Will we ever one day become accustomed to stock market volatility? I often ask myself this question, especially following the prolonged rise in equity markets experienced over the past 18 months. The good news is that based on history, it will be only a matter of time before a market correction occurs. With that said, […]
When I began my career about 35 years ago, a contractor friend of mine gave me some very good advice that I instituted early on in my office, and it was this: If you want to develop trust, start by being trustworthy in the small things. He used the example of the use of postage […]
Having a four-year-old means one day (and I am in no rush!) my son will grow up and go to college. He currently has a financial plan set up through his godparents, and soon my husband and I will open one for him as well. With that being said, I have been learning a lot […]
As I write this blog about raising financially responsible kids, I want to be completely transparent (dad joke). My wife and I have a 9-month-old daughter named Charlotte, and we are far from having it all figured out. However, through many conversations with more experienced parents, we’ve found that no one has it figured out. Every […]
Often I am asked why I use the example of the flight path of a plane when speaking about someone’s financial plan. My finance professor in college would often say, “if you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” That statement has stayed with me throughout my career advising our […]
A few weeks ago, my fiancé got an email from the custodian that holds his 401(k) reminding him to check his beneficiaries. While he was surprised to receive the reminder, he was also grateful, as he realized he had never named anyone as the beneficiary of his account. The importance of having a beneficiary is […]
So, what do the pandemic of 2020 and 9/11 have in common? Both were periods of time that I served as Chairman of Chesapeake Hospital Authority and President of The Rotary Club of Chesapeake, respectively. The video of two passenger planes flying into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center resulted in enormous fear […]
When we hear the word “retirement” we almost synonymously think 401(k). But what if you don’t have a 401(k)? Can you still invest and plan for retirement?? While a 401(k) is largely the most popular and most well known of retirement plans, it is not by any means the “end all be all” of retirement […]
How do you think about money? Does it provide a sense of security that was molded by a parent or guardian who instilled a savings-mindset during your childhood? Is it mainly a means to new experiences and travel created by a relatively affluent upbringing? Or does it cause anxiety, centered around years of living paycheck […]
We want our clients to have healthy family relationships and financial wisdom. Many of us grew up with the notion that talking about money was taboo – even inside your own family. And while the status of your 401(k) or the monetary value of your trust might not be polite conversation at a dinner party, […]