NavStar Currents

What, me worry?

I grew up in the sixties, and one of my favorite ways to waste time was by reading Mad magazine. You might remember it. Primarily aimed at the non-educated and low-income reader, certainly that description fit me at the time, it was mainly a parody of other forms of entertainment. Mad magazine was usually graced on the cover by a rather goofy looking fellow who went by the name of Alfred E. Neuman. Neuman's favorite words to live by were, "what, me worry?" 

Now there's a lot to be said for keeping your life stress-free and minimizing what you worry about. But when it comes to turning over hundreds of thousands of dollars of your hard-earned retirement assets to a financial advisor, shouldn't you care to know a little about him? I think so.

Recently the Department of Labor began implementing a new rule that requires any financial advisor who works with retirement funds to act in the best interests of the client. The new rule is now on hold, and has yet to be implemented, but even the threat of it, is turning the financial industry on it's ear.

The Rugged Individualist

Americans are known for being able to stand on their own two feet. When I was a boy, my hero was John Wayne. He was the epitomy of the rugged individualist. He always knew the right thing to do, and had the courage to do it. America loved "the Duke" and by and large we wanted to be self-sufficient as well. 

There's nothing wrong with that idea, as long as it's not carried to the nonsensical level. For example, just because Albert Einstein knew how the basic parts of the universe behaved, he probably would still take his car (if he had one?)  to a qualified mechanic. Al knew that there were some things that were outside of his area of expertise. Not only was he great on that E = MC squared thing but he was smart enough to know that he didn't know everything.

When it comes to your financial picture, do you think that you have all of the expertise you need? Do you understand your risk tolerance, and can you make your portfolio meet that tolerance? Many would say "yes." Here's a more difficult question: Are you taking the minimum amount of risk that you need to take to reach your goals? Do you know how to calculate that? Are you familiar with all of the financial solutions that are available to you, and how they work? Do you understand the tax code, and the implications on your nest-egg, as well as your legacy?

In other words, do you know what you don't know?

The Rugged Individualist

Americans are known for being able to stand on their own two feet. When I was a boy, my hero was John Wayne. He was the epitomy of the rugged individualist. He always knew the right thing to do, and had the courage to do it. America loved "the Duke" and by and large we wanted to be self-sufficient as well. 

There's nothing wrong with that idea, as long as it's not carried to the nonsensical level. For example, just because Albert Einstein knew how the basic parts of the universe behaved, he probably would still take his car (if he had one?)  to a qualified mechanic. Al knew that there were some things that were outside of his area of expertise. Not only was he great on that E = MC squared thing but he was smart enough to know that he didn't know everything.

When it comes to your financial picture, do you think that you have all of the expertise you need? Do you understand your risk tolerance, and can you make your portfolio meet that tolerance? Many would say "yes." Here's a more difficult question: Are you taking the minimum amount of risk that you need to take to reach your goals? Do you know how to calculate that? Are you familiar with all of the financial solutions that are available to you, and how they work? Do you understand the tax code, and the implications on your nest-egg, as well as your legacy?

In other words, do you know what you don't know?

What, me worry?

I grew up in the sixties, and one of my favorite ways to waste time was by reading Mad magazine. You might remember it. Primarily aimed at the non-educated and low-income reader, certainly that description fit me at the time, it was mainly a parody of other forms of entertainment. Mad magazine was usually graced on the cover by a rather goofy looking fellow who went by the name of Alfred E. Neuman. Neuman's favorite words to live by were, "what, me worry?" 

Now there's a lot to be said for keeping your life stress-free and minimizing what you worry about. But when it comes to turning over hundreds of thousands of dollars of your hard-earned retirement assets to a financial advisor, shouldn't you care to know a little about him? I think so.

Recently the Department of Labor began implementing a new rule that requires any financial advisor who works with retirement funds to act in the best interests of the client. The new rule is now on hold, and has yet to be implemented, but even the threat of it, is turning the financial industry on it's ear.

The Rugged Individualist

Americans are known for being able to stand on their own two feet. When I was a boy, my hero was John Wayne. He was the epitomy of the rugged individualist. He always knew the right thing to do, and had the courage to do it. America loved "the Duke" and by and large we wanted to be self-sufficient as well. 

There's nothing wrong with that idea, as long as it's not carried to the nonsensical level. For example, just because Albert Einstein knew how the basic parts of the universe behaved, he probably would still take his car (if he had one?)  to a qualified mechanic. Al knew that there were some things that were outside of his area of expertise. Not only was he great on that E = MC squared thing but he was smart enough to know that he didn't know everything.

