“Real World” Personal Strategy Blog

Time to give yourself a raise?

“The greatest compliment that was ever paid me was when someone asked me what I thought, and attended to my answer.”

- Henry David Thoreau

Can you believe that this year is just about half-finished? What a wild ride it’s been. The oil spill, the economic chaos, things do feel … uncertain.

Which is why it’s so important for you to maintain your peace in the midst of it all.

Look–it’s no mystery, probably, why I choose to write so often about these subjects. We see clients in here regularly (yes, even after “tax season”–more about that in a moment), and you wouldn’t probably believe how often we have the same kinds of conversations. Finances touch a deep place of security (and fear) for so many, NO MATTER how much is in the bank accounts.

From the very well-off, to those deep in debt … everyone can pick and choose their poison these days, when it comes to fear.

I often play the role of counselor, in addition to helping folks navigate their way through this stuff. Because families and business owners make rash decisions in times of perceived crisis–and they often have unforeseen tax and wealth complications down the road.

Which is why it’s critical that we take a look at how things are set up for you and your family for the rest of 2010. Midyear is the perfect time to take a clear-eyed look at things, and plan for the best outcome for your family or business.

Come see us. We’ll encourage you, give you good options…and point you into the best direction for your long-term wealth preservation and growth.

I’m personally dedicated to the success of your family–and to your finances.  Can other tax professionals say that?

Encouragement–and advice from ‘Dad’

“Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it.”

- Dennis P. Kimbro

How was Father’s Day around your house? Did Dad feel special? Well, I’ve got some advice from MY Dad here, in a moment–but before I get there, a couple things:

First, thanks for your comments from last week. We are, frankly, honored by our clients. One of the best parts about what we do around here is that we get to speak encouragement into families and business owners who are scared. Losing a job, sales way down–I’ve seen people literally trembling with fear.

In the beginning, I like to simply listen. And understand. This economy has a lot of people scrambling, but my clients aren’t “alone” in this fight.

Because then … I get to remind them that almost EVERY successful business person has “been there”, and that they WILL recover. It can all sound like empty boilerplate–but it’s the cold truth. Donald Trump, Mark Twain, Walt Disney, Larry King…the list is diverse and long of famous business and cultural icons who filed for bankruptcy at some point.

If you’re going through rough times, know that you’re not alone.

That said–we’ve also got plenty of clients who are THRIVING in this environment, and, if that’s you–don’t be complacent about your gains!

Well, as I mentioned above, Father’s Day got me thinking about my Dad. A while back, when I was first starting out in life, he gave me some advice (I know, advice from Dad–what a surprise). But since I spend a lot of time talking about finances here, I thought I’d pass along his advice.

I think you’ll find it useful. Read on…

“Real World” Personal Strategy

Advice From My Dad

My Dad said a lot over the years, giving me some valuable lessons.

I’m attempting here to summarize his thoughts…so call this a paraphrase of Dad’s Life Wisdom:

* The bank is not your financial security. The best credit line available is the one attached to your emergency savings fund. Remember, the borrower is slave to the lender, and you don’t want to be a slave to big banks. Take my word for it!

* Don’t depend on government for making your life easy. In an emergency, don’t be too proud to accept help, but do not make it a way of life.

* You can’t depend on schools to provide your full education. You must self-educate beyond the lessons taught in school. Challenge your educators, and challenge your own thoughts. Read books. Read books contrary to your own opinion, so that you may learn another point of view. Read books on subjects you don’t think you care about and you just may discover your passion.

* Getting rich rarely comes quickly. Building wealth takes time, and a lot of hard work. If you want to be successful in anything, you must work at it for hours every day – sometimes late into the night, and early in the morning. If you are happy with mediocrity, punch the clock after 8 hours, plop down in front of a television and waste valuable time until you fall asleep. Repeat this process until the weekends when you can do even more of the same.

* Be skeptical. Don’t believe anything you read, most things you hear, and even a few things you see with your own eyes. Question everything. Nothing in life is black and white.

And, while we’re on the subject of Dads, let me leave you with one final gift:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nifq3Ke2Q30

Finish the race.

With that, I’ll leave you until next week.

I’m personally dedicated to the success of your family–and to your finances! Can other tax professionals say that?

Is now the time to ‘go gold’?

This is the beginning of a new day. You have been given this day to use as you will. You can waste it or use it for good. What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it. When tomorrow comes, this day will be gone forever; in its place is something that you have left behind… let it be something good.

There is (still) a great deal of fear and panic in today’s marketplace, wouldn’t you agree?

As a tax professional, you know that I sit down with families and business owners on a regular basis–to discuss the *best* ways to set their accounts up in order to minimize their tax burden.

But in the last year or two, we also find ourselves having the same kinds of conversations with clients–regularly. People are scared, stressed and more and more worried about what the future holds. And, by the way, this runs the gamut from those whose liquid assets are significant, to those living month-to-month.

The emotion is the same.

