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Number of entries per attendee vary per event and they are the following: June 10th event: 3 entries/attendee (details on event to be released 5/27) Any Lunch Event: 1 entry/attendee  June’s lunch event info is here —->>> GNN LUNCH Any Happy Hour: 2 entries/attendee *Clarity Experience: 1 entry/attendee *not an official GNN event If you have [...]

Part 2 Why Traditional Financial Planning Sets You Up For Failure

“Make the most of yourself, for that is all there is of you”
Ralph Waldo Emerson

What is at the Core of your Worth? Is it your home, your 401k, your pension, your portfolio? Are those the things that define your Worth?

When we sit down with clients one of the first questions we ask is: “What the largest asset that you have?” Typically, like most of us in our society, they go right for the money part and you may have to. We get answers like 401k, home and portfolio. The challenge is that these are NOT the Core of our Worth.

So, let me rephrase the question, what is the largest asset that you have that means MORE to you than your $$?

Where would you start your list? Maybe, your family, friends or health is where you would start. Don’t these things have a value or worth that is far greater than any mound of money you could accumulate? Sometimes these things are described as priceless because no financial value can ever be placed on them.

Some of the others are:
-Unique Ability -Spirituality -Values -Beliefs -Heritage

So, if these are more important to you than your money, are you capitalizing and optimizing them like you are your financial assets? The challenge is that most of us don’t know how to optimize and capitalize them is because the question has never been asked us.

More importantly, Core Assets influence every other quadrant of assets that we have. Any time we make a decision in our Financial, Experience and Contribution quadrants it has a direct impact on the Core and vice versa. Understanding how we can optimize this quadrant is vital to harmoniums balance in our lives.

So, the way we start this process is by doing two things; 1) capture it and 2) share it. Here are some ways you can do this with some of your core assets:

Values & Beliefs Asset: You and your spouse want your children to understand what you as a family stands for and how the world should see your family.

To Do: Draft a family mission statement that represents what defines your family’s values and beliefs and hand it out at a family dinner. A good time to do this is at your wedding anniversary every year. All you have to do is hand it out and have a discussion at the formal family dinner most people have.

This way, as you celebrate your marriage every year, you also celebrate and share what the family that you created is all about.

Heritage: You want the history, customs, of your parents from a foreign country to live on in your family from generation to generation.

To Do: Slice out some time to sit down with your grandparents or parents and video tape them talking about the customs, history and heritage that they have brought with them to this country and to this family.

Then make a copy of that and send it to the whole family and/or share it at a family event. Many of us have not taken the time to just sit down and have this conversation with our elders. By you doing this and sharing it with the whole family you have just leveraged your experience for the rest of the family. You have now optimized and capitalized on your heritage asset.

When you start doing things like this, what type of impact do you think it would have on your family, not only vertically (your kids and their kids) but horizontally (your siblings, cousins, nieces or nephews)? It would be a hugely positive impact, right? The odds of these things living on from generation to generation in your family just got a lot greater.

So, now is the time to start optimizing your Core Assets. Make a list of your values, beliefs, family mission and unique ability. Then share it with your family friends and an confidants. When you do this you will find a higher level of clarity, graciousness and confidence in your life. This is where you will start to begin to make confident decisions about your money because you know It will be in alignment with the Core Assets in your life.

The next post I will talk about experience assets and how you can start identifying and optimizing those assets in your life. I look forward to you coming back and reading that part of the series.

If you would like to schedule an appointment to speak with Bryan McDonald directly in more detail about these concepts click on this link now: TALK WITH BRYAN

Why Traditional Financial Planning Sets You Up For Failure

HOW DO YOU MAKE CONFIDENT DECISIONS ABOUT YOUR FINANCES?

PART 1 OF A 6 PART SERIES

What is your rate, Bryan? That was the kiss of death question from a client when I was in the mortgage business. I knew right then and there my goal of helping someone make a confident decision about their mortgage was O-V-E-R.

Here was the challenge: Do you write 6.875% on the check you wrote to the mortgage company in the box next to the $ sign? Nope, you sure didn’t and never will, will you? So why is that the first question most people ask?

Is it because we all don’t know how to ask the real underlying questions that need to be asked. The world has “consumerized” and “commoditized” us all. The real questions, when it comes to decisions about our money, are rooted in and have a foundation in places that have nothing to do with, rate of return, market share, derivatives or fund fees.

