The younger generations, particularly millennials and Gen Z individuals, have been punched in the stomach by the economic fallout of the pandemic, struggling with a hostile job market that works against them compared to more senior hires. Increasingly today, many people aged 25-34 are coming to rely on contracting, freelance, gig work. Not only are great swaths of this group of young Americans disproportionately impacted by job losses, but they are also facing longer stretches of joblessness. Its a gray and dismal pictureone thats forcing young workers to take matters into their own hands and find alternative ways to maintain financial independence and keep their careers on track.

And so is it little wonder that 2020 was the year of unprecedented retail interest in the financial markets? At my company, which serves as a social network for investors and traders, weve seen about a 50% uptick in our 24-35-year-old investor community since COVID-19 started, making the millennial network, or the group that is interacting with each other and participating in discussion, now represent 41% of the entire site. Combined with Gen Z, roughly three in five of our community are now under the age of 35. While such young professionals might not necessarily have the funds that their more senior counterparts hold, what they do have is the time, easy access to trading tools and educational resources, and most importantly the will to make the markets work for them. This determination is spurred on by the ever-greater benefits of a shared network, providing mainstream forums for the discussionand creative self-expressionof what was once a specialist subject. Now its clear: Everyones an investor, together.

The power of retail investors has never been more evident than with the GameStop saga, featuring the investor community from Reddits r/WallStreetBets. For the first time, individual investors in their own homes could openly organize and communicate to a level that has taken Wall Street by surprise.

For older generations, money was left in the hands of wealth managers due to the complexity of getting your hands on the information you need. The first seismic shift in favor of the everyday investor came 25 years ago with electronic trading platforms such as TD Ameritrade. The technology was developed for people to get their foot in the door, and since then, the door has only widened in favor of retail. With a click of a button, customers can connect to storied brokerages such as TradeStation, which provide options for stocks, ETFs, futures, everything for a burgeoning investor, or Gemini, which focuses on cryptocurrencies. Most of these platforms have zero-commission trading, which is light-years ahead of the commissions charged even 10 years ago.

Growing alongside these brokerages are digital hubs for financial information, commentary, education, and market banter, ranging from more casual hubs, such as r/WallStreetBets, to more analytical platforms that provide charting and data analysis. Resources are the most accessible and cheapest they have ever been in history, and people now have the time (and financial means) to dive deep into learning markets.

Prolonged lockdowns and stay-at-home orders have shifted professionals horizons, expediting the need to develop new social and professional connections, as well as maintain existing ones within a virtual environment. With limited options for physical interaction, being social on the web has become synonymous for many with being productive; this is a competitive advantage for members of the under-35 group who know how to directly connect and collaborate with peers.

When learning how to take their money further, many are focusing on platforms that foster enjoyable conversations, which are also educational by nature. Across verticals, companies from Etsy to Barstool Sports are tapping into this need for human connectivity by adding social features, while established social sites such as LinkedIn and AngelList continue to increase the number of social tools at customers disposal.

Going a step further, real-time interaction has proven to increase engagement across communities and is key to creating vibrant networks in todays virtual world. At TradingView, our livestream feature Streams (which is a bit like Twitch, for finance) allows people to ask questions and chat, in real time, with hundreds of professionals in the field.

Kickstarting these types of interactions are invaluable to young professionals, especially those who would be otherwise cut off from these types of expert resources. After all, as we know from school, the more enjoyable you make a topic to learn, the more likely people are to become proficient in it.

From a financial knowledge standpoint, engaging with others who have also had to pivot during these times can spotlight the unique ways in which people have successfully gained wealth beyond their regular 9-to-5. Some have added active investing as an additional source of income, while others have educated themselves on simple dollar-cost averaging and how to maintain their savings with Roth IRA and similar tax-exempt strategies.

As the world grapples with the ongoing effects of the global pandemic, its clear that remote work is here to stay. Increasing millennials access to digital resources and their ability to communicate effectively over virtual platforms, especially to those located in suburban areas, has been an essential feature in companies success and will be going forward, as many move away from metropolitan centers such as New York City and Chicago. COVID-19 leveled the playing field, offering young professionals geographic mobility like never before. People no longer need to move into cities with a high cost of living in order to meet like-minded people, and those who moved to large cities to be a part of those professional hubs are now more free to live wherever they choose, without having to sacrifice their networks.

More than ever, millennials should consider exploring the resources available to them in order to gain financial independence in the face of an uncertain job market and climbing economic instability. Long term, its about creating a network of other individuals with common interests that can be relied on for advice and professional development. Networking may look different from the traditional coffee chat, but there are constantly new ways to connect with people virtually, and the key is to find the platform that best suits your interests and where you want to grow. With investing specifically, one of the hardest parts to weather is when someone takes a big loss and has to close out the position or portfolio. Before these communities that blend social and professional interests existed, there was nowhere to turn for help or education, and often investors would be too afraid to get back into the market if they suffered a big hit. But those who survived the March drawdowns did it together, and that is how young professionals are coming together to survive these uncertain times.

As our world begins to open up again, Im confident millennials will continue to find new ways to work, challenge how we think about reeducation, and ultimately maintain their financial futures. If we can play some role in that story, then weve done our job.

Pierce Crosby is the general manager of TradingView, a social charting platform with 15 million global users that provides in-depth analytics, charts, and discussions with fellow investors, helping them make informed investing decisions.

View original post here:

How online trading apps can help Millennials in their careers - Fast Company

F.I.R.E. followers, who are in their 30s and 40s, need to be extra vigilant as their retirement nest eggs need to last decades longer than those who retire in their 60s and 70s.

francescoridolfi.com/iStockPhoto / Getty Images

The stock market fallout during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic put retirees living off their investment income at risk. That was especially the case for those following the financial independence, retire early (F.I.R.E.) movement.

F.I.R.E. investors are largely people in their 30s and 40s who save aggressively and invest early to build up a seven-figure portfolio to retire early or work way less as they get older. Those plans can be thwarted when stock markets tank, as they did last March.

Investors who stuck it out were rewarded as stock markets roared back to record highs months later. Still, F.I.R.E. followers need to be extra vigilant as their nest eggs need to last decades longer than those who retire in their 60s and 70s.

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You may need to over-save and underspend longer than you might think when youre pursuing the F.I.R.E. movement, says Jason Heath, an advice- and fee-only certified financial planner at Objective Financial Partners Inc. in Markham, Ont. When youre retiring at age 40 versus age 65, theres so much more margin for error.

For example, Mr. Heath says someone can do a great job of saving, but see those funds quickly disappear because of costs associated with an extraordinary event, such as a serious injury or illness that requires long-term care or having a child with a disability.

If you dont budget for the unexpected, that could really compromise your early retirement plan, he says.

F.I.R.E. investors do have time on their side to regain any investment losses should the next downturn not see the same quick recovery. Many also have the option to go back to work.

In addition, just having a plan puts them ahead of many investors, Mr. Heath says, citing various industry surveys showing investors with a financial roadmap are more prepared for retirement.

There is something to be said about F.I.R.E. [adherents] and how much long-term planning these people do, he says. Someone who is pursuing F.I.R.E. and really knows their numbers is more likely to have more confidence with something like stock market volatility or sustainable spending in retirement as a result.

Mathieu Martin of Quebec City started his F.I.R.E. journey in July, 2019, at the age of 41, about six months before the pandemic hit.

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He was inspired to retire early, instead of at age 60 as previously planned, after reading an article showing how it was possible through the simple strategy of spending less and investing more, taking advantage of the power of compound returns.

To me, the key really is the spending: The less you spend, the more you save, says Mr. Martin, now 42, who had a career as a safety engineer in France and the Middle East before moving with his wife and two young children to Canada in 2019.

Even when stock markets dropped in February and March of 2020, Mr. Martin wasnt too worried because his F.I.R.E. plan includes having about one years worth of cash set aside to live on.

We felt more confident because of that, he says. When it comes to early retirement ... even when youre not retired, whats important is your available cash. You can have the biggest investment in the world, but if you have no cash, youre screwed. ... We put our plan to the test and it passed.

He believes his background in crisis management and emergency preparedness also helped him stay calm as the markets went into panic mode.

I wasnt surprised. It was sort of expected, he says of the market drop.

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Mr. Martin didnt adjust his investment portfolio or asset allocation, either, which was a smart move in hindsight given the markets record run.

In fact, he and his wife are planning to buy a house this year instead of next year, as originally planned, thanks in part to the additional savings from the pandemic and the stock market comeback.

Today, Mr. Martins retirement life includes doing things he loves, such as building furniture for the new house, playing sports and walking his kids to school each day.

Furthermore, while his financial plan says he doesnt need to work, Mr. Martin did take on a short-term government contract last spring to help municipalities with their business continuity amid the pandemic.

I wanted to be part of it and to use my skills to do what I could to help the community, he says.

Bob Lai, 38, a married father of two who works in Vancouvers technology industry, says his F.I.R.E. journey remains on track amid the pandemic.

