Sometimes, the people who call in Julie Ford, a financial planner in New York, to help them are in some degree of financial distress. When Ted S. Halpern, a financial planner with two offices in the Washington suburbs, feels tension brewing when he talks to couples, he hits them with this storytelling opportunity. Kevin M. Reardon, a financial planner in Pewaukee, Wis., has tried a number of leading, searching questions over the years, including the three that George Kinder, who has trained many planners, suggests. What does the prospect of retirement look like to you? Twice, however, Rick Kahler, a financial planner in Rapid City, S.D., has heard the following answer: I die.

Source: New York Times August 26, 2016 15:33 UTC