What’s up with that retirement experience?

This week I met with three financial advisors to select the one that will be my coach for the next 20-30 years. #wheniam64 Whew, is that exhausting! 70/30, 50/50, 60/40 and alternatives are great, but who understands all that? The answer is those that study understand all that, and I am ready to commit to a coach to get me from 64 to 94.

Reality is the average life expectancy is 78.something and declining for the first time in decades. I am not ready to concede defeat yet. Hit the gym this morning for a solid workout. Adjusting my eating to offset risks of Alzheimers and keep my brain running at optimum. Brain envy is what Dr. Daniel Amen calls it. Resting more as I age, only working 50 hours a week instead of 60-80. What are you doing to shift? As a life coach, I have to set the example. #wecanhelpwiththat

Now, for healthcare. That medicare decision looms. At 65, you have a period of seven months to make your decision. Three months before, the month of your birthday, and three months after. It gets tricky after that if you want to make significant changes. There are open change periods for advantage and prescription drug once a year. But, supplementals require medical underwriting after that first decision and the rates can go up significantly. #wecanhelpwiththat

Having fun yet? Wisdom tells me that happiness is a key to longer life and well, who wants to be sad? Having a manageable plan you understand that helps you meet lifestyle objectives can lead to a merry heart and that is good medicine. #wecanhelpwiththat

Let me know how we can help. There is never a fee for an analysis of your position and never a fee for healthcare help. We don’t do income management, but have some good partners to whom we can refer you and for smaller amounts ($10k-100k), we can give you some tips. #wecanhelpwiththat

Phil@soluminsurance.com

405.494.0637 – dedicated mobile for you

When I’m 64 – What about my healthcare?

That question looms. What about my healthcare? Circumstances at change points cause us to ask, “Will I be okay? Should I trust the advice my employer gave me? What if they are just in it for them? How do I transition my meds and doctors?

Today is January 2nd. The end of every year is a reflection period. I assess myself against my life goals, the visions that stir inside, my financial position, achievements, mental, emotional, and physical health, and spiritual position. Dr. Daniel Amen recommends each of us have a one pager, a One Page Miracle, to tell our brains and hearts which items need attention and focus.

Tana Amen gives a good example of a One Page Miracle on her web page. You should take a minute to look it over. Get some focus. Sometimes when you feel a struggle, the simple is best as a start.

Now that you are 64, you are approaching the need to move onto Medicare and maybe you are looking to retire and draw social security. Those are big decisions. #wecanhelpwiththat

Faith, Focus, Friends, Food, and Fitness are all areas we assess as we get ready for these next steps. Understanding your goals for these will help us help you in making the right Medicare mix decisions. A wrong step in your first year going on to Medicare can be corrected in the first year. It can be disastrous later, when you are 68 or 70 or 80. It is all about your plan, your goals, the life you want. You can’t predict it all, but you can come closer with a plan and right information. #wecanhelpwiththat

We never charge for services at SOLUM Insurance. But we are professional in our approach to help you make decisions that fit your needs and lifestyle. So let me introduce you to a simple and effective what to make your plan and enjoy your senior years, whether you continue working or take the big plunge.

1. Establish your position

What is your position on healthcare? We will work with you to help discover that. Our first step is to discuss that One Page Miracle and make sure we support you in being you. The second step is to go a little deeper, but not much and do a “Fact Finder” so we give you knowledgeable guidance. We are not financial planners, but we work alongside your financial plan to help you make a good fit of healthcare into the plan. #wecanhelpwiththat. And yes, all of this is free. You have no obligation to purchase anything from us. We like to make friends.

When you work with us you will receive caring and professional excellence. That is who we are and how we serve. You deserve that. You have spent a life getting to this point and we want to make it a fun and fulfilling next chapter.

2. Write it down.

Write down where you want to go. Here is the fun part. We will show you a couple of options that fit your decisions. Medicare and other insurance can be complicated. Do you have a Final Expense policy and plan to ensure there are no extra burdens for those you love? How much control do you want of your healthcare decisions? Do you want an HMO doctor, who is your dedicated advisor or are you okay with a network of doctors for advising? Do you want total freedom to make all decisions? What is your budget going to be? The average senior after 65 can spend around $4000+ a year on healthcare. Is that okay with you? Would you like better control of those expenses and predictability or are you more concerned with keeping monthly costs contained and addressing bigger needs as they arise? Relax. We will help you walk through those thoughts in a methodical way that assists you make right decisions at the right time for your lifestyle and healthcare directions.

