into disappointment, confusion, mistrust, and fear. It became apparent to me through witnessing their journey that living well in old age hinges on self-sufficiency and independence. If we don't have financial flexibility, we can't make our own decisions, and if we can't make our own decisions, we really can't take care of ourselves.

My father, Tom Page, is a proud yet humble man in his late seventies, a retired steelworker who, like your typical baby boomer, believes in the virtue of hard work. At a party to celebrate his retirement from Bethlehem Steel after forty years with the company, I met many of his co-workers for the first time. It is no exaggeration to say that over the years, my father spent more time with these people than he did with my mother Grace, my late older brother Tracy, my younger sister Becky, and me. He was so dedicated to his job as a master welder that he once joked he wished he had a cot at work so he could stay and nap between shifts.

At his retirement party, his friends told many stories I had never heard, all on the themes of how much he loved his family and how no job was too hard for him. They described how he would crawl into the tightest spaces and climb up the tallest scaffolds to get the job done, feats no one else would dare attempt. It was all living proof of the degree to which he had given his life to the company, and in more ways than one. His lungs were destroyed by asbestos, his joints shackled with severe pain, and his body weakened to the point that any further corrective surgery was deemed too high a risk.

His retirement party was bittersweet. I was so upset when I heard his employers had not planned anything in his honor that I scrambled to rent the Baltimore VFW hall and send out invitations. I wanted to present him with the traditional gold watch, so I gave him my 1963 vintage Rolex (made the year I was born) that I'd bought when I first started earning decent money, engraving it to commemorate the occasion. I salvaged my father's retirement, but the indignity of his treatment by the company he had faithfully served for so many years was trivial compared to what followed.

Just like the old Baltimore Colts notoriously pulled up stakes and left town in the cover of night, America's second largest steel manufacturer also suddenly vanished from the landscape. First went the health care coverage my dad so deserved and needed when the company folded in bankruptcy in 2001 and was sold off. Then the pension plan he had paid into over the years, which had been matched by the company, vaporized. Those were the funds that would have allowed him and my mother to maintain the financial quality of life they had worked so hard to create.

It was all such heartbreak, but it also opened my eyes. You see, what happened to my parents and millions like them could have been prevented with a little more practical foresight and planning. Nonetheless, my parents have never regarded themselves as victims. They are too proud. They are the kind of people who always try to make do, never wanting to ask others for help. But the reality of their situation, had it been left unchecked, is sobering. Without skillful crisis intervention, I am almost certain they would not be alive today because of all the stress. While no one could have foreseen the company's closure or the demise of the pension plan, such events clarify how essential it is to diversify to protect against such events.

The undeniable truth is that there are good reasons to worry about how we are going to survive in our golden years due to our avoidance of the issues and our paralyzing inaction. In addition to the Harris Poll I cited earlier, the media continuously stokes our fears and anxieties with nightmarish facts about how ill-prepared most of us are. Another such report I recently read estimated the mean retirement savings per American household at a paltry $3,000!

In fact, the whole notion of "retirement" is on the endangered species list. This lifestyle enjoyed by our grandparents in the twentieth century and some of our fathers and mothers in decades past is increasingly rare. On a positive note, it does afford an opportunity for innovation.

A new vision is desperately needed, because today's older and aging Americans live under economic and social conditions far different from their parents and grandparents and thus have different needs and desires. First and foremost, people are living longer and have the tools to live healthier, more active, lives. They no longer want to sit at home collecting what once were adequate pensions. At the same time, the nuclear family is no longer the primary defining social structure (as witnessed by the high rates of divorce, remarriage, and the gender equality movement). In turn, this change requires us to challenge many of our outdated assumptions, but none of this is possible until we first turn the mirror on ourselves and take a much-needed personal inventory to get a true handle on our resources and capabilities.

Make no mistake — there were economic challenges back in the days of my grandparents, too. My grandfather used to own gumball machines, and as a child, I would sometimes go around with him to some really seedy places to take care of them. I would help him collect pennies and nickels out of the machines before restocking them with a variety of little trinkets that we placed inside small plastic bubbles. It was a simple business model. As my grandfather explained, "If you can buy it for a nickel and sell it for a dime, you're making money."

I asked him one day, "Paw Paw, you're retired, so why are you out here on Saturday and Sunday mornings doing this?"

He answered, "I've got to take care of myself." This work ethic, conditioned into me by both my grandfather and my father, is that we have to do whatever we can to take care of our families and ourselves. Some of that same spirit of personal responsibility, work ethic, and good old-fashioned common sense will come in handy for you as you roll up your sleeves to tackle whatever mess you're facing.

