We live in a 21st-century world, and our brains haven’t quite caught up. They’re designed to look out for the Saber-toothed tiger, not a million dings and beeps from smartphones. It’s no surprise that anxiety is a massive problem in modern-day life.

But Dr. John Delony says anxiety isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It’s just an alarm system to keep us safe, and we can learn to tweak the settings.

John is a two-time bestselling author, holds two PhDs, spent over twenty years working in crisis response, and now hosts The Dr. John Delony Show on Dave Ramsey’s network.

John says that despite the good intentions of innovation, we’ve designed a world we just weren’t meant to live in. Trucks do the heavy lifting, air conditioners keep us cool, and algorithms decide what we experience. Our ancestors had to adjust to life’s challenges, and that’s what kept them healthy and connected. It’s easier to become overweight when you don’t have to move. And it’s harder to form a community when you can sit inside alone all day.

Many of us are less happy and more anxious, and John knows how to help change that. He helps people navigate tough decisions, improve their relationships, and accept that they are worthy of happiness. I know I could use some of that. And I’m pretty sure you could, too.

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On today's episode, Wes is joined by Producer Mallory Boggs. They brainstorm the idea of holding a “Retire Sooner Conference” and answer some of the questions the attendees might ask the panel.

Using his retirement calculator, Wes explores what constitutes a solid retirement plan and how much inflation needs to be considered. Then, combining his Retire Sooner Team’s research with analysis from The Ramsey Network’sDr. John Delony about the burden of debt, Wes answers whether people should or should not pay off their mortgage at retirement age. Next, he runs through how people can plan for their savings to last the duration of retirement, emphasizing how critical it is to become a tomorrow investor. Finally, he suggests that saving alone is like pushing a manual mower, while investing is like riding a John Deere Lawn Tractor. Which one would you rather use to get the job done?

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Edd and Cynthia Staton’s retirement plans were on track. Then, the 2008 Financial Crisis hit. Their careers disappeared, their home lost its value, and their savings plummeted. Realizing recovery was unlikely, they needed to come up with a Plan B.

And boy, did they ever.

In 2010, they moved to Cuenca, Ecuador. Don’t worry, they didn’t know where that was, either. But now they love it! They live in a 3,000-square-foot penthouse apartment, have a housekeeper, eat out frequently, never worry about health care costs, and walk to their favorite yoga studio.

And they aren’t the only ones. According to the Social Security Administration, the number of retirees drawing Social Security outside of the U.S. surged 40% between 2007 and 2017.

Edd and Cynthia are now seen as expat experts in retirement, traveling, and health and wellness. They’ve authored three Amazon #1 best-selling books, are regularly featured in major media, and run their own online program called Retirement Reimagined!

They believe the key to finding retirement happiness is not having to worry about money. As that becomes more challenging in the U.S., they may be saying hello to a lot more expat neighbors.

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On today’s show, Wes is joined by Producer Mallory to elaborate on the pitfalls of fleeing the market during turbulent times. They comment on the shell shock of the Covid-19 lockdowns back in 2020 and how tempting it was for fearful investors to yank their money out of the market. Wes empathizes with the temptation but explains that letting the dog chase the tail rather than trusting in a balanced, diversified portfolio can have disastrous ramifications. Wes reveals that time in the market typically beats timing the market, and participation usually trumps perfection.

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We all know aging comes with cognitive challenges, but how early do they start? Sometimes, I forget my email password or where I put my car keys. Should I be worried? Dr. Nicole Byers came by to give us some fascinating answers, including the magical age when it can be beneficial to consume MORE calories.

With a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and a dissertation focused on the aging brain, she’s written extensively about brain health for Psychology Today.

A neuropsychologist, TEDx speaker, and CEO of Rocky Mountain Neurosciences in Calgary, Canada, her passion is helping women in leadership rewire the unhelpful brain defaults that keep them stuck so they can take significant steps in their careers without getting in their own way or burning out.

We all want to know how to keep our brains healthy for as long as possible. Who better to ask than someone who has dedicated her life to the topic? Stick around for some pearls of wisdom from Dr. Nicole Byers.

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In part two of Wes’ favorite takeaways from Morgan Housel’s bestselling book, The Psychology of Money, he teams up with Producer Mallory to discuss the power of tail events, the misconception of money and respect, the illusion of wealth, the simple act of saving, how reasonable is greater than rational, expecting the unexpected, leaving room for error, financial bubbles, the seduction of pessimism, the lure of appealing fiction, and money confessions. They wrap it all into a profound exploration of how our behaviors, beliefs, and backgrounds shape financial decisions and ultimately move us toward a more thoughtful, contented, and independent life.

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You can’t say the word “midlife” without imagining a crisis. An aging bald guy who cheats on his wife and buys a sports car to fill the void. But Chip Conley says we’re looking at it all wrong. The midlife age range has been unfairly branded, and he’s on a mission to change it. He co-founded MEA, the Modern Elder Academy, in 2018. The world's first ‘midlife wisdom school’ has a campus in Baja, California, and a new one is opening in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They help folks navigate midlife with a renewed sense of purpose and possibility.

They have teachers you’d recognize, like Dan Buettner of Blue Zones fame—a favorite of ours on the Retire Sooner podcast. As if that weren’t enough, Chip is a New York Times bestselling author, the former Head of Global Hospitality and Strategy at Airbnb, and a 2023 TED talk speaker.

He wants to help people understand the upside of this often misunderstood life stage. I think he makes a pretty compelling case.

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On today’s episode, Wes is joined by producer Mallory for part one of their discussion about the biggest takeaways from Morgan Housel’s bestselling book The Psychology of Money. They cover concepts such as the influence of personal history, the freedom money can offer, luck and risk, knowing how much is enough, the power of compounding, getting wealthy vs. staying wealthy, and unexpected outcomes.

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On today’s episode, Wes explains the generosity component of the Retire Sooner podcast and welcomes Chris Anderson to the show. Chris is the curator of TED, a nonprofit media organization that leverages the power of ideas to make a better future, perhaps more well-known for its TED Talks Series. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller TED Talks and has overseen the introduction of TEDx, TED-Ed, TED Fellows, and the Audacious Project, a new form of collaborative philanthropy.

Chris describes his new book, Infectious Generosity, as his way of fighting against the increasingly divided world and how the internet and social media platforms have contributed to it. He makes his case for shifting the conversation from a negative outlook to one that dreams about positive possibilities. He wants people to look for and amplify the good in online interactions. Wes then describes how Chris’s lessons can help give people an enduring sense of gratitude and guidance in finding outlets for it.

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On today’s episode, we ponder the question, “Can money buy happiness?” The answer might surprise listeners, and Wes borrows the words of best-selling author Morgan Housel to help discuss the positive and negative psychological effects money can have on retirees. Wes then uses his own “Bucket System” analogy to explain income investing and how three keys can help folks sleep well at night.

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On today’s episode, Wes sits down with Steve Tarr, a Fellow at the Drucker School of Management, to discuss how difficult the retirement transition can be for busy and successful people. Using the SOAR Program as a guide, they analyze the positive effects of discovering new pathways to meaning, community, and purpose and how they can lead to retirement happiness.

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