Brett Bultje is the CEO of Cedar Gold Group.
You never have the day you think you’re going to have. That saying has never felt truer than it does right now for me, for my business and especially for the 76 million Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1964) that have or will reach retirement age over the next five years. That’s 10,000 people a day entering a new chapter of life that’s more connected, more informed and more complex than any generation before it.
When we talk about adaptability, we often mean learning a new skill or adjusting to a change in routine. But now, adaptability is about learning how to make decisions in an age of information overload.
From Scarcity To Overload
Twenty-five years ago, knowing where to invest or how to plan for retirement meant reading the Wall Street Journal, watching the news at a specific time or scheduling an appointment with the person you’ve chosen to oversee your finances. There was no pause button, no rewind and certainly no internet search that could give you answers in seconds.
Then came 2008 and the first iPhone. Suddenly, everything you could ever want to know was right there in your hand. It changed everything.
The current generation of retirees is more informed than ever, but they’re also overwhelmed. We live in the age of misinformation. You can find 10 different “experts” giving you 10 different opinions in less than 10 seconds. For most, that creates paralysis by analysis.
The human brain prefers one to four options. Now we have 50. With so many conflicting opinions, people simply can’t decide. Even those who spent their careers in front of computers face the same challenge: Who do I trust?
Filtering The Noise
That’s where professionals like me come in. My job is to help people cut through the noise and make confident decisions.
We never stop learning. We never stop reading. We never stop staying up to date. Because we do it, they don’t have to. I’ve got six screens on my desk, and if there’s an article, I’ve read it. If there’s a conspiracy, I’ve heard it. But when I talk to a client, I don’t just share my own opinions. I quote other experts. I share data and perspectives from trusted institutions.
It’s not just me saying it—it’s Morgan Stanley, Fidelity, Schwab, Vanguard, all saying the same thing. When those traditional institutions finally start saying, “You should have 20% of your portfolio in gold,” that’s like a BMW dealership telling you it’s okay to buy a Mercedes.
Our clients don’t need more noise. They need trusted filters. That’s what I see as the new role of a gold and silver educator.
Meeting People Where They Are
Technology has completely changed how we connect with clients. I remember when door-to-door salesmen were the norm: vacuums, milk deliveries, you name it. Then came phone sales, and eventually, we all learned how to live behind screens.
But people still crave human connection. That’s why we’re one of the only companies in our space that does Zoom calls with clients. We want people to put a face to a voice. We let them see into our office. We want them to know we’re real people on the other side of the line.
At the same time, we have to make technology easy. Years ago, I might have had to walk Grandma Betsy through how to log in to Zoom. But now, that same generation has iPhones, sends texts and uses Facebook. The world has changed fast, and they’ve adapted. Our job is to keep every door open and meet people on the channel that makes them most comfortable.
Because adaptability is about adopting new tools and using technology to build connection.
The Human Comeback
Something interesting is happening right now. After a decade or two of everyone moving toward automation and digital everything, people want to see faces again.
It used to be that you’d go into an office, shake a hand and talk about your future. Then technology replaced that with phone calls. Then we all started relying on online platforms and mobile apps. But now, the pendulum is swinging back.
Clients want that face-to-face interaction again. They want to see who they’re talking to. They want to know there’s a human being on the other end who understands what they’re feeling.
That’s where adaptability comes full circle. It’s about staying ahead of technology and knowing when to step back into humanity.
Lessons From A Retiring Generation
One of the biggest lessons younger professionals can learn from today’s retirees is the value of long-term thinking. I see it all the time. People in their 20s and 30s who say, “It’ll be fine. We’ll deal with retirement when we get there.”
But then you reach retirement age and realize how fast the time went by, and you wish you’d spent more time preparing for it.
Another lesson: Don’t get so advanced that you can’t meet people where they are. The next generation grew up with smartphones in their hands, but that doesn’t mean everyone else did. It’s easy to forget that not everyone moves at the same digital speed. Patience and empathy are key.
There’s a joke that Grandma Betsy just needs to sign the DocuSign document, but it’s taking her 45 minutes. For someone who’s been using touchscreens since grade school, that seems ridiculous. But adaptability works both ways, and sometimes it means slowing down to help others catch up.
The End Of Pensions And The Rise Of Responsibility
When I started in this industry, pensions were still fairly common. Today, they’re almost obsolete. You’re lucky if you even know what one is, let alone have one.
That means the responsibility has shifted back to the individual. Younger generations entering the workforce now have to figure out how to build the same level of financial security without a guaranteed pension or employer-sponsored plan. It’s on their shoulders now.
That’s also why I believe education has to start earlier. Too often, people wait until they’re six months away from retirement and then try to absorb decades’ worth of information in a few weeks. That’s where the panic and the paralysis set in.
We try to make that easier by offering podcasts, YouTube videos and educational resources people can watch, pause and revisit at their own pace. Some people learn by watching. Some by listening. Some by doing. So we try to hit all of those learning styles.
Adaptability As Legacy
Adaptability is a business advantage, but it’s also a human one. The retiring generation has had to evolve more than any group before them. From snail mail to email, from brick-and-mortar to online banking, from sitting with someone in person to chatting on a screen.
They’ve shown us what true adaptability looks like. It’s curiosity, courage and the willingness to learn something new even when it feels uncomfortable.
Ultimately, adaptability is about showing up. It’s about being the face behind the brand, the voice behind the noise and the guide who helps others navigate uncertainty with confidence.
That’s what we strive to do every day. We learn so our clients don’t have to feel overwhelmed. We filter so they can focus. And we adapt so they can feel secure.
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