Well, the good news is that YOU have someone who sincerely wants to walk with you through this. We’re not monetarily invested in pointing you to particular strategies…instead, we can be your “port in the storm”.

If you let us.

Give us a call this week and let’s talk about the best way to structure your finances to minimize your burdens–both financially, AND emotionally. It’s one of our most favorite aspects of our firm–giving real hope to families in the midst of turmoil.

And it really is confusing out there–so many shysters who promise the moon. And one of the most popular investment ports in the storm is GOLD.

Now, I won’t be getting into macro-economic prognostication here (too many experts disagree about what’s going to happen to the value of gold), I simply want to make sure you knew about two methods for “investing” in gold, and their problems.

If we can save you from some mistakes, it’s a great week in our book.

“Real World” Personal Strategy

Two Problematic Gold Options

There is a lot of clamor in the mainstream media these days about gold, much of it because of how certain talk show hosts are advising their listeners to invest in it because of the economic chaos.

Politicians want to make “hay” out of the apparent conflicts of interest, and companies want to make big profits from the fear running rampant in the marketplace.

The first, very common option is through a well-advertised company called Goldline. Certain politicians are slamming this company, saying it’s a scam. However, I WILL say this: this company is not a scam, it is not a fraud–no prosecutions have been filed, and they don’t seem to be coming.

It is, however, over-priced. By the company’s own admission, I might add.

Here’s a 10-minute video by Peter Schiff who breaks down the case pretty well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GJNRdIoStk&feature=player_embedded

Bottom line, this company is selling a product and doing so very well because they’re ALL over the place. They recognize that people are panicking and they are putting out a product that people think they need. They’re advertising on programs, and using pitchmen and women, that bombard their viewers with doom and gloom (perhaps rightly so). They’re basing their prices on the “numismatic” (collector) value of the coins they sell, but these values are very subjective…and difficult to quantify.

So here’s my advice: tread carefully, and if you DO invest in gold, find a way to do it which doesn’t carry an up-charge.

The second way that people are using gold, is by selling it off–and there are numerous companies all-too-happy to take it off your hands…for not very much money.

Yes, you can get “cash for gold”, but be careful of the companies who spend a lot of money advertising on mass media sites, etc. The REASON they have so much money to advertise their services is that they are making serious profits from under-paying their “customers” and selling the gold themselves much higher. Buy low, sell high–right?

Look…if you’re seriously strapped enough that you’re considering this route, give me a call. There are better options available to you, and I’d like to help you out.

With that, I’ll leave you until next week.

I’m personally dedicated to the success of your family–and to your finances! Can other tax professionals say that?

Getaways done right

We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong. The amount of work is the same.

-Carlos Castaneda

Summer is here!…let’s talk vacationing. Maybe you’re on one now (makes sense, this time of year!) or you’ll be heading on one soon.

And you KNOW I’m “all about planning”, so I wanted to pass along some important advice before you plan ANY trip…

That’s the subject of this week’s Strategy Note…

“Real World” Personal Strategy

Avoiding A Vacation Nightmare–A Planner’s Take

When planning your fun-filled itinerary, the last thing you want to do is worry about any financial loss that might occur as a result of a missed flight, an injury or illness, lost baggage, or any other unforeseen incident. To “insure” [;)] your peace of mind while away from home, many companies provide several different types of traveler’s protection plans to help ease the burden.

Without insurance, a traveler can lose nonrefundable deposits and prepayments that can add up to hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars. A good, comprehensive travel insurance plan will often reimburse a traveler for all pre-paid, nonrefundable expenses for a covered loss.

Here are some general types of coverage you may want to consider before heading out for this summer’s vacation:

Travel Arrangement Protection - This covers you in case of trip cancellation, interruption, or travel delays (these can include inclement weather, lost or stolen passports, quarantine, hijacking or natural disaster).

Medical Protection – Despite having health insurance at home, the moment you set foot on foreign soil or even set sail on a cruise, many health plans are considered null and void, so be sure you get travel medical protection to cover emergency medical expenses, such as illness and accident expenses, and emergency medical transportation to the nearest medical facility.

Baggage Protection - Not only do you want coverage for lost, stolen or damaged baggage, but many plans offer reimbursement for the purchase of essential items if baggage is delayed.

Worldwide Emergency Assistance – If traveling outside of the country, make sure you purchase a policy that covers international emergencies. This can include emergency cash transfer assistance, legal assistance, and lost travel documents assistance.

The cost of travel insurance is based, in most cases, on the value of the trip and the age of the traveler. Typically, the cost is 5-7 percent of the trip cost. Like most every other type of insurance, be it automobile, medical, or homeowner’s, you hope you never need to use it. But it can be a relief to have it when you do need it.

The bottom line is: Before embarking on your next trip, do your homework! Talk to your insurance agent – or call me for a recommendation – and learn more about all the different insurance options available to you, so you can make the best choice for your peace of mind!

With that, I’ll leave you until next week.

I’m personally dedicated to the success of your family–and to your vacations! Can other tax professionals say that?