As a deliverable, we will summarize what we have heard in talking with you into a document that you can use to make decisions.

3. Take A Step

If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.W. Edwards Deming

Now to take a step, you need a plan. It does not have to have full vetted risk assessment, cost scenarios, and extensive timeline. But most of us just need a few steps we know we need to take to get moving in the right direction. #wecanhelpwiththat

Establish your position
Write it down
Take a step (fill out the form below is a good first step)

#wecanhelpwiththat, #medicare #healthcare #socialsecurity #turning65 #wheniam64

Caring, professional excellence assisting in healthcare decisions

Phil, ttd

Get with us and we will help you walk through your preparations.

SOLUM is a faith based business done with care and professional excellence. We aren’t liberal or conservative, we are concerned and supportive. What does that mean? That means we trust first in our relationship with the Father of Creation to direct us and our interactions with our clients, you. And we believe He wants us to be caring, excellent, and professional. You don’t need to be a Christian, Muslim, Jew, Hindu, or anything to take advantage of our good will. We just want you to know we believe that everything we do is done as unto God first and is done with professional and caring excellence. If we don’t think He will be happy with us, we don’t do it. #wecanhelpwiththat

Sweet…. a good quote for a friend

Crazy good stuff… I just finished a full medicare rate quote for a friend that is retiring at age 66. With a supplement policy that covers deductibles and co-pays, his base medicare payment, prescription drug that covers his most common prescriptions at $0 and $1 copays, dental and vision – he is looking at $328 a month with controlled costs. That is better that most company group plans!

Without this package on traditional medicare it would cost him $135 a month plus deductibles. His drugs would be full price. The difference? If he went to the hospital one time and stayed two days under medicare, $1364 deductible plus 20% of all other costs of doctors, meds etc (let’s say those amounted to another $2000 for a $400 charge), plus regular doctor visits during the year and 20% on tests and xrays of another $2000 or $400, and drug costs of around $50 a month or $600 a year, we are looking at $1364 + $400 + $400 +$600 + 1620 = $4384 unpredictable versus $3936 predictable … That doesn’t include $0 coverage for vision and dental and he gets some good options to help there also.

Now, this is just one approach. There are other alternatives based on your budget, expected needs. Last year this client went to the hospital three times due to some tough conditions. Under medicare each time would be the same $1364 plus 20% payouts. When you calculate that, you are getting closer to $10000 versus $3936. Yikes….

And his plan works nationwide, because he wants to travel. No need to worry about HMO or PPO networks that only work in his home metro. But I do have access to some sweet PPO options that have good travel when that is what you want. The costs are not as predictable because of deductibles and copays, but it is all about what do you need for your lifestyle.

The 411 on this? Know your options and choose according to your lifestyle and expectations.

My dream – help you make decisions. I talk to as many people for whom I say, “Keep what you have, you are doing well.” as I do “Let’s find what might be better options for you.” There is no cost to you ever to talk and get comparisons. The insurance carriers pay me to help you.

I really like helping alongside http://grandparentbenefits.org

If all I do is answer your questions, that is good by me. I have helped and am happy to do it.
Here is a link that shows some basic medicare costs: https://www.medicare.gov/your-medicare-costs/medicare-costs-at-a-glance

Phil@soluminsurance.com

405.494.0637 direct

Let’s make medicare easy to understand. Call me.

Medicare made easy for you.

an unexpected service

What should you expect from a a medicare insurance pro?
They are unlike other insurance consultants and agents.

What should you expect from a a medicare insurance professional? They are unlike other insurance consultants and agents.

A medicare insurance professional requires right training and certification from the insurance company or companies they represent, the states they represent and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). You should expect that

A medicare insurance professional is your consultant and educator. Weaving through the decisions in medicare is an important lifetime decision. You deserve right information and access to answers.

A medicare insurance professional is here for you. While they are agents for the insurance companies with whom you may contract, they must also be here for you to assist you in making decisions.

This article does a good job of outlining some items of which you should be aware. Get right service. We are here for you at SOLUM to give you that “unexepected service” that you should expect. Covering Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas. Benefiting the membership of National Association for Grandparenting.