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For Mr. Lai and his wife, financial independence means having the option to work when they want and for as long as they want.

It might not mean full retirement in the near future, but they do have options such as taking a year off to travel when its safe to do so again.

Its about being financially independent, he says. Thats the empowerment behind the F.I.R.E. movement that we like, to not be tied to your paycheque every two weeks.

Mr. Lai says his family will be financially independent when its dividend income is greater than its expenses, which he notes is a bit different than the F.I.R.E. movements technical definition of when your net worth reaches 25 times your expenses.

The family got closer to that goal after investing about $115,000 in the markets last year, including a big chunk of money after equities dropped in the spring. A good portion of those funds was from money saved from having to stay home during the pandemic, as well as some investments the couple sold in February, just before the market crash.

Mr. Lai says he wasnt worried about his existing investments being down significantly at the time, particularly after seeing the bounce back during the global financial crisis.

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I knew the market would recover eventually; it was just a matter of time, he says. It was a good opportunity; [stocks] went on sale.

Most of his investments, which he makes on his own, are in stable, dividend-paying stocks such as banks and in diversified exchange-traded funds.

For others interested in being financially independent, Mr. Lai suggests sticking to their plan and not making bets on risky investments such as Bitcoin.

If you are always jumping back and forth between investment strategies, you may not get there, he says of financial independence.

And while he and his wife dont have a specific date for meeting their F.I.R.E. goal, we are enjoying the journey.

Read more:

How F.I.R.E. investors are managing through the pandemic - The Globe and Mail

(Photo: Shutterstock)

Act, dont react. Be ahead of the curve. We dont keep up with the Joneses because we are the Joneses.

Many clients probably want to be thought leaders. Another way to prove your value is to get them thinking ahead.

Theres been an industry sea change over the past few decades towards managed money and fee based accounts. At the same time, investing has become a spectator sport. Lots of clients watch CNBC.

Sound them out about their desired level of involvement. The client who always agrees when you call with stock ideas might be comfortable moving to managed money and outsourcing to the professionals. The client who calls saying Ive got this great idea sounds like they want to be an active trader. Are you being responsive?

The pandemic has reminded us of our own mortality. Your client might like to move their retirement date forward.

You wont know unless you ask them. What would need to happen to make that possible?

Youve heard Time in the markets, not timing the market.

Get this years funds put to work as early as possible.

It gets paid the same time each year. If you wait for a call, you might learn their bonus paid for a new kitchen. You have been talking financial independence with your client.

Have a plan for putting that bonus money to work. Have ideas that get your client excited.

According to The Washington Post, about 73% of Americans filing taxes received refunds last year. The average amount might be in the low thousands, but this money should be put to work.

If you have a good idea, suggest the client add more money to round up.

Its a grim thought, but the pandemic has made us realize no one lives forever. Put another way, like some bonds, we human all have an ERP or Early Redemption Provision. Having your will in order brings peace of mind.

Does your client have a will? If so, is their executor still the best person for the job? If they are charitable, is the list of their charitable beneficiaries current?

Older clients are required to remove assets from retirement accounts on a schedule. A temporary halt on required minimum distributions ended this year. You might have some, but not all of your older clients assets.

If this is a year when a withdrawal is required, has enough been withdrawn? There are penalties for noncompliance.

They grow up so fast. College tuition increases faster than inflation. You dont want to be in the position of earning now to pay tuition bills now.

Clients might have set up college savings plans. Are they getting actively funded?

How old are your clients children? They might see college as the last, great expense as their children head off into the working world. Lets not forget about weddings. Parents are often expected to pay most if not all of the cost.

Clients might think wedding costs have stayed frozen at the rate they paid years ago. They are wrong.

Now you have clients thinking and planning ahead! They should feel more comfortable. They have you to thank!

Related on ThinkAdvisor:

Originally posted here:

9 Ways to Get Clients Thinking About the Future - ThinkAdvisor

The schools principal balance, interests and fees on the loan as of Dec. 27 will be eligible for forgiveness on March. 19. The $25 million represents 60% of the universitys total debt, which was incurred to improve student housing, the university said.

Wilberforce is an iconic institution, not just for our community, but for our nation at large, said Turner, vice-chair of the House HBCU Caucus, a bipartisan group of lawmakers dedicated to securing proper resources and funding for the schools. With increased financial independence and stability, Wilberforce University will remain a historic pillar of equity and justice.

In recent years, Wilberforce, the nations first private HBCU, has struggled financially and has grappled with enrollment declines and other issues. But school officials recently launched a plan to transform the university by attracting more students, add new academic programs and raise funds.

See more here:

Wilberforce University loans to be forgiven as part of COVID-19 relief bill - Springfield News Sun

When I originally pitched the idea for this column to The Union, my goal was to counter the ubiquitous media message that aging was terrible and to be avoided at all costs.

Oldsters seemed to be regarded as people who drove their life-car in the slow lane looking in the rearview mirror because they had nothing to look forward to.

Consider birthday cards. Cards for seniors typically ridicule some aspect of aging, like loss of hair or teeth or ones figure. (I have to admit, though, some make me laugh.)

Independent of the medium whether cards, television ads, movies or magazines aging was predictably associated with three Ds: depression, decline and death.

The medias negative portrayal, however, didnt jibe with my experience or that of my aging friends. For the most part, we were happy, productive and more satisfied with our lives than ever.

The more I looked around and read, the more convinced I was that the final stage of life, like the previous stages, should be appreciated for its unique qualities.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow expressed this idea in Morituri Salutamus:

For age is opportunity no less

Than youth itself, though in another dress,

And as the evening twilight fades away

The sky is filled with stars, invisible by day.

Going forward, Im not being pollyannaish. Nor am I playing the glad game about everything aging involves. Indeed, Im a realist about the fact that the final stage of life has its challenges.

That retirement life is not one seamless line of wonderful experiences seems to be a surprise to a group of people who formed the movement referred to as FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early).

The idea, promoted in the book Your Money or Your Life, first published in 1992, was to encourage people to save money aggressively so they could retire early and enjoy a carefree life from that point forward.

Comments from the movements pioneers, however, indicate that all is not well in retirement land. The four difficulties these pioneers report are strikingly similar to those of individuals who are in their final years.

First, the skills that got us to where we are now are not the skills that well need going forward. In my case, Ive always worked hard to achieve my goals. But with less energy now, I need skills in planning, setting priorities and pacing.

Self-examination is required to figure out which skills are no longer serving us (fatigue was my clue) and what new ones are needed.

Second, change is hard, and this is true whatever our age. Change may involve the loss of ones health, the death of a spouse or a significant reduction of income. Change may come in the form of selling ones home and downsizing or moving to live near offspring. And as happened in 2020, change can also come in the form of a pandemic.

A significant (and sometimes hidden) challenge for many of us is the unrelenting requirement that we become more proficient technologically a real trial for nontechnical types like me! I no sooner figure out how to operate the air fryer than I have to figure out how to use my new cell phone.

For some, change may involve taking on the job of caregiver or giving up a drivers license, thereby losing ones independence.

Whatever the trigger for the unwanted changes, the path to a new normal is not easy.

Third, we have greater personal responsibility for our choices. For most of us, we can decide what we eat, when we eat, where we live, how much we spend, how well we take care of our body, whether well exercise regularly, what well spend time on and what well neglect.

We can no longer blame parents, teachers, offspring, colleagues, a boss or a demanding job for our choices.

Fourth, theres never enough time. That was true when we were younger and as we age, our experience of time speeds up. This isnt simply our imagination.

Adrian Bejan, a Duke University mechanical engineering professor, makes a distinction between clock time (which is steady and measurable) and mind time (which is an individuals unique experience of each moment).

Professor Bejan theorizes that the increasingly complex aging brain slows the processing of information and that the reduced pace of processing has the effect of speeding up mind time.

Without necessarily understanding the physics, we know from our own experience that as we age, mind time rushes by. We no sooner put the Christmas decorations away than its time to get them out again.

In coping with these and other challenges I will most likely face, Ive chosen to replace the discouraging Ds with my own reassuring Ps:

Perseverance, because however difficult the situation, I know this too shall pass

Perspective, because thats the benefit of having had hundreds of experiences over seven decades

Personal power, because Ive learned to sail my ship through fierce storms

If you came up with your own keystones, what would they be?

Carole Carson, Nevada City, is an author, former AARP website contributor, and leader of the 1994 Nevada County Meltdown. Contact: carolecarson41@gmail.com

More:

Joyful Aging: Balancing pluses and minuses - The Union of Grass Valley

Duncan Clarks flight was rolling down the runway in Paris in late October when President Emmanuel Macron announced a second national lockdown in France. The country had nearly 50,000 new Covid-19 infections that day. The United States had almost 100,000.

He sighed with relief. He was headed to China. That day, it had reported 25 new infections, all but one originating abroad.

