Revolutionize Your Retirement Radio

Dorian Mintzer
  • 4.5 (13)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Weekly

Retirement isn’t just the end of a career, it’s the beginning of a new chapter filled with opportunity, meaning, and growth.  Revolutionize Your Retirement is a podcast designed to help you navigate this transition with purpose, confidence, and joy. Featuring insightful conversations with leading experts in retirement and longevity. Each episode explores real-world topics like money, purpose, identity, relationships, lifestyle, and health, all aimed at helping you redefine what “retirement” means for you. Whether you’re planning ahead or already living your next chapter, these conversations offer practical tools and inspiration for embracing the years ahead with curiosity and vitality. Because retirement isn’t just an age or a financial number, it’s a chance to live well today while building confidence for tomorrow. More About the Host Dorian Mintzer, M.S.W., Ph.D., BCC (Board Certified Coach) is a coach, therapist, teacher, and writer with extensive clinical experience.  She previously taught in a graduate gerontology program at Regis College in Wellesley, MA , and was part of the faculty for the Certified Professional Retirement Coaching 2.0. program.   She is the co-author of The Couples Retirement Puzzle: 10 Must-Have Conversations for Creating an Amazing New Life Together and a contributor to numerous other books and articles on aging, relationships, and purpose. Her insights have been featured in leading media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, NPR, ABC Evening News, and The Today Show. Her TEDx Talk, “Embracing Your Bonus Years: A Time to Grow, Learn, and Evolve,” captures her belief that later life is a time for reflection, reinvention, and renewed purpose. Through her podcast, coaching, and teaching, Dr. Mintzer continues to empower people to live their later years with intentionality, vitality, and joy. Dr. Mintzer also hosts the monthly Revolutionize Your Retirement Interview with Experts Series, an engaging webinar held on the 4th Tuesday of each month, offering fresh perspectives to help professionals and the public alike embrace the opportunities of the “bonus years.”  Visit RevolutionizeRetirement.com to Join the next interview Live

  1. Jul 14

    The Artichoke Assessment

    In this episode, Dorian welcomes back Renee, founder of Positivity Pro, for her third appearance on the show. Renee returns to talk about her new book, The Artichoke Assessment, a guide that uses the humble artichoke as a powerful metaphor for self-discovery, career transitions, and finding what truly brings you joy. Renee explains why she chose the artichoke over the more familiar "peeling an onion" metaphor: an onion makes you cry and leaves you with nothing at the center, but an artichoke has real layers (called bracts), a challenging "choke" you have to work through, and a tender, nourishing heart waiting underneath. She shares the story of the dinner party where the idea was born, walks through how she's used the artichoke as an assessment tool with real clients, and connects it to Japanese principles like Ikigai, Kaizen, and Chado that emphasize patience, intention, and small steady steps. Whether you're navigating retirement, a career change, or simply feel like something is missing even though life looks good on paper, this conversation offers a gentle, reflective framework for slowing down and reconnecting with what really matters. About Renee Renee is the founder of Positivity Pro and has spent many years working with individuals and organizations through transitions and change. She is the author of The Artichoke Assessment, a guide built around using the artichoke as a metaphor and tool for self-reflection, and previously co-authored an earlier, much longer book back in 2007. Renee is known for bringing humor, warmth, and a deep well of client experience into her work helping people find clarity and joy in their lives. Connect with Renee Website: positivitypro.comEmail: renee@positivitypro.comText: 646-327-2119Book: The Artichoke Assessment, available on Amazon or directly through ReneeWhat to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    The Artichoke Assessment

  2. Jun 9

    Solving for X in Retirement: Is It Identity, Joy, or Legacy? With Michael Kay

    In this episode of Revolutionize Your Retirement, host Dori Mintzer talks with Michael F. Kay about what it really means to transition from career to retirement. They explore identity, purpose, joy, and the challenge of redefining success beyond a job title. Michael shares insights from his book How to Craft Your Chapter X and offers practical tools to help listeners navigate this important life transition with intention and authenticity. Connect with Michael F. Kay LinkedIn Website Podcast How To Craft Your Chapter X What to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    Solving for X in Retirement: Is It Identity, Joy, or Legacy? With Michael Kay

