I’m often asked, “Where should I invest my cash if I plan to buy a [house, boat, car, etc.] in two years?” My answer is always, “Put it in your savings account so you know it will be there when you need it.” Sure, you could get a bit more interest in a CD or […]
Many times, people have come to me with concerns about cash buildup in their savings accounts. That’s not a bad problem to have, but it’s still a problem. Some people are concerned about spending their extra cash, while others are concerned that they’re not investing it. In either case, this situation can easily be avoided […]
In today’s busy world, you might often feel like you’re drowning in responsibilities to your family, coworkers, clients, and even your neighbors. There’s always someone or something saying you ought to be doing something. It’s a huge weight on your shoulders, and money is no exception. If your income is higher than your parents, you […]
A friend recently told me that all he wants to know about his finances is how much money he needs before retiring. He doesn’t care about understanding his spending—or even looking at it! He knows his spending is high today, but he believes he can reduce it at any time, and the best time seems […]
Running on autopilot can be dangerous. If a pilot’s course is off by 1 degree traveling from San Francisco to New York, they will end up 40 miles out in the Pacific Ocean. Likewise, if you don’t recalibrate your financial autopilot settings, you’ll miss your destination of financial security. A particular setting that I find […]
You’ve finally pulled the trigger, selling a chunk of your company stock and leaving you with a pile of cash sitting in your brokerage account. What now? Well, if you’re like most people, you’ve already put some thought into this. You probably wouldn’t have sold if you didn’t need the cash, but perhaps you sold […]
Many of my clients originally reach out to me because they have a lot of company stock and don’t understand what it is or when to sell it. They are aware they lack “diversification,” but don’t know what to do about it—or if diversification is a big deal at all. Meanwhile, the stock keeps going […]
Rely on the Wisdom of the Crowd In 1906 at a country fair in Plymouth, UK, 800 people participated in a contest to guess the weight of a slaughtered and dressed ox. Statistician Francis Galton was there and observed that the average guess of 1197 pounds was just 1 pound from the actual weight of […]
Financial Planner. Financial Advisor. Investment Advisor. Or even Investment Adviser. Do these terms create vibrations of stress in your life? Yeah, me too. You see, I don’t really know what they mean! Every one of these people who calls themselves by one of these titles seems to do something a little bit, if not completely, […]
People do it all the time. In the face of their worst imaginable fears, they do it. Probably not because they want to. They do it, maybe, because that’s the way we humans are wired. What do they do? They continue. And the only thing that might be driving them is a faith in the […]