Episodes

Have questions about your 401(k)? This listener question episode explores some of the biggest financial questions people face when planning for retirement, from pre-tax and Roth contributions to vesting and catch-up contributions. Join Troy Branch, Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French as they answer common questions about contributing to both workplace retirement accounts and IRAs, what happens to your 401(k) when you change jobs and building greater flexibility into your long-term financial strat...

Have questions about your 401(k)? This listener question episode explores some of the biggest financial questions people face when planning for retirement, from pre-tax and Roth contributions to vesting and catch-up contributions. Join Troy Branch, Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French as they answer common questions about contributing to both workplace retirement accounts and IRAs, what happens to your 401(k) when you change jobs and building greater flexibility into your long-term financial strat...

In this Life Insurance Awareness Month episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast, Troy Branch, Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French explore how life insurance fits into different stages of life. From preserving future insurability early in your career to protecting a growing family, supporting business continuity, and addressing retirement and legacy goals, the team discusses the questions people should be asking as life evolves. Learn more about changing financial priorities and lif...

Is life insurance through work enough? Learn how employer-provided life insurance works, where protection gaps may exist and when it's time to review your coverage. Learn more about employer-provided life insurance in our blog: https://www.ameritas.com/insights/is-employer-life-insurance-enough-what-you-should-know/ In this episode of Future Focus, Troy Branch, Keali Jo French and Jacob Messick discuss what employer-provided life insurance does well and how it may be a good starting point. The...

The questions that helped build a business are not always the same questions that help preserve it. In part two of this episode, What Business Stage Are You In, we explore how established, maturity and transition stages bring new planning considerations. In these business stages, you may need to think about protecting value, creating liquidity, preparing for succession and life after ownership. Watch part one here: https://youtu.be/HYGxmh8LeVY?si=d9_A4SGqtq0uBw_p In this episode, we'll discuss...

If your business changed tomorrow, would your current plan still hold up? This episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast explores why your business stage, particularly during the startup and growth phases, should shape the questions you ask, and how your answers to those same questions may change as your business grows. In part one of this two-part conversation, the Future Focus team focuses on the startup and growth stages of the business journey. They discuss founder dependence,...

Reflection can be uncomfortable, but it’s often where the clearest insights come from. In this listener-driven episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast, the team turns the lens inward, exploring how reflection can improve financial decision-making while sharing a few honest assessments of themselves along the way. The discussion examines how to tell whether you're truly on track financially, which financial decisions people most often wish they had slowed down on and whether it's...

Looking for financial concepts explained without the industry jargon? In this special episode, members of the Ameritas advanced planning team, Troy Branch, Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French, play “Pardon My Jargon. Can You Define That?” They turn financial planning, investing, retirement and tax terms into a fast-paced competition with one goal: making complex concepts simple. Each participant is given common industry terms—like fiduciary, diversification, tax brackets and Roth conversions—and...

Who will actually receive your life insurance benefit—and what happens if something goes wrong? In this episode, we break down common life insurance ownership mistakes for beneficiaries that can derail even the best plan and leave outcomes to chance. A life insurance beneficiary is the person or entity you name to receive your policy’s death benefit. This myth or reality episode covers common beneficiary mistakes or misunderstandings. Learn why naming a contingent beneficiary matters, what happe...

Think your life insurance ownership is set up correctly? It might not be, and small mistakes can lead to big tax and estate consequences. In this episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast, we break down “myth or reality” scenarios, including the risks of having different owners, insureds and beneficiaries, why you might want to consider naming a successor, and how poor structuring can lead to unintended outcomes. You’ll also learn how ownership impacts estate taxes and what “incide...

Are you truly retirement-ready — or just guessing? In this episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast, we’re breaking down financial planning and what retirement readiness really means, along with the steps that matter most. We cover what financial planning looks like in practice, when it makes sense to work with a financial professional and where insurance and annuities can fit into a retirement strategy. This episode will help you understand your current position, define your goa...

Your biggest financial questions answered in this episode: Are you doing all the “right” things for retirement, but still not sure where you actually stand? In this listener episode of Future Focus, we tackle questions we hear all the time from people who feel like they should be on track, but don’t have a clear picture of their progress. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. This episode is all about making retirement planning feel more manageable. In this episode, we cover: - How to or...

In the final episode of this three-part series, Future Focus brings business and personal planning together, exploring what ultimately matters most: outcomes. When it comes to passing on a business, what does it look like when you’re ready to move it on to the next generation? This episode discusses navigating equity and fairness between active and inactive children in your business, understanding why the value you think your business will sell for isn’t always accurate, and aligning business e...