Mr. Clark, a businessman and an author, returned to China after spending nine months in the United States and France, his longest time away from the country since he moved to Beijing in 1994. He had been spending more time outside China over the past few years to get away from air pollution, censored internet and an increasingly depressing political environment.

But when he returned in October, he felt something new: safe, energized and free.

The ability to just live a normal life is pretty amazing, he said.

While many countries are still reeling from Covid-19, China where the pandemic originated has become one of the safest places in the world. The country reported fewer than 100,000 infections for all of 2020. The United States has been reporting more than that every day since early November.

China resembles what normal was like in the pre-pandemic world. Restaurants are packed. Hotels are full. Long lines form outside luxury brands stores. Instead of Zoom calls, people are meeting face to face to talk business or celebrate the new year.

The country will be the only major economy to have grown this past year. While such forecasts are often more art than science, one outfit is forecasting that the Chinese economy will surpass that of the United States in 2028 five years earlier than previously predicted.

The pandemic has upended many perceptions, including ideas about freedom. Citizens of China dont have freedom of speech, freedom of worship or freedom from fear three of the four freedoms articulated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt but they have the freedom to move around and lead a normal day-to-day life. In a pandemic year, many of the worlds people would envy this most basic form of freedom.

The global crisis could plant doubts about other types of freedom. Nearly half of voting Americans supported a president who ignored science and failed to take basic precautions to protect their country. Some Americans assert that it is their individual right to ignore health experts recommendations to wear masks, putting themselves and others at increasing risk of infection. The internet, which was supposed to give a voice to the voiceless, became a useful tool for autocrats to control the masses and for political groups to spread misinformation.

Chinas freedom of movement comes at the expense of nearly every other kind. The country is about the most surveilled in the world. The government took extreme social-control measures at the beginning of the outbreak to keep people apart approaches that are beyond the reach of democratic governments.

There are actually a lot of parallels between how the Chinese government treats a virus and how they treat other problems, said Howard Chao, a retired lawyer in California who invests in start-ups on both sides of the Pacific.

Its kind of a one-size-fits-all approach: Just completely take care of the problem, he said. So when it comes to a virus, maybe thats not too bad a thing. When it comes to certain other problems, maybe not such a good thing.

That realization has not stopped Mr. Chao from enjoying his time in China. Since flying to Shanghai from San Francisco in mid-October, he has hosted business dinners attended by as many as 20 people, gone to a jazz bar, seen a movie, visited a seafood market and flown to Shenzhen, in southern China, to check out a self-driving car start-up.

This is where I had lunch in Shanghai today, he wrote on Facebook on Nov. 6, alongside a photo of people dining. Starting to remember what normal life looks like.

Mr. Chao said the people he met in China were perplexed and incredulous that the U.S. daily infections were so high. They rolled their eyes and were like, How was it even possible? he said.

Jan. 4, 2021, 10:31 p.m. ET

Of course, the Chinese government is eager to help the world forget that it silenced those who tried to warn the world in the early days of the outbreak.

But theres no denying that Chinas success in containing the outbreak burnished Beijings image, especially when compared with the failures of the United States. It has given currency to the so-called China model the Communist Partys promise to the Chinese public that it will deliver prosperity and stability in exchange for its unrelenting grip on political power.

In this year of pandemic, the Communist Party has provided the public a social good: stability, said Dong Haitao, an investor who moved to Beijing from Hong Kong in August.

For Mr. Dong, Chinas success gives him an opportunity to achieve financial independence.

Mr. Dong, who is setting up an asset management firm as well as a start-up devoted to puer tea, is bullish on the Chinese economy. He believes that after the pandemic, China will have even stronger supply chains and a vibrant consumer economy driven by a young generation that is more interested in Chinas traditional culture, like tea, than his generation, which grew up in the era of globalization.

Mr. Dong, who moved to Hong Kong from New York in the middle of the 2008 financial crisis, decided to leave Hong Kong because the city has felt anemic during the pandemic, while many mainland cities seem to glow with energy and hope.

I dont think I can find the kind of freedom I want in Hong Kong, he said.

It isnt clear whether this shift in perception can be sustained after the pandemic ends. But the West may find it has to work harder to sell its vision of freedom after China has made its model seem so attractive.

Mr. Clark, the businessman and author, founded a technology consulting firm in Beijing in 1994 and was an adviser to Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce giant, in the companys early days. Since leaving quarantine in mid-November, he has traveled to four cities and attended many events and conferences, including one with about 900 people.

Normally, China was sort of an adventure, he said. But that has flipped. Something has changed in the world.

Mr. Clark said he had made the acknowledgment with mixed feelings. You kind of want it to be not true, he said, but it is kind of true.

Beijing and Shanghai are increasingly cosmopolitan, and their consumers are growing more sophisticated, he said. Last month, he went to a Scottish ball in Beijing. The bagpiper was Chinese because the organizer couldnt fly in anyone from Scotland.

China feels a bit like the Epcot Center at Disney, he said. Its like the microcosm of the West is still here, but the West is shut down at the moment.

For Mr. Clark, being in crowds again has taken some getting used to. If youre talking to people at a party or something, you cant just mute somebody if theyre annoying, he said. At the first big event he attended, he said, he noticed somebody had really bad breath.

Im like, oh my God, I havent had to experience that for nine months because everyone was wearing masks, and you didnt see anybody, Mr. Clark said.

I feel like Im living in the future here, even when he thinks about bad breath, he said. I mean, its like, Get ready.

Continued here:

In a Topsy-Turvy Pandemic World, China Offers Its Version of Freedom - The New York Times

2020 brought on tough times for so many. Drastically increasing the need for food assistance not only around the nation but here in the Tennessee Valley as well.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. The Food Bank of North Alabama is partnered with more than 250 organizations to get more food to people in need.

Because of the pandemic, these partners are seeing an increase in people needing help with getting food on the table.

"[The pandemic is] tripling or quadrupling the amount of people they are seeing, the amount of calls they're getting. What we're hearing from them is consistent with some of the numbers we're seeing from Feeding America," said Bobby Bozeman, development director at the Food Bank of North Alabama.

In 2019, the food bank distributed nearly 9 million meals. In 2020 during the pandemic, the food bank distributed about a million pounds of food a month.

"We're able to meet some of this need because we've increased our food purchasing, our food purchasing since the pandemic is over twice the fiscal year prior," said Bozeman.

The food bank also hosts events called mobile pantries, where instead of people having to go to the food bank or any of their partners, the food is brought to them. The amount of food given out has doubled due to the pandemic.

"But now, you know, before when we would go, even in May, we would take 250 food boxes, maybe 300 boxes, depending on the community that we were going to. And now we're up to, you know, we'll take 5, 600, 700 boxes to a mobile pantry and in both instances we might have been left with 25 boxes at the end of the day," said Bozeman.

Sadly, food insecurity has always been an issue, but now that some people are losing financial independence due to the economic downturn of the virus, more and more people are going hungry to help get by in other ways.

"People, when they're listing out there needs for their budget, usually food is the last thing people budget in their needs, you know, they're gonna take care of rent, around here their gonna take care of transportation, they're gonna take care of medical bills, gonna keep the lights on, and then they're gonna budget groceries. Food insecurity factors that in, sometimes people are just eating less or going hungry more often, they might have a little food in the pantry but their rationing it out more," said Bozeman.

Excerpt from:

What the Food Bank of North Alabama brought to the community in 2020 - WZDX

Rope strangles a dollar bill. Concept recession. Isolated on black background. With copy space text. ... [+] Studio Shot.

Inflation, we keep hearing, is low. But thats deceptive. Lewis Walker, a financial planningand investment strategist atCapital Insight Groupin Peachtree Corners, Ga., warns about how even seemingly minimal price increases can mount up over time. And he has some ideas for how to prepare for that.

Larry Light: Simply eyeballing the latest inflation numbers suggest they are tame and we shouldnt worry about them.

Lewis Walker: Year over year, all-items inflation through November averaged 1.2%. Core inflation, excluding food and energy costs, averaged 1.6%. The U.S. Federal Reserve has an inflation target of 2% annually.

Per the Fed, an annual inflation rate of 2% is most consistent with the Federal Reserves mandate for maximum employment and price stability. When households and businesses can reasonably expect inflation to remain low and stable, they are able to make sound decisions regarding saving, borrowing and investment, which contributes to a well-functioning economy.

Light: How does a 2% annual decrease in your moneys long-term buying power contribute to your personal or familys well-functioning economy?

Walker: The numbers quoted above are averages. How do price pressures impact the things you use and need frequently? The cost of food in general through October is up 3.3% year-over-year. If you have hungry teenagers at home, especially boys, personal food expenditures are probably up by more than the index.

With work-from-home mandates, fuel costs most likely are down for the year for some workers. But as vaccinations kick in and the economy increasingly revs up, transportation expenditures are likely to increase. The new administrations emphasis on climate change will increase the cost of fossil fuels, electricity, transportation and shipping costs, etc. Infrastructure spending could increase pressures to raise fuel taxes.

Light: Yes, outside the official composite inflation gauges, some prices have really vaulted.