  3. May 12

    The Importance of Rituals and Gathering With Bruce Feiler

    In this episode of the Revolutionize Your Retirement Interview with Expert Series, host Dori Mintzer welcomes back author Bruce Feiler to discuss his new book, A Time to Gather, and why rituals matter more than ever. Together, they explore how rituals help people navigate transition, reduce loneliness, and create connection in a fragmented world. Bruce shares the personal experience that sparked the book, including his family’s transition from an empty nest to a full nest and back again, and how that led him to study group rituals around the world. He explains the difference between individual life transitions and collective “group quakes,” and why modern people are increasingly creating bespoke rituals for divorce, illness, grief, retirement, and other major life changes. This rich conversation also explores examples from Bruce’s research, including divorce parties, grieving circles, rituals for loss, and customized ceremonies that help people face shame, fear, and uncertainty with support from others. Bruce outlines five core elements of an effective ritual: boundaries, stakes, compromise, empathy, and hope. Connect With Bruce here: Website: https://www.brucefeiler.com/ Substack: https://brucefeiler.substack.com/?utm_campaign=profile_chips  LinkedIn:   / brucefeiler   Instagram:   / brucefeiler   Youtube:    / @brucefeilervideos    A Time To Gather: How Ritual Created the World and How It Can Save US, is available from Amazon, Barnes & Nobles, and from independent booksellers. Prior to the book’s release date of May 19th, you can order a signed copy from Greenlight Bookstore in Brooklyn, NY. Go to https://brucefeiler.substack.com/about to find the link.  What to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    The Importance of Rituals and Gathering With Bruce Feiler

  4. Apr 14

    Retirement: Another Graduation with Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons

    This episode features retirement transition expert and former lawyer Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons, author of Encore: A High Achiever’s Guide to Thriving in Retirement, in conversation with host Dori Mintzer about how high achievers can rethink retirement as a creative “encore” rather than an ending. Elizabeth shares her own story of leaving Big Law, the contrasting retirement examples of her father and grandfather, and what she’s learned from 16 years of helping professionals design more intentional, energizing next chapters.​ Together they explore how to bridge identity beyond job titles, move from a life dominated by work to a richer “mosaic” of relationships, wellbeing, contribution, and play, and shift from reacting to others’ demands to actively creating your own structure, time use, and definition of fulfillment. Through stories of clients who rediscovered passions like jazz, community leadership, and even Broadway, Elizabeth illustrates practical tools—such as “shaking the snow globe” with reflective questions, experimenting instead of seeking instant mastery, and using annual and daily planning to align time with what matters most.​ Key ideas: Retirement as another “graduation,” where you carry forward your enduring self rather than your business card.​Shifting from a monolithic work‑centered life to a flexible mosaic that includes health, relationships, learning, service, and joy.​Moving from a reactor mindset (responding to others’ agendas) to a creator mindset (designing your own days, experiments, and projects).​Using small, low‑risk experiments to explore new interests and locations instead of needing a fully formed plan from day one.​ Connect with Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons Website & programs: encoraco.com​LinkedIn: Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons​Book: Encore: A High Achiever’s Guide to Thriving in Retirement (available via major booksellers)What to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    Retirement: Another Graduation with Elizabeth Zelinka Parsons

