We've talked about the dangers of Do-It-Yourself (DIY) planning before. And we can't say it enough. Doing anything yourself, unless you are trained and experienced is dangerous and costly. If your phone is broken, do you try and fix it yourself? How about your heart? Rudy
Your inheritance, if unprotected against the four wealth predators, can be lost to bad decisions… Bad decisions can take many forms. Business. Financial. Relational. Personal. Here are some of the worst decisions ever made: * Mars Candy, maker of M&Ms, didn’t see the profit of showcasing their candy
Flip a coin. Fifty percent chance you will flip “heads.” Fifty percent chance you will flip “tails.” There is the same probability that one half of your financial legacy to your children and grandchildren will be lost. How? Divorce. It’s one of the four wealth predators. According to the
Don’t let this happen to you. Did you see the movie, American Sniper, directed by film legend, Clint Eastwood? In his autobiographical book American Sniper, former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle described a 2006 incident in which he punched out an unidentified man at a bar who was taunting him
Scams continue to evolve—and they’re not always easy to spot. They don’t just show up as obvious fraud anymore. Today’s scams can look like legitimate investments, emails from trusted institutions, or even opportunities introduced through someone you know. In some cases, they take the form of
If there’s one thing I consistently remind clients, it’s this: A strong retirement plan isn’t something you set once—it’s something you actively guide. The reality is, your plan doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It lives inside a constantly changing environment—tax policy, markets, interest
In the United States, the tradition of taxing assets at death began with the Stamp Act of 1797. Congress repealed the Stamp Act in 1802. However, a pattern was set, and for the next hundred years or so, estate taxes were used as a way to finance wars. The Revenue
Try this: Rub your hands together. What happens? Heat, right? Heat is created by friction. OK if you want to warm yourself. However, friction in engines “steals” energy. And it causes engines to wear out sooner. Money friction steals dollars unnecessarily. And causes your capital to wear out sooner. Your
Where does your car operate at peak performance? Highway, right? At what speed? 55-75 miles per hour, right? Is your money operating at “highway efficiency?” Some employees at a tire store in Florida made an unusual discovery in customer’s vehicle. He said there was an unusual noise coming from
A stress test helps doctors collect information about how your heart works while you are active. If the test shows some kind of irregularity, your doctor will develop a treatment plan consisting of medications, surgeries, exercise, diet, and additional testing. Your heart, however, is not the only thing that needs
In 2023, approximately 75.8 million Americans spent nearly 5 billion hours volunteering. The value of those efforts comes to a whopping $167 billion dollars, not counting the change, comfort, or compassion volunteers bring to our communities and beyond. Volunteers change the lives of those around them. Being a volunteer
Imagine this happening to you… You wake up one morning to discover that you are dead. Well, not actually dead. Yet, your local newspaper reports your death and runs your obituary. You are reading your own obituary! Weird… Actually, this is not as rare as you may think. This has