If you grew up with a sibling, you likely learned about conflicts of interest the hard way. I remember one instance where my mom said we could split the last Oreo cookie and my brother gave me the half without the cream filling – I was mortified. In situations like that, you can see how easy it is for a decision maker to prioritize themselves over the other person. Technically there’s a number of ways to half a cookie, but finding a fair split is another matter.

When it comes to financial advisors, consumers are tasked with choosing someone who will treat them fairly and an important part of this is understanding inherent conflicts of interest.  

There are many, many titles in this industry: money coaches, financial consultants, advisors, brokers, planners, wealth managers, and so on. And since there aren’t legal requirements associated with using these terms, it can get confusing. To help sort it out, advisors have started to identify themselves by...

Balance is a universal principle that works wherever it is applied. For example, a balanced nutritional program is better than an unbalanced one; a balanced exercise program is better than an unbalanced one; and a balanced life is better than an unbalanced life.

This same investing principle of balance has historically worked in portfolio management. Adding diversity of style, geography, and asset class has historically mitigated volatility, and made it easier for our clients to remain “buckled in.”

Balance helps us to see what’s worked in the past and make decisions from an informed place. Then, it allows us to make wise investment choices based on what we know about consistency and courage.

Asset Classes Move In and Out of Favor

Diversification across asset classes may keep investors from chasing last year’s performance. What works in one year doesn’t necessarily work in the subsequent years. Oftentimes, last year’s outperformer falls to the...

A historical perspective can help inform and guide investment decisions. In a recent blog post, I shared how this combined with the investing principle of consistency was the best way I’ve found to increase your returns. But it doesn’t stop there. Maintaining that disciplined perspective often requires that we exercise the principle of courage in investing, especially during times of uncertainty and fear.

Every Generation Faces Challenges...Have the Courage to Stay With It

Each generation faces challenges that often appear both unique and overwhelming, but when viewed through the sobering lens of history, we find they are neither. Today, we face any number of challenges which, while significant, are arguably no more daunting than: A global depression, two world wars, the Cold War, the assassination of one president and the resignation of another, 9/11.

And yet the market has continued its inexorable climb. After all, humans are remarkably resilient, as well as masterful...

When you listen to financial news commentators, it can feel as though financial markets and investment decisions are capricious and arbitrary. Over the short term, that might be accurate. However, over the long term, there are universal investment principles that may ultimately help govern your success and which guide all of our wealth management and investment decisions.

Adhering to principles like balance, consistency, and courage will help you stay on course and provide a buffer from the constant drone of crisis and fear promoted by some news and media outlets.

While I’ll share info about all three of those principles of investing (you can read more about the other two, courage and balance, in their own posts), we’re going to start with consistency.

Investing With Consistency Brings Long-Term Results

Humans are not fans of consistency, yet it’s one of the most powerful principles of investing. I cannot tell you how many clients I’ve worked with over...

You may be familiar with traditional retirement plans available to employees, but there’s a lot of confusion about retirement plans for self-employed or business owners. The great news is that if you are self-employed or own a business, you can create retirement plans for yourself and any employees you have. Having a retirement plan option for your employees can even benefit your business by attracting quality people who are in it with you for the long haul!

Either way, a huge advantage of having a retirement plan is that you’re able to begin saving for the future. The earlier you start saving, the better, but there is by no means a “wrong” time to start investing or contributing to a plan.

The Benefits of Having a Retirement Plan

Like I mentioned before, having a retirement plan could help you attract qualified employees who wish to stay with your company. This is true whether you have 2 or 200 employees.

Also, in the case of qualified plans and some...

A self-directed 401(k) or 403(b) is an additional investment option to the traditional retirement plans offered by your employer. It might be available to you and you don’t even realize it. In those traditional plans, your employer pre-approves funds you can invest in, whereas a self-directed 401(k) or 403(b) allows for a little more flexibility in choosing what you can invest in.

Whether it’s you or someone outside your company’s organization, the option of a self-directed 401(k) could be great for you if you like having a little more say in where your money goes. It’s important to note that not all employers offer this option, so check with your organization to see if you’re able to participate in a self-directed brokerage of your investments.

Do you know what’s happening with your money? 

I can’t tell you how many people I’ve talked to who have no idea how their 401(k) is invested. It’s usually not managed well because...

The coronavirus has created some interesting situations around money and managing investments, one of which is the CARES Act. The CARES Act (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) includes a number of ways to help retirement savers find relief in an economically turbulent time.

A few benefits of the CARES Act include… Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) for 2020 have been suspended and if you’ve already taken a distribution, you may be able to return it. Loan repayments from workplace retirement plans could also be delayed.

Additionally, the IRS has relaxed the rules around early distributions of retirement plans. The 10% penalty is waived for “coronavirus-related distributions” of up to $100,000 in 2020 if you take the distribution before age 59.5. This includes both IRAs and 401(k)s, as well as 403(b)s, 457(b)s, and similar tax-deferred plans.

Coronavirus-related distributions apply to individuals or spouses who have been diagnosed with...

Whether you are a relatively new investor or you've been at for a while, the recent market swings have not been for the faint of heart. Yes, it's common knowledge that what goes up, must come down. However, even if you view market volatility as a regular occurrence, it can be tough to handle when you're watching your account balance drop.

While there's no fool-proof way to handle the ups and downs of the stock market, the following common-sense investor tips can help.

6 Investor Tips to Help You Stay the Course

• Don't put your eggs all in one basket
• Focus on the big picture
• Look before you leap
• There is a silver lining to market volatility if you look for it
• Temper your optimism
• Don't stick your head in the sand

Investor Tip #1: Don't put your eggs all in one basket

Diversifying your investment portfolio is one of the key ways you can handle market volatility. Because asset classes often perform differently under different market conditions, spreading your assets across a...

Whether you’re starting a new job that offers retirement savings options, or you’re looking into managing your investments yourself, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. If you feel like investment lingo is too far beyond your wheelhouse to tackle, learning about the different types of retirement account is a good place to start. In this case, get a basic understanding of the differences between a Roth IRA vs 401(k). Let's work through what each of those types of accounts is, how to use them, and the pros and cons of each. Spoiler alert: Some people are eligible to take advantage of both account types.

What is a 401(k)?

A 401(k) is an employer-sponsored savings plan, which is often included in the benefits package of a full-time job. If your job offers a 401(k), you can sign up through your employer. The account is then managed through the financial institution of your employer’s choosing. 

Once you’ve signed up for your 401(k) account, you’ll have...

In honor of Financial Literacy Month, we have been sharing daily financial tips online. Each is very simple and easy to implement. Here's a recap of our 30 financial tips for Financial Literacy Month. 

30 Financial Tips

Tip #1: Set up autopay for recurring bills

Stop wasting your hard-earned money on late fees. Set your bills on autopay and never pay another late fee again. 

Tip #2: Small reductions in spending add up to big savings over time.

Making one small change a day can make a huge impact on your ability to save. Making coffee at home instead of buying it out is a simple example that many people refer to. Let's say it costs $0.50 per day to make coffee at home, and it costs $2.50 to buy coffee out. If you made the switch, you would be able to save an extra $2.00 per day. Over the course of the year, you could save an extra $730 just from that one simple change. If you invested that money at a 7% annual return, you would have saved over $10,000 over a 10-year...