  5. Mar 17

    Securing Your Financial Future with Kerry Hannon

    In this conversation, Kerry Hannon, senior columnist and on‑air expert at Yahoo Finance and award‑winning author of 14 books, including Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future. Kerry explains why Gen X has become the “test market” for do‑it‑yourself retirement, how credit cards, student loans, and career instability have left many feeling unprepared, and why she still believes Gen X can absolutely get back on track.​ You’ll hear about the shift from pensions to 401(k)s, the squeeze of caring for aging parents while raising kids, and the very real impact of rising healthcare costs and economic uncertainty. Kerry also shares hopeful, highly practical strategies—paying down debt, using retirement calculators, working with fiduciary financial planners, and even creating a vision board—to turn anxiety into action. Along the way, Dori and Kerry explore working longer by choice or necessity, navigating ageism, redeploying your skills, and the power of multigenerational connection at work and in life. Connect with Kerry Hannon: LinkedIn: Kerry HannonWebsite: KerryHannon.comBook: Retirement Bites: A Gen X Guide to Securing Your Financial Future by Kerry Hannon and Jana HeronWhat to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    Securing Your Financial Future with Kerry Hannon

  6. Mar 3

    Could Older People Be the Cavalry Coming Over the Hill? with Linda P. Fried

    In this episode of the Revolutionize Your Retirement Interview with Experts series, host Dori Mintzer speaks with Dr. Linda P. Fried, a global leader in healthy aging, about why rising longevity is a hard-won success rather than a crisis, how the shift to older populations is transforming societies worldwide, what older adults most want from later life (independence, purpose, learning, contribution, and mattering), and the many often-unseen ways older people already bolster economies and communities through work, caregiving, and volunteering, challenging fear-based narratives like the “old-age dependency ratio” and the impact of ageism and age segregation. Key topics discussed The value of longer lives and demographic change: Public health advances have added decades to average life expectancy, bringing the U.S. to the brink of having 20% of its population over 65 and creating a new demographic reality shared by many countries.What older adults want: Global and U.S. studies show older people consistently prioritize aging in place, avoiding being a burden, maintaining relationships, having purpose, lifelong learning opportunities, respected voices in community life, and roles where they truly matter.Mattering, retirement, and mental health: Research highlighted in the Wall Street Journal finds many retirees feel less valued, needed, and connected, with loss of mattering predicting post‑retirement depression and illustrating how identity and health are tied to meaningful roles.Economic and civic contributions of older adults: Older people’s paid work and volunteering together are estimated to equal roughly 7% of U.S. GDP, while economic evidence shows older workers strengthen rather than crowd out opportunities for younger workers.Ageism, age segregation, and distorted narratives: Dominant policy tools such as the old‑age dependency ratio frame older adults as dependents, reinforcing ageist beliefs and obscuring real contributions, especially in a highly age‑segregated society where generations rarely mix.Capabilities and assets of later life: Science increasingly documents that aging can bring new cognitive strengths (complex problem analysis, values‑based judgment, breaking problems into steps), greater prosocial motivation, generosity, emotional balance, capacity for conflict mediation, and a generative drive to leave the world better. Connect with Dr. Linda P. Fried LinkedIn: Linda P. Fried Learn more: Columbia University What to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    Could Older People Be the Cavalry Coming Over the Hill? with Linda P. Fried

  7. Feb 24

    Overtime: Reclaiming a Life in Poetry with Bruce Frankel

    After surviving a major cardiac arrest at 75 and multiple earlier health crises, journalist and author Bruce Frankel has returned to his first love: poetry. In this conversation, Bruce shares how brushes with death, a long reporting career, and a late-life immersion in poetry have shaped a renewing, spiritually grounded creative life in his 70s. He and host Dori Mincer explore what it means to say “yes” to life after illness, loss, and transition, and how attention, curiosity, and creativity can become daily practices of reverence as we age. Bruce traces his “nine lives,” from a cancer diagnosis at 42 through early heart events to his 2024 cardiac arrest on the treadmill. As Bruce re-immerses himself in poetry after two decades away, he reflects on how aging has shifted his perspective from youthful romanticism to a more grounded, reverent love of the world. He shares how re‑reading mentors and contemporaries, many of whom are now gone, has revealed how much the poetry landscape has changed, especially in terms of voice, diversity, and themes of sickness, death, and loss. At the same time, he describes his own new project as being about renewal rather than decline, shaped by the ecosystem right outside his window: a vernal pool behind his house in Massachusetts and the “fairy shrimp” that lie dormant in the muck for years before emerging again. The vernal pool becomes both metaphor and teacher as Bruce talks about curiosity, attention, and the invisible life that was happening in his backyard all along. He explains how learning about the brief, intense lives of fairy shrimp and their long-hidden eggs mirrors his experience of late‑life rebirth, and how showing up to write daily has invited the “muse” back into his life. Along the way, he and Dori explore the impact of near‑death experiences—for both of them—on how real and precious life feels, the spiritual dimension of attention (drawing on Simone Weil’s idea of attention as a form of prayer), and the ongoing challenge of discerning when to say “yes” to roles and responsibilities and when to step back to honor one’s creative and inner life. Connect with Bruce Frankel Books:What Should I Do with the Rest of My Life?World War II: History’s Greatest Conflict (co-author)Live Smart After 50 (co-editor)Co-founder, RedStringLinkedIn: What to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    Overtime: Reclaiming a Life in Poetry with Bruce Frankel

