Hi,
This year, I had the opportunity to join dozens of conversations as a podcast guest, quoted source, panelist, and presenter that all came down to the same core question:
How do we help people get ready before life happens?
I’m grateful to everyone who invited me into these conversations.
🔍 Themes That Kept Showing Up
✅ Financial fluency over financial literacy
✅ Money conversations before caregiving or crisis
✅ Behavior, psychology, and bias shaping decisions and outcomes
✅ Integrity in insurance and financial planning
✅ Preparing for life’s what ifs, not just returns
⭐ Key Takeaways That Stood Out This Year
✅ Advisors can adopt a doctor’s mindset: listen first, understand fully, and then diagnose and recommend. What if your financial advisor listened like your doctor? With Marla Sofer on the Knowing Me, Knowing You Podcast (Apple Podcasts)
✅ It’s time for the financial services industry to evolve from product-driven approaches to relationship-focused strategies in an increasingly AI-driven world. From Financial Literacy to Financial Fluency: A Small Change, Big Impact with Hillary Gale on The Finance Marketing Podcast. Listen (here).
✅ A look at what should be in your financial and first aid kit. Create a Disaster-Proof Financial Life! With Laura Adams on the Money Girl podcast (listen).
✅ AI will be a game changer for personalizing and making information accessible without judgment. “Financial Literacy and AI: How Financial Educators Can Harness the Full Potential of AI” with Faith Teope, Thomas Festus Cudjoe, and Benjamin Nathan Otchere for The Financial Success Summit presented by Money Read Global.
✅ Too many people are sold permanent life insurance or “infinite banking” as the magic answer to wealth-building. The “Be Your Own Banker” illusion with Joe Saul-Sehy on the Stacking Benjamins podcast. (listen).
🎙 This Week’s Featured Conversation
🌟 What if midlife was a turning point to redesign your future with clarity, community, and purpose rather than a crisis?
A conversation on how we can reimagine midlife with honesty, curiosity, and connection while preparing for the caregiving and financial realities that come with it.
👉 Rethinking Community, Caregiving & Financial Planning with Merridith Gonzalez, the Midlife Concierge on The Get Ready Money Podcast (watch or listen).
📚 Where These Conversations Happened (by format):
Podcasts:
✅ What if your financial advisor listened like your doctor? With Marla Sofer on the Knowing Me, Knowing You Podcast (Apple Podcasts)
✅ From Financial Literacy to Financial Fluency: A Small Change, Big Impact with Hillary Gale on The Finance Marketing Podcast. Listen (here)
✅ Are you paying for insurance you don't need? With Bernadette Joy (YouTube)
✅ How women in midlife can take control of their financial life with Merridith Gonzalez on Hot Flashes & Cool Chats (Watch).
✅ Best practices for new life agents with Tyler York of Achievable on (Apple Podcasts)
✅ Building a Career on Ethics and Education with Tyler York of Achievable on (Apple Podcasts)
✅ The Be Your Own Banker Illusion with Joe Saul-Sehy on the Stacking Benjamins Podcast (listen)
✅ Meet Tony Steuer: Changing How We Talk About Money with Irma DeJong on the Paul the Insurer Podcast (listen)
✅ What If the Way You Manage Your Money Could Boost Your Career — and Keep You Safe from Scams? With Justyn Makarewycz on the Zicklin GCMC Podcast on (Apple Podcasts)
✅ What if the future of financial services is about collaboration? With John Kailunas on the Sales Success Podcast from Catalyst 4 Growth (listen).
✅ Financial Literacy and Aging with Dignity with Michael Banner on the 62 Who Knew podcast (YouTube).
✅ The Truth About Life Insurance with Misty Lynch on the Demystifying Money Podcast (Apple Podcasts)
✅ Tony Steuer Outlines “The Get Ready Blueprint With John Lanza and Tony Steuer on The Art of The Allowance Podcast. Listen (here).
✅ Be consistent with your branding With Alexandra Zendrian on the Brand Stories Podcast (Spotify)
✅ Build Your Financial First Aid Kit with Shannah Game on the Everyone’s Talking Money Podcast (here).
✅ Unlocking Financial Freedom: Smart Money Strategies with Scott Carson on The Note Closers Podcast (Apple Podcasts)
✅ Insights from an award-winning author and fintech advisor. My thoughts about the insurance industry and the prevention of financial scams and frauds on The One-on-One Podcast with Walt Laskos (YouTube).
✅ What to look for when reviewing with life insurance policies with Catherine Tindall on the Financial Advisors Want to Know Podcast (YouTube).
✅ Transform your money mindset with Brandi Taylor on the Business Beauty Network podcast (Apple Podcasts).
✅ Is there a Massive opportunity in the Life Insurance market? With Adam Holt & Derek Notman on the Rethink Podcast (Apple Podcasts).
✅ Create a Disaster-Proof Financial Life! With Laura Adams on the Money Girl podcast (listen).
Articles & Media Quotes:
✅ 6 Options When Life Insurance Policies Aren’t Working with Maxwell Schmitz for ReThinking65 (here).
✅ How life insurance can pay for long term care - Cameron Huddleston for AARP
✅ How to protect your money during a coup - Kaz Weida for DAME magazine
✅ Forgotten money finds its way home - Julie Rains for Save.Invest.Protect.Preserve.
✅ Are you overpaying for insurance? How to spot it and what to do about it - Bernadette Joy for Bankrate
✅ Insurance should protect your finances. People say it’s crushing their budgets instead - Venessa Wong for Market watch
✅ People pay a lot for insurance. Sometimes it’s not enough to protect them from disaster.Venessa Wong for Marketwatch
✅ 9 Types of Insurance You (Probably) Don’t Need - Cameron Huddleston for AARP (read)
Presentations and Panels
✅ “Financial Literacy and AI: How Financial Educators Can Harness the Full Potential of AI” with Faith Teope, Thomas Festus Cudjoe, and Benjamin Nathan Otchere for The Financial Success Summit presented by Money Read Global
✅ Insurance 101 Masterclass presented by Charlene Cong. (YouTube)
✅ The 8 Habits of Financially Prepared People for Jump$tart Four Corners (YouTube).
Week 52 Action Item: Year End Reflection
🌎 The Big Picture: Take a deep breath and reflect on what you accomplished this year.
🤔 Why It Matters: Reflection helps you recognize growth, learn from challenges, and carry momentum forward.
💡 Here’s What Works: Use the Get Ready Habits as your guide.
- Goals Defined: Are your goals clear, meaningful, and time-bound?
- Educate Yourself: Did you apply what you learned? Are you continuing to learn??
- Think About How You Think: Did you act with intention and a positive mindset?
- Relevancy to You: Did your choices align with your values and priorities?
- Evaluate Your Options: Did you consider fees and tradeoffs?
- Assemble the Pieces: Do you see how everything fits together, and what’s missing?
- Detailed Focus: Did you balance the details, seek balance and ask for help, when needed?
- Yearly Review: Are you keeping up to date?
💭 Tony’s Take: Be gentle on yourself. If you didn’t meet all of your goals, that’s okay. It’s all about the changes that you make going forward. Do the best that you can.
🧠 Final Thought
Across every conversation this year, one thing was clear: Financial readiness starts with better conversations, not better spreadsheets.
Preparation isn’t about predicting the future. It’s built on clarity, conversation and a plan that adapts when life happens.
Let’s change the way we think (and talk) about money!
Tony
P.S. 🎙️ Check out The Get Ready Money Podcast → [Apple] | [YouTube]