In the financial services, planning, strategist, or whatever catch phrase you want to use after the word financial, everyone has access to the same products and services. No one has cornered the market on the “get wealthy pill or juice”. That product just plain old, doesn’t exist.

The real questions are rooted in places most of us never tend to consciously and intentionally go when thinking about or making decisions about our money and overall wealth. The reason we don’t go to those places is because these questions are masked by the questions the world has beaten into us as “the right questions to ask”. They are beaten into us so much and through so many different avenues of influence it makes us think they are the right ones to get us where we want to go.

Ultimately the end game, no matter what questions you ask, point us in a direction to create more personal WORTH, financially and/or figuratively. So how do you create more WORTH by asking questions that serve you better?

A personal mentor of mine, Lee Brower, puts is so sysncly in his book “The Brower Quadrant” when he says:

“The whole notion of worth expressed in dollars is utterly meaningless when we think about how valuable we are to those around us and how valuable they are to us.

Are wealthy parents more beloved or more important than middle-class or working-class parents? Of course not.”

So why is the common thought that the almighty dollar is on a ivory post and should outrank anything else in our decision making process?

The answer is simple:

We are not completely aware of how to identify and optimize all the assets in our lives and how they are all intertwined, needing to live in harmonious balance with each other for us to make confident decisions.

Do you want to live a balanced or imbalanced financial life?

The reason why traditional financial planning sets us up for failure is that in only focuses on our financial assets; neglecting how it will influence and affect the other important and intertwined assets.

So, we need to take a step back and look at how we REALLY are making decisions. We need to become clear on our what and why before we choose any tactic, tool or strategy. The way to achieve True Wealth and completely enjoy financial abundance without neglecting our family, friends, communities and our own search for personal meaning is through the harmonious balance of all 4 of the asset classes in our lives.

The 4 asset classes we all posses are:

1. Our Core Assets – The essence of who we are
2. Our Experience Assets – The sum of our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual experiences
3. Our Contribution Assets – Our effect on others
4. Our Financial Assets – Our net worth

By giving yourself the ability to focus on all of these asset classes during life and during the “financial” decision making process you can start creating more wealth and more meaning in all areas of your life. You start making confident decisions that empower you, your family and everyone around you.

Would you like more wealth and more meaning?

As you go through this series you will begin to understand what these 4 asset classes consist of, how to start optimizing each of the them and identify how to use them to make confident decisions.

If you would like to schedule an appointment to speak with Bryan McDonald directly in more detail about these concepts click on this link now: TALK WITH BRYAN

I am confident that you will enjoy these concepts as much as I do. So, keep tuned in to the whole series and start making confident decisions

Social Vs Financial Capital?

Social Capital as defined on Dictionary.com:

An economic idea that refers to the connections between individuals and entities that can be economically valuable. Social networks that include people who trust and assist each other can be a powerful asset. These relationships between individuals and firms can lead to a state in which each will think of the other when something needs to be done. Along with economic capital, social capital is a valuable mechanism in economic growth.

I believe social capital is by far the most important kind of “capital” to have. Why? Because its intangible value can replace or accelerate any financial capital you need.

When you are Bankrupt in Social Capital it takes a long time to regain it. The funny thing is when you are short on financial capital you can use Social Capital to get more of it or replace it.

* Have you ever needed a job and someone got your resume moved to the “top”?–That’s Social Capital
* Have you ever closed a deal becasue of an introduction to someone?–That’s Social Capital
* Have you ever been receiving an xmas card from on old boss even though you left 8 years ag0?–That’s Social Capital
* Has anyone ever done something for you when you really needed help with it just becasue they respect or love you?–That’s Social Capital

I could go on and on with this list and by now, you get it.

Social Capital is one of those intangible things that can help you grow and protect wealth in your life.
Learn It
Live It
Love It

THE SECURE STUDENT

If I knew what I know now, back when I was in high school about money, credit and general finance, boy would it things have come along faster for me!! I remember being in the Student Union at college and there were “hawks” lurking around offering me a free t-shirt to sign up for a credit card.

In college that’s really all I needed to sign up for something. FREE = ME!

Come to think of it, I never really remember either of my parents talking to me about money, credit or general finances. Maybe that’s becasue I always had a job and I was pretty much a low maintenance kid. Well admitingly I eventually struggled becasue I didn’t know what I didn’t know.

So when would you like to know your child’s personal financial philosophy on credit and money?

