Sometimes It Does Take a Rocket Scientist

October 03, 2016

Portia Jackson believes that people should be able to design their finances around their lives and not their lives around their finances. A business strategy coach and former rocket scientist who is studying financial planning, Portia joined our team this year for a long term financial planning internship. I recently had a fascinating conversation with her about her world view and why she is pursuing her CFP® designation. The future for this mother and financial wellness evangelist looks bright!

Why did you become a personal coach? What influenced your decision to pursue the CFP® designation? How do you see combining those two paths?

I became a business strategy coach after many of my original podcast listeners (I used to host a podcast for working moms, Working Motherhood) kept emailing me and asking me how I was able to run a business, work full-time and manage my family, including a daughter with special needs. I loved my podcast and it gave me fulfillment, but as I started working with the members of the Working Motherhood, I realized I LOVED coaching so much more! I get to help people see an immediate difference in their lives? Yes, please!

I decided to pursue the CFP® designation after teaching a workshop course on tackling debt for many years. I loved the impact I was making on people’s lives and seeing the weight lifted off their shoulders after they realized they wouldn’t be in debt forever made my heart sing. I wanted that feeling all day every day so I decided to change careers and become a financial planner. I also wanted to do it right so I knew I had to be a CFP® professional. The two paths easily combine because I believe the combination of a solid financial plan (i.e. 6 months emergency fund, zero debt, fully-funded retirement and college plans, home ownership, estate plan, tax minimization and proper insurance coverage) with working at something you love to do is a complete path to financial wellness.

How does your background as an engineer influence your financial planning and personal coaching style?

My engineering background helps me as a financial planner and coach because I’m very data-driven. I work off of action, not just “what could happen.” If something isn’t working, I can course-correct. Planning a launch of a billion-dollar rocket and launching someone’s business or retirement plan are both very important so I use my strategic background to reduce some of the uncertainty that can surround those areas.

What’s your personal mission? Who do you most want to help?

My personal mission is to free people from financial stress and bondage so they can then pursue their personal mission in life. I feel that many times the amount of energy people put into worrying about money (even if they are doing everything “right”) can be put toward their personal calling in life. I believe everyone has a specific purpose in life and that purpose often goes unfulfilled because they are stuck in a job they dislike just to pay the bills and then they are too exhausted to do anything else or sometimes people are doing everything right and still can’t afford a decent lifestyle.

They aren’t trying to keep up with the Joneses. They just want to be able to own a home, have insurance, travel maybe 1-2 times a year and send their kids to college. In an expensive place like Los Angeles, that can easily add up to a lot.

What is the biggest mistake you ever made with your money, and what did you learn from it?

The biggest mistake I’ve ever made with money was buying a rental property at the age of 23 in a bad neighborhood with no money down in 2005 in Chicago right before I moved to Los Angeles for grad school. I really don’t know what I was thinking when that happened. Actually, I do. I was focused only on the POTENTIAL cash flow. Those late night real estate ads were apparently very convincing to me.

The property was a big pain the butt. It sucked up all of the money I won from a game show I was on and commercials I booked while I worked in Los Angeles. It also caused a LOT of stress for me during what should have been one of the most exciting times in my life.

What have you learned about money and marriage that you can teach the rest of us?

I’ve learned that communication is key and that understanding each other’s personality types is really important when it comes to family finances. My husband and I have monthly financial meetings, where we review our budget, our net worth statement, our financial goals and the financial mission statement we’ve written for our family. I’m the CFO of our family and while I can typically recite the budget down to the penny, he is the bigger visionary and wants to see where we are going.

When you got married and had children, did you feel prepared to deal with the financial aspects of partnership and parenthood? What do you wish you had known in advance?

We felt pretty prepared going into marriage because financial planning was part of the two pre-marital classes we took. (We like to be thorough, haha.) When our kids came (very soon actually, we had a honeymoon baby) it wasn’t too much of a disruption to our budget, although the budget for sending kids to daycare could feed a small country for a while.

How do you teach your kids about money?

