Procrastination is Hoarding Eventual Work

I know hoarding physical items is not good.  Same is true hoarding things to do.

Hoarding work creates a backlog of work that still needs to be done.   It doesn't go away.   Wait long enough and the backlog become insurmountable. For example, delaying saving for retirement can be devastating if one starts in their 60s. LOL.

My solution is to break work into small chunks and lead to small wins.  For example, instead of sweating the final savings number for retirement, carve out much smaller monthly contribution and stick to it.  For example, saving $158.15 a month for 40 years will become $1 million.   I'm using the same principle on my home projects.   Instead of carving out a large amount of hours, I put 1-2 hours per day on a project, take a break, and start it up again the next day or even later in the week.  I did this with cleaning and staining our deck and I have been able to easily get the flooring cleaned and stained.  I'm now doing the same with the slatted walls.

Hopefully, this new strategy and approach will help me get projects done and give my kids a good head start on their retirement savings.  I think I will eventually get up to 4 hours a day on our home maintenance/improvement projects.  Almost like going back to work again.😎

For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.

This is not financial, saving, retirement nor home maintenance advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Being Prepared for the Next Recession or Bear Market

"No one rings a bell at the top of the market." ~ Wall Street Adage

In the past, I was constant worrier about a market crash destroying my retirement savings. 

I'm not calling a top, but I'm prepared for one.   Currently, I'm not buying an new equity positions, nor adding to any existing equity positions.   Over the past few months, I've been increasing our fixed income positions thought bond and bond funds, building a monthly, though variable, paycheck.

I don't know if have regular investment income via dividends and interest is a good solution yet, since the strategy has been tested with a significant down turn yet.   However, it has done well with high volatility and a short term correction.   Whether it works with a bear market?  We shall find out.

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2017 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Cataract Surgery: Expectations vs. Reality

I recently had cataract surgery and am recovering.   Although the recovery is going well, I was surprised by how reality was different than my expectations.

For reference, cataract surgery replaces the lens that has turned cloudy.  It also allows for adjusting the focal length vision of the eye.   Having been a contact user for about 40 years, I expected the final outcome would be immediate or at least same day, since contact lenses change the vision right away.

Instead, the change in vision took about a week to reach the final outcome.  The day of surgery, my vision was blurry and sometimes hazy.  The surgeon explained that cataract surgery sometimes results in the eye pressure increasing, which causes the haziness.  In addition, surgery causes some eye distress which leads to blurry vision.  On the day after surgery, my vision tested at 20/30, which they thought was great, but I still felt was not good enough since I expected to reach 20/20 immediately.   

The surgeon gave me some eyedrops for glaucoma (eye pressure) to use.   When I went home, I noticed that my pupil was still dilated.  So I started wearing dark sunglasses most of the time, even inside.   For day 2 to day 6, my vision improved incrementally and my pupil started shrinking.   By day 7, I felt like I was almost 20/20 and the pupil was near normal.

I've concluded that monofocal lens in my right eye has less range than my previous lens with contacts.  This is known, but I didn't realize the effect until the cataract was replaced.  It is still working for me since I'm getting good focus from about 5 feet to infinity for larger letters.   

On day 8, I had my one week visit.  My vision tested 20/20 but a little blurry at that level. My pupil is still slightly dilated, and I expect my sight to be fully clear when my pupil is normal.  I've confirmed that I still want to do a close vision monofocal lens for my left eye.  I expect that should cover reading distance to about 5 feet comfortably.   This will allow me to not have vision correction 99% of the time, but only correct the left eye for distance during sports such as tennis and skiing.

I'll give another update once the left eye is treated.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, cataract surgery, nor health advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Striving to be Volatility Agnostic

Maintaining consistent monthly income is my current strategy for our retirement savings.  My goal is to maintain a specific income range, no matter what the stock market is doing, especially when it is declining.  To do this, I am investing in fixed income (CDs, bonds, and mutual funds) and dividend stocks, and reducing dependence on gains in stocks.  In addition, we have monthly Social Security payment and a quarterly distribution from a rental property.

