2020 Financial Vision

Thomas Herlong

February 5, 2020

Where do you want to be at the end of 2020, or three years from now, or five years from now?

One of the basic needs that we desire for making good decisions is clarity. Until my mid-forties, I had 20/20 vision. Today, clarity comes with the help of my glasses. Sometimes we need a professional to help with clarity in other matters of life.

When it comes to making decisions about investing for the future, clarity is a challenge. Just read my article from December. Multiple money managers were recommending that we prepare for single digit returns in 2020 and that volatility could be significant.

That could still be the truth, but as I write this article, the outlook by most analysts is extremely optimistic. Creating wealth is both an art and a science. There are certain financial products that provide clarity for future objectives, and while doing so, limit flexibility.

The path of life is full of curves, hills, and stop signs. A good plan has flexibility while also providing certainty. While we can accurately use math to predict certain results, we cannot predict the behavior that impacts whether the math will be correct.

So what should I do to make you happy if I am an advisor for you? It begins with many questions to help me know who you really are and what is important to you. The challenge is to create a plan that develops clarity in addressing the gap between where you are and where you want to be.

At the same time, the best plan in the world is of no value if action is not implemented and committed to. A plan to eat well and exercise is of no value if you don’t eat well and exercise. I think we can agree on that.

Our biggest challenge is usually something we call “feelings”. “I know I should, but I don’t feel like _________ .” Emotions drive our decisions, and controlling our emotions helps us control the outcome of our lives.

What does your “here” look like?

What is your “there”?

Where do you want to be at the end of 2020, or three years from now, or five years from now? Discover your challenges by being honest with yourself. Make the decision to discover the opportunities with the proper guidance to accomplish your “there.”

To become the hero of your life story, and win the battles that you face, begin with knowledge of the villains. In Star Wars, Skywalker was the hero, but he used and followed the training of Yoda. Yoda was his mentor and guide. (That’s my job, but I hope that I won’t look like Yoda.)

Allow me to name a few villains — taxes, market volatility, health and medical issues, family complexities, business succession, being profitable, maintaining key employees, cash flow, caring for spouse and family, longevity, uncertainty, government regulations, just to name a few.

When life gives you lemons, make some tea.

May 2020 be a year that clarity is developed and implemented in your world.

Thomas Herlong

Thomas H Herlong, CLU, ChFC, CLTC: General Partner, Herlong & Doran Financial Group

Thomas Herlong

Thomas H Herlong, CLU, ChFC, CLTC: General Partner, Herlong & Doran Financial Group

In the know

‘Tis the Season to Prepare for Your New Year’s Job Hunt

The holidays are a season of hope, but they should also be a season of preparation if you are thinking of changing jobs in the new year. According to Monster.com, January is the busiest month for job searches, although we typically see hirings begin to ramp up in February. We have found that when you apply for a job — as in, how soon you apply after the job is posted — can decide whether you get selected for an interview. That means you cannot wait until a job is posted to refine your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile. We call these your personal brand, and we recommend you

How much do you know about employee benefits?

It is the time of year when employees make their benefit selections. Many of them do not know what they are selecting, but next year thousands of dollars will be deducted from their paychecks to pay for benefits they know very little about. Many employees select the lowest premium plan without realizing that it does not cover the spouse’s prescription medications or the child’s therapy. A friend of mine recently came to me for assistance in selecting her family’s benefit plans for next year. She was handed an enrollment form to make her selections and no other information. When I started asking her questions, she could not answer them. There

What Should I Do With My Money?

The point is that every person’s situation is unique, and there is hardly ever a cookie cutter answer to the question, “What should I do with my money?” This is the question I hear just about every day of my life. It is an excellent question and can only be answered with another question. Some days the answers in life are simple and other days the complexity of life is beyond our imagination. The answer to this question is somewhere in between. It begins with a couple of simple questions. First of all, what is the purpose of the money you are referring to, and what is the time frame?

Celebrate Low Interest

There are a lot of reasons to celebrate today. Sure, we are in a pandemic and many people are divided by the who’s who in politics, but there are still so many reasons to celebrate, at least in the real estate industry. Low interest rates, great mortgage incentives — for both new and seasoned buyers — and lower credit scores are celebration enough. When interest rates go down, people qualify for a higher priced home for the same monthly payment. As Chris Marr, a mortgage sales manager says, “Current rates are still low and underwriting standards have also been lowered and modified in order to help first-time homeowners with approvals.”