Before you hear from all the experts who will be sharing their knowledge with you in this book, I’d like you to learn a little about me. Just who is Martha Shedden? How did I become an expert on Social Security? More important, how did I become so passionate about making sure everyone gets everything they deserve and can have the retirement lifestyle they want?
You may be surprised to learn I haven’t always worked in the financial services arena. In fact, my career path has had a few interesting twists and turns.
My first interest was the environment. I’m from a small town in Northern California, and grew up spending a lot of time outdoors, skiing, camping, hiking and backpacking. I studied environmental science at U.C. Davis and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Renewable Natural Resources. I wanted to work in the emerging solar energy field, but my degree was not technical enough. So, with no specific direction, I moved to Tahoe and became a ski bum for a few years (one of my more interesting twists).
As absolutely fun as that was, it really clarified to me that I wanted to do something that challenged me and used my skills. A friend suggested engineering because I am so detail oriented. I enrolled at a community college and took all the lower division engineering classes, planning for a career as a mechanical engineer in the solar field.
But, with another twist, while taking those classes, I started working part-time at our County Public Works Department as a student worker, then a civil engineering aide. I discovered that since I already had a bachelor of science degree, I could take the two professional engineering exams to become a licensed engineer.
Over the next several years, I continued working, studied and passed both exams, married and had my daughter. Even though I did not work in the solar energy field, I had a passive solar hot water system installed on our home in the early 1980s. I worked as a civil engineer for 32 years in the public sector and for private engineering firms.
Many years later another turn in my career path was presented. In 2011, a friend of mine who was a financial advisor asked if I’d help him develop a Social Security course to help financial professionals understand Social Security. I began researching and reading about the topic and was astonished at what I did not understand, how much I misunderstood, the amount of money that was at stake, and the intricacy of all the rules. Like so many Americans, I never thought about Social Security when I started to work. But at this point, I basically became obsessed with the topic and determined to understand it.
I had an opportunity to teach an online continuing education course about Social Security for CPAs, which led to the development of more courses. But what I really wanted to do was help my Baby Boomer friends and family make smart claiming decisions using the new software being developed.
Knowing that an engineering license was not particularly relevant to retirement planning, I enrolled in the College of Financial Planning’s Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor course in 2013. Then in 2015 I opened my own business, Shedden Social Security and Retirement Planning, to offer Social Security and retirement cash flow analyses.
In the meantime, I was still teaching continuing education courses for CPAs and that is how I met Michael Rosedale, my partner and co-founder at NARSSA. He is a very talented CPA and businessman who realized offering Social Security income planning services was an excellent opportunity for tax professionals to help their clients. We met in 2016, and created NARSSA, the National Association for Registered Social Security Analysts, in 2017. He and I have very complementary skills and abilities to bring to the company and are a good match as business partners.
We formed NARSSA to educate and train those in the financial arena to become Registered Social Security Analysts, RSSAs, so they can help their clients with this very important financial decision. Helping people understand their personal Social Security rules so they receive all the benefits they are entitled to, is one of the most rewarding financial services to provide for retirees.
I eventually came to see that my engineering background was a good fit for Social Security analysis. I love working with numbers. I love solving problems. Both fields are very precise and detail-oriented. Also, my mother, sister and many others in my family were teachers, so I think educating people is in my genes. I love the process of explaining something to someone.
Even when I was a child, I was cognizant of finances. Back then, banks would come to the elementary schools and set up accounts for children. I remember depositing 25 cents a week, earning interest, and seeing my account grow.
As an educator, I am very passionate about making sure any financial professional who works with people in a way that affects their retirement fully understands the concepts of Social Security, and the enormity of the claiming decision. I’m just as passionate about making sure individuals understand what questions they should be asking. Even if they just know enough to realize what they don't know and should ask for help.
There’s so much at stake here. The average beneficiary retiring in 2022 will receive a total cumulative lifetime income of $300,000 to $500,00 from Social Security. For couples who are both high earners, it can total $1 million to $2 million. Many people do not understand that this is their largest retirement asset.
Education and awareness are critical, both for pre-retirees and the financial professionals who will be helping them. This knowledge and planning can begin as soon as we start working. As with any complex topic, myths are continuously repeated, the truth is often misstated, and completely false statements proliferate so it is difficult to find reliable and trustworthy information on Social Security.
Social Security income planning is especially critical for couples due to differences in their age, life expectancy, earning amounts, and how the survivor benefit is calculated. I am extremely passionate about the importance of Social Security planning for women, whether they’re married, widowed, divorced or single. Women live longer, have traditionally lower lifetime earnings and therefore much more to lose than men by making an incorrect claiming decision.
One of the reasons Social Security income planning has become increasingly critical is because we are in a retirement crisis. There are very few remaining defined benefit pension plans and the self-funded defined contribution retirement plans, such as IRAs, have not replaced those historical plans as anticipated. Generally, we are not doing a very good job of saving for ourselves.
There are certainly people who have no choice but to claim Social Security early before their full retirement age. But by working with them early enough, we can still help them make sure they get the highest benefit they are entitled to.
My passion for educating people about Social Security is what led to this book. I realized that while I have a wealth of knowledge to share on this subject, there are many other aspects to retirement planning that people should be aware of. The interviews in this book cover many of those topics. I chose these professionals for their specific expertise in the retirement space, people I’ve admired for many years.
You will find information about Social Security, along with insights on retirement and estate planning, reverse mortgages, taxes, Medicare and more. Think of it as one-stop shop when it comes to retirement planning.
Even though I’ve been educating others about Social Security for years, I still learned so much doing these interviews, and I know you will too. In addition to all the knowledge they shared, they also shared their passion for helping others get through the challenging transition of retiring, making the correct choices, and avoiding costly mistakes.
When we retire, we begin the process of decumulation, using the money that we have saved and accumulated. To do that in the most tax-efficient way, withdrawing from the correct funds at the correct time in the correct order, must include an analysis of the entire retirement financial cash flow. This type of retirement financial planning provides the opportunity to examine our “needs versus our wants.” Not just the financial picture, but the life picture.
I like to tell people that while I have expertise on this subject, I don’t consider myself an expert. I’m still learning and there will no doubt be changes to the program in the coming years. There is always something new to learn.
The best advice I can give someone, whether they’re close to collecting Social Security or still years away, is to understand as much as you can. Learn about the rules and claiming situations that apply to you personally. Your friends and relatives may mean well when they give you advice, but your situation is different than theirs. Every situation is unique. I’ve done many, many Social Security claiming analyses and no two have ever been the same.
This book is a great way to begin that learning process.
If you happen to come up to me down the road and say, “Martha, I read your book,” I hope you finish the sentence this way: “…and it really changed my retirement planning, because I didn’t understand this before. Now I feel much more secure about the next phase of my life.”
So, let’s get started.