Walker: What are the big three goals for most families? One, own a home; two, educate kids; three, retirement and financial independence. New home sales have jumped to a 14-year high. Big city woes and work-from-anywhere trends are driving people to the suburbs, exurbs and smaller towns. List prices are up an average of 13% nationwide over 2019 through November.

Record low mortgage rates fuel demand, even as many younger couples are challenged to come up with down payments. Lumber prices are up 170% since April, adding $16,000 to the price of an average new single-family home.

Light: The burgeoning costs of education are remarkable.

Walker: Some students and parents are questioning the relative value of a high-priced private college education, but even costs at public colleges have outpaced inflation. Between 2008-2018, average four-year costs across all 50 states have jumped 34% overall, 24% adjusted for scholarships and grants. Georgia, my home state, has cut funding to public colleges substantially over the last decade.

Light: And retirement can last a long time, as inflation and taxes eat away at principal.

Walker: People in general are living longer spurring increased longevity planning. Inflation and taxes warrant consideration. Say you want to have at least $1 million in your 401(k), IRA or other qualified retirement plan by retirement. You want to take out 5% per year to fund your lifestyle, or $50,000 per year.

The withdrawal is taxed as ordinary income. Suppose your combined average federal and state tax rate is 20%. Now you have $40,000 per year, or $3,333 per month to spend. How does that fit into your retirementgo-go years scenario filled with travel and experiences? Need $2 million plus in your nest egg? With the deficits were running as a country, at some point, taxes will rise, and most likely, so will inflation.

Light: We always hear how low inflation has been for years, but that is compared to the double-digit rates of the 1970s and early 1980s. It does take a toll over time, even with small incremental increases, right?

Walker: If you retired 10 years ago, it now takes $1.19 to buy on average what $1.00 bought in 2010. Suppose you live 25 years in retirement. For someone who retired in 1995 it takes $1.71 to buy what a dollar did when they retired.

But thats not the whole story. Health care costs continue to rise, and in the slow-go and no-go retirement years, that becomes an even bigger burden on retirees, and those that love them and who may have to care for them. Many of your readers are senior citizens, or will be at some point. How are they planning to avoid being a strain on adult children? Many of my clients, especially women who on average outlive husbands, are quick to say in essence, I love my kids, but I dont want to be a burden on them or live with them.

Light: How should people prepare for this?

Walker: Elder care attorneys have seen an uptick in business as pandemic scares have forced people to confront mortality. Do you need to update your living and testamentary estate plans? Are wills, trusts, powers of attorney up-to-date? Read them again. Are executors, trustees, beneficiaries, and attorneys-in-fact still alive, still capable?

At your current age, as you look forward, is your insurance portfoliohealth, life, disability, property and casualty, liability and umbrella liabilitycurrent, providing adequate what-if coverage? Inflation impacts the buying power of insurance settlement dollars.

Inflation, simply, is shrinking buying power. Taxes further diminish buying power. Save and invest wisely.

See the article here:

Why Seemingly Low Inflation Really Is A Threat - Forbes

Anyone who wants to invest their money and not let it sit in the bank can use Wave FX. Financial independence is the most important thing for a person right now. Achieving it is a rare feat, but investing in all the right places can help you gain financial independence.

According to the expert trader here, Jason Maynard, the best thing about Wave FX is it can lend you financial independence by updating you on all the spot trading opportunities. You will know about the stock market in no time and can invest properly.

Moreover, you can get to use Wave FX for free. With it, you can receive daily market analysis and keep looking out for waves of financial opportunities and profitable trading signals from professional traders. It can also help you also do mobile trading with Wave FX. Do everything straight to your smartphone via message (Telegram/WhatsApp).

Wave FX can let you copy the trading signal and trade from your phone. It also has live support that is available 24/7. So, people will always have direct contact with Wave FX. They can help you get started with your trading account and during live trading.

The team of Wave FX constitutes professionally experienced Forex traders like Jason Maynard. Wave FX is the first forex signal provider with a reliable and profitable track record. It has got a loyal customer base who profit from their input and services.

Wave FX wants to empower people financially by teaching them and guiding them to learn Forex trading. The professional traders analyze the market conditions every day and provide the best trading signals directly to phones.

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Learn How To Get Financial Independence With Jason Maynard, an Expert Trader with Wave FX - London Daily Post

It's never too late to start investing. Whether you're just out of school and looking to make your first trades or close to retirement and hoping to beat the market's returns, 2021 looks like a great time to start your investing journey. But where?

Well, first you'll need a brokerage account. Once you have one, you'll need to buy your first stocks. We asked three of our Motley Fool contributors what stocks they'd recommend right now for first-time investors. They came back withBrookfield Renewable Partners(NYSE:BEP),Clean Energy Fuels(NASDAQ:CLNE), andUnion Pacific(NYSE:UNP). Here's why they think these are good picks for beginning investors.

Image source: Getty Images.

Scott Levine (Brookfield Renewable Partners): So you've decided that 2021 is the year when you're going to start investing in stocks? Congratulations. You're on the path to greater financial independence. As you embark on your investing journey, you'll likely want to gain some exposure to the renewable energy industry. From environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-conscious companies to nations trying to meet their Paris Agreement goals, renewable energy solutions are gaining a rapidly increasing presence on the energy landscape.

But where do you begin? The number of renewable energy-related stocks may seem overwhelming. Fortunately, Brookfield Renewable Partners makes it easy. Providing exposure to various niches of the renewable energy industry, the company's portfolio includes solar, wind, hydroelectric, and energy-storage assets. In addition, with a presence on four continents, the company's portfolio totals more than 19,000 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity, making it one of the largest publicly traded renewable energy investment options for investors. And there's plenty of growth that the company sees in its future. It has a development pipeline of projects totaling 18,000 MW.

It's not only the all-in-one approach to renewable energy that makes Brookfield Renewable Partners a compelling option. The company is on sound financial footing as it has an investment-grade balance sheet rated BBB+ with a stable outlook by S&P Global Ratings, and it has about $3.4 billion in available liquidity. Moreover, the company remains keenly focused on increasing shareholder value as management has targeted a long-term goal of delivering 12% to 15% returns to unit holders. While past performance is no guarantee of what the future holds (an important lesson for novice investors to grasp), it's worth noting that Brookfield Renewable Partners, since its inception, has delivered an annualized total return of 18%.

As fellow fool, Matt Frankel, points out, great stocks for beginners are ones that are "either leaders in their respective fields or very close to it." Brookfield Renewable Partners clearly fits the bill. This, plus the fact that it's committed to increasing shareholder value while maintaining its financial health, makes it a great stock for beginners to build their portfolios around.

John Bromels (Clean Energy Fuels): I agree with Scott that clean energy is a great place to invest right now. However, while share price shouldn't be a consideration for investors, beginners -- even those with limited capital or a brokerage that doesn't offer fractional shares -- shouldn't put their entire nest egg into a single share of stock. Biogas specialist Clean Energy Fuels' stock, though, is currently trading for less than $10 per share, allowing beginners to diversify their portfolios.

Together with current CEO Andrew Littlefair, energy bigwig T. Boone Pickens, in 1997, founded Pickens Fuel Corp. (the predecessor company of Clean Energy Fuels, incorporated in 2001) in hopes of promoting natural gas fuel as a cheaper and cleaner alternative to traditional diesel fuel. Unfortunately, persistently low oil prices during much of the 2010s, along with the rise of battery-powered vehicles, and solar and wind energy technology, conspired against Clean Energy's natural gas-based solutions. The company's shares are trading for less than half of what they were ten years ago:

CLNE data by YCharts.

Clean Energy was down but not out. And its second act is being powered by a different kind of clean fuel: biogas. In 2020, top Big Oil companies includingChevron,BP, andTotalhave announced various kinds of partnerships with Clean Energy Fuels to develop and market clean biogas fuel. That's given the stock a roughly 150% boost in 2020, but the biogas revolution is only just beginning.

I expect that Clean Energy Fuels shares will continue their sharp rise in the new year and will power even beginner investors to some juicy returns.

Lee Samaha (Union Pacific): The railroad offers novice investors some valuable education into investing for the long term. First, its market position is very safe. Railroads own their infrastructure, giving them significant business moats. In addition, Union Pacific and another major railroad, BNSF, dominate the West Coast. Simply put, it's highly likely that Union Pacific will still be around when you end your investing life.

Second, all the major railroads are on a drive to improve operating margins by adopting precision scheduled railroading (PSR) management techniques. Simply put, it's a set of principles designed to run the same carload volumes by using fewer assets. You can read about the details in the article, but for now, it's enough to know that companies can improve earnings even with relatively low revenue growth.

Third, railroad revenue is tied to the industrial economy, so it does tend to move up and down with how the economy is performing at large. In a nutshell, buying Union Pacific stock is kind of a bet on the long-term prospects for the U.S. economy.

