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Saturday, June 10, 2023

Running an agricultural business requires you to be an expert in a lot of areas. But as the saying goes, "a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none" can often leave financial planning on the back burner for most agriculture producers.

 

Saturday, May 20, 2023

Think about this: someone makes $500,000 a year and retires with $4,000,000 of assets. Is that enough? Well, unfortunately there is a high likelihood they're going to run out of money. On the surface they look successful, but when you...

 

Monday, October 10, 2022

Money and personal finance can be stressful, but it doesn't have to be. No one has ever complained that they started too soon. These are the 9 basic financial questions to answer in order to begin stress testing your financial plan.

 

Friday, June 10, 2022

If you have a balance on a credit card or an adjustable rate mortgage, you might be noticing changes in your payments. Higher interest rates are starting to ripple through the personal finance landscape, and it doesn’t look like...

 

Saturday, May 28, 2022

When it comes to planning for your children's college, there are so many options to consider. We've all heard of the 529 plan, but is that the best and what else is out there? Let's dive in...

 

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Sunday, April 3, 2022

Think about that question for a minute. It's kind of eerie to think about. So many people talk about getting to retirement as if it's an end goal. But is it?

 

Monday, March 21, 2022

Well it's almost 3 full months into 2022, can you believe it?! We're 1/4th through the year which means we still have plenty of time to get on track...

 

Monday, November 1, 2021

Not saving enough money If you don't save enough along the way, you have only two options later on: 1) You keep working longer, delaying retirement 2) You are forced to live off of less With all of the pressures on your finances every...

 

Tuesday, October 19, 2021

Have you ever heard the phrase "practice makes perfect"? If you're like me, you have probably heard that more than once growing up. Whatever it is you were practicing for, people always told you to practice because if you did, you'd...

 

Wednesday, September 22, 2021

Group insurance is meant to be supplemental, not core. Swiss Cheese Holes and gaps Non-transferrable Increasing cost

 

Tuesday, August 31, 2021

You weren't really going to rely on Social Security in retirement were you? The truth is, nearly 9 out of 10 retirees1 do and it represents about one third of their income in retirement. As of 2021, 65 million people are currently...

 

Thursday, August 26, 2021

Do you know? What's your best guess? When I ask this question to new clients, I often get interesting reactions. Some people have an idea of what it is, but most people surprisingly don't. You know who do know it like the back of their...

 

Monday, March 22, 2021

Over the last year or so, my wife and I have gotten into the "survivalist" shows. Learning how to survive in extreme situations and putting your body and mind to the ultimate test really shows some of the amazing things about the human...

 

Sunday, December 20, 2020

How many times have you heard people talk about the stock market in the last 6 months? It's probably been at least more than once, and in some cases, maybe more than ever before. Imagine that in January you took a trip to a remote...

 

Monday, November 30, 2020

Which to start working on first? Instant vs delayed gratification What is your plan? Which would you feel better with? What if you had $10k more in savings vs $10k less in loans? What if the right answer is both - financial...

 

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Delayed Gratification Protect what's important Progress to Save 20-25% of gross income Invest - yourself, stocks, retirement, property Attack debt with a plan Splurge, Yep, that's right

 

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

What does that say to you? Opportunity is No Where? Or, Opportunity is Now Here? In times of stress and uncertainty, it is easy to fall into the category of "Opportunity is No Where" crowd. As we shut out the "noise" and filter out...

 

Tuesday, April 7, 2020

In my last post, I covered the cash flow system that the overwhelming majority of people use to manage their finances. Over the years, I have seen that there are many issues that people encounter throughout their careers and lifetimes....

 

Sunday, April 5, 2020

On Friday, March 27th, Donald Trump signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act into law after it was passed by Congress earlier in the week. This $2 Trillion bill has some key aspects that can reduce your...

 

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

In 2017, the S&P 500 had only 4 trading days where it moved +/- 1%. All four of those moves greater than 1% were to the downside. Of the 251 trading days in that year, 113 days were negative returns from the open to the close. That...

 

Thursday, February 20, 2020

We are already two months in to 2020, where are you at on your financial goals? At this point, things have settled down with the holidays and we have gotten through the initial rush at the beginning of the year to get caught back up....

 

Thursday, February 6, 2020

In working with hundreds of families, I’ve learned that managing cash flow is often a number one concern. What I’ve heard from them, especially as they’re getting closer and closer to retirement, is they feel like...

 

Monday, November 11, 2019

For many people, buying a house is one of their top priorities within the first few years post-graduation, but doing so is no easy task. With the amount of student loan debt many graduates have, it can often feel like an uphill battle....

 

Sunday, September 8, 2019

When you think of risk, what comes to mind? Does it give you a lot of warm and fuzzy feelings? Does it give you peace of mind and certainty? Most humans would say no to all the above. Risk is associated with losses, nervousness, and...

 

Sunday, August 25, 2019

Can Chasing Returns Really Save You? What if you could get what you want, and where you want, with less risk of failure along the way? Read that again. Isn’t that what everyone strives for? To get where they want to go with the...

 

Sunday, August 4, 2019

If you haven't heard, there is over $1.5 TRILLION of outstanding student loan debt in this country, so you are not alone. In fact, depending on the type of college you went to, somewhere between 75%-88% of people graduate with student...