Our kids are just 4 and 2 right now so we haven’t really had the money discussion yet, but we plan to use the envelope method that I used growing up — one envelope for giving, one for saving and one for spending. They will earn money through chores as they will not receive an allowance. As parents, we believe that we are to be mentors to our kids and train them for the real world and in the real world, there are very few handouts.

Is there anything that really surprised you about coming to intern at Financial Finesse?  Why?

Yes, I was surprised that workplace financial wellness as a type of  business actually existed. When I was searching for a place to complete my required experience hours for the CFP® designation, I came across many opportunities to sell products or gather assets, but I never heard anyone lead with the benefit of changing lives and offering unbiased financial guidance with no ulterior motive or sales pitch, which is what we do at Financial Finesse. The passion that everyone has here for helping people and for extending this vision to more people is truly amazing and a rare jewel in the financial services industry. Unlike in my brief wire house days of seeing people get excited to close a sale, people at Financial Finesse are excited about a great Financial Helpline call or one-on-one planning session.

Do you have a question you’d like answered on the blog? Please email me at [email protected]. You can also follow me on the blog by signing up here, and on Twitter at @cynthiameyer_FF.

 

 

Meet Our Newest Planner: Cyrus Purnell

July 25, 2016

Cyrus Purnell, CFP® is driven to take the mystery out of why some people thrive financially and others don’t. Recently, I had the privilege of sitting down with our newest planner. We discussed his money story and how this Gen X father aligns his personal mission to help others get the information they need to make better financial decisions with his work at Financial Finesse and his role as a husband and father.

Why did you want to earn your CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation? What does it mean to you?

I earned my CFP® designation because my primary reason for joining this industry was to help families plan for their futures. When my mom would pick me up from school, she would have the radio on Larry Burkett’s radio show “How to Manage Your Money.” After listening to him help people work their way through financial situations day after day, I thought to myself, “I would like to do that.” Looking back on it today, I was struck by how effectively a short conversation can help relieve someone of stress and set them on a positive road.

What’s your money story – what your parents taught you about money, etc.? Did you hold any negative beliefs about money that you had to overcome?

In hindsight, my parents had a very well balanced view on money. They had very consistent positive money habits when it came to paying bills on time and maintaining low debt levels. They definitely lived within their means, but they would occasionally splurge on things like vacations for the family.

Growing up, I felt like they said “no” to everything, but as an adult, I realize they were very balanced in their yes’s and no’s, and that balance allowed me to walk away from undergrad with zero student loan debt. My perception of being deprived of certain luxuries growing up has always given me a slant toward spending on one event or item and then doing a 180 and spending nothing for a while to make up the difference. It took time for me to learn to plan for those special items and live in balance.

What is the biggest mistake you ever made with your money, and what did you learn from it?

When I started out on my own after college, I picked up what I call “pet debt.” I seemed to carry around some credit card debt and never really took the initiative to completely pay it off. My wife had a similar level of debt when we married, and while were very aggressive on paying off student loans and car loans, we still kept our “pet debt.”

After the birth of our first child, we took a hard look at what the debt was costing us in interest. We got on the same page and attacked the debt and paid it off aggressively. This allowed me to get my MBA without picking up new debt, and my wife was able to start her own business.

What have you learned about money and marriage that you can teach the rest of us?

You can accomplish a lot more working together than you ever could individually. Anytime my wife and I had individual agendas, it always produced tepid results. When we work together on something, we would have better-than-anticipated results.

I know how to run an amortization schedule and how quickly something can be paid down. When we work together, it was faster than any pay-down plan. We would have the wind at our backs.

How do you teach your kids about money?

While my kids are still young, we have felt it was important to begin conversations with them on the value of money and saving. We’ve wanted them to be very involved in the savings process, going to the bank and opening their own savings accounts. Now with any Christmas or birthday monetary gifts they receive, we have the conversation on what we will give, spend and save. My 8-year old is now earning money with doing extra chores around the house. I have been impressed that while he has enough in savings to get the toy he wants, he’s yet to ask for it but has a plan to continue saving $5/week.

