At Retirement Income Symposium, Matsko Explains the ‘EASE’ of Retirement Income Planning

Briggs Matsko, CFP, presented an overview of the process he uses to engage clients in the retirement income question. Matsko, a Lincoln Financial Advisors affiliated-rep who first joined the industry in 1974, began by describing to attendees at the Retirement Income Symposium in Chicago on Monday the EASE process (envision, analyze, solutions, evaluate) he developed.

Peppered with questions from the audience throughout, Matsko (left) and his associate Jeff Mass ran through the inputs and variables available on their specially designed software. Beginning with the first step “envision,” he asks about the clients’ goals and priorities, timelines and longevity factors, and risk tolerance. His pyramid matrix, based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, is a visual aide he uses to address the retirement income concept and steps he envisions.

“Core expenses comprise the base,” he said. “Joy expenses are the second level, followed by goals, and legacy issues comprise the top. We begin at the bottom and work our way up.”