A Financial Teaching Moment with my Five-Year-Old

I don’t know how much of the conversation he’ll remember, but hopefully at least a tiny part will stick with him. And hopefully as he grows, and he hears my husband and I repeat the line “When you’re older, and done with school, and you get a really good job, you can SAVE…”, he’ll eventually have it memorized!
Tired of Renting?

So you have decided to be a homeowner. You’ve been saving and building up enough funds to put 20% down and avoid private mortgage insurance. Now, you want to make sure you have your financial bases covered.
Yours, Mine, Ours?

How can new couples decide if they should combine their finances? Can you mesh two different financial lives together with little to no friction?
Retirement Income Realities & Solutions

The goal of traditional retirement planning has been to build a “nest egg” of personal savings and investments that will supplement Social Security and pension benefits. Together, these three sources of retirement income have long been referred to as the proverbial “three legged stool”—a solid and well-balanced foundation for building financial security in old age. […]
Many Boomers Choose a New Perspective on Life and Money

In terms of adult development theory, life after 50 is typically a pivotal stage when individuals reflect on the direction their lives are taking, confront their own mortality, and dare to ask themselves, “Am I really happy?” However, what distinguishes Baby Boomers from previous generations is that they wear this existential crisis on their sleeves. […]
Defining “True Wealth”

By “how much is enough?,” I mean the amount that will allow you to stop driving so hard professionally should you choose to do so. I mean the amount that will allow you to feel safe, the amount that will compensate for risking hard-won relationships, the amount that will affirm your feeling good, smart, successful, […]
The Purpose Of “Work” In The Second Half Of Life
Individuals in mid-life and beyond are increasingly viewing retirement not as a time to relax, but as a time to explore their potential. It was Abraham Maslow, a psychologist, who gave us the term, “self actualization.” He called it man’s desire for fulfillment, “to become everything that one is capable of becoming.” For many, the […]
The Power Of Purpose
In Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, bestselling author Daniel Pink presents some of the most compelling and useful research in the field of in human motivation. One section, “The Good Life,” is particularly enlightening in regard to how we as individuals establish and pursue our life goals. Pink makes the point, and […]
Buying Ourselves the Gift of Time
Most adults are increasingly experiencing a time crunch. The result is mounting stress and compromised health and vitality. And yet, despite their best efforts, many individuals express frustration about not being able to bring tasks to completion or having enough time to focus on what or who is most important to them. Scientists have even […]
The Art & Science Of “Smarter” Spending
Although a number of studies have focused on the effect of income on happiness, Elizabeth Dunn, a social psychologist at the University of British Columbia, also wanted to understand the effect of spending choices on happiness. For example, previous research clearly demonstrated that income has a predictably positive effect on level of happiness, but these […]