While I'm on this topic, I want to give a short public service announcement to point out the fact that many older people discount or underestimate the value of their wisdom. I'm not sure if my grandfather was aware of the lifelong influence his "buy it for a nickel, sell it for a dime" statement had on me. Sometimes the examples we set and the advice we give may not feel well received but may stick more than we realize. We shouldn't be discouraged when we don't receive immediate positive affirmation. It goes along with that generosity of spirit idea of giving without any expectation of getting anything back.

Happily, the book you have in your hands right now offers a workable plan for how to live out your life with greater peace of mind and security regardless of your current age and station in life. As long as you are well enough to get out of bed in the morning, you are fully capable of taking more positive control of your destiny. Like going to the gym to lose weight and improve your health, it will require some work, but the extraordinary difference it can make is unmistakable, both in immediate results and in long-term returns, and it all starts with a reality check.

CHAPTER 2

Breaking through the Wall of Resistance

I saw a commercial on television recently for a major investment brokerage firm that posed the questions "What does retirement mean for you?" and "What do you want to do in your retirement?" Reflecting modern attitudes, the spectrum of responses ranged from having more time to travel and see the grandchildren to starting a new business to having the resources to get out and fully enjoy life. The image the ad put forward was positive and empowering — retirement is about living.

Toward that end, many seniors who have the ways and means are being proactive about making positive changes and are putting themselves in situations that allow their wisdom base and life experiences to become valuable assets to others. One good example is how college towns like Austin, Texas, have become new retirement hotspots for seniors who thrive off of the energy of young people.

You may be asking, "What do all those vibrant, affluent people in the commercial have to do with the bulk of us who are unhealthy or struggling to make ends meet?"

I know it might sound cliché, but as long as you are alive, there is hope. You may not be able to pull up stakes and move to Austin, fly first class to Hawaii, or help pay for your grandchild's college education, but now is the time to look with appreciation at what you do have. Too many of us make ourselves sad and crazy about the things we desire but have not been able to acquire. Consider the fact that growing old and gray and going to bingo on Wednesday night is a privilege that is denied to many. It's time to smell the roses, even if all you have is a single rose. "I've got a great dog and a good roof over my head" is an example of one such positive affirmation you can build upon.

As mentioned earlier, perhaps the single most formidable barrier that puts effective retirement planning into critical condition involves that most irrational of beliefs that we're going to live forever. It's the same syndrome that plagues Baby Boomers who believe they can work indefinitely. Despite the deaths of family pets, grandparents, and others near to us, we carry on for most of our lives like we're indestructible until we are shocked back into reality by some alarming event. Then, after a brief sobering interlude, most of us simply return to our cherished illusions. This attitude, cloaked in our fundamental fear of losing our independence, has to be overcome if we want to make progress.

A frantic phone call from my mother a short while back shows how this illusion holds on tight with a tenacious grip.

"Your father is up on the roof!"

My mother was absolutely hysterical.

"What the hell is he doing up there?" I asked.

"There's a shingle loose, and he climbed up to fix it! What am I going to do?"

"Go out there and tell him to get down. Tell him I want to talk to him."

While I waited on the phone, my mother pleaded with my dad. In the background, I could faintly make out his stubborn voice insisting that he wouldn't come down until he'd "fixed the damned shingle."

I had been so concerned about my dad's bad hips, his open-heart surgery, and his asbestos poisoning, not to mention my mother's bad knees, that I'd moved my parents to a house where they no longer had to climb up and down stairs. We'd also had a number of memorable discussions about what my dad could and couldn't safely do at age 75, but after all, this was a man his co-workers had described as having no fear of heights. So, not surprisingly, he was up on the roof.

I didn't want my mother screaming at my dad to get down, so I told her, "Just get out there and watch him. Get ready to call 911. As soon as he gets off the roof, have him call me."

On the slippery slope down from the roof, my dad lost his footing and fell. The only thing that stood between him and a date with mortality was a single nail that caught him by the pants and halted his descent to the pavement below.

I could tell by his attitude on the phone a few moments after his near-death experience that he thought of this as just another day at the office, all in line with the experiences of a steelworker back in a time of lax occupational safety regulations.

"Dad, why did you get up on that roof?" I asked him. "Well, one of the shingles blew off."

"Why didn't you call me? I'd have arranged to have somebody come fix it."

"I'm not calling you every time I need something. I live in this house. I'm the man. I should be able to take care of it. If I can't take care of this house, I have no business living here."

"Dad, I understand that, but you're putting yourself at risk by climbing up on the roof."

"Next time, I'll tie a rope around my waist and attach it to the chimney just in case."

Sarcasm aside, my dad never ended up fixing the shingle. He'd gone up on the roof to figure out what was going on and was coming down to get the right tool.