Finally, if you are starting your investing life, you are probably doing it because it offers better returns than, say, keeping the money in the bank. In this context, Union Pacific's nearly 2% dividend yield will come in handy. Throw in the security of its market position and the possibility for dividend growth via earnings growth, and you have a recipe for a good stock to with which to start your investing life.

Continue reading here:

Starting Investing in 2021? Here Are 3 Great Starter Stocks - The Motley Fool

Dad, I signed a petition to stop Donald Trump dumping lots of plastic in the Arctic and killing all the polar bears, and its worked! My 11-year-old daughter and her friends have, it would seem, begun sticking it to The Man.

If I was The Man (um, wait) Id watch out.

Our youngest, with the last vestiges of baby softness and innocence still upon her, is entering the period described as Girlhood. Our 19-year-old has just come out the other side, and our 16-year-old is in the weeds of it all. As a parent, and as a man, it is a magical experience watching these women these sassy dames, this triple threat slowly emerge from the chrysalis.

The middle girl is by now a wizened old hand at the online petition racket. Shes the most secretive of the three, but will occasionally let slip that shes added her name to this campaign to prevent an environmental outrage or that effort to support Black Lives Matter. When she goes off on one I goggle at the level of detail and nuance she has privately absorbed, and the firmness of her views. When I was 16, my interests didnt extend far beyond Teenage Fanclub, Manchester United, and the golden skin of Anne Marie, the unattainable goddess of Class 5B. My daughters are a distinct upgrade on the father.

Girlhood is the subject of a fascinating article in The Economist, which has spoken to 11-16 year olds across Europe and the US in an attempt to map their ambitions and desires, their changing expectations and their forthright views. The journalists heard of TikTok and bubble tea, anger and activism, make-up tutorials and trampolining, anxiety (both theirs and their parents) and big plans for the future (ditto). The generational change was apparent: What came out most strongly was the girls sense of shared identity and shared potential.

Girls today have little time for societys straitjacketing traditions. Their interests are diverse to an extent that frustrates advertisers attempting to identify a market. They no longer define themselves against the pimply swagger of the teenage boy. One girl puts it perfectly: I know boys are biologically stronger, but no one cares about farms anymore.

Though the age at which puberty begins is falling, sexual activity is starting later. The expansion of opportunity and the rise in levels of equality is transforming priorities. In the mid-20th century, love, a husband and a career were the most sought-after goals, and in that order. Todays girls are more likely to want an interesting job, financial independence, and to change the world. In The Economist survey, marriage and have children were low on the list, and sometimes crossed out. Sounds about right our 19-year-old wants a flat of her own, three large dogs and a Playstation.

With new freedoms come different types of pressure, of course. Eating disorders and self-harm are more common, and rates of depression have risen. Girls can be awful to one another as a man, one of the hardest things to get your head around is the blithe savagery of the female friend group (and into adulthood, the school-gate sneeriness of the uber-mums).

But the world is undoubtedly an improved and improving place for female emancipation. There is much further to go, of course. Its important that girls see people who look, talk and think like them operating at the highest levels, whether it be in Bute House, at the top of the worlds largest companies, or in the cultural sphere. Nicola Sturgeon and Jacinda Ardern matter, as do JK Rowling and Martha Lane Fox, and Beyonce and Dua Lipa.

At a hard policy level, unleashing the full potential of women boosts economic growth, productivity, innovation and inclusion. Its a win-win, even if a certain type of man clenched, threatened refuses to see it that way.

Were doing our bit with our three. Their way has been lit by a strong mother, two quirky, formidable grandmothers, and an indomitable great gran, each of whom ploughed distinct paths through life in considerably more challenging and oppressive circumstances. Ive learned more from each generation of our familys women than they could ever learn from me.

Our 11-year-old has recently discovered make-up, and emerges from her room not done up like a dolly but sporting various masques of horror and flesh wounds. Over Christmas we watched the ultra-violent John Wick series of films, and it was with a wincing mix of astonishment and pride that I listened to her identify the various guns being used. Her experience of playing the online game Fortnite, where, daily, she deploys a vast array of weaponry in the lethal pursuit of fellow children, had taught her the specs and the lingo.

Shes coming. The Man had better watch out.

Chris Deerin is a leading journalist and commentator who heads independent, non-party think tank Reform Scotland

Visit link:

Chris Deerin: Girls just wanna have fundamental equality - Press and Journal

If you want to dig into the lives of musicians, theres no shortage of books for you. Below, weve selected three recent releases with very different takes on the music memoir.

Confess: The Autobiography by Rob Halford (Hachette Books)

When Judas Priest lead singer Rob Halford came out as a gay man in a 1998 MTV interview, there werent many out LGBTQ people in rock n roll, let alone heavy metal. In Confess: The Autobiography, Halford, best known as the singer for the British metal band, writes that he received so many letters in the aftermath of the interview that he had to open an office to handle them. Many of those letters, too, were from people thanking him for discussing his sexuality on television. It opened my eyes to just how many gays were still going through the trauma of suppressing their sexual identity, he writes.

In Confess, Halford describes not only his rise to metal god status (a term he has trademarked), but his journey as a rock icon who lived the first 20+ years of his career in the closet. He writes of clandestine dalliances, a tragic romance and his own struggle with addiction that led to his resolve to remain sober for now more than 30 years. Halford also revels in the joy of finding love with his longtime partner, of reuniting with Judas Priest in the 21st century and of being able to live his life openly. Confess is a revealing look inside the life of rock royalty told with both heartfelt sincerity and lots of humor.

The Gucci Mane Guide to Greatness by Gucci Mane with Soren Baker (Simon & Schuster)

Looking to achieve G.O.A.T. greatest of all time status? The Gucci Mane Guide to Greatness is the handbook for just that. The hip-hop star follows up his 2017 bestseller The Autobiography of Gucci Mane with his tips for success. Guide to Greatness is similar in approach to singer Amanda Palmers The Art of Asking and author Francesca Lia Blocks The Thorn Necklace in that its as much a how-to guide as it is a memoir.

Here, in a quick-paced, conversational tone, Gucci Mane reveals how he overcame some of his lifes challenges while dispelling advice thats often so practical that its easy to overlook, like in the chapter Whatever It Is, Do It Now. His insight is at times brutally honest (If you fail, there may be a handful of people that really still care if youre lucky, he writes. The other 7.8 billion people on the planet dont.), but there are also sentimental moments in the book as well, particularly in the section The Power of Love.

Me and Sister Bobbie by Willie Nelson, Bobbie Nelson, David Ritz (Random House)

In this joint memoir, siblings Willie and Bobbie Nelson alternate chapters as they document their lives from early childhood, when their parents left them in the care of their grandparents, to recent years. In sharing their stories, the two also offer a look at how the paths of remarkably talented musicians one male, one female diverged. For Bobbie, a piano player, her musical pursuits were held against her in a custody case brought forth by her first husbands parents. Later, as she found work with Hammond Organ Company and in restaurants, it became her way to financial independence. By the 1970s, as Willies fame began to soar, she joined her brother on the road. With writer David Ritz, the write of a deep familial bond that has helped them overcome numerous struggles and several major tragedies.

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These 3 music memoirs tell the stories of Rob Halford, Gucci Mane, Willie Nelson and more - Marin Independent Journal

TORONTO -- Over the years, I've learned that financial rituals drive financial discipline. and financial discipline leads to wealth.

The wealthy do things differently and they often think differently. In many cases, they are prepared to do what others are not - for example, working on designated vacation time, weekends, or even simply putting in really long hours. They tend to be ferocious readers, invest in relationships and care little about brand names. Being frugal is simply one aspect that many have embraced, along with eating well at home and spending little on lavish dining experiences.

I've observed those who are wealthy for decades. They don't wait for permission to move forward they just do it. They play into their strengths and follow their passion, while having few financial regrets. They don't talk about paying down debt - they pay it down by making it a priority and getting the job the done.

When it comes right down to it the financial rituals you embrace can change your financial trajectory in life.

1) The wealthy always know where they stand financially; how much they owe, how much they own, and a complete net worth statement at least once a year. A net worth statement is key but only represents a moment in time. However, it is the annual ritual of the exercise that can help you identify areas requiring improvement, such as paying down debt or ramping up your investment holdings. Your financial goals can clearly be established for 2021 by dissecting line by line your net worth statement.

We have completed our net worth statement annually for 26 years. Our goal has always been to improve our net worth annually. Some years we paid down debt, others we ramped up our savings. The process allows us to see where we stand financially and get aligned on the goals that matter to us.

2) The wealthy are frugal not cheap - there is a difference. They are generous, often give financially to others and to charity, but they save more than they spend and live way below their means.

3) The wealthy have ditched the budget. They don't need to budget because they have financial discipline. They would rather invest in real estate or the markets than in stuff they don't need. They always pay themselves first. Money comes right out their account at pre-determined times and goes directly into an investment or savings vehicle or towards debt repayment.

