Category: Coaching Corner

By John C. Fales

If you give $1,000 to every member of a family, there’s a high likelihood that no two members will spend it the same way.

Money is a tool that is used to accomplish goals, and it often takes some patience and understanding to uncover the motivation behind how each family member chooses to use their money. However, patience and understanding are not always the first reactions when family members discuss, or perhaps judge, their family members’ behavior.

Are family dynamics getting in the way of your multi-generational financial planning?

By Marc C. Shaffer

Americans take wellness pretty seriously.

We’re tracking our steps, sleep and health patterns on wearable devices to make sure we stay on track daily. We’re getting our social fix in healthy ways such as group fitness classes, fun runs and endurance obstacle course events. We’re getting organic ingredients delivered to our homes to make meals as a family and taking customized mixes of health supplements. We’re even planning our vacations around a mix of relaxation and athletic opportunities. According to a 2018 MyProtein study, we’re spending more on fitness over a lifetime than we pay for college tuition.

By Marc C. Shaffer

As I was chatting with my mentor one day, he tells me there’s a great guy he wants me to meet and his name is Marc Shaffer. Well, that’s me, of course. I had him explain and he told me I was too busy focusing on one thing and all of my energy, my time and my passion was being exhausted in that one area.

I wasn’t spending time with myself, I wasn’t letting myself contemplate what was beyond that singular area of focus, and if I continued along that path, I might end up having done one great thing in my life at the expense of knowing myself and growing in other areas.

Luckily, I had someone in my life who could recognize this behavior and keep me accountable to living a full and diverse life.

Do you have someone in your life keeping you accountable to the things you say you want to accomplish?

By Michael J. Searcy

I have been fortunate to have the freedom of choice in my life and it has steered me through a life I enjoyed. I chose a place to settle down and start my own financial planning and wealth management firm, and I was happy both professionally and personally.

Until I wasn’t.

Now, that might sound like I had reached a negative spot in my life, but in reality, I had just reached a point where I was ready to pivot.