World War Three. There, I said it. People have nightmares about this stuff. People make movies about this stuff. People write fiction and sci-fi about this stuff. People look at the First World War, they look at the Second World War, and say, “No, we’ll never have World War Three because now we have so many nukes between the US and Russia, our mutual destruction would be guaranteed.”Â
When it comes to the markets and how your investments perform over the course of your career, there isn’t much we can say for certain. Markets are hard to predict! But one thing we can say is this: if the basics of saving aren’t there, it doesn’t matter how well investments are performing. You have to build that base.
As I was preparing to write this article, I mentioned in the office that I was going to be focusing on saving and debt. I got a puzzled look from a team member. “Um, Dave, it’s the month of Valentine’s Day. Are you sure you want to talk about death?”
We had a good laugh, and while it’s true that you’ll save money and yes, eventually die, there’re are quite a few places in between where you’ll likely take on some debt to help you move through life.
After two decades in this business, one of the most common questions I hear is, why should someone hire a financial advisor? Why should someone pay for this service that my team provides? These questions frequently come from DIY investors who work part-time as their own advisor, whether or not that’s something they’re trained for (it never is).Â
When it comes to how much you should save up in your emergency fund, there’s all kinds of advice available out there about this topic. We’re not going to waste either of our time – go ahead and Google it! I guarantee you that, based on that search and how conservative you are or aren’t, the answer to that question is going to be different. That’s the beauty of Google – they learn the personality of the person searching and give you the information you want to hear.
Before I start on my comments about what’s been going on, I want you to know that I’ve been working on what to say for the last 30 days. Now that we’re a month into the year, I can add some color to what we’re seeing.Â
We’ve been talking this month about investing in yourself, your family and your home, and one thing we notice when talking with clients is that people have a tendency to focus on the here-and-now. They don’t think about all the ways they can invest in their future on a daily basis right now.Â
When it comes to investing in your home as the new year unfolds, I wanted to talk about the house you have and the home you make as reflections of you. These reflections happen in three main areas – your indoor space, your outdoor space, and your neighborhood.Â
When thinking about your financial resources, you may know that we encourage you to write down the top five places you want your money to go, and then check in with your spouse about their top 5 list. Typically, we see couples agree on two or three items, and have what we’ll call “discussions” about the other two or three! Either way, I encourage you to review how you want to allocate those resources.
They say if you aren’t taking care of yourself, you can’t take proper care of anyone else. So, how are you investing in yourself in 2022? For me, I’m embarking on a few weeks of focus on my physical health to make sure I stay on track with all the progress I’ve made in this area over the last six years. I need to stay healthy for my family – and for you, our valued clients. I’m also updating my personal goals as they pertain to my faith, my mental health, and how I spend my time outside of the office.Â
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