Up until the end of 2025, the strategy has been working, but it has been mainly an advancing market.   Now, the test will be in a declining volatile market at is happening currently.  I'll see now if the "monthly paycheck" can be maintained in 2026.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment, nor fixed income  advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Multi-Year Tax Strategy in Retirement

When I was working, I earned a paycheck and paid taxes.   Since I had some, but not much, control over my annual income, I just did my tax return with limited planning, such as charitable contributions, and tax loss harvesting, for taxes.  I probably controlled only 10-20% of our taxable income via dividends and interest.  In general, I tried to maximize our income.

In retirement, I have I still have Social Security income which is like a paycheck and I don't have much control.  However, instead of a paycheck being 90+%  of our income, Social Security is about 27%.   Interest and dividend account for about 53%.   By using tax exempt interest options, and staying in the 12% tax bracket, I can reduced our taxable income and therefore, our tax liability significantly. Also, by managing our AGI, I enable us to take some tax credits that are phased out at higher income.  20% is rental income and enables us to take the Qualified Business Income (QBI) deduction.

In the next few years, we have RMDs, both inherited and from our own.  This will be additional paycheck income that we will have less control over.

If we exceed certain income, I will need to pay additional insurance premiums for Medicare, call IRMAA, which I would like to avoid if possible since there is no benefit increase.   In addition, we would lose or phase of the bonus senior deduction.  

As a result, designing and planning an income and tax strategy for at least the next 5 years, and maybe even the next 10 years, will be beneficial to maximizing income we keep by minimizing our tax and IRMAA liability.

For more on New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, retirement, nor tax advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Levels of Wealth for Retirement-Age American

I saw this infographic on LinkedIn and though it was worth reposting in my blog.   

Credit: David Vernich on LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidvernich/

Disclosure:  I did not receive compensation for reposting this graphic.

For more on Reflections and Musings, check back every  Saturday for a new segment.

This is not financial, wealth nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Managing Income for Tax Benefits in Retirement

I've learned that income planning is even more important in retirement than when working.  The simple reason is that taxable income may be controllable by the retiree to maximize tax benefits and minimize tax liability.  When working, most of taxable income usually comes from a regular paycheck which limits the options for minimizing tax liability.

 

During my working years, I only had a few options to manage income.  Specifically, whether to make tax deferred contributions to retirement accounts and whether to take capital gains from stocks in taxable accounts.

Now that I'm retired, I no longer have working income.  Instead, I have Social Security, Dividends and Interest, and Capital Gains.   Social Security is tax free below a certain income and up to 85% can be taxed above a certain income.    Dividends and Capital Gains can be tax free depending on adjusted grosss income (AGI).  Several tax credits are phased out above AGI thresholds. Federal tax free interests is now more important keep below AGI thresholds. Also, premiums for Medicare are dependent on one's income. Higher incomes may incur higher premiums.

I didn't expect managing tax benefits would increase in importance in retirement.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, tax nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Reframe RMDs as Our Pension

I've been reading about concerns with managing RMDs (Required Minimum Distributions) in the future.  RMDs are requirements by the IRS to withdraw a certain amount from IRAs, 401Ks and similar retirement accounts.   The main concern is the significant increase in taxable income versus if the retiree was not required to withdrawal the funds.

I understand the tax implications.   However, I decide to reframe the RMDs as a pension payment instead of an involuntary withdrawal.  If I think of an RMD as another pension payment, I don't worry about the payment causing an increase in taxes.  It's just a fact of life.  More income equals more taxes.   

This is especially true for IRA/401Ks that are less than $1 million since the RMD is about $38,000 per million at 73.   Most people probably will have less than $1 million in their IRA/401K.   If I had over $2 million in an IRA/401K, I'd start worrying and considering whether Roth conversions or other strategies to reduce taxes should be used.

This reframing ignore the impact of inherited IRA/401Ks on the beneficiaries, but that is a topic for another post.

For more on  New Beginnings, check back every Sunday for a new segment.