If you could wave a magic wand and reform the financial services industry, what would you do?

I would shift cost from the products to the advice. I think there are many very intelligent and ethical people in the financial industry, but they are trapped by the fact that so much of the industry is product-focused and not solution-focused.

Tell me about your personal investment philosophy?

My study and experience with investments has shown that almost all investment return is based on asset allocation. The biggest obstacle to realizing the return from that allocation is fees. In my personal portfolios, I endeavor to build allocations well suited to my time horizon with an eye to keeping fees low.

Is there anything that really surprised you about coming to work at Financial Finesse? Why?

I did a fair amount of research before joining the company so there haven’t been many surprises. I will say the company is exactly what it says it is. Most companies tend to over-hype the strength of their culture and their dedication to mission. It is not hype here. All of that is real.

Have a question you’d like answered on the blog? Please email me at cynthia.meyer@financialfinesse. You can also follow me on Twitter at @cynthiameyer_FF

How I Coped With My Husband’s Unexpected Death

July 31, 2015

It seems like yesterday but I know that’s just my mind playing tricks on me. I’m approaching the ten year anniversary of my husband’s death but at times it still seems like it happened yesterday. I’ve learned so much about myself, other people and life these past ten years. My hope is that this has not been in vain and my story can help someone else.

My husband was only 40 years old and seemingly in great health when he suddenly collapsed and died on a hot summer afternoon. In the blink of an eye, I was a young widow with two little kids. I was working part-time since we had recently moved for his new job, which required him to travel for long stretches of time.

Not only did I lose my best friend and father of my children, but also our source of income and health insurance. The following years were dark and extremely difficult. I felt lost and alone even though many good people were around me. Now however I can look back and see some of the lessons that I’ve learned.

Hope for the best but plan for the worst

We knew several families where one spouse died unexpectedly and left the family financially devastated so we were determined not to make that mistake. Soon after our twin daughters were born, we met with an insurance agent and bought term life insurance for both of us. As my husband’s career and income grew, he increased the amount of coverage through his employer.

This strategy was a cost-effective way to protect our family against the unlikely odds that he would die young. Thankfully, we had the discipline to do this. Now our family has the financial resources to maintain our lifestyle and meet our goals of paying for our daughters’ college education.

Lesson: It’s never fun to talk about death but it’s something we all need to prepare for. If you have someone dependent upon your ability to work, buy enough life insurance to replace your income. This calculator can help you determine how much is needed then check with your employer to determine how much supplemental insurance you can purchase there.  Most times, it is more cost-effective to buy a standalone policy and then supplement the rest with your employer’s group coverage.

Get help

I have an engineering degree and had been in the financial services industry for 4 years, but I struggled to help my daughters complete their 5th grade math homework after Larry died. I was unusually forgetful and felt like I was in a dense fog. It was clear that I needed professional help, emotionally and financially, so I found doctors to help me and my daughters deal with our tragedy. Fortunately, I worked for some amazing financial planners and they helped me set up my finances for the long term.

Lesson: Don’t let pride stand in your way of recovery. We were never meant to do life alone. Sometimes we get hit with a curve ball and the smartest thing we can do is get assistance. Check with your HR department to learn about your employee assistance program. Most offer free initial counseling sessions and referrals to local professionals for longer term assistance.

Ask the local Salvation Army, Red Cross or large local churches for assistance with immediate financial needs. If you are overwhelmed with debt, contact a non-profit credit counseling service affiliated with the NFCC to help you develop a strategy for unloading that burden. And if you need financial advice, look for a fee-based CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) professional who has the credentials, training and experience to guide you towards your goals.

The journey begins with the first step

I didn’t want life to continue after my husband died. I couldn’t imagine how I’d make it through the week let alone Christmas, the kids’ birthdays and our anniversary. Those days were excruciating but I learned that it was better to face the situation than hide from it.