4) The wealthy know 2020 has been tough on many levels, but somehow manage to keep moving forward with a focus toward financial independence.There will always be financial speed bumps that slow you down or even take you temporarily off course, but being conscientious and taking corrective action gets you back on course. Every household needs a little financial flexibility.

5) The wealthy have embraced life long learning and are up to date on what is driving market performance. They will invest in themselves, stay current and always be on the look out for opportunities to grow.

Creating wealth isn't about doing one big thing right. It is about doing a lot of little things right. Developing financial rituals and adopting financial discipline can help set you on an upward financial trajectory in 2021.

Let the new financial year begin.

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Pattie Lovett-Reid: The 5 financial rituals that drive wealth - CTV News

Matthew A. Treskovich| Special to The Ledger

We live in a remarkable time. This year, we've faced tremendous challenges, from a global pandemic and recession, to a contested election.

Despite these challenges, there has never been a better time to be alive than now, and never a better place to live than the United States of America. Modern medicine has given us treatments and vaccines at a speed never before seen in human history. American capitalism has already launched an economic recovery stronger than any on record. These are remarkable achievements, but there is a bigger reason that this is a great time to be alive.

In America today, anyone can achieve financial independence.

Financial Independence simply means reaching the point where you work because you want to, not because you have to.

We all have the ability to achieve financial independence if we do the right things. Achieving financial independence means focusing on the things you can control and having a plan for the things you cant.

We have complete control over how much we spend and how much we save. The easiest way to achieve financial independence is to save early and save often. If youre not already saving, the best time to start is right now.

We have no control over what the markets will do. More often than not, the markets will go up. Sometimes they will go down. While we cant control the markets, we can control how and where we invest. Having a plan to invest wisely and participate in market returns is another key to achieving financial independence.

We have little control over tax rates, but proper planning can give you some control over the taxes you pay and when you pay them. Every dollar you pay in unnecessary taxes is a dollar that is lost forever. Saving money is important but saving and investing wisely to minimize taxes is just as important.

Anyone can achieve financial independence. Its not complicated, even though at times it might seem difficult. Having a plan and sticking to the plan are the things that set financial independent people apart from the rest.

This year you can give the gift of financial independence to yourself or someone you care about.All it takes is making a plan, saving oftenand investing wisely. Most importantly, stick to your plan and get help from an expert if you need it.

Matthew Treskovich is the chief investment officer for CPS Investment Advisors. He can be reached at 863-688-1725 or by email at Matt@CPSInvest.com.

Read the original here:

Your Money: Give yourself the gift of financial independence - The Ledger

Note to readers: When it comes to money management, women have skilfully manoeuvred finances of their families and those of investors on a larger scale. But the number of such women professional managers remains low, though. Of all registered investment advisors with SEBI (securities and exchange board of India), just about 10 percent are women. In this special five-part series, Moneycontrol personal finance profiles five women who are not only in control of their own personal finances but also guide several other women and families in managing their wealth.

Yesterday, we profiled Renu Maheshwari, CEO and Principal Advisor, FinScholarz Wealth Managers LLP. Today, meet Mumbai-based Nisreen Mamaji, certified financial planner and Founder MoneyWorks FS.

Nisreen Mamaji loves money conversations with her clients. But she is also a patient listener, a trait which she says has helped her greatly in connecting with her clients. She has around 300 clients, of whom 50 per cent are women. MoneyWorks Financial Services, where she is the chief planner, is a financial distribution firm that earns commission income on the products sold. She has not applied for a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) license.

Sustainable clientele for commission income

Besides capping fees over the years, the capital market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) also came out with RIA regulations. Financial advisors registered as RIAs can only give advice, for which they must charge a fee. MoneyWorks Financial Services plans to follow the commission-based model for now, which means firms such as MoneyWorks Financial Services must constantly expand their customer base to be able to retain the commission income theyve been earning so far. For the distribution industry, penetration is important.

She works with a team of five people who dedicate most of their time on product research platforms as well as on customer support and operations. Fortunately MoneyWorks FS had shifted most of her clients to online investing much before the pandemic. It also does online on-boarding the Know-Your-Customer (KYC) formalities are completely digital.

From selling insurance to wealth creation

Nisreen started her career in the financial sector as an insurance adviser. After selling traditional insurance plans, the need for a wider portfolio in an investors moneybox that could beat inflation made her diversify into mutual funds. Her understanding of personal wealth creation, she remembers, came through her own investments. Her father had invested in stocks and funds on her behalf and the compounded returns from those investments helped her to later invest in a property.

This gave me a strong conviction about the possibility of wealth creation by investing in a basket of instruments capable of beating inflation, she says. Nisreen started selling mutual funds in 2002 and set up her own firm in 2005. At that time, the asset management companies were also investing aggressively in training independent distributors. As part of DSP mutual funds Winvisor program, she has been conducting workshops in corporate firms addressing their women employees on the need to be financially independent.

Aditi Kothari Desai, director, and head-sales & marketing at DSP Mutual Fund has led this program that connects women in corporate India with women financial advisors and planners through a series of investment education workshops. Nisreen is on the panel of Winvisor program; a platform that also gave her a wider women audience. Over the years, we have drilled this into women employees minds that its so important to be financially independent. They must not depend on the male members of their families, she says.

Rising financial awareness among younger women

What are her main observations? Nisreen says that over the years, women have become more financially aware. Young women, she goes on to explain, are more open to financial advice. They seek out qualified financial planners, build a relationship and follow their financial advice. A couple of young women clients of mine even brought in their mothers to my office for financial consulting, she says. Older women arent as invested in their financial independence as they ought to. Ive often observed that older women spend their income on their families and keep very little or nothing aside for their own investment plans. This makes them very dependent on joint family finances, which unfortunately could get out of reach overnight should their marriage go sour, says Nisreen. This vulnerability should certainly be avoided and reduced.

Being a women herself makes it easier, she claims, to sensitise her women clients. We can intuitively figure out from the first few discussions about the issues that they may not share openly with us readily says Nisreen Mamaji. These qualities, she feels makes a women adviser best for the financial advisory profession.

Also read: Money management: Where are the women financial advisers?

Link:

Nisreen Mamaji on drilling the idea of financial independence into womens heads - Moneycontrol.com

This story is part of CNBC Make It'sMillennial Moneyseries, which details how people around the world earn, spend and save their money.

Lani Huang has never had a "normal" year as a teacher.

She began her career in 2017 teaching in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and took part in the 2018 teacher walkouts at the end of her first year. In the fall of 2019, she relocated to a new school in Dallas and ended the term in the spring of 2020 like millions of other teachers and students around the world interacting with her class virtually as her school district shut down because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Now, the 25-year-old is back in the classroom teaching middle school math to students spaced six feet apart, shielded by face masks with Plexiglas separating their desks, while also instructing a group of students who remain at home through Zoom.

This year, Huang will earn $58,400 as a public middle school math teacher. She made an additional $1,212 from teaching virtual summer school and making instructional math videos for her school district to air on the local PBS channel. She also received a $250 stipend for serving as a mentor to two new teachers on her team and $128 for covering a class for a colleague in December.

Lani Huang teaches middle school math to students in her classroom and online at the same time.

Courtesy of Lani Huang

Despite the many challenges over the past few years, Huang has achieved some major milestones: She paid off her student loans, moved to a new state, bought her first house and moved in with her boyfriend.

Huang felt it was important to share her journey to financial independence as a second-generation American raised by a single mother. She hopes to encourage young people from similar backgrounds that they can achieve similar goals.

Here's how Huang manages her money.

Huang's mom, Jan, is one of 10 kids and the only one to leave Thailand for the U.S. She arrived in Chicago when she was 25 with a plan to work and go to college. She gave birth to her only daughter when she was in her 40s.

Huang says her mom who worked long hours for the Chicago Public School district and as a nursing assistant and stretched the household budget on a single income in an expensive city is the biggest influence in how she perceives money today.

First and foremost, Huang learned from her the importance of saving from an early age, and she now tries to stash away $1,000 per month. She learned that material possessions lose value and prefers to spend on experiences, like travel and concerts, over things.

Lani Huang and her mom take a mother-daughter trip every year.

Courtesy of Lani Huang

Perhaps most importantly, Huang's mom taught her to not rely on anyone else while working toward her goals. "My mom always told me to not wait for a man to get what I wanted or what I needed," she says. "I think that's what made me work so hard. If I want something, I know that I have to find a way to do it."

Huang studied psychology and Mandarin Chinese at her mom's alma mater, DePaul University, while working food-service and hospitality jobs. She graduated with about $16,000 in student debt.

During her senior year, she was recruited by Teach for America to become a certified educator and teach at a school that serves low-income students in Tulsa. She taught there for two years and used her demanding schedule, low cost of living and limited social activities to her advantage to save as much money as possible usually a few hundred dollars each month.

Through its partnership with AmeriCorp, Teach for America covered roughly $12,000 of Huang's student loans in exchange for her teaching service. And on August 2, 2019 the day before her 24th birthday Huang paid off the remaining $4,000 principal in one lump sum as a gift to herself.

