December The Retire to Abundance Newsletter How to Retire to Abundance: When I talk about retiring to abundance, I am not talking about retiring with the biggest number on a statement or the most optimized social security claiming strategy (although they certainly don't hurt ☺️). I am talking about retiring with enough clarity and confidence to actually use the resources you worked decades to build. Most people I work with have done the saving part well. The harder part is learning how to...
about 2 months ago • 2 min read
November The Retire to Abundance Newsletter How to Treat Yourself: Every year about this time, I notice a familiar pattern. November shows up, the calendar fills itself, and suddenly the things we meant to get done “sometime this fall” are quietly sitting in the corner hoping we forgot about them. If you’re anything like me, you probably have a running list of “I’ll get to that later” items that somehow survived all the way to Thanksgiving. This has me thinking of one of Jordan Peterson’s 12...
2 months ago • 2 min read
October The Retire to Abundance Newsletter The Abundant Returns of Gratitude: Recently, I’ve had the privilege of serving on the Capital Campaign Committee at our parish. The experience has given me a chance to pause and reflect on my own charitable giving—how it’s shaped me, challenged me, and ultimately blessed me. But more than anything, it’s been a joy to share conversations about something I love (my church) with people I deeply care about. I don’t have a grand financial insight to share...
4 months ago • 2 min read
September The Retire to Abundance Newsletter When It Rains, It Pours: Normally, that phrase is about bad things piling up, but as the son of a farmer it’s hard to ever be upset at the thought of rain. I recently saw a stat showing that Kingman had its third wettest summer in recorded history. The rain has been a blessing—my sprinkler system has barely run, and more importantly, it’s helped break our local farmers out of the recent cycle of drought. In many ways, finances work the same way....
5 months ago • 2 min read
August The Retire to Abundance Newsletter Craving Normalcy: Every year when school gets going again, I realize how much I miss having some routine. We all do better when life has a little structure, and the same goes for our finances. This time of year, as things slow down from the summer rush, is a great chance to take a step back and see what adjustments might help. Maybe it’s increasing retirement contributions, making sure your withdrawal plan is still on track, or even thinking through a...
5 months ago • 2 min read
July The Retire to Abundance Newsletter Alphabet Soup: Summertime always seems to fly by in a blur of ballgames, travel, and triple-digit heat. At QED, we intentionally slow things down a bit this time of year—fewer meetings, more behind-the-scenes work to improve the resources we offer. One of the big projects we've been working on is now live: KPERSretirement.com, a free educational site designed specifically for KPERS enrollees. If that’s you—or someone you care about—you’ll find a link to...
7 months ago • 2 min read
June The Retire to Abundance Newsletter Harvest Time: The combines are just starting to roll here in south central Kansas, and every year it marks one of my favorite seasons. Every year, we try to get our kids out to ride along — partly for the fun, but mostly so they can see the work that goes into it...and as a bonus to learn where their food comes from. Watching harvest through my dad’s eyes, a fifth-generation Kansas farmer, reminds me that this season is about more than crops. It’s the...
8 months ago • 2 min read
May The Retire to Abundance Newsletter The Numbers of Life: School’s almost out, and like many families, we’re getting ready to shift into summer mode. Around our house, that means a full calendar of ball games, road trips, and time with extended family. It’s a busy season—but also one filled with the things that matter most. In a lot of ways, it’s not all that different from retirement. When the structure of the workweek fades, it opens the door to more travel, more time with family, and...
9 months ago • 2 min read
April The Retire to Abundance Newsletter Tariff-ic Opportunities in the Market: Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve likely heard about the recent turbulence in the stock market. I often remind clients that it’s not a matter of if the market will decline—it’s a matter of when. We’re currently in one of those inevitable downturns, and it’s no surprise that investors of all stripes are feeling a bit skittish. While it’s never fun to watch account values dip, this pullback doesn’t...
10 months ago • 2 min read