Question everything
Be curious until you have the clarity, comfort, & confidence you desire
Good morning!
Hope y’all had a nice Mother’s Day!
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about “Everything in Balance”
This week, I’d like to suggest another concept I think you can apply to many facets of your life, but it works especially well with your personal finances and retirement planning.
Here it is: Question Everything
Before I explain further, here are some questions to consider:
Should I pay off my mortgage?
Should my portfolio change once I’m retired?
What will I do for health insurance if I retire before Medicare at age 65?
What, if anything, can I do to minimize my current and future income taxes?
Should I give money to my kids now or leave it after I’m gone?
Am I doing enough with my finances? Too much?
How can I better align my money with what’s important to me?
How can I simplify my money?
Should I be earning more interest on my savings?
What if “the other candidate” gets elected in November?
If something happens to me, will my family be OK?
Can I afford to be more charitable with my money? With my time?
I’m going through a divorce… what do I do? Who should I talk to?
What if I retire sooner? Later?
What if I save less now so I have more money to travel with my kids and grandkids?
Do I need a financial advisor or can I do this on my own?
What if I start some of my retirement goals - like travel - now, 5 years before my planned retirement?
What fees am I paying and how do they compare to others?
Why is my portfolio setup the way it is?
When should I start my Social Security benefits?
Should I take my pension in monthly payments or a lump sum?
Should we consider adding XXXXXX to my portfolio?
Am I trading my portfolio too much? Not enough?
I’m worried about my financial plan… can we walk through it again?
The questions above are just a tiny sample of the endless things I’ve been asked over my 30+ years as a financial advisor.
And I have helped my clients answer these questions - and more - based on their personal circumstances.
In fact, I’ve also attempted to answer many of these questions in my writing.
Check out my “archive” page (👈 click here) and click the magnifying glass in the upper right corner and search for a topic that’s on your mind.
And if you click through that link above to my past writing, you’ll see I’ve added some categories at the top of the page to help you find things more easily among the 378 (and counting) essays I’ve published.
Categories like:
I believe there’s no such thing as a dumb question.
But I sometimes get the feeling that many of my clients are holding back and not always asking everything that’s on their mind.
You need to feel comfortable asking anything on your mind or in your heart with no fear of judgement.
And whether you reach out to me, are talking with a friend, or are working with another financial advisor, I’m encouraging begging you to literally question everything.
I don’t think over-communication exists. Especially when it comes to your money matters.
And good communication starts with questions.
I ask a lot of questions in my work.
Questions to clarify, challenge, explore, uncover, understand, dig deeper, and more…
But my job, at its core, is answering questions.
I started to write that I answer financial questions, but the line between your money and the rest of your life is often blurry.
Or nonexistent.
So I type and talk - a lot - all in an effort to answer questions and hopefully provide more clarity, comfort, and confidence around your money.
And your life.
I’ve tackled the idea of questions before:
And this might be the question at the root of all other money questions:
Asking lots of questions is also a great way to interview financial advisors and other professionals.
You’ll quickly learn a lot about someone based on their willingness and ability to answer your questions. And whether or not they can surrender to your agenda and let go of their own.
Are they patient and willing to follow your lead and address what’s on your mind, or are they just waiting until it’s their turn to talk again?
Are they asking clarifying questions?
Or are they just trying to move you through some mental checklist so they can get on to the next thing?
You’re not a robot and your financial advisor shouldn’t treat you like one:
Many of my women clients have shared stories about how they’ve felt diminished, unimportant, condescended to, or just plain ignored by financial advisors in the past.
And while I’m not perfect, I do my best to always encourage conversation and make space to cover whatever is on your mind. No matter how big or small.
So don’t be shy.
Speak up.
If you have a question, even if it’s just a very small “itch” in the back of your mind, please ask about it.
The worst that can happen is you might find out the person you’re asking isn’t willing to answer your questions to your level of satisfaction. And better to find that out sooner than later.
More likely, you’ll have a good conversation that will provide more context and perspective for whatever’s on your mind.
And hopefully you’ll get some additional clarity, comfort, and confidence too!
What do you think?
Reply or leave a comment with a money question that’s on your mind right now.
While specific, personal financial questions will likely result in “it depends” I’m willing to take a shot at answering them.
But you gotta ask ‘em first 😉
So don’t hold back…
Links & Things
Check out this October, 2022, article from Cal Newport where he compares and contrasts two well known, successful writers. I’ve read and enjoyed books from each of them, and found this article a fascinating dive into their very different approaches to writing. And to life…
Speaking of writers, you might want to check out Sean Dietrich…
From his bio on Substack:
Sean Dietrich is a columnist, novelist, and podcast host, known for his commentary on life in the American South. His work has appeared in Newsweek, Southern Living, Reader's Digest, Garden and Gun, he has authored fourteen books.
I’m following and enjoying his daily columns. Here are a couple I really loved:
Sean doesn’t write about money or financial planning or retirement. At least not directly.
His writing is about little slices of life happening every day, all around us.
Something I think (or hope) we can all relate to.
Whatcha think?
I love hearing from you, and I’m always looking for input. What do you think about the Wealthcare for Women Weekly? Anything you’d suggest?
As always, thanks for reading.
Until next Wednesday,
Russ