Picture this: It’s the summer of 2009. Windows down, sunglasses on, and a custom medley of Weezer, Blink 182, and Fallout Boy echo from the dashboard panel. Life is good—courtesy of your new custom playlist on your recently burned compact disc. That CD is great—but today we’re going to be focused on another type of CD, the Certificate of Deposit.

While this expense may have been isolated, life is filled with plenty of “one off” expenses. One month we are doing maintenance on the house, the next there's a vehicle issue, then my son needs new shoes (again), and then there's a health care expense....the list goes on. There is no category for all of these things on a line item budget and it begins to feel like every month has an unexpected expense.

It happens so often you might wonder why I am surprised by it. Surely anger and annoyance root from some form of unmet expectations.

If you've ever had to select investments within a 401(k) plan you've probably run across something like the picture above, but with 20+ more rows of options. It can be hard enough to figure out where to invest and somehow more information doesn't make it easier to decide.

Today we're going to learn about "Net Expense Ratio." You can see this in the second to last column of the picture above. An expense ratio is the annual rate that the specific investment charges the investor (you).

You’ll often hear me say “focus on what you can control” when it comes to your personal finances. Let me show you why.

When you’re in your 20s, 30s, & 40s, the amount of money you save and invest will have a larger impact on your investment outcome than your investment returns. Take a look:

Have you ever heard the phrase “align your finances with your values!” and wondered what that even meant? It sounds so vague that while it is intended to be appealing, it just lacks any real gusto. Kind of like saying “we have great service!”……..yeah, you better!

I believe there is incredible value in aligning your finances with your values, but I fear it might not translate to something that is easily understood.

Trying just to AFFORD your kids is one thing, now you have to think about how you can help them afford college as well! What a gift! Most parents want to do everything they can to set their kids up for success (myself included). Here are some things to keep in mind.

Have you considered using an inheritance to buy a house? I had the chance to help a client think through this toward the end of last year. They were building new and needed to have their down payment ready at the beginning of this year for an estimated move-in of Fall 2024.

"It's easier to sell Advil than vitamins."

This is a common line in sales. The idea is that people are more interested in making pain go away than contributing to a healthy lifestyle.

Risk applies to nearly every endeavor we make when it comes to making money.

Lower-risk endeavors produce less value when they succeed, but they succeed more often. Higher-risk endeavors produce more value but succeed less often.

I recently came across a measure of happiness shared by individuals over time, shown in the graph above. It appears that as we grow up, we become steadily more unhappy, bottom out at around our 50s, and then proceed to increase in happiness as we age.

Toward the end of last summer, as interest rates continued their climb, I had a friend who reached out to ask my perspective on the timing of purchasing his first home.

“Am I dumb for buying a house right now? Is there a housing market collapse coming as soon as I buy? Should I wait for interest rates to drop again before I make a decision like this?”

Many regard the ‘DINK’ lifestyle (double income, no kids) as the peak income opportunity. By sharing most expenses, you have a lot of extra room for spending, saving, and investing before the costly items known as ‘kids’ enter the picture. However, early on in my marriage, as my wife and I were anticipating this lifestyle, I learned the first of many valuable financial lessons.

My wife Calli and I recently welcomed our first child, Moses, to our family on March 8th, 2023. It's been a whirlwind adjusting to a new life in our home, but while our sleep has been reduced, our joy has increased.