Working with us is straightforward — and intentionally so. Here's exactly what happens from the moment you reach out to the moment you have a real plan in hand.
The full process broken down. Each step has a clear purpose and a clear stopping point — you can step out at any time.
Short online intake. Helps us understand where you are before we ever meet.
If we're a good fit, you'll see our calendar and pick a time that works for you.
We focus on what matters most to you first — the rest comes when you're ready.
We build the actual recommendations between meetings and walk you through them.
Most folks reach us through Your Retirement Snapshot — a 13-question form that takes about 5 to 8 minutes to complete. We ask about where you are in life, what's on your mind, and what kind of retirement you're hoping to build.
You can fill it out from anywhere, on any device, on your own time. You won't get an immediate phone call. Thomas reviews every submission personally — usually within one business day — and reaches out with the right next step for your situation.
The Snapshot isn't a sales tool. It's how we make sure your time and ours are well spent when we do sit down together.
After we've reviewed your Snapshot, you'll receive a link to our calendar with available times. You pick what works for you — no phone tag, no back-and-forth.
Most first meetings happen in our Mauston office. If that's not convenient — you live a couple hours out, or in-person doesn't fit your schedule — we can also meet by video. Either way, the experience is the same.
If your situation isn't a good fit for what we do, we'll say so directly and point you toward better resources. Nobody benefits from a meeting that wasn't going to go anywhere.
Most retirement planning meetings try to cover everything in one sitting — and end up covering nothing well. We work differently. We focus on the branch that matters most to you right now, and we go deep.
That might be Income (because retirement is around the corner and you need to know where the paycheck comes from), Insurance (because you're approaching Medicare and the mail is starting to pour in), Tax (because RMDs are coming and you're wondering about Roth conversions), or Estate (because it's been twenty years since your will was written and life looks different now).
Whichever branch we start with, we use a structured fact-finder to capture both the numbers and the things behind the numbers — what you're hoping for, what you're worried about, what matters most to you. Meetings typically run 60 to 120 minutes depending on the depth your situation needs.
When we wrap up, you'll know exactly what we're going to look at, what kind of recommendations to expect, and when you'll see them.
Between meetings, we build out the actual recommendations — running the numbers, comparing the options, and putting together a plan that's specific to your situation. This isn't a generic template. It's your plan, for your life.
At the follow-up meeting, we walk through the recommendations together. You ask questions. You push back where things don't make sense. You take it home and think it over before deciding anything.
From there, we either move forward with what we've built, or we don't. If you decide to engage on more branches, we schedule the next conversation. If you decide what we covered is enough for now, that's fine too.
Either way, you walk out with something real — a plan that addresses the part of your retirement you came in worried about.
You don't pay us a fee for the planning conversation, the fact-finding, or the recommendations we put together. There's no hourly rate, no consultation fee, and no surprise bill at the end.
We get paid by the carriers and platforms when we help you place insurance, manage investments, or set up an estate plan through our partners. If you decide to act on a recommendation, we earn a commission or fee from the company providing the product or service — not from you.
If you decide to take what we've put together and go elsewhere, that's your choice and you owe us nothing. We'll explain exactly how we get paid the first time we meet, so you always know how the math works.
A lot of people are nervous about reaching out to a financial professional because of bad past experiences. We've heard the stories. Here's what you can count on with us.
The first step is short, online, and confidential. Take 5 to 8 minutes. We'll handle the rest.