 

Thursday, July 18, 2019

Real Signs of Inflation With so much in the news recently that “inflation is dead” or the Fed “seeing no signs of inflation,” it really got me thinking – Are they crazy or just ignorant?! Do people really...

 

Tuesday, March 5, 2019

So, you want to start investing? Good! It’s about time! Investing can be a great friend if done right, however, it could also be your worst enemy if you walk in blind. The market can turn on the drop of a hat, and there is...

 

Tuesday, January 22, 2019

Every June and July, as new residents begin to get a taste of what it’s like to finally be making some money, they also begin to feel the weight of the mega amounts of student loan debt. With some student loan balances higher...

 

Monday, December 24, 2018

One of the biggest questions I was getting from people 10-12 months ago was, “Is now the time to get invested?” If you remember, that was right about the time the S&P 500 (a gauge for the U.S. stock market) was at all-time...

 

Wednesday, November 21, 2018

Almost everyone in America carries some sort of debt, yet not one single person enjoys doing so. If you had a choice to buy a car in cash or take on debt, everyone would use cash. So why do so many people have debt? Here is the...

 

Thursday, November 1, 2018

Consumer debt is an anchor that weighs down the majority of the wallets across America. Taking on too much leverage will cripple any household or business. Just ask Long-Term Capital Management, a group of the smartest guys in finance...

 

Saturday, October 20, 2018

When people think of building wealth and growing their money over time, everyone first focuses on the return of their initial investment. That is an important factor to consider, however, there is likely to be a risk associated with an...

 

Friday, October 5, 2018

There is a reason this is one of the most famous sayings in sports. It’s because it is true. Look at any major sports team, any world champion, any franchise with a history of winning, and I am sure a big reason why they got to...

 

Saturday, September 1, 2018

I have a close friend who would probably define at least some version of his “success” as owning a bar on the beach. That’s you Mike P.! Let’s go with that for a second. I did a quick Google search and I found a...

 

Wednesday, August 1, 2018

Is it easy for you to save money? If so, you’re not saving enough. My mentor in this business has always told me that people don’t know how much they can save until they save too much. In Step 1, I asked you to define your...

 

Sunday, July 1, 2018

Everyone wants to be on the road to financial success, yet so many people fall short of their definition of “success.” Why is that? In most cases, it is because there are so many ways to easily fall off track, and there is...

 

Sunday, July 1, 2018

The start of the year often brings out optimism, hope, and expectations of what a great next 12 months could look like. New Year’s resolutions – getting out of debt, saving a certain amount, buying a house, traveling more,...

 

Thursday, May 10, 2018

You did it! Congratulations! You’ve graduated, spent countless hours studying for Boards, and landed your first – real paying – job! Oh, wait, you did a residency?!? Well read this again in a year or two, but...

 

Monday, November 6, 2017

If you are young, it probably doesn’t mean too much. For me, it’s kind of like a mythical land so far off into the future that I have trouble wrapping my mind around it. For folks who are older, who are living it or will...

 

Friday, September 22, 2017

It’s no secret student loans* are a huge part of many people’s lives. And if you have a graduate degree, it is probably an even bigger part of your life. But, on top of that, it is an even bigger part of the United States...

 

Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Growing up, I always heard people talk about contributing towards retirement. That is what everyone is always working towards – saving for retirement, so when they finally get there, they can finally enjoy the life they always...

 

Saturday, July 1, 2017

For most residents and fellows, their financial hope during training is to survive long enough to get a job and start making “real” money. What’s funny is that the $50,000 a year salary they make during residency is...

 

Friday, June 2, 2017

Goal number 1, survive sleep deprivation. By now you have settled in to your first year of residency. Clinic, rounds, journal club, all of that takes up most of your time, and the other part is spent sleeping or out with some friends....

 

Wednesday, April 5, 2017

A couple weeks ago, I was with some friends of mine and they were asking about what they should be doing now to get started on a good financial track. I started thinking, but to provide them with the best possible answer, I also read a...

 

Tuesday, April 4, 2017

First off, congratulations on matching with a program. That is great! Over the next few months as you finish your final rotations, you will begin to look for places to live for your residency. So, what to do? Do you buy or rent? I...

 

Monday, March 20, 2017

Congratulations on receiving your M.D. (or D.O.)! You have entered the elite company of other M.D.’s across the country. Now I know what you are thinking, my M.D. is my doctorate in medicine; however as Lee Corso would say,...

 

Sunday, November 20, 2016

The year 2017 will bring a lot of change to the United States. New jobs, new opportunities, new markets, new goods, and a new “retirement savings vehicle” – the myRA. Obama wanted to help Americans save for retirement...

 

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

As we approach graduation season, thousands of college graduates will be turning the page in their book of life. No longer do they have the responsibility of ‘studying’ each and every night (of course), or deciding whether...

 

Saturday, March 12, 2016

Over the last few years, I have met with hundreds of individuals and families and there has been one common theme in helping each of them. Financial Organization. Not necessarily the paper aspect of it (tax returns, investment...

 

Sunday, August 2, 2015

1. Don't Be Greedy, Give Back To The Needy Be a good steward of all that you have been blessed with in life. There are many people who don't have, and may never have, the good fortune that you do today. There is no better feeling than...