Blog — Financial Confidence RSS

Most people who invest, I’ve learned over the years, develop some vision of what life will look like for them in the future. It’s not always focused and clear, but there is some idea of what the future could hold for them. Some wish for an early retirement or international travel or second homes. Others...

 In a 2005 edition of the New Yorker, Kurt Vonnegut, the author, shared a story in poem form about a conversation he had with another famous author, Joseph Heller. Here’s my paraphrase: Heller and Vonnegut were at a party given by a billionaire. Vonnegut said, “Joe, how does it make you feel to know that...

Cocktail party talk is one of my favorite story topics because it reminds me how important it is for most nonfinancial types to have a wealth adviser on their team. At a get-together this past week, a new friend found out I work in the financial world. She and her husband asked me the usual...

I've spent over 30 years in the financial services industry as a stockbroker, financial planner, and, more recently, teacher. There are, in fact, methods that can help you achieve your financial goals; I call these principles the Five Financial Foundations. How did I discover them? I observed real people, with real financial challenges, who intuitively applied...