Once she was debt-free, she set her sights on another goal on her list: buying a home.

After growing up in rented apartments, "it's always been a dream of mine to own my own home," Huang says.

Lani Huang bought a house in Dallas this year.

CNBC Make It

She moved to Dallas during the summer of 2019 and quickly started her house hunt. By January 2020, she found a three-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bathroom house that she negotiated from $165,000 down to $155,000. She made a down payment of $10,000 and part of her closing costs were covered by the realtor's commission through the Teachers Next Door program.

Homeownership has come with some surprise costs namely higher utility bills, as it's not cheap to cool the 1,500 square-foot space during Dallas summers. But Huang has embraced time at home during the pandemic to complete DIY projects in her kitchen, bathrooms and garage. "Anything that I can learn how to do myself, I'll learn how to do it through YouTube," she says.

People are often surprised to learn that she bought the house on her own, since she and her boyfriend, Andrew Giannetto, have been dating for almost two years and now live together. "They're like, 'Oh, did you guys buy it together?' That's always one of their first questions," Huang says. "When I tell them 'no, I did this myself,' it's always so surprising."

While living in Tulsa, Huang missed city life, but she also knew returning to Chicago would be pricey. As she planned her exit from Tulsa, an annual mother-daughter trip took her on a tour through Texas.

Huang was surprised to see a sizable Asian population around Dallas "it was almost excitement, like, 'Wow, there's Asian people and I'm not in an Asian restaurant or Asian market,'" she says which was an important factor for her in choosing a new place to live. Recent U.S. Census data shows Asian residents continue to be major drivers of Dallas-Fort Worth's population boom, according to The Dallas Morning News.

Plus, leaving Oklahoma, which has some of the lowest teacher pay in the country, and working for a Texas school would bump Huang's pay from the $30,000-range to the $50,000-range.

Access to a major international airport sealed the deal: "I love to travel, especially with having family back in Thailand. So I found it important to also choose a city that had a big airport where flights would be affordable."

Here's how Huang spent her money in October 2020:

Huang's savings targets aren't as aggressive now that she's paid off her college debt and bought a house, but she still tries to put away $1,000 per month. However, she was waylaid in October by a surprise wisdom teeth surgery that she had to cover out of pocket. She currently has about $10,000 in savings and keeps a $5,000 cushion in her checking account.

She saves for retirement through a 403(b) plan, but she didn't contribute in October. She continues to pay into her Texas teacher's retirement pension. Altogether, she has nearly $10,000 saved for retirement.

Huang considers herself financially savvy but feels she has more to learn about investing. She began investing in stocks through Robinhood two years ago, contributes to the brokerage account every now and then and has about $2,200 invested so far.

Andrew Giannetto and Lani Huang have been dating for almost two years and moved in together in February.

Courtesy of Lani Huang

Huang met Giannetto in Tulsa two years ago, and they moved in together this past February. Due to his move and the job market during the pandemic, Giannetto was unemployed until late October. Huang covered the majority of shared expenses until recently and hopes to work toward a 50/50 split. In October, Giannetto contributed $450 to shared living costs. They keep separate food budgets but pay for each others' meals on dates.

Huang says while it was stressful to cover new homeownership costs without splitting it with a partner, she didn't mind too much as long as Giannetto saw the situation as temporary.

"As a teen," she says, "I always knew that I didn't mind working and I didn't mind being the breadwinner as long as my significant other balanced that out" by taking on more household responsibilities. As she sees it, "it's important for me to make sure that the people around me are building better saving habits themselves and not just relying on one person, because that's my personal philosophy."

Shortly after she was born, Huang spent four years in Thailand being raised by her grandma, aunts and older cousins while her mom continued to work in Chicago. As she got older, she realized that her extended family in Thailand lived more comfortably than she and her mom did, due in part to the lower cost of living there.

"A lot of times, the narrative is that when the family immigrates to the U.S. and they start making money, they send money home to Thailand," Huang explains. "But that wasn't the case for my family. My extended family actually helped support me and my mom growing up."

Lani Huang spent several childhood years in Thailand being raised by her grandma, aunts and older cousins.

Courtesy of Lani Huang

She visits Thailand every few years, and those experiences have inspired her to make charitable giving a fixture in her budget, primarily by contributing to individual fundraising efforts of former students and colleagues. In October, she donated to two former students' efforts to raise money to cover funeral costs for people impacted by Covid-19.

Teaching students both in-person and online at the same time, on top of keeping everyone's health and safety top of mind, has been a difficult transition for Huang and her colleagues.

As teachers continue to be essential workers and community leaders during the pandemic, Huang believes it's crucial people value the work that teachers do and compensate them fairly. And in the meantime, she hopes negative connotations around teacher pay don't dissuade people from entering the field, especially if they have big financial dreams like she does.

Lani Huang felt it was important to share her journey to financial independence as a second-generation American raised by a single mother.

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The budget breakdown of a teacher earning $58,000 a year who paid off her student loans and bought a house in Dallas - CNBC

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Over the last decade of self-employment, I have worked many 50+ hour weeks, as well as in planes, trains, and even gas station parking lots. I have purposely set my alarm for 4:00 am so I could begin working before sunrise, and I have labored away many evenings, weekends, and holidays along the way.

My hands even ache as I type these words, but I'll keep going until I'm done. Yet, I don't work because I love it, or because writing is some sort of passion I have. I don't even work because I need to earn a specific dollar amount to pay my bills.

I work because I want to retire early. And right now, I believe I could be around seven years away.

Currently, I am 40 years old and my husband is 41, which means we could potentially retire at the ages of 47 and 48. It all depends on how much we can invest until then, and on the investment returns we receive. At the latest, I believe we can both easily retire at age 50.

It's also possible we could retire earlier if we wanted, but we don't want the constrained sort of early retirement you hear a lot of FIRE bloggers write about (FIRE stands for financial independence/retire early). We don't want to cut coupons or live in a tiny home, nor do we want to avoid dining out for the rest of our lives. Not at all.

Some would say we are pursuing Fat FIRE, which is basically early retirement on steroids. Where FIRE stands for "financial independence, retire early," Fat FIRE assumes you want more money than you need so you can continue your current lifestyle or better.

For my husband and I to live the retirement lifestyle we want, we need enough money that we can maintain a high standard of living. For us, that mostly means being able to travel internationally several months out of the year while also maintaining our residence at home.

And of course we want to have plenty of money so we can have breathing room and never, ever have to worry about money again even if we don't work for another 40+ years. If I want to go out to dinner or buy a new kitchen gadget or donate to a cause I care about, I want to be able to do it without hesitation.

But the main reason we're pursuing early retirement isn't so we can feel "rich." It's so we can live true, authentic lives without having to worry about projects or deadlines or pointless Zoom meetings.

One day, in the not too distant future, I want to wake up in the morning and drink coffee and read aimlessly for hours. I want to spend months in my favorite cities (Athens? Zagreb? Rome?) around the world, exploring every street and the little off-the-beaten-path sights I never have enough time to see. I want to spend four hours making meals from scratch with absolutely no regrets because I have nowhere to be and nothing else to do.

I also want to have time to volunteer, and to pour myself into projects I care about without having to be paid for my time and efforts.

Basically, I want to do whatever I want. There, I said it. I don't want to work.

What's funny is, a lot of people seem to think pursuing early retirement is really strange. After all, most people in their 30s and 40s are deep into their careers but not worrying about the future too much quite yet.

But now that I'm a little older, I actually think it's nuts to not think about retirement at all. In fact, I think it's ludicrous to work 40+ hours a week, not have any idea where your money is going, and just hope for the best. The incredibly sad thing is, that is what most people my age do.

The numbers don't lie. A recent Vanguard study revealed that the average 401(k) balance is just $92,148 across all age groups. For those ages 35 to 44, the average balance is just $61,238, and those ages 45 to 54 have just $115,497 saved.

Even for high-earners who bring in $150,000 or more each year, the average 401(k) balance is $193,130 and the median balance is $76,448.

No matter who you ask, it's safe to say all of these numbers come up short. If you're curious why I feel the way I do about early retirement and wondering if you should get on board, here are a few concepts that helped to change my perspective over time.

According to recent data, the average retirement age is around 64, although individuals in some states retire later than that. But because most Americans have far less saved for retirement than they should, the average "realistic" retirement age for many Americans could be as high as 74.

Meanwhile, the average life expectancy in the United States is 78.7 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This means that, if you go with the status quo, you'll likely work 40 to 50 years of your life before enjoying the final decade or so and living the way you want. Unfortunately, far too many people have health problems that prevent them from following many of their dreams at that point, and those on a limited income may not be able to afford to.

I mean, you may want to travel the world when you retire, but you may not be in the best health or have the cash to do it unless you plan ahead.

I believe we will reach our retirement number in less than 10 years at this point, but that doesn't necessarily mean I will stop working completely. In fact, I could very well continue working to create more of a buffer, or to boost my kids' college savings accounts as they get closer to leaving the nest (they're 9 and 11 now).