In this episode of Future Focus, host Troy Branch is joined by Ameritas advanced planning colleagues, Keali Jo French and Jacob Messick, to explore how to build enterprise value long before an exit. The conversation focuses on people, systems and owner dependency—and why businesses that rely too heavily on key individuals often face hidden limitations. We cover: - Retaining key people and the role of long‑term incentives. - When owner dependency caps growth and value. - Key person risk, cont...

Future Focus is kicking off a three‑episode business‑owner series about the decisions business owners make that have long‑lasting effects. In part one, we examine choosing your business entity and how early structure decisions can impact future taxes, flexibility and long‑term outcomes. The core questions we discuss in this episode include: - Should a pass-through business owner own permanent life insurance inside their business or should they own it personally? - How do business owners think...

It’s now 2026 and the estate and gift tax exemption remains near $15 million. So what should families actually be doing now? In this episode, we discuss estate planning for families with practical tips for readiness, flexibility and smart decision‑making that applies regardless of exemption levels. You’ll learn: - Where the estate and gift tax landscape truly stands in 2026. - Why complacency can be risky. - Core estate planning documents every family should have. - How to involve younger ...

Your biggest financial questions answered in this special listener Q&A episode as the Future Focus team dives into real financial questions from real listeners. We cover smart ways to pay for education, whether 529 plans still make sense with fewer kids going to college and how to handle an inherited IRA under the 10‑year rule. We’ll discuss: - 529 basics, tax benefits and alternatives. - New 529-to-Roth IRA rules. - Funding education vs. funding opportunity. - Strategies for managing inheri...

In case you missed it, go back and watch part one of 2026 Personal Finance Reset: https://youtu.be/IKLv30Fhx5k. Now that you’ve reviewed your financial starting point for the new year, part two dives into the next steps: reviewing your insurance protection, strengthening your retirement plan and getting ahead of tax season. This episode of Future Focus breaks down simple, practical moves to keep your money organized and on track for the year. In this episode: - Insurance and risk protection: U...

Welcome to a brand‑new year — and a brand‑new chance to take control of your money. Think of this episode as your 2026 personal finance reset. Troy Branch sits down with Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French to break down three of the most important financial steps you should take at the start of 2026. Whether you’re trying to get organized, set meaningful money goals or finally understand your full financial picture, this conversation will help you start the year with clarity and confidence. 1. R...

Retirement planning can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. In this episode of Future Focus, host Troy Branch shares useful retirement planning tips as he talks with Jacob Messick from the advanced planning team and Andrew Gunning from Ameritas retirement plans to clear up common myths and mistakes people make with their retirement accounts. What you’ll learn in this episode: - Why you can’t take your required minimum distribution whenever you want. - The differences between Roth IR...

Welcome back to part two of The One Big Beautiful Bill explained. In this episode, host Troy Branch continues the conversation with Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French as we dive deeper into the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, or OB3 as the team calls it, and what it means for business owners and estate planning strategies. We’re tackling more myths vs. realities, including: - Estate tax changes and why planning now matters. - The lifetime exemption jump to $15M in 2026 and how to use it strategica...

In this special episode of Future Focus: A Financial Strategies Podcast, we’re flipping the script to bring your biggest financial questions answered by our team. This listener-driven Q&A tackles the topics you care about most, including: - How much do you really need to retire comfortably? - How do families handle estate equalization in second marriages? - When should businesses start thinking about executive compensation? - At what net worth should estate planning become a priority? This ...

In this episode of Future Focus, Troy Branch and his colleagues, Jacob Messick and Keali Jo French, deliver One Big Beautiful Bill explained, or as they call it, OB3. And yes, this is a Star Wars reference. The team discusses the OB3 tax bill and what it means for individual taxpayers, families and high-net-worth individuals. We discuss what components of OB3 are myth vs. reality, covering these topics: - OB3’s impact on middle-class taxpayers. - New standard deductions. - Expanded Child Tax...

In this episode of Future Focus, host Troy Branch sits down with financial professional, Keith Gillies, to explore the main sources of business owner stress and what can be done to navigate them. Keith brings decades of experience and a sharp focus on helping business owners thrive. Together, they unpack the biggest challenges facing business owners today—from taxes and succession planning to cash flow, employee retention, and balancing personal and business wealth. Keith shares his experience ...