When it comes to your financial picture, do you think that you have all of the expertise you need? Do you understand your risk tolerance, and can you make your portfolio meet that tolerance? Many would say "yes." Here's a more difficult question: Are you taking the minimum amount of risk that you need to take to reach your goals? Do you know how to calculate that? Are you familiar with all of the financial solutions that are available to you, and how they work? Do you understand the tax code, and the implications on your nest-egg, as well as your legacy?

In other words, do you know what you don't know?

What, me worry?

I grew up in the sixties, and one of my favorite ways to waste time was by reading Mad magazine. You might remember it. Primarily aimed at the non-educated and low-income reader, certainly that description fit me at the time, it was mainly a parody of other forms of entertainment. Mad magazine was usually graced on the cover by a rather goofy looking fellow who went by the name of Alfred E. Neuman. Neuman's favorite words to live by were, "what, me worry?" 

Now there's a lot to be said for keeping your life stress-free and minimizing what you worry about. But when it comes to turning over hundreds of thousands of dollars of your hard-earned retirement assets to a financial advisor, shouldn't you care to know a little about him? I think so.

Recently the Department of Labor began implementing a new rule that requires any financial advisor who works with retirement funds to act in the best interests of the client. The new rule goes into force in April of next year, and it's turning the financial industry on it's ear.

The Rugged Individualist

Americans are known for being able to stand on their own two feet. When I was a boy, my hero was John Wayne. He was the epitomy of the rugged individualist. He always knew the right thing to do, and had the courage to do it. America loved "the Duke" and by and large we wanted to be self-sufficient as well. 

There's nothing wrong with that idea, as long as it's not carried to the nonsensical level. For example, just because Albert Einstein knew how the basic parts of the universe behaved, he probably would still take his car (if he had one?)  to a qualified mechanic. Al knew that there were some things that were outside of his area of expertise. Not only was he great on that E = MC squared thing but he was smart enough to know that he didn't know everything.

When it comes to your financial picture, do you think that you have all of the expertise you need? Do you understand your risk tolerance, and can you make your portfolio meet that tolerance? Many would say "yes." Here's a more difficult question: Are you taking the minimum amount of risk that you need to take to reach your goals? Do you know how to calculate that? Are you familiar with all of the financial solutions that are available to you, and how they work? Do you understand the tax code, and the implications on your nest-egg, as well as your legacy?

In other words, do you know what you don't know?

What, me worry?

I grew up in the sixties, and one of my favorite ways to waste time was by reading Mad magazine. You might remember it. Primarily aimed at the non-educated and low-income reader, certainly that description fit me at the time, it was mainly a parody of other forms of entertainment. Mad magazine was usually graced on the cover by a rather goofy looking fellow who went by the name of Alfred E. Neuman. Neuman's favorite words to live by were, "what, me worry?" 

Now there's a lot to be said for keeping your life stress-free and minimizing what you worry about. But when it comes to turning over hundreds of thousands of dollars of your hard-earned retirement assets to a financial advisor, shouldn't you care to know a little about him? I think so.

Recently the Department of Labor began implementing a new rule that requires any financial advisor who works with retirement funds to act in the best interests of the client. The new rule goes into force in April of next year, and it's turning the financial industry on it's ear.

The Rugged Individualist

Americans are known for being able to stand on their own two feet. When I was a boy, my hero was John Wayne. He was the epitomy of the rugged individualist. He always knew the right thing to do, and had the courage to do it. America loved "the Duke" and by and large we wanted to be self-sufficient as well. 

There's nothing wrong with that idea, as long as it's not carried to the nonsensical level. For example, just because Albert Einstein knew how the basic parts of the universe behaved, he probably would still take his car (if he had one?)  to a qualified mechanic. Al knew that there were some things that were outside of his area of expertise. Not only was he great on that E = MC squared thing but he was smart enough to know that he didn't know everything.

When it comes to your financial picture, do you think that you have all of the expertise you need? Do you understand your risk tolerance, and can you make your portfolio meet that tolerance? Many would say "yes." Here's a more difficult question: Are you taking the minimum amount of risk that you need to take to reach your goals? Do you know how to calculate that? Are you familiar with all of the financial solutions that are available to you, and how they work? Do you understand the tax code, and the implications on your nest-egg, as well as your legacy?

In other words, do you know what you don't know?