  8. Feb 17

    The Good Life: 85 Years of Lessons from Dr. Waldinger

    Dr. Robert Waldinger, director of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, shares insights from the world's longest study on happiness, tracking over 2,500 people since 1938. The core finding: A good life comes from caring for your body and relationships, as warm connections predict health and longevity better than cholesterol levels at midlife. Privilege doesn't guarantee happiness, as inner-city participants matched Harvard men in well-being. Guest Introduction: Dr. Waldinger is a Harvard Medical School professor, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and Zen master who directs the 85+ year Harvard Study. His TED Talk has over 50 million views, and he co-authored The Good Life with Marc Schulz, distilling study lessons on connection. He teaches meditation globally and psychotherapy at Mass General Hospital. Connect With Guest: Website: robertwaldinger.com Book: The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness.TED Talk: "What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness".LinkedIn: Robert WaldingerWhat to do next: Click to grab our free guide, 10 Key Issues to Consider as You Explore Your Retirement TransitionPlease leave a review at Apple Podcasts.Join our Revolutionize Your Retirement group on Facebook.

    The Good Life: 85 Years of Lessons from Dr. Waldinger
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About

Retirement isn’t just the end of a career, it’s the beginning of a new chapter filled with opportunity, meaning, and growth.  Revolutionize Your Retirement is a podcast designed to help you navigate this transition with purpose, confidence, and joy. Featuring insightful conversations with leading experts in retirement and longevity. Each episode explores real-world topics like money, purpose, identity, relationships, lifestyle, and health, all aimed at helping you redefine what “retirement” means for you. Whether you’re planning ahead or already living your next chapter, these conversations offer practical tools and inspiration for embracing the years ahead with curiosity and vitality. Because retirement isn’t just an age or a financial number, it’s a chance to live well today while building confidence for tomorrow. More About the Host Dorian Mintzer, M.S.W., Ph.D., BCC (Board Certified Coach) is a coach, therapist, teacher, and writer with extensive clinical experience.  She previously taught in a graduate gerontology program at Regis College in Wellesley, MA , and was part of the faculty for the Certified Professional Retirement Coaching 2.0. program.   She is the co-author of The Couples Retirement Puzzle: 10 Must-Have Conversations for Creating an Amazing New Life Together and a contributor to numerous other books and articles on aging, relationships, and purpose. Her insights have been featured in leading media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, NPR, ABC Evening News, and The Today Show. Her TEDx Talk, “Embracing Your Bonus Years: A Time to Grow, Learn, and Evolve,” captures her belief that later life is a time for reflection, reinvention, and renewed purpose. Through her podcast, coaching, and teaching, Dr. Mintzer continues to empower people to live their later years with intentionality, vitality, and joy. Dr. Mintzer also hosts the monthly Revolutionize Your Retirement Interview with Experts Series, an engaging webinar held on the 4th Tuesday of each month, offering fresh perspectives to help professionals and the public alike embrace the opportunities of the “bonus years.”  Visit RevolutionizeRetirement.com to Join the next interview Live

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