Financial Planning – Page 22 – TGIF 2 Minutes with Kerrie Debbs, CFP

Perspective & Thoughts at the End of a Volatile Year

Good morning on a Saturday,

And not just any Saturday. The Saturday just 3 days before Christmas! And, the Saturday following a week of sharp stock market declines and abrupt political events. In fact, a Saturday capping off an entire year of unfamiliar volatility and weakness in the stock market.

blue and yellow graph on stock market monitor — Photo by energepic.com on Pexels.com

I took an extra day this week (TGIF +1) to check the path of stock markets year-to-date to present perspective and a few encouraging thoughts: Continue reading “Perspective & Thoughts at the End of a Volatile Year”

Millennial Spirit For Adults

I am not typically a reader of Money* magazine (who still reads hard copy magazines these days??). But I received a promotional copy in the mail recently and before throwing it out I figured it couldn’t hurt to breeze through a couple of pages. By the way, have you ever realized that lots of magazines save a truly “of-interest” article for the last few pages?

The article that caught my attention was short, and one where someone famous answers 5-6 intriguing questions. Being that I am pretty out-of-the-know when it comes to famous people, I almost always gain a new fun fact.

This particular article was about Terry Crews, the former (underachieving) NFL player turned Actor, and several of his views on having money… then not having money… and then working your butt off to re-invent yourself in order that you can have… enough money for the lifestyle you seek. Continue reading “Millennial Spirit For Adults”

Thankful vs. Grateful

Bottom Line: Being Thankful and Grateful are both positive things.

Simply saying “Thank you” out loud is hard without somehow smiling either inwardly or outwardly. Try it! But say, “I am grateful for X” whether it is for a person, place or thing,and it likely brings an even deeper feeling.Perhaps that is why in the science of happiness (yes, there is a whole branch of science around happiness) the concept of gratitude is central.

thank you text on black and brown board — ***Simply saying “Thank you” out loud is hard without somehow smiling either inwardly or outwardly. Try it!***

Continue reading “Thankful vs. Grateful”

Market Volatility & the Fighting Irish

You may laugh, but most of my readers know that I hail from the University of Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish. I fully realize that there is not a lot of in-between with “ND”: people either love them or hate them. Regardless, a thought occurred to me this week – a short thought that I believe critical to the mindset of investing.

ND 11-0 As most of you know, and several may not, Notre Dame is undefeated in football so far this year at 10-0. Or as we Fighting Irish refer to it, “uNDefeated“. This past week, in a conversation with an insightful college football observer, it was pointed out to me that “you ND fans don’t care about anything except Notre Dame… you don’t seem to know or care about what else is going on around you or with other schools in the poll“. He couldn’t have hit the nail any closer to the center of the head. Continue reading “Market Volatility & the Fighting Irish”

14 Numbers that May Surprise You

This is a re-run of a TGIF 2 Minutes article that appeared in May 2018, with a few updates.

The following are from a recent article in the Journal of Financial Planning* – and they are not snoozers! In fact, several truly surprised me. Check ’em out. All from formal surveys.

black calculator near ballpoint pen on white printed paper — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Continue reading “14 Numbers that May Surprise You”

5 End of Year Questions

It is nearing year-end and I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to double-check certain items NOW. The best financial advisers can and should be drawing your attention to these items in order to make your year-end easier and less stressful.

Here is a list of questions I review annually with clients:

black calendar close up composition — Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Continue reading “5 End of Year Questions”

Investing Boston Red Sox Style

Yikes! Now I am resorting to positive comments about the Bosox. Don’t worry fellow NY Yankee fans! It’s only to make a point about the markets and investing.

The season is Fall and that means it is World Series time. This year’s match-up features the LA Dodgers versus the Boston Red Sox, who now lead the series 2-0. The purely baseball fan in me read with excitement the news about Game 2 Wednesday night. The statistics for Boston read like a smart, steady investor’s style: “sufficient but not overwhelming.”* Boston’s 4-2 win contained zero home runs. Rather, they beat their opponent “on a collection of timely singles and one spectacular catch.”

Fenway

Continue reading “Investing Boston Red Sox Style”

Gut Check in Rocky Markets

After the recent mid-week big down moves in the US and global stock markets AND if you are a long-time reader of TGIF 2 Minutes you are most likely expecting a “stay the course” message today.

The bottom line is: Stay the course. Technically you can stop reading here and go onto your Friday and weekend. How about that for a record 15 second edition??!

Here is the remaining 1 minute and 45 second version:

Continue reading “Gut Check in Rocky Markets”

Inflation Revisited

This edition of TGIF 2 Minutes originally ran on February 16, 2018 just after the (now) temporary 12% decline in the Dow Jones, which ended as a 6% decline for the month.

Typically, I do not get too far “into the weeds” of technical terms in my TGIF 2 Minutes messages. However – this has not been a typical last two weeks in the markets – at least not “typical” as defined by the past several years of gradually UP markets (and portfolios) month after month. Thus, a short walk into the weeds to talk a little about inflation is warranted – and may shed light on the volatility we have experienced lately with more likely to come over the next months and year or so.

Falcon Heavy 2-5 — Photo by Jared Haworth, http://www.wehadtoday.com/jared

See this visual of a rocket launch* – and not just any rocket launch, the Falcon Heavy launch as photographed by a friend of mine with years of clearance for NASA rocket launches – as an appropriate comparison to what inflation can look like. Continue reading “Inflation Revisited”

The “T” in TGIF

T = THANKS. TGIF stands for “Thank God It’s Friday.” I cannot proceed without saying a truly heartfelt THANKS to all of my clients, friends and readers who inquired as to mine and my husband’s well-being prior to and amidst Hurricane Florence. It blew me away (no pun intended) to know that so many people were thinking enough of me to call, email or text all weekend long to know that we were OK!

photography of rainbow during cloudy sky — Photo by Alex on Pexels.com

Continue reading “The “T” in TGIF”