The Long View

Bill Yount, a practicing emergency physician and co-host of Catching Up to FI, shares his late-start journey to financial independence and how he reversed lifestyle inflation. He talks about burnout and a wake-up call at 50, aggressive saving through downsizing and reverse budgeting, risk-parity investing choices, working with a planner, and strategies for giving and transitioning from saver to spender.

Emily Guy Birken, a personal finance author who writes about retirement and Social Security, walks through what matters in the five years before you stop working. She covers assessing if you have enough, the levers to pull if savings fall short, why delaying Social Security can help, health insurance and HSA/Roth strategies pre‑Medicare, budgeting for lumpy expenses, and mortgage vs investing choices.

Bonnie Treichel, founder of Endeavor Retirement with deep retirement-plan expertise, and Jamie Hopkins, CEO and retirement educator, discuss retirement planning. They explore shifting to a retirement mindset, in-plan annuities and creating retirement paychecks. They cover bucketing assets, managing sequence-of-returns risk, Social Security funding risks, and how advisors address emotional and lifestyle planning.

David Bach, bestselling personal finance author and former Morgan Stanley advisor, shares his take on enjoying life sooner. He discusses moving abroad and mini-retirements. He explains updates to automatic saving, how young people should start investing, catching up in your 50s, and why homeownership and healthy habits matter for long-term plans.

Hilary Wiek, principal analyst at PitchBook with 20+ years across asset owners and investment roles. She talks about the 2026 private markets outlook, why fundraising slowed, valuation and fee issues, the rise of evergreen and interval fund structures, pockets of outperformance like secondaries, and how ESG and private exposure in 401(k)s are evolving.

Jim O’Shaughnessy, founder of O’Shaughnessy Asset Management and author known for What Works on Wall Street, reflects on quantitative investing and lifelong learning. He digs into price versus narrative, how quant methods avoid emotional pitfalls, long-term portfolio and bond roles, and what matters in pre-seed founder selection and valuations. He also shares the origin of his quotes book and his Infinite Loops podcast.

Sara Devereux, Vanguard’s CIO for Fixed Income and former Goldman Sachs partner, discusses Vanguard’s active bond strategies and tech-driven trading. Short takes cover ETF growth, private credit risks, how electronification reshapes bond markets, and whether bonds still serve as portfolio ballast. Listeners hear practical views on sector selection, term-premium concerns, and 2026 macro crosswinds.

Sally Balch Hurme, an elder-law attorney and author who spent 23 years at AARP and wrote practical checklists for families. She talks about simple first steps to organizing affairs. She shares why documenting final wishes and family history matters. She covers must-have documents, medication lists, beneficiary reviews, power-of-attorney choices, and cleaning up digital accounts.

Leyla Kunimoto, founder of Accredited Investor Insights who covers private equity, private credit, and real estate from the limited partner view. She talks about private credit risks and warning signs like payment-in-kind, fund leverage and liquidity pressures. She explains secondary market quirks, how retail might gain access, and the limits of IRR and NAV accounting.

Cody Garrett, a certified financial planner and founder of Measure Twice Money, teams up with Sean Mullaney, a CPA and tax expert. They tackle early retirement strategies and how most Americans may actually pay less tax in retirement. Discussions include the limitations of the 4% withdrawal rule, the importance of strategic tax planning, and the benefits of taxable accounts for flexibility. They debunk fear-based tax myths while advising on optimal Roth conversions and drawdown strategies for retirees. Practical insights abound for anyone looking to navigate retirement finances.