Lifetime Lessons

Stewart Flaherty

Description

In this comprehensive but easily understood book, Stewart Flaherty explains that regardless of how carefully you plan your future, it's a certainty that it won't unfold exactly as you expected. Which is why he advocates planning not only for what you hope to attain but also for what you don't anticipate. His firm's trademark Lifestyle Financial Management process helps clients identify and commit to the fundamental principles that enable sound financial decisions.

Sujets

• Personal finance

Informations

• Publié par: First Edition Design Publishing
• Date de parution: 01 novembre 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781506900599
• Langue: English

Extrait

Lifetime Lessons
A Guide to Lifestyle
Financial Planning

Stewart Flaherty
Lifetime Lessons: A Guide to Lifestyle Financial Panning
Copyright ©2015 Stewart Flaherty

ISBN 978-1506-900-57-5 HC PRINT
ISBN 978-1506-900-58-2 PBK PRINT
ISBN 978-1506-900-59-9 EBOOK

LCCN 2015TBD

November 2015

Published and Distributed by
First Edition Design Publishing, Inc.
P.O. Box 20217, Sarasota, FL 34276-3217
www.firsteditiondesignpublishing.com



ALL R I G H T S R E S E R V E D. No p a r t o f t h i s b oo k pub li ca t i o n m a y b e r e p r o du ce d, s t o r e d i n a r e t r i e v a l s y s t e m , o r t r a n s mit t e d i n a ny f o r m o r by a ny m e a ns ─ e l e c t r o n i c , m e c h a n i c a l , p h o t o - c o p y , r ec o r d i n g, or a ny o t h e r ─ e x ce pt b r i e f qu ot a t i o n i n r e v i e w s , w i t h o ut t h e p r i o r p e r mi ss i on o f t h e a u t h o r or publisher .

Although the author and publisher have made every effort to ensure that the information in this book was correct at press time, the author and publisher do not assume and hereby disclaim any liability to any party for any loss, damage, or disruption caused by errors or omissions, whether such errors or omissions result from negligence, accident, or any other cause.
To Marcia Flaherty, my wife,
who has endured all the ups
and downs of my clients
throughout the years.

And to my grandchildren:
Cale, Bryndon,
Kayla, Connor
and Aidan, our future .
I am thankful for all the help I received in writing Lifetime Lessons . Without a team, the project would never have been completed.
First of all, to my son Michael Flaherty, who was ruthless in his editing comments. His brainstorming sessions really helped keep the book on point.
Lia Casino was a meticulous proofreader and has probably memorized the book by now.
Michael Dubes was invaluable for his brainstorming and helping reduce the text to a manageable, informative book.
I want to acknowledge my partner, Tami Colvin, for her patience and support that allowed me to be disruptive while in the process of preparing the book. Our office never missed a beat in dealing with our clients.
My clients also need to be acknowledged. Without them I would not have had all the wonderful wealth of true-life experiences that will help guide others in their Lifestyle Financial Planning.
Table of Contents

Foreword . i
Prologue . iv
Introduction . vi

CHAPTER ONE : Process over Products 1
CHAPTER TWO: Lifestyle Planning . 5
CHAPTER THREE: Unintended Consequences 8
CHAPTER FOUR: One Family’s Nightmare . 12
CHAPTER FIVE: Choosing The Right Advisor 14
CHAPTER SIX: Partnering with Your Advisor 20
CHAPTER SEVEN: Staying the Course . 28
CHAPTER EIGHT: Back to the Basics 34
CHAPTER NINE: Bobsleds and Business 39

Postscript 45
Appendix . 46
Biography . 47
The Flaherty Consulting Group
577 Office Parkway, Suite A
Westerville OH 43082
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
www.flahertycg.com

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network®, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Advisor.
Fixed insurance products and services offered through CES Insurance Agency.
Foreword


