Most retirement plans answer one question: Can I afford to retire? But far fewer answer the question that often matters just as much: What am I retiring to?

In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with renowned researcher and Harvard Business School professor emerita Teresa Amabile to explore the hidden psychological transition that accompanies retirement. Drawing from more than a decade of research and interviews with retirees, she explains why many successful professionals fear retirement, why those fears are often misplaced, and how financial planners can help clients prepare for life beyond the balance sheet.

Whether you're guiding clients toward retirement or thinking about your own future, this conversation offers practical insights into identity, purpose, relationships, and creating a retirement that truly works.

Questions Discussed:

• Why do so many successful professionals fear retirement despite being financially prepared?
• What are the four psychological tasks every retiree faces?
• How can retirees preserve a sense of identity after leaving work?
• What role should financial planners play in preparing clients emotionally for retirement?
• What single question can advisors ask that helps clients begin designing a meaningful retirement?

Key Takeaways:

• Retirement is a transition, not a single event.
• Financial readiness alone does not guarantee retirement satisfaction.
• Many pre-retirees fear the unknown, but most retirees ultimately adapt successfully.
• Identity, relationships, and daily routines are critical components of a fulfilling retirement.
• Financial planners can add tremendous value by encouraging clients to think intentionally about what comes after their careers.

Resources:
Article: Retiring: Creating a Life That Works for You
Webcast: Financial Planning for Aging Clients
Article: 4 Questions to Identify Your Retirement Needs and Goals

This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program.

Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

Some of the biggest planning opportunities in trust and estate taxation are also the easiest to miss. In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with nationally recognized estate planning authority Bob Keebler to explore three highly technical areas that can dramatically impact client outcomes: portability elections, fiduciary income taxation during periods of market volatility, and the often-misunderstood Kenan doctrine.

Bob explains where advisors commonly overlook opportunities, how missed elections may still be salvaged, and why funding decisions inside trusts and estates can create unexpected capital gains. Along the way, he highlights strategies that help CPA financial planners deliver more thoughtful and tax-efficient advice to families across generations.

Questions Answered

• How does portability work, and when can missed portability elections still be recovered?
• When should advisors favor portability versus bypass trusts and GST planning?
• What is the Kenan doctrine, and why can funding a trust with appreciated assets trigger capital gains?
• How does a Section 645 election change the taxation of trusts during administration?
• Equal inheritances are not always equal when embedded capital gains and basis differences are considered.

Resources:
The Adviser's Guide to Financial & Estate Planning - Vol 4
Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Chart
Estate Planning & Portability
Volatile Markets, Smart Estates: Keebler's Top Tax Plays

This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program.

Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

What does the future of the CPA profession look like as advisory, financial planning, and AI reshape client expectations?

In this episode of the AICPA Personal Financial Planning Podcast, Cary Sinnett sits down with Sue Coffey, CEO of Public Accounting at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, to discuss the profession's transformation from compliance-focused work to holistic trusted advisory.

Sue shares why trust has become one of the profession's greatest competitive advantages, how technology and complexity are accelerating change, and why CPA financial planners are uniquely positioned to lead multigenerational client relationships. The conversation also explores how education, credentialing, AI, and evolving firm models are shaping the next generation of CPA advisors.

Whether you are building an advisory practice, expanding into financial planning, or thinking about the future direction of the profession, this episode provides an inside look at where the CPA profession is headed and why the opportunity for planners has never been greater.

Questions Answered

• Why is the CPA profession shifting from compliance toward advisory services?
• What makes CPA financial planners uniquely valuable to clients and families?
• How are AI and technology changing the future of CPA advisory work?
• What separates firms that successfully transition into advisory services?
• Why did financial planning become part of the CPA exam evolution?
• How can firms prepare for the future of trusted advisory relationships?

Key Takeaways

• Trust remains one of the CPA profession's greatest differentiators in an increasingly complex world.
• Financial planning is becoming more integrated into the CPA identity and educational pipeline.
• AI is expected to enhance CPA capabilities rather than replace advisors.
• Successful advisory firms combine technical expertise, relationships, governance, and talent development.
• CPA financial planners are well-positioned to serve as the "quarterback" coordinating broader client advice teams.

AICPA Resources:

• Pathways to Practicing Personal Financial Planning
• Rise2040: Co-creating our profession's future
• National Accounting Day: What Trust Looks Like in Action
• Celebrating CPAs

This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program.

Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.