Cash Management: Saving Money Without Sacrifice

May 30, 2011

Over the years, I have unknowingly wasted thousands of dollars at the grocery store and the pharmacy. If I knew then what I know now, I could have saved AT LEAST $1200 per year by using coupons. If you add that up over 25 years that I’ve been a financial planner, it makes me cringe. Those lost dollars will never come back; they are lost forever but I am just glad that I know now and certainly don’ t want anyone else making the same mistake. As a financial planner, I’ve always paid attention to the big things in my financial life—my training gave me a keen focus on making sure I had low fees and low interest rates on loans such as my mortgage and auto, managing my 401k for the optimal risk/return ratio, and to make sure my family was protected should something happen to me. I felt like carrying around a 50 cent coupon for a laundry detergent was a waste of time. Continue reading “Cash Management: Saving Money Without Sacrifice”

Follow Oprah’s Lead with Your Transition Plan

May 23, 2011

Oprah is counting down her last days on the Oprah Winfrey show. At the time I am writing this she is at show 18, I guess I waited kind of late to watch her since there aren’t many left. There is good news for me however because I understand she is going to a new network! There will be more Oprah! I guess I am in luck. This may sound cynical because, well, it is. Continue reading “Follow Oprah’s Lead with Your Transition Plan”

Risk of Failure to Balance Budget

May 11, 2011

So in my last blog I outlined the real danger of government spending without a balanced budget. If the government continues to borrow and spend, borrow and spend, borrow and spend, pretty soon Uncle Sam won’t be able to borrow any more. If that happens – if foreign governments don’t lend the U.S. money, if investors don’t buy U.S. Government Bonds – how will the government pay for its expenditures? This is a difficult question, and one we hope we never have to answer, but rather than cross our fingers and put our heads in the sand, we need to face this potential reality head on. We know that the government’s going to have to do something, so here’s what you can do to be prepared: Continue reading “Risk of Failure to Balance Budget”

Reduce Financial Stress with Clarity and Direction

May 02, 2011

Overwhelming stress takes its toll. Research shows that stress is the leading cause of disease and financial stress is the most common stressor. Imagine the feeling of not making ends meet and not having a safety net – no emergency fund and high debt so you feel like you may never get out of it. In our latest research, we studied stressed out employees who used our financial wellness assessment and found there were two things they all had in common — no emergency fund and high debt. Maybe it was the combination of the two that put them over the edge of “high stress” to “overwhelming stress.” Continue reading “Reduce Financial Stress with Clarity and Direction”

Are You Saving Too Much?

March 02, 2011

When was the last time someone asked you if you thought they were saving too much? Someone recently asked me this question and at first I was taken aback. How is it that anyone could have money to save, let alone enough to wonder if they were saving too much? Didn’t we just go through a recession? Aren’t we all just swimming in debt, living paycheck to paycheck, desperately trying to make ends meet? Continue reading “Are You Saving Too Much?”

3 Actions to Take in an Hour to Build Wealth

December 20, 2010

It’s very obvious to my friends and family that luck plays a dominant part in our fantasy football league. Why? Because I am tied for second place and will possibly make the play offs. Everyone knows that I am not skilled enough to even determine if I am getting the wool put over my eyes on a basic trade and truthfully, I don’t know the difference between a wide receiver and a tight end. Last year during my first season, my team finished dead last. Continue reading “3 Actions to Take in an Hour to Build Wealth”

Lost Focus: Planning Your Finances

December 10, 2010

Sometimes we just don’t want to look in the mirror and ask ourselves tough questions. I had one of those moments recently. I was going to a football game and the line outside of the stadium was incredibly long. It took 40 minutes to get inside the stadium when it usually takes 5-10. If we were going to get to our seats in time for kickoff, we were going to need to really hustle. Sitting in the upper deck, in a stadium without escalators, can be a challenge. I have seen a lot of people heading toward my section stop at a halfway point (it’s almost a legitimate cardio workout just getting up to our seats!) to catch their breath. I got to my section and realized that I was breathing heavily and felt very tired and out of shape. It was at that moment that I had to ask myself the question “Have I lost my focus?” Continue reading “Lost Focus: Planning Your Finances”