Strength in Numbers

Louis Orazio II CFP ® CFA

Description

Strength in Numbers is financial fiction and highlights the need to understand and address specific female financial challenges. Structured like the show This Is Us, the story follows several characters as they manage their money and their relationships through life's inevitable obstacles.

A work of financial fiction, Strength in Numbers centers around the lives of three women as they overcome professional and personal challenges. While there is financial literacy sprinkled throughout the book, the story mainly addresses the emotional impact money has on a family and how to overcome fear and self-doubt. 

The story begins with Tony Positano, a financial planner, addressing the call of a concerned lottery winner. She has just three weeks to claim over three hundred million dollars and doesn’t want her husband involved. A year earlier, Kate Becker is struggling to accept that her twenty-seven-year marriage is most likely over. Determined to rebuild her life one piece at a time, Kate begins to take small steps forward on her own. Meanwhile, Rachel Becker has been on maternity leave for the past four weeks. When her husband agrees to stay home with the baby, she returns to her job as an actuary where new challenges await. But as she, Kate, and other women learn to manage their money and relationships through inevitable obstacles, none realize that life will eventually reward them in ways never imagined.

Sujets

• Vie de famille
• Relations familiales
• Personal Finance
• Financial literacy
• Economics
• Business
• Famille

Informations

• Publié par: Archway Publishing
• Date de parution: 18 janvier 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781665730624
• Langue: English

Extrait

Strength in Numbers
 

 
A story about overcoming societal norms and achieving financial unity
 
 
Louis Orazio II, CFP ® , CFA
 
 

 
 
Copyright © 2023 Louis Orazio II, CFP®, CFA.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
 
 
 
Archway Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.archwaypublishing.com
844-669-3957
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
ISBN: 978-1-6657-3060-0 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-3061-7 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-3062-4 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2022917410
 
 
 
Archway Publishing rev. date: 1/13/2023
Contents
Dedication
Acknowledgements
Preface
The Sullivan Family Tree
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
About the Author
Dedication
To the incredible women in my life who continue to inspire me:
Arielle, Eliana, Jane, PattiAnn, and Christina.
Thank you for making me feel like I’ve always been enough.
Acknowledgements
This book was a labor of love and I’m proud it’s done. The journey from concept to print was not one I took alone. Along the way I was blessed with the support of friends and family. Among the positive comments and wishes for success, I must acknowledge those who profoundly influenced this book.
In 1991, my grandmother, Joan Orazio, aunt, Louise Mason, and father, Paul Orazio, began a company called Orazio Financial Services. Over the last 30 years, the client base expanded entirely out of referrals, including the children and grandchildren of our earliest clients. It’s not happenstance that I grew up around financial planners only to become one myself. Without the risk they took years ago, it’s highly unlikely I’d be in this field today.
Writing can be a solitary activity, but from time to time you need outside perspectives. My first readers were gracious with their time and thorough in their assessment of the story. The book went through several iterations, each one influenced by their feedback. Thank you PattiAnn, Paul, Christa, Arielle, Caragh, and Lori.
This work would not have come to fruition without the editing, graphic design, formatting, and marketing efforts of Archway Publishing. Thank you to the entire team for bringing my work to the page.
Lastly, it’s essential I separately acknowledge my wife, Arielle. Her support and candor throughout the writing of this book were crucial in helping me see it through to the end. Early on, I remarked that writing a book might be foolish since it wasn’t my forte. She immediately replied it wasn’t essential for the book to be amazing. The fact I wrote one was, by itself, amazing. Every author needs a muse, and she is definitely mine. Babe, I finally finished it!
Preface
Thank you for reading my book! It takes a lot to write a book—late nights, early mornings, countless cups of coffee. It’s a mountain to climb, for sure. The struggle is worthwhile, though, if one person’s life is bettered.
I am a financial planner, and I work directly with families to grow and protect their wealth. It’s an honor to work closely with so many people, educating and guiding them through life’s biggest financial decisions.
In my role I manage wealth, broker insurance policies, run projections for retirement and college planning, and counsel clients on estate plans. Beyond the data of finance, my attention recently has been drawn to a new area of finance: how the finances of women and men differ.
Today, we see women out graduating their male counterparts in undergraduate and graduate programs. We see more families with a breadwinning wife or mother. We see women outliving their male spouses and inheriting the family estate. We see women earning and controlling more money than ever before in history. In some cases, these trends are met with collaboration. In others, old social norms have become obstacles to progress.
The choice between career advancement or starting a family is especially unique to women since they, historically, are often faced with that choice. Outliving one’s spouse and managing an estate is more common among women given that they, on average, outlive men. Divorce affects women differently than men, especially if the woman is not the breadwinner. These issues arose during client meetings and have dramatically impacted my approach to financial planning and wealth management. Managing a portfolio of stocks is far easier than managing a divorce or the loss of one’s spouse. In my experience, a supportive husband or community can be the difference between feeling as though you’re barely getting by and feeling secure. Men and women partnering at work and in the home fosters not only security and dignity but economic prosperity as well. My firsthand accounts of these instances propelled me to write a book highlighting the need for men and women to become financial partners.
I am who I am today in large part because of the women in my life. My grandmother and aunt started our firm along with my father in 1991, when women in finance were a minority. My mother received her Ph. D in 1999 while keeping a job and raising two children. My wife continues to climb the corporate ladder and strive for academic and professional success. In each of these cases, their success was bolstered by supportive husbands who realized their spouse’s success was their success as well. Viewing women as financial partners should be important to every man interested in amplifying his family’s wealth.
Women, in my opinion, are the largest economic secret weapon our society has at its disposal. Not only have women proven they can lead companies, start-ups, and boardrooms, but they have helped propel our economy to higher levels of wealth and innovation. As women continue to increase their personal wealth and reshape our economic landscape, the social challenges they meet must be addressed. Their success is our success, and we must rise to this new occasion together. As a capitalist, this approach is without question the most prosperous. As a fellow human being, addressing the challenges faced by women is simply the most humane thing to do. Men and women working in concert, both at work and in the home, will always yield the highest results.
Social issues such as these are often best understood through drama. Therefore, what follows is a fictional story addressing social norms and the need for financial unity. I humbly thank you for reading this story. If you feel compelled to pass it along, it’s greatly appreciated.
Be well and best of luck in your financial endeavors.
—Louis Orazio, II
The Sullivan Family Tree

Orazio Financial Services
4 Executive Blvd Suite 203
Suffern, New York 10901
845-368-4402
Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network®, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser. Fixed insurance products and services are separate from and not offered through Commonwe alth.
The stories included involve fictional characters and do not constitute a recommendation as to the suitability of any investment for any person or persons having circumstances similar to those portrayed, and a financial advisor should be consulted regarding your specific situation. Actual performance and results will vary.
All possible libel examples are completely fictitious and are used for narrative purposes. The individuals and their scenarios throughout this book are made up and do not correlate to any particular pe ople.
The fees, expenses, and features of 529 plans can vary from state to state. These 529 plans involve investment risk, including the possible loss of funds. There is no guarantee that a college -f unding goal will be met. In order to be federally tax -f ree , earnings must be used to pay for qualified higher -e ducation expenses. The earnings portion of a nonqualified withdrawal will be subject to ordinary income tax at the recipient’s marginal rate and subject to a 10 percent penalty. By investing in a plan outside your state of residence, you may lose any state tax benefits. 529 plans are subject to enrollment, maintenance, and administration/management fees and expe nses.

Chapter 1
1 June 2023 Tony Positano’s off