David Lukas is a fiduciary advisor, author, and educator who believes retirement should be lived with clarity, confidence, and purpose. For more than sixteen years, he has hosted The Total Wealth Show, a program dedicated to simplifying complex financial matters and helping people understand the choices that shape their future.
David’s path into retirement planning was shaped by real life. In his twenties, after taking on excessive leverage in real estate, he found himself in a financially vulnerable position. It was a moment that forced him to confront how little he truly understood about risk, money, and how the different parts of a financial life fit together. It was not failure that brought him there. It was the simple truth that no one had ever taught him the rules.
That moment changed him. He began consuming everything he could on money, finance, risk, behavior, and planning. He wanted to understand what worked, what didn’t, and the things no one had ever told him. He realized something important along the way. It is what you don’t know that can cause the most damage. And many people, especially as they approach retirement, enter this season of life alone, unsure, and afraid to admit it. Not because they made mistakes. But because no one ever told them that the rules change when the paycheck stops.
That insight became the foundation of David’s work. He believes good people deserve clarity and direction so they can make wise decisions and focus on what matters most in the years ahead. This belief ultimately led him to develop the THRIVE Planning Framework, a practical and coordinated approach to help retirees understand how taxes, healthcare, income, risk, vitality, and Estate and legacy all intersect. The framework reflects the same principles that reshaped his own life: structure, simplicity, and the courage to face the truth with clarity.
Products or predictions do not drive David. He is driven by helping families reduce uncertainty, avoid blind spots, and make informed decisions that support a stable and meaningful retirement. His approach is calm, structured, and deliberately human. Money is the tool. Human flourishing is the outcome. His work exists to bridge the two.
David has been married to his wife, Leah, for twenty-six years. They live in Arkansas with their three children. When he is not writing or teaching, David can often be found outdoors at Northridge, their ninety-acre refuge, or underwater exploring reefs and coral ecosystems. His love for the ocean and its rhythms frequently reminds him of the same principles he teaches in retirement: clarity, balance, intention, and the beauty of investing in the things that last.