Are College Admissions Stacked Against Us?
Going to college is a rite of passage for many Americans. For many young adults, it’s the first time they live away from their families and take responsibility for their lives. Due to years of above-average price inflation, college has gotten to the point of being unaffordable for many or at least a significant financial commitment. And now we’ve learned [...]
Money and Mindfulness
Mindfulness is all the rage in corporate America these days. It is estimated that almost 30% of Fortune 500 companies have a mindfulness program at work. The practice of mindfulness also has implications for your financial life. […]
What Death Can Teach Us About Living
I’ve recently attended a couple of events and read Being Mortal by Atul Gawande on the topic of death and dying. Morbid, I know. Interestingly the biggest take away from these events was that death can actually teach us a fair amount about living. However, before I share what death can teach you about living, here are some of the [...]
Set Better Goals for YOU
If you are like the 44% of Americans who make New Year’s resolutions in January, you might want to rethink how you develop your goals so that you are more likely to achieve them. I use a structured goal-setting process (licensed from Money Quotient) with my financial planning clients to help them live a more meaningful life. Some of the [...]
What to Do When the Going Gets Rough
October has been a tough month for stocks, with many indices down almost 10% in the past month and some of the high-flying tech stocks down 20%. With the recent activity in the stock market, it seems a prudent time to review some evidence-based tenets of wise investing. […]
Tax Planning Under the New Tax Bill
One aspect of the new tax bill passed in late 2017, is a much higher standard deduction of $12,000 for singles and $24,000 for couples filing jointly. As a result of the higher standard deduction, it may no longer make sense for some people to itemize their deductions. According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, it is estimated that the [...]
Make Sure You Are Financially Prepared for the Next Natural Disaster
The Fall is both peak fire season in the Western US and peak hurricane season in the Southeast. Furthermore, California is way overdue for a major earthquake. For all of these reasons, it seems now is a good time to make sure you are ready for a disaster. While there are many things to prepare for a potential disaster, my [...]
Sustainable Investing: The GPS of Investing
With the rise of Big Data and increases in computing power, analyzing more data has become feasible in a variety of fields. It has impacted investing through the rising popularity of sustainable investing. Almost $9T is invested in sustainable investments in the US as of 12/31/16, up 33% in just two years. […]