When I first met Stew Flaherty in the 1980s, he was already a successful financial advisor and a recognized community leader in Westerville, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus. Hailing from upstate New York, Stew was an obvious combination of East Coast attitude and Midwest sensibility. I liked him immediately.
Stew has always impressed me with his low-key approach. For such an intelligent person, he always makes other people feel special. He has a talent for being a good listener, responding to what he hears and then talking things through. That unique ability to understand people emerges throughout his book. Common sense is an important aspect of what he talks about, but equally important, he helps readers get their head wrapped around the critical decisions that must be made in order to achieve an independent retirement.
For most people, the American dream involves doing the right things, working hard, raising a family, and reaching a financial position where they can enjoy a fulfilling retirement. But that dream is elusive for many people. They don’t understand what they have to do because they don’t have a workable plan in place. Those that do are often unable to see the vision all the way to realization. The fortunate ones are those who have someone like Stew to show them what the road map looks like and give them guidance for the long journey so they eventually attain their lifelong goals.
Stew doesn’t take shortcuts or pay lip service. He is genuine and caring. He helps people take a very sober view of what they need to do, how they have to do it and the adjustments that must be made along the way. As he explains in the first couple of chapters in his book, even the most thoughtfully laid out plans rarely progress towards their goals without encountering some pitfalls. As an investor, not only must you have a plan in place and the discipline to stay with it, you must also be willing to make adjustments over time to make sure the plan stays on track.
A lot of advisors are competent at recommend-ing investments. The exceptional ones help clients commit to a plan, do what is necessary to stick to the plan and make the necessary adjustments to reach their goals. They care enough about their clients to tell them what they need to hear, even when it’s not necessarily what they want to hear. That’s not easy to do, especially during difficult times.
People hope to be financially independent. They want to have a sustainable income stream in retirement. They don’t want to be a burden on their family or have to rely on the government for their retirement income. But few people put a plan in place that can get them there. Saving 5% of one’s earnings is not going to work when inflation averages 3% annually. Even when people commit to what’s required — which I agree with Stew is more like 15% — they don’t stay the plan. They get distracted. They help their kids out too much or discover taking care of their parents costs more than they expected. Things come along that they never anticipated and their plan goes out the window in an instant.
Another challenge is setting reasonable, achievable expectations. Everyone, me included, wants to ride the winning horse. We fall into the trap of thinking whatever is working will continue to work indefinitely. But if investing is anything, it’s cyclical and unpredictable. You can’t fall prey to short-term, emotionally charged decision making. Saving for retirement is a 30-year process. If you remain in good health in retirement, you may be living off those assets for an equal period of time. Accumulating enough money to do that is not going to be easy. It takes a lot of discipline and commitment, even if you’re fortunate to have someone to lead you through the process.
Stew is very much a leader in virtually everything he does. Consider how he became involved in the Olympics. He overheard two sisters talking in the professional sports club where he works out in Columbus. They had an interest in forming a women’s bobsled team but no idea of how to make it happen, and they certainly were not even dreaming that it might somehow lead to an Olympic gold medal. Stew admired the vision of these two hard working women and took up their cause. Talk about a grass roots guy for a grass roots movement. The women didn’t even have a sled!
I was with American Skandia at the time and Stew approached us with the idea of our providing funds for the effort to help get things rolling. We were able to participate through corporate sponsorship and help the women acquire their first sled because my boss at the time knew Stew and shared his optimistic, All American outlook. Stew convinced us to buy into the dream.
Here’s an example of how Stew saw obstacles as opportunities. The one company that manufactured the specialized protective suits for bobsledders was in financial trouble and about to go out of business. Stew was busy trying to raise money to buy used sleds and get the girls to Lake Placid so they could get on a competitive track. Suddenly, the protective anti-abrasion suits, a basic requirement of competitive bobsledding, are about to become unavailable. What does Stew do? He buys the company and moves it into the same building as his financial planning business so the girls will have proper suits. He’s a guy with great management skills but also a huge heart. He gets involved and things happen. His low-key demeanor hides his passion. He never wants people to know how much he cares.
Stew had to navigate all kinds of obstacles en route to that gold medal ceremony. There was a lot of pushback from the Olympic committee and from the men’s Olympic team as to whether women should even be permitted to compete. This odyssey was a multiple year effort, not just training athletes and encouraging them and helping get the funding, but running through the bureaucracy of actually getting it certified to be an Olympic sport. It’s a big amateur sport in Europe but there was no history or anything affiliated with it in the United States. The effort that went into making it happen blows me away. But it did happen and Stew was the catalyst that made it happen. From start to finish, it’s pretty incredible what he was able to accomplish in just over six years. It illustrates the kind of tenacity he possesses once he sets his sights on something. It also shows what a big heart he has.
In reading this book, I think you will discover the importance of having a good relationship with an advisor, and not just relying on impersonal advice to guide you. You need an advisor who, like a trusted family member, will give it to you straight when you need to do things differently or when you