If you recognize the illustration above, you have a good memory of the small front conference room in our office, as it is framed there. This sketch is from one of our favorite books on financial advice: The Behavior Gap by Carl Richards. Over the next few weeks, we will be focusing on a few of Carl’s sketches that illustrate various concepts on financial planning. The idea of “Real Financial… Read More
The Master’s Minute – Short-Term Boring, Long-Term Rewarding
My wife, Krista, and I are enjoying the Summer Olympics. One of the things that captivates me about the Olympic games is seeing the top athletes in the world competing in a sport they have devoted most of their life to. While each athlete is gifted with natural ability, every one of them is fully dedicated to a rigorous training schedule. Here is what I know about physical training: it… Read More
The Business of Money – Seats at the Planning Table – Part 4
With your team established, it is time to put in place the necessary systems and processes to enable everyone to continually add value as a planning team. Just like within your business, you need to think strategically about how your team is structured, and what rhythm will work best for them and for you. Here are some structural components to consider for your planning team: Regular Meetings – Unless you… Read More
The Master’s Minute – 5 Tips for Helping a Parent Make a Decision
I recently had the opportunity to help my parents work through some significant life decisions. As I have taken some time to reflect on that experience, I identified five tips that could be beneficial to anyone helping a parent or an older adult make a decision. Don’t wait to be asked – It could be tempting to stay out of their business until you are invited to get involved. This… Read More
The Master’s Minute – When the Market is Down
The Master’s Minute – Investing vs. Gambling
I was recently having a conversation with a local business leader about Bitcoin and “Meme Stocks”, two topics that have been in the financial news a lot in the past year. He posed the following question to me: What do you think about these investments? My response to this question was to dig a little deeper with the following questions: What role will the money in question play in your… Read More
The Business of Money – Seats at the Planning Table (Part 3)
We have heard a lot about ‘virtual’ in the past year and a half, but your Virtual Team is not a team that meets exclusively via Zoom. Rather, this team comes around your Core team when you encounter issues outside their areas of competency. Members of your Virtual Team will get involved to play a specific, specialized role, and when the need for that role is gone, they step out…. Read More
The Business of Money – Seats at the Planning Table (Part 2)
What seats do you have at your planning table? What seats might you need that you don’t have? What roles do you need your advisors to play to help grow and protect your business? These are probably not questions you lay awake asking yourself each night. Very few of us intentionally plan out our advisory team, unless there is a forcing mechanism (sale, succession, catastrophic event) that leads us to… Read More
The Master’s Minute – As Good as the Pictures
Earlier this year, I planned two vacation getaways. As you might expect, I needed to find lodging accommodations and started the process by perusing several websites for suitable arrangements. My preliminary search consisted of simply looking at pictures of places that met my minimum accommodation requirements (bedrooms, bathrooms, etc.). From the places I found attractive, I read the detailed website descriptions and a few reviews from guests that have recently… Read More
The Master’s Minute – Houses, Used Cars, and the Stock Market
Are you a bit curious what these three things have in common? Today, we are going to discuss current trends and cycles of various markets. You probably know someone who is either selling, or hoping to buy, a house right now. Home prices have exploded due to super-low interest rates, high buyer demand, and a historically low supply of homes for sale on the market. It is a fantastic time… Read More
