Retirement Tax Services Podcast

In this episode, Steven is joined by Dr. Robin Henager from Whitworth University where Steven used to be an adjunct professor. Steven and Robin discuss the power of education in leveling up as a financial advisor and the overlap of theoretical and practical learning in the real world. Dr. Henager shares the approach Whitworth takes to making sure that their learning is based in reality and not just in textbooks. She also shares when it makes the most sense in a financial advisor's career to pursue higher education. https://zurl.co/dIRI

In this episode, Steven is joined by Cameron Norris from Golsun Scruggs, to talk about the realities of the liability that financial advisors face around taxes. Some advisors may be surprised to know that the liability is there, whether they proactively give tax advice or not. Steven and Cameron go through real world examples of the types of claims that get filed and the policy provisions that advisors should be paying attention to to make sure they have a great partner if something ever were to come up in their practice. https://zurl.co/Yntc

In this episode, Steven is joined by Jacob DuBose, a financial advisor who has taken the time to do hands-on tax preparation. Jacob comes on the show to share his experience being a contractor with H&R Block and getting to see firsthand what tax preparation actually looks like. Steven and Jacob discuss the value of learning through hands-on work, including tax preparation, but also through tax planning and reviewing tax returns that financial advisors can do at any point throughout their career. https://zurl.co/5nRG

In this episode Steven is joined by Lisa Seal, Chief Revenue Officer at Belay. Steven and Lisa share their experiences using virtual assistance to elevate what they do in business and in life. Lisa shares the background of Belay, their origin story and what they have grown to today by helping tens of thousands of leaders be at their best by applying expert level skills to tasks that many would see as a nuisance. Belay was also kind enough to provide a free resource for all listeners so make sure you listen to the end. https://zurl.co/O5v7

In this episode, Steven is joined by Brent Gargano, a RTS Premierе Member and Financial Advisor. Brent has had several unique opportunities to learn the interworkings of taxes, both as an advisor and working for large custodians. He has also spent time as an adjunct professor, helping student learn through case studies and understanding the importance of taxes in a clients financial life. https://zurl.co/6HDq

Throwback to last summer's most popular episode ""Asking the right questions on taxes" It turns out there are scientific reasons that so many people have misguided notions about taxes and Steven is joined this week by a Financial Psychologist to explore what those reasons are. Meghaan Lurtz is a writer, researcher and educator focused on the overlap of psychology and financial planning and shared her insight on how Financial Advisors can more successfully navigate conversations around complex and emotional topics, like taxes. Much to Steven's delight Meghaan confirmed some of his beliefs on WHY taxpayers feel the way they do and make some of the choices that they do, now he has science and experience backing him up. This episode is a must listen for anyone who talks to their clients about taxes. https://zurl.co/i8Py

In this episode Steven is joined by a fellow CPA, Catherine Tindall, to talk about the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). One of the many programs created as a result of COVID the ERC is often in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Along with doing tax work for financial advisors (their personal and business returns), Catherine specializes in helping people figure out whether they made a legitimate ERC claim or were pressured into something they never qualified for by one of the numerous ERC "mills" that popped up overnight. They discuss who actually qualified and what a business owner who may not have qualified can do about it now. If you have business owner clients with employees (or you have employees) this is a crucial conversation to listen to. https://zurl.co/uS56

Taxes are just one piece of the puzzle and in this episode, Steven is joined by someone who specializes in a different piece of the puzzle: life insurance. Tony Steuer has decades of experience reviewing life insurance policies to help clients understand whether the policy really is set up to do what they think it's supposed to. Steven and Tony don't quite cover 37 points but do share some great insight into what an advisor should look for when reviewing life insurance policies and surprising no one, one of the action items is getting the actual documents! https://zurl.co/zuq4

This week Steven is joined by Brody Rosenfeld, a CFP who leads a team of professionals supporting financial advisors as they serve their clients. Steven has worked directly with Brody and knows first hand the value partnerships can provide. Brody and Steven have a great conversation about the pros and cons of outsourcing and how even if you never outsource it can be a helpful lens for improving processes within your firm. The episode also includes great tips on building strong relationships in general through effective communication and setting clear expectations. https://zurl.co/f9TC

In this week's episode Steven is joined by a financial advisor and Enrolled Agent, Josh Rosh. Josh joins the show to share his experience with delivering massive value AND growing his financial planning practice by facilitating seminars on, you guessed it, taxes. Bucking the trend to get deep into the complexities Josh shares how he has been able focus on the "simple" side of taxes that is so often neglected to help people find tax savings and peace of mind. Josh openly shares what works and how other advisors can use this great topic in their prospecting process. https://zurl.co/nQTk

Summary: Steven is once again joined by the incredible Jamie Shilanski to talk about how to level up your team when it comes to tax planning (and really any topic). Jamie shares why she has 4 people on your team currently working towards their Enrolled Agents designations, most surprising might be the fact that not all of them are financial advisors! Jamie shares fantastic insight about how to motivate and incentivize team members to constantly learn and level up, all for the benefit of the clients you serve. https://zurl.co/vhB9

This week Steven is joined by the Head of Tax at Betterment, Eric Bronnenkant, who is both a CPA and CFP. Betterment is a tech-forward investment platform setting themselves apart for going above and beyond when it comes to tax reporting. Eric shares how they have been able to incorporate feedback from clients and tax professionals to make tax time go more smoothly (which means more gets reported correctly and clients have better outcomes!). Listen to the end as Eric and Steven discuss actions that advisors can take regardless of what platform they are currently on. https://zurl.co/E1Ar

This week's episode is a great discussion between Steven and Gary Russell, a founding partner of Helium Advisors, about what it really takes to build strong relationships between CFPs and CPAs. Gary shares his first-hand experience with having tax team members in-house, buying accounting firms, and the importance of really building a team, not simply sharing a company name. Steven and Gary provide examples of what does and doesn't work in the real world and provide action items that any advisor can take to level up on tax planning. https://zurl.co/Q6fJ

In this week's episode Steven is joined by a fellow CPA who happens to also be a lawyer, Mike Payne. Mike is an incredibly forward thinking firm owner who has embraced providing comprehensive services to clients for years. And not the "comprehensive" buzzword so often used in the industry but an actual example of the word in practice. Mike's commitment to doing this has led him to explore new possibilities in legal structure and business arrangements to make sure that ultimately the client wins. And as a bonus Mike committed on the episode to joining the RTS Summit in September so you can meet him in person and ask even more detailed questions. https://zurl.co/Tt6s

Steven is joined this week by Lisa Zeeveld, CFO of Belay Solutions to talk about how Financial Advisors can do more professionally and personally by leveraging a great assistant. Lisa and Steven share their own experiences using VAs, reservations they had, surprising successes and why there is no going back once you've started using one. Listen in as Lisa and Steven explain why a VA is an investment every Financial Advisor serious about leveling up should make. And because we are all about taking action and delivering massive value Lisa has a free resource for all of our listeners to help jump start the delegation process. https://zurl.co/sDqe

This week we are taking a detour from technical tax topics and talking about how to get your tax planning message out there to prospective clients. Steven is joined by Marie Swift and Jonny Swift from Impact Communications to cover a variety of topics including how client testimonials can be compliantly used and how Advisors can effectively use AI tools to supplement their content creation without losing their voice and authenticity. https://zurl.co/fXBK