A friend suggested that I plan constructive activities on the tough days and create new, happy memories and so that’s what I did. My daughters and I choose to celebrate Larry’s birthday (and not his death) by baking a German Chocolate cake from scratch – his favorite. We then share the cake with friends and family and laugh the time away telling funny stories.

Lesson: Life can knock you flat on your back. Spend time there for a moment to gather your wits, then get up and take a step forward. If you are struggling with debt and cash flow, set up a budget using Mint or YNAB.  Then choose a debt repayment strategy such as the “debt snowball” method or paying the highest interest rate debt first. Even applying an extra $25 a month is a big step forward!

Be open to new adventures

Three years later, I was presented with an opportunity to go back to school. I was intrigued but didn’t think it was the right time. A good friend told me, “In five years you will be five years older but what will you be able to say you accomplished? Might as well say that you did this!”

Well, I took her challenge, completed my studies and earned my CFP® designation. Along the way, I have met so many new people and find myself doing what I absolutely love here at Financial Finesse. I found my professional calling and wouldn’t have been here if it hadn’t been for my friend’s prompting and my willingness to go in a new direction.

Lesson: Try something new today. Join a book club. Go to that belly dancing class. Determine if your employer has a tuition assistance program and take a college course. Prioritize your savings so you can nurture your passions and do the things you’ve always wanted to do.

I would never volunteer for the pain my family experienced with Larry’s passing. However, I know we are stronger and more compassionate because of our journey. We’ll open a bottle of fine wine, toast the man we knew and loved, shed a few tears and then laugh the evening away with old stories and talk of new adventures. Happy anniversary!

Want more helpful financial guidance, delivered every day? Sign up to receive the Financial Finesse Tip of the Day, written by financial planners who work with people like you every day. No sales pitch EVER (being unbiased is the foundation of what we do), just the best our awesome planners have to offer. Click here to join.

 

 

Unbiased Financial Guidance: Q&A With Kelley Long

June 22, 2015

I consider it a privilege to be a part of such an amazing team here at Financial Finesse.It has now officially been four years since I made the decision to leave my financial planning practice to join the financial wellness movement and I couldn’t be happier with that decision. I’m also pretty stoked to always have a group of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals available to provide me with a second opinion on my own financial decisions or to just help me validate that I am on the right path with my personal financial life plan. Continue reading “Unbiased Financial Guidance: Q&A With Kelley Long”

How to Make the Financial Planning Process Work for You

March 10, 2014

I get the unique opportunity to speak with employees taking part in our Ask-A-Planner consultation service offered through their employer as a financial wellness benefit.  Every session is unique and last week was no exception. One moment I was meeting with a recent college grad feeling overwhelmed with student loan debt and a few minutes later, I was talking with a parent trying to save for their kid’s college without overlooking their own retirement savings.  A conversation about establishing an income plan for retirement quickly transitioned to an emotional discussion about the death of a loved one and concerns about protecting one’s family through a well-crafted estate plan.  Continue reading “How to Make the Financial Planning Process Work for You”

My Second Career as a Financial Educator

October 09, 2013

If you would have told me in 1994 that I could make a living helping people with their finances without the pressure to sell financial products, I would have thought you were joking. Back then, there was a certain esteem associated with financial professionals, and as the stock market began to rise to records levels, the idea of NOT being an investment sales professional seemed silly. So attractive was the prospect of being successful as a financial advisor that I left my first job as a 401(k) enroller after six years to pursue a life as a personal financial advisor. Continue reading “My Second Career as a Financial Educator”

Introducing Our Newest Planner: Doug Spencer

August 19, 2013

When it comes to choosing a financial advisor to help get you closer to your financial goals, it’s important to ask some tough questions. We have a pretty rigorous hiring process here at Financial Finesse and only about 2% of potential candidates make it on board our team of unbiased financial educators. Recently, I had the chance to sit down with Doug Spencer, CFP®, one of the resident financial planners and a recent addition to the Think Tank at Financial Finesse.  I asked him a series of questions trying to pick his brain and find out more about how he became interested in joining a growing group of financial planning professionals who are committed to providing unbiased financial guidance to employees in the workforce. Here is a summary of our discussion with some important resources included for anyone seeking an unbiased perspective on how to take control of their financial future: Continue reading “Introducing Our Newest Planner: Doug Spencer”

Did Mom Miss Out on this Important Gift?