Heck, I might keep working on special projects so I can pay for over-the-top travel I normally wouldn't splurge for, like a business-class trip to Dubai first then the Maldives, where we could stay in an overwater bungalow.

But the point about saving for early retirement is getting the option to quit working if that's what you want. If you don't save early and invest often, you'll have to keep working whether you want to or not.

Here's another thing that has become painfully clear to me over the years the incredible power of compounding. I don't think many people realize that, if you hope to rack up $2 million or $6 million for retirement, you don't actually have to save and invest that much money.

All you have to do is invest some (enough!) money on a regular basis and give it the room to grow. From there, compound interest will do the rest.

For example, imagine you could save $1.5 million by age 40 and you hope to retire at age 50. If you invested $1.5 million by 40 and earned a 7% return for 10 years, you would have more than $2.9 million by the age of 50 without adding a single cent to your account. That's just an example, but it illustrates the magical powers of compound interest.

We all know that not everyone can pursue early retirement, or for some, any type of retirement at all. But for those who can, it seems like a shame to work hard for decades without having an end goal or any type of plan.

If you run the numbers, you may find that hitting retirement earlier than expected may be more attainable than you think especially if you start fairly young. At the very least, you should play around with a compound interest calculator to see what it would take to reach your goals. One day, not too long from now, your future self might thank you.

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I'm retiring within a decade and it's thanks to 3 realizations I've had over the course of my career - Business Insider

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 17, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- LPL Financial LLC, a leading retail investment advisory firm, independent broker-dealer and registered investment advisor (RIA) custodian, today announced that financial advisors Paulette and Beaux Treguboff have joined LPL Financials broker-dealer and corporate RIA platform, in addition to leveraging LPL as a custodian. They are aligned with Gladstone Wealth Partners, a large enterprise supporting LPL-affiliated advisors. The advisors reported having served approximately $150 million in advisory and brokerage assets*. They join from Morgan Stanley.

The advisors named their new independent practice Homestead Wealth Management as a tribute to their community and family roots. Both mother and son entered the financial services industry from other career paths. Paulette launched her career as a financial advisor in 1995, coming from new home sales. Beaux was a dairy farmer, working on his great-grandfathers homesteadmilking 1,500 cows three times a dayuntil he teamed up with his mom on tax day in 2008. Based in Glendale, Ariz., the advisors now work mostly with blue collar investors, helping them monitor lifes changes and build cohesive financial plans for retirement.

Seeking more independence, the advisors chose to partner with LPL Financial and Gladstone Wealth Partners. We want to own our business and have the autotomy to do whats right for our clients, Beaux said. By joining LPL and Gladstone, we can provide comprehensive financial planning services to any client we want to serve, not just those with large accounts.

Paulette added, LPL and Gladstone support our choices and do not interfere with how we can most effectively serve our clients and run our business. We also know that LPL is heavily invested in providing advisors with modern capabilities. We love the simplified paperwork process that allows us to handle more things digitally.

Additionally, the move was part of the teams business continuity plan to ensure clients are covered well into the future. We love that Gladstone provides an extra layer of support in how we take care of our clients, Paulette said. At the end of the day, thats why we got into the businessto do whats in their best interest and help our clients succeed.

Richard Frick, managing partner and CEO at Gladstone Wealth Partners, said, Gladstone is excited to work alongside LPL to help Homestead Wealth Management secure their independence. Paulette and Beaux value their clients and this move lets them choose who they service and customize their client relationships without being dictated to by a large wirehouse. We value our advisors and strive every day to deliver personalized services to help them succeed. This new partnership with Paulette and Beaux continue to expand Gladstones national presence with our first standalone office in the Phoenix market.

Rich Steinmeier, LPL Financial managing director and divisional president, Business Development, said, We welcome Paulette and Beaux to the LPL family and congratulate them on the launch of their new independent business. We appreciate that they value the choice and control to be able to serve the needs of their clients. With Gladstone and LPL, they become part of a bigger community of advisors and business owners that share their independent spirit. We congratulate Gladstone on its continued growth, and we look forward to supporting Homestead Wealth Managements success in the years to come.

Read about other firms that recently joined LPL in the LPL Financial News and Media section of LPL.com.

Advisors, find anLPL business development representativenear you.

About LPL FinancialLPL Financial (https://www.lpl.com) is a leader in the retail financial advice market and the nations largest independent broker-dealer**. We serve independent financial advisors, professionals, and financial institutions, providing them with the technology, research, clearing and compliance services, and practice management programs they need to create and grow thriving practices. LPL enables them to provide objective guidance to millions of American families seeking wealth management, retirement planning, financial planning and asset management solutions.

*Based on prior business and represents assets that would have been custodied at LPL Financial, rather than third-party custodians. Reported assets and client numbers have not been independently and fully verified by LPL Financial.

**Based on total revenues, Financial Planning magazine June 1996-2020

Securities and Advisory services offered through LPL Financial, a registered investment advisor. Member FINRA/SIPC.

Throughout this communication, the terms financial advisors and advisors include registered representatives and/or investment adviser representatives affiliated with LPL Financial LLC, an SEC registered broker-dealer and investment adviser.

Homestead Wealth Management, Gladstone Wealth Partners and LPL Financial are separate entities.

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Media Contact:Lauren Hoyt-Williams(980) 321-1232Lauren.Hoyt-Williams@lpl.com

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LPL Financial, Gladstone Wealth Partners Welcome Mother and Son Team - GlobeNewswire

The secret of Chartreuse has long been the despair of distillers, just as the natural blue of forget-me-nots has been the despair of painters, reads an 1886 document referred to in a recent history of the company and order. Father Holleran spent five years overseeing the distillation process, ordering ingredients and planning its production schedules. When he departed the site in 1990, he became the only living outsider to know the liqueurs ancient formula.

Its safe with me, he said. Oddly enough, they didnt make me sign anything when I left.

This trade secret is both a marketing coup and a potential catastrophe. I really have no idea what it is I sell, a Chartreuse Diffusion president told The New Yorker in 1984. I am very scared always. Only three of the brothers know how to make it nobody else knows the recipe. And each morning they drive together to the distillery. And they drive a very old car. And they drive it very badly.

Beyond the two monks who now protect it, all the others Carthusian or not involved in the production of Chartreuse know only fragments of the recipe.

Inside the Grande Chartreuse, skilled monks receive, measure and sort 130 unlabeled plants and herbs into giant unmarked (or, in 2020, QR-coded) sacks. Then, at the distillery, five non-Carthusian employees work alongside two white-robed monks to macerate, distill, blend and age the liqueur. A computerized system also allows them to virtually monitor the distilling from the monastery.

Along its five-week distilling process, and throughout the subsequent years of aging, those two monks are also the ones who taste the product and decide when it is ready to bottle and sell. They are the quality control, said Emmanuel Delafon, the current C.E.O. of Chartreuse Diffusion.

The order owns the diffusion company almost exclusively, and works with the businesss secular employees, who carry out the tasks too foreign to the orders hermetic vocation.

Its their product, and were at their service, Mr. Delafon said. They need it to maintain their financial independence. They trust us to make the link between monastic life and everything else.

Originally posted here:

An Elixir From the French Alps, Frozen in Time - The New York Times

Titus O'Neil, Hyundai of New Port Richey and Metropolitan Ministries made the gift possible

by: Jennifer Peate

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Its agift that will keep on giving.A New Port Richey family receivedalife-changing surpriseonThursday morning.

Gabriel McClain,Larissa Lonesand their three children are one of five families in the Tampa Bay areachosento receive a vehicle right off the lot of a local dealership.

New opportunities are opening for our family, said Lones, through tears of joy.

The car not only gives them independence butitalsoopensnew doorsfor better jobs and a more stable lifestyle.

Both parents have full-time jobs, but like many families this year, they are struggling financially. They couldnt afford a car and dependon others to get to work,gettheir kids to school andrun necessaryerrands.

Not having that stress of depending on Ubers or relying on somebody else,said McClain.

That stress is coming to a screeching halt thanks to local groupsspreading joy this holiday season.Hyundai of New Port Richey, The Bullard Family Foundation, created by WWE superstar Titus ONeil, and Metropolitan Ministries handed over aHyundai Santa Fe to the family of fiveon Thursday morning.

Very special to me because my mother didnt have adequate transportation at all times when we were kids, said ONeil.

Through his foundation, he hopes to steer familieslike the McClains and Lonesstoward financial independence. Transportation, hesays, isone of the key factors. His partners couldnt agree more.

The lack of transportation here in our area with no mass transit, if you dont have a vehicle its tough to get around, its to get a job, its tough to keep that job, saidScott Fink,Hyundai of New Port RicheyCEO.

Adifficulty that Lones and McClain know all too well and are happy to leave in the past.

Were beyond lucky, blessed is the word,said Lones.

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Joy of Giving: Titus ONeil gifts car to Tampa Bay family, helps them gain independence - WFLA