This is not financial, RMD, nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

The Value of Bitcoin to Me and My Retirement

There are lots of pundits that rave about Bitcoin as a great investment and a storage of value, versus fiat currency such as the U.S. Dollar..  There are even companies, such as Strategy (MSTR), that buy bitcoin as their primary operation.  Financial advisors have started recommending putting a percentage of one's saving into bitcoin. 

I guess I'm not convinced.  I did buy one share of GBTC, a bitcoin trust, a couple years ago and sold it for profit.  Other than that, I have not taken much interest in owning or investing in bitcoin.   I don't get how it has any value.  So bitcoin is worth nothing, nada, zero to me.  I've been called "old school" for that perspective.

Even if I could justify bitcoin having value, it is way too volatile for me to consider as a worthwhile investment for retirement.  I prefer currency that has some stability, even if it is the fiat dollar.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, bitcoin, investing, nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

How to Thrive in Retirement

I thought this was a good article about managing retirement finances:

How to actually thrive in retirement with the simple plan almost everyone ignores

Here were the key points from the article:

• The overlooked foundation: knowing your real spending
• The simple plan almost everyone ignores: separate short‑term and long‑term money
• Designing a cash buffer that lets you sleep at night
• Turning a nest egg into a paycheck: withdrawal rules that actually work
• Aligning money with meaning: values, expectations, and regret
• Health costs, tax moves, and other unglamorous levers
• Social Security as a risk‑management tool, not just a benefit
• Clarity and discipline: the behavioral edge most retirees miss
• Putting it all together into a life you actually enjoy

Disclosure:  No compensation was received for reposting this article.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Looking for a Stock Market Bounce Today

I'm doing a small amount of trading in our retirement accounts.  Hoping for but not expecting a bounce in the fallen stocks the past few days.  If there is a big bounce, I may sell some positions for a small profit.  If the recently purchased stocks keep falling, I am reluctant to increase my holdings in the stock.   I want to avoid trying to catch a falling knife.

However, I do plan to scale in some funds to our kids' college accounts in a S&P500 index.  Even if the market dips further, we'll be keeping these accounts for several years.  In addition, if the market falls further, I will be able to add more funds at that time. 

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Fridayfor a new segment.

This is not financial advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Good Tips from a Financial Seminar

I attended a complementary financial seminar a dinner a few days ago. Most seminars Here are my key takeaways from the presentation.

• One's job is only half done at 65, a typical age of retirement.   This is still important work to do.  Financial stewardship is a major job in retirement:  Ensuring enough funds to cover lifetime expenses, maximizing income generate, and spending for enjoyment.  This is work that requires educating oneself or hiring others with the knowledge.
  
  
• Managing finances to legally reduce current and future taxes is a important task for retirees.  Retirees need to be aware of strategies that can help reduce or eliminate taxes on long term capital gains, dividends, and RMDs.  In addition, there are a number of tax efficient ways to get more tax benefit from charitable contributions.

I was aware of many of the methodologies:  0% dividend long term capital gains tax bracket, 1031 real estate exchange, and donor advised funds.   My new learning was about QLAC which can delay taking RMDs until age 85, but probably will not use.

For more on Reflections and Musings, check back every Saturday for a new segment.

This is not financial, retirement, nor tax advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Managing RMD Impact at 73

I've  been thinking about doing Roth Conversions to minimize the RMD tax bomb.   Tax rates are pretty low now.   I would definitely do conversions in the 12% tax bracket.   However, I'm rethinking as to whether to do RMD conversions, pay the tax now, to avoid paying taxes in the future at higher tax brackets.  It seems the RMD tax bomb might not be as big a deal as the media implies.

According to the 2026 Uniform Lifetime Table, a $10,000 IRA would require a $3774 RMD at 73.   For a $1M IRA, multiply that by 10 to get a $37,735 RMD. 

With a median IRA balance of $200,000 at 73, that means a median of $7,500 annual RMD. With an average IRA balance of $600,000 that means an average of $22,600 annual RMD.   Neither of these seem outrageous from a federal tax point of view.  This is causing me to lean towards just paying taxes when I have to take an RMD.