May 13, 2013

Yesterday, Americans spent nearly $20 billion saying thanks to mothers across the country for their priceless roles as domestic CEOs. Hopefully, you had an enjoyable Mother’s Day weekend and had the opportunity to celebrate with the moms in your life too. While my son and I were making our special recipe of blueberry explosion pancakes in the kitchen for my wife (well, I was primarily trying to minimize the mess he was making out of love for his mommy), I started thinking about my memorable Mother’s Day gifts of the past. As a child, I’m sure there were more than just a few kindhearted but lame attempts at breakfast in bed, homemade cards, flowers, and gift certificates. Even as an adult, I still struggle to find the best gift for my mom and I am sure that I’m not alone when I say that it’s tough to find a substantive gift that adequately says thank you enough. (However, I did come across this open letter to moms everywhere from Kid President and it’s sure to make some moms smile in realizing how awesome they are!) Continue reading “Did Mom Miss Out on this Important Gift?”

Ways to Avoid Financial Foolishness on April 1st (and Beyond)

April 01, 2013

Happy April Fool’s Day! Today marks my very first day as a regular contributor to the Monday blog spot for Financial Finesse. When I was first informed of this new role, I thought it may have been some kind of April Fool’s Day prank. Now I know that it wasn’t a practical joke (and hopefully you don’t find my financial tips and guidance comical either) and I look forward to the opportunity to share some of my thoughts and experiences as a financial planner and educator. Continue reading “Ways to Avoid Financial Foolishness on April 1st (and Beyond)”

Can You Really Trust Your Financial Adviser?

October 04, 2012

When it comes to financial advisors, we often hear the term “trusted adviser” so often that we can take the “trusted” part for granted and forget just how important that trust is. This is someone we may entrust with some of our deepest and most intimate goals, our financial secrets, and our life savings. Yet, we often rely on very little to decide who’s worthy of that trust. We may choose an adviser based on who greets us at the nearest brokerage office, a cold call, a casual recommendation from an acquaintance, or even who happens to be sitting next to us at our child’s soccer game. Equally difficult can be the decision of when to fire an adviser we’re working with, especially if it’s been for a long time. Continue reading “Can You Really Trust Your Financial Adviser?”

The “Secret Sauce” Behind Successful Investing

August 24, 2012

Much to the chagrin of dentists everywhere, Tootsie Roll has been a staple of the candy business for a very long time.  This article talks about the Tootsie Roll Company being a very secretive organization. (And we thought it was just the CIA that operates in relative secrecy)!  Tootsie Roll doesn’t give tours, they don’t give interviews to analysts and they don’t operate with much transparency. It’s as if they have some magical mystery formulas that they don’t want the rest of us to know. Continue reading “The “Secret Sauce” Behind Successful Investing”

Protecting Older Loved Ones

August 23, 2012

It’s hard to be productive at work when financial worries accompany you to your desk. It’s hard to let go of concerns about a sputtering economy or uncertainty about taxes, particularly if you start your work day with a newspaper. Continue reading “Protecting Older Loved Ones”

Warning: Getting a Second Opinion on a Financial Advisor May Have Saved This Woman’s Retirement

August 20, 2012

“Interview at least three financial advisors in your area and then call me back for a second opinion on your top choices.”  That was the guidance I gave to a woman who called our financial helpline. She is retiring in about six months and wants to have a relationship with a local financial advisor when she retires.  We discussed what she was looking for, how to find someone, and what questions to ask, and I sent her a follow up resources that had the list of questions.  We talked about choosing someone who has made a commitment to their industry by earning a CFP® or ChFC® designation or a masters degree in financial planning.  After giving her some links on how to search for a planner (click here) and some questions to ask (click here for the resource), she set out to find one. Continue reading “Warning: Getting a Second Opinion on a Financial Advisor May Have Saved This Woman’s Retirement”

Choice is a Good Thing, Right?

