Earlier this year, we shared a parable about a giant ship engine that quit working. Countless hours and money were spent hiring experts to do the job. No one could get it working. Then, along came an old man who had been working on ship engines since he was a child. He inspected the engine…
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The irony of stress is realizing it isn’t good for you, then stressing about being stressed. Keeping with the theme of Mother’s Day this week, ask yourself…what advice would your mom offer you? …Hold your horses. …Take it down a notch. …What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand? …Shut the door! Who do you thing…
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That is the million-dollar question…no pun intended. It sounds like a lot – and it is – but well, it’s not. It is exciting when that life event you’ve been anticipating finally occurs: retirement or selling your ranch or business. It is especially exciting when there is a seven-figure check involved. However, it is important…
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How quickly we have arrived! Cash was earning almost zero if you had a savings, money market, CDs, etc. Now it appears to be the hero. Day-to-day interest rates are fluctuating. Sometimes the moves are drastic, but here are some recent yields. Savings accounts earning over 4%, 3-month treasuries hover around 5% yield, and CDs…
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The August 2008 Money Magazine offered up an article of several successful individuals talking about the smartest financial advice they have ever received. Billionaire and CEO of Virgin records, Richard Branson shared a story about his lack of knowledge in the financial realm and being humble about what you don’t know. Have you ever noticed…
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If I never use it, I don’t get anything back. Yes, that is absolutely true of basic long-term care insurance. I say basic because hybrid plans exist that co-mingles LTC insurance with life insurance or annuities—but that’s a different subject for a different day. Today I would like to share a story with you: Several…
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May you live in interesting times… Did you know this expression is actually the translation of a Chinese curse? Everyone desires peace and though “interesting times” can be anything, they are not usually peaceful. There is no doubt that we live in interesting times: Ukrainian war Artificial intelligent chatbots Political chaos Financial uncertainty Chaotic weather…
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A question we are often asked is, “What should we be doing before we retire?” One of the most important things to do is to start practicing retirement now. Too many people enter retirement unprepared. Don’t let that be you. Here are the top five must reads to help you start practicing your retirement: Power…
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Most business owners have a similar story…They started out scraping and saving just to pay taxes, working with their accountant every year to get the tax they owed Uncle Sam down to the bare minimum. As time moved on, they restructured to an ‘entity’, bought equipment, changed their accounting a time or two, and maybe…
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Money is tight for many families today. Just a couple of years ago, most Americans felt pretty good. We had higher than ever real wages, the government was pumping money into the economy, and prices were cheap. Today these are mere memories: Families are being squeezed by both inflation and the government pulling money out…
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