How do you track your personal financial progress? Maybe you measure how much your savings have increased over the last year. Maybe you track the growth of your 401(k) and other investments. Maybe you do nothing at all and just hope you are making progress. The problem is, none of those ways are enough. They fail to capture the entire…
As a millennial, you often hear Boomers and Gen X-ers talk about how we are terrible at managing money as if they had it all figured out when they were our age. The thing is, they didn’t. Many of them made mistakes just like us. It’s a part of growing up. However, we have the opportunity to learn from the…
People often wonder if now is the right time for them to hire a financial advisor. And if not now, then when? While almost anyone could benefit from working with a financial advisor, there are certain times in life where it really pays off to be working with one. You have a major life event happening Every major life event…
Everyone has their own view about money. Like many things in life, the way we think about money as an adult comes in large part from the experiences we had growing up. Whether you realized it or not, watching the way your parents’ handled money and working the after-school shift had huge impacts on the way we see and use…
Life has changed. You went from being all on your own and only responsible for your own needs to being responsible for other people. Now, it’s all about giving the people you love the very best you can. You want to give them things you never had and allow them to experience things you only dreamed of. The problem is,…
Managing your finances can be a hard thing to do on your own, especially when you add in complex topics like stock options, retirement planning, etc. This is why many people choose to hire a financial advisor; to make the complex feel simple. So, you finally decide to hire an advisor. But then, you start your search and immediately feel…
78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Ever wondered why? As a society, we have become so focused on what we have instead of what we have saved. Material possessions are our sign of status these days. We feel obligated to buy every new thing to keep up, as if we would be seen as less without them, and before…
Have you ever caught yourself using “When …Then” statements when talking about your finances? If you have, you are not alone. It’s so easy to get caught in this trap. One thing I hear all the time when talking to people is phrases like “When my income goes up, I will start saving” or “When my kids are out of…
A few posts back, I wrote about what I consider to be some low hanging fruit for young professionals. As I read through responses, I came across a ton of questions that required more than a quick response. I decided the best way to help was to take that post to another level. This time I created an example with…
The question of life’s purpose is one that initially seems big, daunting, and even scary. Honestly, most people have never sat down and really thought through what their personal purpose is. If you haven’t, that’s okay. Typically, people just do what they are “supposed to do” and believe life should follow a predetermined pattern. You go to school, you get…