Another factor is the Inherited IRA RMD requirement to be distributed in 10 years.   At a median of $200,000 that would be $20,000 per year for 1 heir, which probably is a nice bonus for 10 years.  At $600,000 that would be $60,000 per year for 1 heir, which my create a minor tax bomb but still they  would still receive at least 2/3s even after higher tax rates.

If I had $100 Million in an traditional IRA (I wish),  I might think about Roth Conversions and RMDs differently.  Even then, I might just take my annual $3.7 million RMD and pay the taxes.

For more on Strategies and Plans, check back every Monday for a new segment.

This is not financial, retirement, nor RMD advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Elon Musk says Retirement Savings Won't Be Needed in 10-20 years.

Elon Musk says saving for retirement is irrelevant because AI is creating a world of abundance | Fortune

Says the person that just negotiated a trillion dollar compensation package.   ROFLMAO.   Why does he need such a large pay package if retirement is irrelevant?

Recall that Musk promised FSD (Full Service Driving) initially in 2016 and still has not delivered as of the end of 2025.  Maybe he is hedging his prediction.😂

As brilliant as Muskman is, I don't think I'll bet on not needing retirement savings just yet.  Especially, since Social Security payments will be reduced in 2033 if Congress doesn't not take action.

For more on Reflections and Musings , check back every Saturday for a new segment.

This is not financial, retirement, Muskman advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Understand One's Social Security Benefits

When to take Social Security benefits has become a major topic on the Internet as more people are become eligible.   The major is question is when to take it: Early before full retirement age (FRA); At FRA 66 and 10 months born 1959 or 67 born 1960 or later; or Delayed after FRA but no no later than 70.

This question is already a complex one with factors such as estimated life expectancy, health, other sources of retirement income, and current financial situation that affect.

However, there is one factor that is rarely discussed that may have even more impact, auxiliary benefits for minor dependents, which only a few people qualify for.  If one is taking Social Security payments, one's minor dependents under 18, or until 19 if they are in high school, can receive auxiliary benefits up to 50% of the PIA (primary insurance amount) limited by the maximum family benefit cap.  The auxiliary benefit amount can be significant.  For example, if the PIA is $3200, the auxiliary benefit can be has high as $1600.   In addition, the spouse can receive auxiliary benefits caring for a minor child under 16.

Most people are not aware of possible auxiliary benefits when retiring, but they are definitely as factor when one is considering what age to take start taking Social Security.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every  Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Social Security is not ENOUGH for Retirement

Depending only on Social Security in retirement is a big mistake, IMHO.  On average, social security replaces about 40% of pre-retirement earnings.   The balance needs to be made up from savings or withdrawals from retirement accounts.

However, the other issue is that expenses don't go down much in retirement and in some cases even go up.   House mortgage and expenses, real estate taxes, utilities, maintenance, and car payments remain the same.   Health insurance goes up, significantly if one still had dependent children, since it may have been subsidized by the employer.  Medical costs may also be higher over time. Finally, travel and vacations tend to result in higher spending.

In our case, health insurance and real estate taxes alone use up 83% of my Social Security benefit.  Fortunately, we don't have a mortgage nor a car payment.  If we did, those payments would cause us to exceed my Social Security benefit.

Of course everyone's situation is different and YMMV.  Our retirement expenses are higher due to having dependent children in our household, which is not the case for many retirees.  However, for planning purposes, it may be prudent to have about 60% of retirement spending come from a different source than Social Security.

For more on The Practice of Personal Finance, check back every Wednesday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2026 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Think Accumulation for a Successful Retirement

For me, the accumulation phase for retirement savings was from the twenties until my sixties.  

Twenties - This was the most difficult accumulation period.   During that decade, I bought a house and a car, which created monthly expenses.  I was also paying off my student loan.  My accumulation seemed to grow very, very slowly.