March 22, 2012

In the 1970s, I lived in England before Margaret Thatcher came to power. In those days there wasn’t a lot of choice for consumers at the supermarkets: three types of cereal – Wheetabix, cornflakes or oatmeal – and two kinds of instant coffee.  When I first returned to the U.S., I spent hours in the grocery store marveling that there was a whole aisle for cereals and another for cookies. And olives!  Six different varieties, based just on the olive’s size. Continue reading “Choice is a Good Thing, Right?”

GUEST BLOG POST: Vacations for Memorial Day or Thereabouts

May 26, 2011

Summertime and the living should be easy.  Unfortunately, the cost of easy living – what most of us call “vacation” – is going to be hard to swallow this year.  The prospect of $6 gas and soaring airfares have a lot of Americans wondering if they can afford to travel this summer. Continue reading “GUEST BLOG POST: Vacations for Memorial Day or Thereabouts”

GUEST BLOG POST: Introducing Your Consumer Advocate

May 18, 2011

From the podium, I look out at the sea of faces and begin, as I always do: “Hello, I am Eleanor Blayney, CFP® Consumer Advocate for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards.”

At the mention of “consumer advocate,” there is a slight lifting of chins. The audience at least knows I wear a white hat, figuratively speaking. But referring to the CFP Board rarely elicits a glimmer of recognition.  I can see in their eyes, “This lady has some explaining to do…”

The fact is I have a great story to tell.  It’s my job to get the word out to the public that there are nearly 63,000 financial professionals in America who have qualified to be “Certified Financial Planners™ professionals” or CFP® professionals.  I myself have held this designation for more than twenty years, and like my professional colleagues, I subscribe to a process called financial planning, which involves setting specific financial goals, analyzing the options for getting to these goals, and developing an individual-specific strategy.

Everyone—of all ages and financial circumstances—can benefit from financial planning.  Those who have gone through the process will tell you that they face the future, even amid these uncertain economic times, with greater optimism and confidence than those who don’t.

From the back, a hand is raised: “But what about the CFP Board — what do they do?” Here’s another important message for consumers, especially those uncertain about how to find a financial advisor they can trust. The CFP Board exists to grant and uphold the CFP® certification as the recognized standard of excellence in personal financial planning.

As many readers of Financial Finesse’s blogs may know, to earn the right to use the CFP® marks, an individual must meet four “E” requirements:  he or she must be Educated (have a bachelor’s degree and pass a registered course of study), Examined (i.e., pass a rigorous two-day 10-hour exam), Experienced in the profession (have three years of relevant work experience), and Ethical (i.e., subscribe to and meet the standards of a Code of Ethics.)  There is, however, yet another important “E” for CFPs: namely, they are subject to Enforcement actions by the Board, such as public censure or revocation of the certification, if they are found to have violated an ethical or practice standard.

But back to me.  In the coming weeks and months, you’ll be hearing a lot from me, on a variety of personal finance subjects — all the topics that CFP® professionals believe are part of a comprehensive plan.  It may surprise you, but financial planning is not just about managing your investments or 401(k).  It looks at how you manage all financial aspects of your life — your benefits, spending, debt, property, income, taxes, the transfer of your assets to your family.  Another myth I will dispel: the idea that you need to have a lot of money or be close to retirement in order to benefit from planning.  On the contrary, you need to do a lot of planning to have a lot of money and get close to retirement.

I’ll also help point you in the right direction—with easy to follow tips, resources, and guidance you can begin to implement today as well as ongoing guidance on how to find a qualified, ethical advisor and how to avoid fraudulent financial advice.

Bottom line—along with the Financial Finesse planners who contribute to this blog, I’ll always act as your advocate.  Just as they do, I’ll demystify the financial planning and give it to you straight.  Your finances are your own, but you are not alone in figuring out the best decisions to make.