The Secure student program does just that. It helps you open a conversation with your child about their “money philosophy”. It is FREE ONLINE education offered to you and your children through the National Institute of Financial Education, a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to unbiased consumer education.

The course teaches your child the 20 lessons they should know before leaving home. Some of them are:

* How Credit Scoring Works
* Consumption Pattern
* College Student Statistics
* History of Credit Cards
* Budgeting
* Savings Automation
* Planning Ahead
* And More……

So, take action now to learn what your child’s philosophy on finances are. All you need to do is enter your information below and we will send you information on how to enroll in the course and open one of the msot important conversations you will ever have with your children

60 Minutes Feature: 401k Fallout

Did you ever think that your retirement account wouldn’t be there when you needed it most:

FOR RETIREMENT

My own mother is in the exact situation that the people in this 60 minute feature. What you will find when you watch the video below is that the 401k was NEVER meant to be a retirement plan in the first place.

The question is then, why is it that this is ” The American Way” for retirement planning????

K.I.S.S Keep It Simple Stupid

I wanted to share something and believe this is valuable becasue at times we seem to make things so complicated in our lives and get overwhelmed.

The more you think about the more you realize that when you keep it simple and apply basic principals you can achieve a very successful life in an uncomplicated way. This will send a ripple affect into your financial life as well. The reason is because, when you are successful with the assets that mean more to you than your money, your finances always come along for the ride into said success.

Here is the Creed that was given to Wooden by his father upon graduating grammar school. Copy and paste it into a document and hang it up so you can see it everyday. I promise you that when you do this you will see magic happen in your life:

1) Be true to yourself.

2) Make each day your masterpiece.

3) Help others.

4) Drink deeply from good books

5) Make friendship a fine art.

6) Build a shelter against a rainy day.

7) Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day

Just applying these simple things everyday can make some great things blossom in your life. #6 is one that when applied to your financial life, can do many many wonders for you.

You can read more info about John Wooden at his website: http://www.coachwooden.com/

Keep Your Future Bright

When times are tough, we all have the same options: 1) make more money to cover our costs, or 2) reduce our spending. What has the government done during these recent hard times? Spent more. Of our money.

While many of the banks that received TARP bailout money are repaying their debts, we’re still headed for a major loss. In fact, the Associated Press recently reported that the Obama “administration is now projecting the losses to the government from the bailout program will be about $120 billion, most of it due to auto and AIG assistance.”

Where do you think it will go to make up for that loss ? You’ve got it. Our money.

This is just one of the many reasons it would behoove all of us to find tax-advantaged ways to save for retirement, so our savings won’t be at risk for even bigger, greedier swipes from Uncle Sam.

Rather than relying on the traditional options for your retirement savings, such as 401(k)s and IRAs (that have proven to be at serious risk for losses during economic crises), you can find safer havens for your money in maximum-funded, tax-advantaged insurance contracts.

With proper structuring, you can leverage your assets – including your idle home equity – and allow your money to grow in MFTA contracts.

And you can enjoy more peace of mind in the future, even when the government starts to take action to make up for the past.

By Doug Andrew

Lifestyle Inflation

Isn’t it amazing, that we feel like we are working so hard for less. Yet, we’ve said before that the richest man in the world couldn’t afford air conditioning. Who was that? It was Getty, but air conditioning wasn’t invented in his life time. We take it for granted now. It would take us 8 months of work to afford the same material goods in 1950, versus less than 2 months today.

Take a look at what we “pay in time” working for things in today’s cost versus that cost in 1950 in the picture below.

When we think about spending money on things it is a good idea to start relating to our things in a fashion like this. All we really tend to do is focus on the money itself and not what we have to do or sacrifice to get it. For instance, in 1950 you needed to work over 240hrs just to get a freezer!! Today it is only 23 and the difference is that our conveniences change. Something that was luxury yesterday is just a common thing today.

What we also tend not to do is focus on what is going to give us the highest return on our dollar. Then when you work, you know that all the time spent is for something of high value.

Remember, the two industries that cost more today, than in 1950, are Healthcare and Education. It might pay to focus in the future on how you can better align with those two industries. Cost may come down, but if you have to choose between a new refrigerator and an appendectomy I would guess the debate will end quickly as to how you’ll spend your money. Same with education, the cost of ignorance is getting steeper, and as Benjamin Franklin says: “An investment in Education pays the greatest interest.”

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