The Normal Aging Process And Frailty Risk
It’s hard to imagine arriving at that age where you start a conversation regaling people with your latest doctor’s appointments. Lots of us arrive there, however. Sometimes it’s a necessity, like when a child takes over a parent’s health logistics. But mostly we joke how we’ll never be that person, when in reality, we know, deep down, we are destined to become precisely that person.
Leslie F*cking Jones Wants You To Have Life Insurance
Recently, I drove east from Cincinnati to Saratoga Springs, New York, as I do twice a month; and let me state for the record that I-71 and I-90 are not interesting roads. The trip is much more tolerable when it includes catchup phone calls and audiobooks. This time, my 11-hour pilgrimage called for a weighty tome. A substantial piece of thought leadership.
The Market Is Not A Casino
It’s not our fault that we think of the stock market as a form of speculation. Pundits and consumers alike refer to investing as “playing the market,” as though we’re walking up to a blackjack table, slot machine or roulette wheel. And just like gambling, participating in the stock market comes with risk.
What Is The Role Of Allies? (Part I)
It seems to me that we (still) live in a world where misogyny is the last acceptable bias. It’s crazy to me, growing up being told I could do anything I wanted to, if I wanted it badly enough, to know that my success is a threat to anyone.
Are You Planning Properly For Your Fur Babies?
When I take on a new client, the first activity is to understand their values, their current and desired lifestyle, and assess how closely their cashflow management matches where their hearts are.
Teach Your Children and Grandchildren:
Among the most common refrains I hear from clients is, “We were never taught this stuff in school,” or “My parents never taught me about money.” For most of us, this is a truth-bomb extraordinaire.
Saving For a Fabulous 4th Quarter Harvest
I’m going to take a cue from Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and refer to our lives in quarters. She describes our 3rd quarter as one of becoming and our 4th quarter as one of harvesting. Her goal is to enable us to understand that we are likely going to live to 100, and we need to be conscious that the shape we’re in when we get there is up to us.
Losing The Conventional Wisdom, Part II
I recently read a post by a young finfluencer about something called the “family opportunity mortgage.” No doubt searching for fresh content, she rightfully made the point that it’s possible to use this tool to help your retired parents own a home. The challenge, however, is that the Family Opportunity Mortgage Program has been discontinued, so you can’t go to a lender and ask for one.
When You Live Long Enough, Anything Becomes Possible
Those who have met the Finkel family in person know that we are a small bunch. Long used to being undermined by high shelves and overshadowed by tall, long-limbed folk, we are easy to overlook, literally. But we are loud, and that certainly makes up for what we lack in stature. We are also not slender. I believe a more accurate description for us is “chunky.”
Losing The Conventional Wisdom Part 1:
Among the more pernicious myths of the 20th century is the notion that it’s good to defer taxes because, in retirement, we’ll all be in a lower tax bracket. This is treated as gospel by CPAs and mere mortals alike. We believe that, when the piper demands his due, we’ll be enjoying our financial freedom—retirement—at a discount.
Internal Financial Planner Monologue
A couple years ago, I moved to a largely fee-only financial planning model; more specifically, a fee-first planning model, as my clients would, over the course of a one-year engagement, implement solutions with my team once we had established both trust and need.
Hacking Longevity Bit By Bit
Longevity is the duration or length of our lives. Longevity risk represents how our longevity will compromise our lifestyle. Financial people refer to it as the “risk you will run out of money before you run out of breath.” As a group, we try to prevent ourselves and our loved ones from eating cat food in our 80s. But there is another longevity risk that I want to address, and that is that your healthspan—the duration of that part of your life in which you are free from debilitating illness—won’t be long enough if you don’t take ameliorative steps now.
We Are All In Sales
We’re all in sales. Day in and day out, we sell others on our ideas, recommendations, and our work product. The only difference between salespeople and non-salespeople is how they’re compensated. I’ve looked at sales compensation models and sales contributor success, slicing and dicing it every which way. And sometimes I think the “Hunter” archetype is overrated.
We All Should Have a "Forget You Fund"
A professional colleague felt she needed to ask her husband to use a $5,000 bonus to start her own consultancy. Her bonus. Her income. And she had to ask … her spouse? The issue for her was less about getting permission than assuaging her guilt for using her money on herself and not on her family. (Spoiler alert: Her spouse was completely supportive, so she did it, she’s wildly successful, and she’s never looked back.)
Childless By Choice
I am childless by choice. And that’s probably an important area for Madrina Molly™ to explore, as women without children need to consider how they will spend their later years. For a couple of decades, people told me I’d change my mind one day; that my biological clock would start ticking. It never happened.
I'm So Excited!
Recently, a pundit referred to the “generativity” of President Biden. That immediately sent me to the nearest search engine. Turns out “Generativity vs. Stagnation” is the seventh stage of Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development theory. (I did not take Psychology in college, so this is all new to me. But say “psychosocial development theory” three times fast and Erikson may appear.)
We Didn't Expect To Be Tested This Soon
Many of you have been kind enough to ask how you can provide financial support to Madrina Molly™ as this effort launches, and we are grateful. For now, the best gift you can give is to subscribe (for free) to the newsletter on this platform, Substack. We have made the decision that we will build our mailing list and use Substack’s free features, of which there are many. But when it comes time to monetize our offerings, we will migrate elsewhere.
My Favorite New Year Coaching Exercise
I got excited when I realized I’d be able to share my favorite coaching exercise with a large audience this year. I don’t claim originality for this exercise; I just know it works. It’s an amalgamation of multiple list-making exercises I’ve borrowed from people like Barbara Sher and Jack Canfield.
Here's To Our Holiday Rituals
Merry Christmakwanzukkah! That is to say, I wish you a wonderful day of cultural rituals. And it is my sincere hope that if you have no Christmas rituals yet, you use this day to go ahead and make some.
What Price Ambition?
It was a Sunday, and at about 7:30 a.m., I received a “Got a minute?” text from a protégé, client, and friend. I first met her when she was in her 30s and her kids were little. Now she’s 50, launching young adults, navigating a demanding, well-compensated career, and processing post-divorce trauma. (There’s something “magical”--note the sarcasm--about the two-year mark post-divorce. Maybe I’ll tackle that another day.) This woman—my friend--considers herself a hard-fought success.