Whether he'd admit it or not, he relented after our call, and we ended up having a professional come out and take care of the problem.

My father's pride and stubbornness are among many of the entrenched attitudes and behavioral programming that this book hopes to remedy. After all, there are some very real and pragmatic causes of fear, anxiety, anger, and hopelessness that can make it hard to listen to reason and take concrete action to put ourselves on a more positive track.

Perhaps the most crushing disappointment for many of us is the fact that the nest eggs we once counted on for support in our old age have either collapsed or are very slowly getting off the ground as a result of the economic downturn in recent years. Middle-class Americans counted on good returns on their most important investment — home ownership — until the mortgage crisis of 2008 burst the housing bubble. Since that time, declining property values have been devastating (unless properties were bought at low prices decades ago). Many seniors affected by this have scant hope that the lost value can be recouped in their lifetimes.

As happened to my parents, the economic downturn also saw millions lose their pension plans. Meanwhile, no one has found a politically acceptable answer to our nation's troubling long-term sustainability questions about Social Security and Medicare. It doesn't help that the media and advertising worlds are sending mixed messages about what matters most for our retirement and healthcare, confusing us and adding fuel to our growing distrust and angst.

As I tell those who come to me for professional advice, "We're all going to get old and die, and we need to plan for it." I say this not to jolt them but simply to be forthright because most people, when left to their own devices, choose the easier path of living a fantasy, regardless of whether times are good or bad. If my message is to be heard, some immense psychological and emotional barriers must be dismantled.

In addition, good planning in these changing times involves contingencies for big and small surprises. If we don't accept certain truths about the inescapable process of aging and death, we simply won't be able to put the important information in this book to good use. At the same time, accepting these truths does not mean they are imminent. In fact, planning for them can actually eliminate stress and help us savor longer, happier lives.

One of the most joyful aspects of my work is spending time with life-embracing elders such as the actress Betty White, who recognize that knowledge is power and who never stop learning. Now in her early nineties, Betty still chases life. She works. She uses her mind and body. She's out in the world sharing her wisdom and talents. She's hardly sitting around waiting to die. On the contrary, she believes, as I firmly do, in the four "P" words — planning, remaining positive, always being proactive, and remaining open to your own outstanding potential.

If you are ready to break through the wall of resistance around planning for your retirement, I have a simple and highly effective exercise that can act to jumpstart you. You might even laugh at the idea because it's so simple, but I guarantee it will get you off the dime and in motion.

What I'm asking you to do is to take out a pen and pad of paper and start listing any and all objects of value in your possession, whether they are material objects or things on paper like an insurance policy or an IRA. Then divide this list into the following categories:

1. Valuable objects you want to keep

2. Valuable objects you want to give away (or leave in your will to a loved one)

3. Valuable objects you don't need and could potentially sell

If you've been hoarding things your whole life, getting rid of them can be difficult, and that's why these categories can be helpful. There's that old Pontiac out in the garage collecting dust — maybe you'd be better off selling it or donating it to charity for a tax write-off. That silver collection from your grandmother up in the attic — you never use it, and it's such an unnecessary pain to polish. The family jewelry and watches sitting in a drawer, untouched for years — maybe you should figure out what to do with them instead of setting up your heirs for a knock-down, drag-out fight or, worse yet, having a probate judge make the decision. Wouldn't it just be easier to sell the jewelry on eBay or leave it to someone in a will? Loved ones brawling at a funeral over a ring on a finger happens more often than you might think and can easily be avoided.

(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "It's Never Too Late"
by .
Copyright © 2016 Scoot Page.
Excerpted by permission of Morgan James Publishing.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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Table of Contents

Part 1: The Groundwork

Chapter 1: Reality Check

Chapter 2: Breaking through the Wall of Resistance

Chapter 3: Life Expectancy Planning

Chapter 4: Getting Your Spiritual Act Together

Chapter 5: “Change Your Focus, Change Your Future”

Chapter 6: The Amazing Eat-Less-Move-More Diet Breakthrough

Chapter 7: The Case for Doing Your Own Funeral Pre-Planning

Chapter 8: Downsizing and Feeling Really Good about It

Chapter 9: Encore Careers and Other Ways of Reinventing Yourself

Part 2: The Right Tools for the Right Job

Chapter 10: Retirement Income Calculators

Chapter 11: Social Security

Chapter 12: Reverse Mortgages—A Good Reason to Always Be on Your Toes

Chapter 13: Long-Term Care Choices at Home or at “the Home”

Chapter 14: Life Insurance and Life Settlements

Chapter 15: Wills and Other Legal Safeguards You Can’t Afford to Ignore

Chapter 16: Trial by Fire