Retire Repurposed

In this episode, Ben Taatjes shares his personal experience of dropping his youngest daughter at college - a moment that forced him to confront a crucial retirement question: When the duties that defined me disappear, who am I? Drawing from Tim Keller's insight on identity, Ben contrasts two incomplete answers: the traditional 'I am my duties' and the modern 'I am my desires.' Discover how your identity in Christ allows you to find fresh expressions of purpose even when the duties you've known for decades have changed.

In this final episode of the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes and Jerrid Sebesta reveal that what retirees call 'fear of being alone' runs much deeper than loneliness. Throughout this series, they've discovered that most retirement fears eventually trace back to four fundamental questions. Drawing from Acts 17:28, this episode reframes retirement from a series of threats to be managed into an opportunity to place your security, identity, significance, and belonging firmly in God - the one thing retirement can never take away. A powerful conclusion that shows why Generative Work becomes the practical expression of spiritual security.

In part two of our generative work exploration, Ben Taatjes addresses the critical distinction many retirees miss: your career gave you a platform, not your purpose. While your job title disappears at retirement, the deeper gifts and calling that animated your work remain intact. Ben walks retirees through four powerful questions designed to uncover what actually gave you energy and meaning beneath the job description, and more importantly, who could benefit from those gifts now. Discover how retirement shifts the question from 'What will I do with myself?' to 'Who could I help and what could I grow?' This episode reframes retirement not as an ending to work, but as preparation for the most meaningful work of your life - generative work that creates, serves, develops others, and produces fruit beyond yourself. Perhaps retirement isn't the work we're supposed to retire from. Perhaps it's the work we've been preparing to retire toward.

Continuing the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes introduces a transformative concept: generative work in retirement. While it may seem counterintuitive, Ben is decidedly pro-work in retirement - just not the kind you left behind. Generative work is fundamentally different. It's the kind of work that connects you deeper to who you actually are and what you were created to do. Rather than working to stay busy or fill time, generative work produces something beyond yourself - impact, legacy, transformation, and meaning. In this first part of exploring this concept, Ben clearly defines what generative work is and, equally important, what it is not. Discover how this kind of work becomes the bridge between the significance your career once provided and the deeper purpose your soul truly craves in retirement.

In this continuation of the regret discussion within the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes, Financial Advisor, challenges a widely held assumption: that retiring as early as possible is always the goal. What if the real regret isn't working too long, but retiring too soon? Through the story of a 72-year-old man who worked until the end of his life, Ben paints a picture that society views as tragic - yet reveals a profoundly different narrative. Rather than lamenting a life of work, this man's story illustrates a life of purpose, contribution, and meaning. This episode forces retirees to ask the hard question: What does success in retirement actually look like? Is it maximizing leisure time and retiring at the earliest possible moment, or is there something far more fulfilling? Learn how to redefine retirement success in a way that honors both rest and meaningful work. Contact us at (320) 222-4236 or Stewards Planning Group, 1104 19th Ave SW, Willmar, MN, 56201. The opinions contained in this material are those of the presenters & guests, and not a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell investment products. This information is from sources believed to be reliable, but Cetera Wealth Services, LLC cannot guarantee or represent that it is accurate or complete. Securities offered through Cetera Wealth Services, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory Services offered through Cetera Investment Advisers LLC, a registered investment adviser. Cetera is under separate ownership from any other named entity.  

In this installment of the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes explores one of retirement's most haunting fears: regret. Research shows people regret what they didn't do far more than what they actually did - and regret isn't something that strikes overnight. It's a slow erosion that builds over years of deferred dreams and postponed connections. Ben reveals why society's current view of retirement actually accelerates this erosion rather than preventing it. Drawing on the time value of life and memories, Ben shows why most regrets are fundamentally relational - about time not spent with loved ones and experiences not shared. Most importantly, this episode provides actionable steps retirees can take now to avoid the regret trap, ensuring your retirement is defined by what you did do, not by what haunts you for not doing.

Continuing the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes addresses a fear closely tied to but distinct from irrelevance: the fear of losing significance. Society tells a clear narrative - young people innovate, middle-aged people produce, and older people retire into insignificance. But Ben counteracts this cultural lie with a powerful truth about the irreplaceable value of wisdom. Discover why wisdom creates far greater impact than pure movement and energy, and why older voices are desperately needed in our fast-changing world. Learn how to completely rewire what significance means in retirement - moving beyond the metrics of productivity and ambition to the deeper currency of wisdom and perspective. This episode proves it's never too late to rewrite your story and step into a season of unprecedented influence and impact.

In this episode of the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes tackles one of retirement's most crippling fears: becoming irrelevant. For decades, when people ask 'What do you do?', we answer with our job title - mistaking our role for our identity. But retirement forces a reckoning with a deeper question: Who am I without my career? Discover how to reorganize your understanding of who you actually are at your core, so you can base your identity on something that doesn't disappear when you leave the workforce. Ben provides practical strategies for alleviating the fear of irrelevance by reconnecting with your true identity - one that transcends job titles and career achievements. This episode liberates retirees from the anxiety of losing value and shows why your relevance is far greater than any career could ever define.

In this episode of the health section in the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes addresses the foundation upon which all other health pillars rest: spiritual health and identity. Retirement doesn't answer life's deepest questions - it removes the noise and distractions that careers provided for decades, forcing us to confront who we really are at our core. Ben reveals two distinct paths retirees can follow: one with a firmly rooted identity found in Christ, and another that knows about Christ intellectually but hasn't grasped it at an identity level. This isn't a conversation about religion - it's about the spiritual foundation that determines whether your retirement thrives or merely survives. Discover why identity is the gateway to physical health, emotional well-being, relational vitality, cognitive sharpness, and mental clarity. This episode ties together everything we've explored about health and shows why spiritual alignment is the master key to retirement fulfillment.

In this powerful continuation of the 'Double Click' miniseries, Ben Taatjes addresses one of retirees' deepest fears - Alzheimer's disease and memory loss. Rather than focusing solely on brain mechanics, Ben explores research that points to something deeper: the functionality of our heart and soul. Discover why the real key to retirement isn't avoiding Alzheimer's, but living with genuine heart and purpose. In a remarkable convergence, the very things that connect us to our hearts - meaningful relationships, spiritual engagement, purposeful contribution, and genuine connection - are precisely what research shows prevent cognitive decline. This episode transforms Alzheimer's anxiety from paralyzing fear into motivation for living more fully, more purposefully, and more connected. Learn why a life lived with heart might be your greatest defense against memory loss.