Marketing Appointment Rules

Jeese… even in the Philippines

Get tired of scams and spams?

Even in the Philippines, it takes intervention to protect. See article below.

If you are on Medicare, remember you have rights. The United States has a Center for Medicare Services where you can get tons of information and file grievances, appeals, and more… Keep it bookmarked.

https://www.cms.gov/medicare/medicare.html

Sen. Nancy Binay files bill to prevent scammers from targeting senior citizens

New Days and New Ways

Phil and SOLUM are on a new adventure. After almost two decades of working with Dr. Ken Canfield first at the National Center For Fathering (fathers.com) and now the National Association for Grandparenting (grandkidsmatter.com), we lauched an insurance benefit initiative for you, the grandparents and parents of generations.

Our non-profit outreach SOLUM Community Transformation Initiative is thriving (solumcommunity.net) and fixing fractured families. Now we are here for you to help you build your solid financial foundations, secure important relationships, and launch your legacy into generations through benefits development with NCF and GKM.

Join us on the adventure.

We are leaving all of our blog content on management and wanderings for you to peruse. No use throwing out. We will reorganize a bit to make it easier, but there it is.

Lead with Solutions: Five Key Phrases To Lead

There is power in your words, Leader.

Leaders lead. We lead with our words, our actions, our intent, and our example.

Leaders lead. Leading flows from the inner core of a leader outward for followers to follow. Wisdom literature intrigues and builds me. Two principles that regurgitate in my meditative time apply here.

What is in your heart comes out your mouth.
Words carry life or death.

Uncomfortable as that may be for some, it is life and energy for leaders. Those that deny they are being led are fools looking for a place to fail. Those that accept they are both being led and leading others have matured to a grasp of reality needed for contentedness and success. Watching words is a key necessity of leadership.

One of the ways leaders lead is with the entry words they use in conversations and meetings and personal engagements. So let’s look at five phrases that lead well and lead to impact and influence.

How can we lead effectively with our entry words?

Lead #1: How do you feel about this situation? Leaders fail many times by leading with precooked answers. Try leading with a question. The conversation is headed a positive direction based on your quick and thoughtful lead. Watch out for asking how people think. That will get you 80% less response than asking them how they feel. They will tell you what they think in response to asking them how they feel. For the most part, people are less threatened when asked how they feel than asked how they think.

Lead #2: There could be some amazing benefit to this approach. You just opened the other person or group up to a positive view of what follows. Yet, you have not committed anyone to a position of yes or no. The engagement is now open to include a description of the issue being addressed, but with an expectation of a positive outcome. Lead on.

Lead #3: What worries you most about our issue? Wow. You just posed an emotional tie to the others in conversation. It is not someone else’s issue, but our issue. You’ve entered into a supportive stakeholder position and communicated you will be there to help work through the blips. At the same time, you gave the other person influence in the next steps.

Lead #4: Have you considered a possibility of option X? This is an enticing lead that suggests a solution without forcing compliance. Leadership contains an element of power along with authority. By opening with consideration of an option, meaning there are other options, you give power to the others in the conversation. It can be a big win when working with a strong leader. Some leaders place themselves in defensive stance over a position they have taken in the past. You just graced them with a way out that saves face for them and could bring them better success than a present entrenched option.

Lead #5: Having considered many options, here is one I’d like to bring to the table for discussion. Okay, this is a lead based on research prior to this moment. You’ve opened the discussion to include consideration of other options and problem barbs and even rabbit trails. It is an empowering position for all included. Sometimes an entire room will just go quiet at this point and let you lead forward. Be ready for that. After all, you are a leader.

Summary: Notice none of these leads starts with the issue at hand. All of these communicate co-ownership of the issue and the solution and confidence in a positive outcome. Avoid leading with the issue. My days are full of conversations that start, “Phil, I have a problem.” That is a position of weakness. Sometimes the individual just wants to discuss their ideas. Many times they are looking to offload the problem and responsibility. Take responsibility by leading into a solution. Leading with the solution in today’s environment can be considered pushy and too strong. Lead with compassion and listening and strength with some key phraseology that reveals intent to engage along with intelligence and ownership. Lead on, Leader.

Presentation Tips

Great tips to make your message look better. Thanks, Angela.

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