Wendy and I visit an arts festival in Blue Ridge, Georgia each Memorial Day weekend. We enjoy visiting the festival’s vendors and then walking through the different shops of the downtown. Downtown Blue Ridge is charming.
One of the stands featured a caricature artist. We passed by once, and then again. We agreed it would be cool to have a caricature, but we did not want the artist to highlight our worst features. We must have passed by the stand about 4-5 times before we decided that it made more sense to take the plunge than live a lifetime of torment and regret over not having our caricature done.
Key Blind Spots Addressed
We asked for a color picture of our faces and then sat down with the artist, engaging in light-hearted conversation with him and his wife while he drew our portrait. Passersby would look at his drawing, look at us, and then chuckle.
We really liked the artist and his wife, but I was about ready after 10 minutes or so to see what was going on behind that canvas. Soon thereafter, he was done. We received our picture inside a cardboard tube. After we left their stand, Wendy pulled the picture out for us both to take a look. She then quickly put it back into the tube. Wendy said the picture was okay, but it looked nothing like us. I thought it looked pretty good and was flattered that the artist made me look slim.
Look at our portrait and let me know what you think.
I was on fire - almost
5. Estate Planning for Their Children: We worked on estate planning strategies to ensure their children would benefit equally in the event of an unexpected passing, while also preventing any undue tax or financial burden to any one of them.
6. Ensuring Healthcare Access for Adult Children: Since their children are over 18, we helped them establish the necessary legal documents to ensure they could continue assisting with healthcare decisions if needed.
7. Evaluating Long-Term Care Insurance: We are currently assessing long-term care insurance options to determine whether coverage could help protect their assets and provide financial security for each other and their children in case of a prolonged need for care.
8. Projecting Retirement Readiness: We analyzed their current budget and anticipated future expenses to help determine when they could comfortably retire.
Final Thoughts
Caricatures are meant to portray a certain version of you from the artist’s perspective, which can understandably generate a wide variety of reactions. In the end, the artist only had 10 minutes to formulate his opinion.
The financial planning process will demand more than a 10-minute investment. It is impossible to have a complete understanding of a client’s goals and objectives in such a short period of time let alone understand the complex interplay of their taxes, their investments, and their estate. Every important financial decision will often need to consider these variables and others.
When engaging in the financial planning process, be prepared to dedicate time as there are many important considerations. Financial planning is not a 10-minute process. Our financial planning process is comprehensive and reiterative.
Our motto is “we can help you with that.” We will collaborate with you on any financial decision you make, engaging other subject matter experts when necessary. We will not stop until we get things right. We encourage you to reach out to us for assistance in making important financial decisions and we always appreciate you recommending us to others.
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And Now …
Today, 10 years later, our practice has grown considerably. We have phenomenal clients, a great team, and our practice is still part of the Integrated Financial Group. During this time, we have helped individuals and families with their estate planning, investment planning, executive compensation planning, retiree tax planning, and insurance planning. These are just a few of the areas we focus on for our clients.
I eventually got my drivers’ license (at the ripe age of 27), married my lovely wife, Wendy, and purchased a home in Woodstock GA complete with a fire extinguisher on each floor and a built-in sprinkler system.
Working with my amazing team to best service you has been the ultimate privilege. Our team will continue to expand our range of offerings with the goal of responding to all your financial planning needs. We will also make sure to do so without ever letting up on our service and responsiveness to you.
Thank you so much for being part of this journey.
Most investments are meant to be long term. Always evaluate whether the time horizon required for an investment to succeed matches your timeline for liquidity.
Imagine in mine and Wendy’s case if the doors and the windows locked just as we were trying to leave or that someone came down the stairs just as we were wandering around the main level.
Our motto is “we can help you with that.” We will collaborate with you on any financial decision you make, engaging other subject matter experts when necessary. We will not stop until we get things right. We encourage you to reach out to us for assistance in making important financial decisions and we always appreciate you recommending us to others.
by Hetmayar
Authored by Gary Alpert
Tracking ID: 750490-1
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