Thirties -  Accumulation was easier bit still seemed to grow slowly   I no longer had a student loan or car loan payment.  I was also able to refinance my mortgage from 12%, to 7%, to 5%.   In my early thirties, I was earning double my starting salary.  By late thirties, I was earning about 4 times my starting salary due to promotions.

Forties - This was out best accumulation time.   I was promoted again and my base salary by the end of my forties was 8 times my starting salary.  This was my peak earning years and as a result we had peak accumulation.

Fifties -  If I had not retired early at 49, this would have continued to be accumulation from wage income.   Part of our accumulation during this time was due to inheritances from our parents who passed away.  

Even with an income increases each decade, I continued to live the same lifestyle in my twenties and  thirties.   We did upgrade our lifestyle to a larger house and new cars in my forties.   However, we still lived below our means.    For example, we still live in the same house, drive the same cars after 20 years, and did our first purchase of a flat screen TV during our fifties.

Definitely, YMMV.  The actions that worked for us to accumulate enough for a successful retirement won't work for everyone.   

For more on Crossing Generations, check back every Thursday for a new segment.

This is not financial nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Taxes on Social Security Payments Should Be Eliminated

Contributions to Social Security were taxed before being withheld.  Until 1984, Social Security payments were not taxed.  In 1984, 8% of Social Security recipients paid federal income tax on the payments.   The thresholds for Social Security being taxed were set in 1984 and have not been adjusted for inflation. Today, 56% of recipients pay federal income tax on Social Security payments.

Two bills that have been reintroduced to eliminate taxes of Social Security: Senior Citizens Tax Elimination Act (H.R. 1040) and You Earned It, You Keep It Act.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday 

This is not financial, legislative, social security, tax nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Create Revenue for Retirement

In retirement, regular and steady revenue is a better metric than net worth or the size of a stock portfolio.  The reason is net worth include illiquid assets, such as one's home, which doesn't create income to cover expenses and a stock portfolio has volatility that may decline when funds are needed to cover retirement expenses.

With 20/20 hindsight, here's what I should have done by age to build retirement revenue.

• Ages 20-40.   Save and invest for growth on a regular (e.g. monthly) basis. Use taxable and Roth IRA accounts.  Invest 90-95% in a total market index fund.  Dollar cost average and invest more funds during dips.   Do not withdraw or spend any of these funds.  With the other 5-10%, invest, buy and sell individual stock that are monitored periodically.
• Ages 50-65. Continuing saving and investing in growth.  Start converting about 7% a year to income producing options:  CDs, bonds taxable and tax free, government treasuries.  Build a stream of steady dependable revenue that can be counted on during retirement.   If you plan to retire earlier than 65, start about 15 years before retirement age.
• Choose age to start Social Security payments to create a payment amount to complements one's revenue from savings.

In my case, I depended on growth investments much too long until my early 60s.  Also, I retired early at 49, much earlier than the timeline above, right at the start of the Great Recession in 2008.  I did take  Social Security at the right time, starting at 64.  

I was lucky to have survived a 2008 retirement due to the stock market recovering over the next 15 years and some deferred compensation payments.  There was no brilliance on my part, just a lot of learning that I should have done some things a bit differently.  Luckily, in 2022 interest rates started rising, which will help maintain our revenue generation until 2028.

My post My Sources of Retirement Income showed our 2024 retirement revenue by class as:

53% Interest and Dividends in taxable accounts

27% Social Security monthly payments

20% Rental Income quarterly payments

Also, we are starting to convert our retirement accounts from growth investments to income producing investments in preparation for when we will be required to make RMD withdrawals.

For more on Reaping the Rewards, check back every Friday for a new segment.

This is not financial, investment nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC

Social Security COLA and Medicare B Premiums for 2026

For 2026, Social Security payments will increase 2.8% and Medicare Part B premiums will increase to $202.90 from $185.  The higher payment will start in January 2026.

For more details, see It's official. Medicare Part B 2026 premium will eat a big chunk of Social Security COLA

For more on Reaping the Rewards , check back every  Friday  for a new segment.

This is not financial nor retirement advice. Please consult a professional advisor.

Copyright © 2025 Achievement Catalyst, LLC