In life, our goals vary from person to person. Whether it be to land that dream job, purchase a new home, or to hang glide over the plush forests of the Amazon.
Collectively as a human race there is that one thing that we all look forward to and strive to achieve before our time on earth is up – financial stability while retiring.
“When people ask me what we do, I explain to them that ‘We’re like a financial pilot, we help people fly safely through financial turbulence,” explained Todd Wooten, the founder of Blue Sky Financial Partners. “We have a retirement flight plan, you wouldn’t take a trip on an airplane without a flight plan, a skilled pilot, and a path within FAA regulations – so we use that analogy for our retirees - it’s something that people like, its relatable.”
Wooten’s company has a set foundation of providing retirement planning services and often creates analogies that tie in his love for teaching and the art of travel and aviation – a passion of his from his time attending Christian Life College to become a Principal of a Christian school and an FAA Certified Airman. For instance, he was able to use the miracle of the 2009 Flight 1549 Hudson River emergency flight landing as an example for his clients.
“That pilot didn’t wake up that morning wanting or knowing his day was going to be that way. Number two, he was equipped to make decisions during that turbulent time. Three, he landed those people in to safety,” stated Wooten. “We help people take off, get to their destination safely and on time. As a pilot, it’s all about mitigating risks. Doing so, you stabilize the volatility of the market interest rates, health care, and economy.”
Wooten’s thirty years of expertise and passion for teaching and educating his clients, who average around 67 years young, stemmed from an unfortunate yet teaching part of his life.
“When my father was in his 30s, he had life insurance. Money got tight, so he let it go, then, at 40, he had open heart surgery and couldn’t get it back. At the age of 50, his company told him to retire,” shared Wooten. “At this point, my dad can’t afford to retire, it’s not an option when you’re considered a liability - he had to live on his pension. My dad passed away at the age of 54. Due to that, my mom lost out on the pension checks, and, at the time, fell under the category of the social security blackout period – mom’s life being uprooted due to the early passing of dad pushed me to take the education I needed to succeed as a financial planner.”
From there, Wooten was blessed to start off with a practice and then went into management and ended up having about 1,000 advisors work for him. He then became a national sales trainer and a consultant in the insurance and financial industry. Around the year 2000, Blue Sky Financials was born.
“We are a tour guide, not a travel agency – we get our clients to, through, and beyond retirement,” expressed Wooten. “We provide services that include income planning, investment management, healthcare planning, tax planning strategies, legacy planning, and social security maximization.”
Although he engages his clients to teach their loved ones the financial literacy that Blue Sky has been bestowed upon them, Wooten also dedicates his time to educating his community. He has also partnered with SOFA (Society of Financial Awareness) a nonprofit corporation that is dedicated to speaking to and educating consumers in local clubs and in the community.
“No one took the time to talk to dad and help him plan his life to support a surviving spouse,” said Wooten. “Dad taught me important values, but I wasn’t taught money principles, I had to learn - you don’t solve today’s challenges with yesterday’s solutions. My premise is about educating, it’s not about a sale. I teach in high schools, elementary schools, universities, and the community – I also partner with Junior Achievers, a nonprofit org that teaches the youth.”
In recent years, Wooten has taught community directors of all the not-for-profits how to get donors to give. He expressed that, “A lot of people want to give, don’t know how to or are afraid to run out of money, and are afraid to take money from kids and spouses.” He teaches them that it’s important to give back to community, especially being that doing so is considered appreciation assets around tax season.
Although his average client is nearing to retirement, Wooten also provides services that teach their children financial literacy plans for retirement called “protecting the financial integrity of the family.”
“Everyone is focused on getting money ready for their children, but few are getting their children ready for the money,” stated Wooten.
Wooten is currently planning programs to teach a “Taxes and Retirement” course for retirees at local libraries.
“There are a lot of different tax law changes and it’s important to educate our retirees what it means for them,” shared Wooten.
These workshops will also have a holistic approach where Wooten and his team will provide monthly meetings with attorneys, doctors, accountants, pharmacists, and health and wellness coaches.
“Unfortunately, we can’t sit down with doctors for a long time to ask all of your questions, this is also a forum for that,” said Wooten.
In the future, Wooten would also love to further give back to the Northwest Indiana community by becoming an adjunct professor.
For all of your retirement financial services and education, contact the good people of Blue Sky Financial Partners at (219) 548-9370 or visit them at 2400 Cumberland Drive, Suite A in Valparaiso.