This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/49XwxPv Imagine trying to build a 1,000 piece puzzle without the box cover – nearly impossible, right? Today, Blaine Carver unpacks this analogy of coverless puzzles and aimless financial plans. Words of wisdom that are pertinent for investors both young and old. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/47gGZj8 Growing up, it’s normal to dream about your future. As we grow up, our career aspirations shift, morph, and evolve. Perhaps in 3rd grade, you dreamed of being an astronaut. By 5th grade, you settled on being a pro baseball player, and by college, you find yourself two years into an art history major when your dad nudges you to pivot to something more practical. In these years of maturation, it is totally normal and probably healthy to leave your options and dreams open. Yet, at some point, setting a direction and sticking to that direction is important. A good friend of mine was having trouble with this concept. He had tried a number of different career paths and found himself in constant flux. Each path lasted about 18 months, and then he’d shift, restart, and head in a new direction. This can be a tiring endeavor – both for my friend and for his loved ones who were walking alongside him on this journey. Here was my advice – stick to something, anything. I told him that he wasn’t getting through the learning curve stage of any career, and he wasn’t benefiting from the momentum that one gets when one sticks to something. Time in the chair is meaningful, and you pick up a lot along the way – whether as a plumber or a lawyer – and that tribal knowledge is valuable. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3MAS2vx Today, we welcome back guest author James Andrews. Also, please remember to join us for the podcast where we riff on the article and offer some extra insights on the topic. I especially enjoyed James’ section today on what he calls unforced errors and the unnecessary detriment these missteps can cause to investors. I am sure you will enjoy this and much more, so please join us today for James Andrews’ Thoughts On Money. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - Have you ever attended a walk for breast cancer? Or perhaps a fundraiser for Alzheimer’s research? A discussion with almost any attendee will lead to a conversation about how this disease or cause hits close to home for them. Whether it’s their own battle or that of a loved one, you can connect the dots from their passion to their support. Our experiences can drive our beliefs and behaviors. Last week my wife got in a car accident. I’ll be upfront, it was a fender bender, and everyone is okay. Regardless, it still hit close to home. We were hosting some guests from out of town. My wife took a few of them to Target for some shopping. I was at work. My kiddos were being a handful, so she decided to drive around the parking lot while waiting for our guests to wrap up. A few screaming kids, a not-so-obvious stop sign, and an opposing teenage driver led to about $4,000 of damage to our minivan. Perhaps an overused term here on TOM, but this experience was and is game film; actual footage of the collision (pun intended) of life and financial planning. So, just as we would with game film, let’s review what happened and four learnings we can glean from my experience last week. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/498rCeb We all have flaws. All of us. The problem is that not all of us are aware of our flaws. We are hyper aware of the flaws of those around us, but often blind to our own blemishes. As the Ancient Greek maxim states, “Know thyself.” This is of course not news to you – I am well aware of that. I know that you know that we all have our own flaws. Here’s what I’d like to discuss today though, are we (1) aware of our personal blemishes? and (2) do we have a plan for addressing those shortcomings? Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/49dCWWz Last week we had an incredible guest author, Blaine Carver.  To continue the trend, we are now welcoming in James Andrews as this week's guest author on Thoughts On Money.  James starts us off with a story of sleep training that all parents can relate to and then dives into a teaching on mental models.  James takes us on a journey around financial decision-making and helps equip our readers to improve their own decision-making skills.  I hope you will join us both for the written and audio (podcast) of this week's Thoughts On Money.  Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3ZWJHYy I am excited and honored to introduce a guest writer today on Thoughts On Money. My good friend and colleague, Blain Carver, has prepared a wonderful entry for us today. We will talk road trips, finances, emotions, and the intersection of all of the above. Please join us for the written and the accompanying podcast – you won’t want to miss it. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3RGuE2U Before I gave financial advice, I pedaled bikes.  Today, we will discuss the intersection of BMX racing and investing.  Specifically, we will unpack how to measure results and some of the common pitfalls result-driven investors and athletes face.  I am sure you will enjoy a stroll down my memory lane and the opportunity to grow as investors.  So, without further ado, I present Results Driven.  Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3ZyGe1P Have you ever been scammed? Since the birth of the internet, we the American people, have become quite familiar with scams. We now know to delete any proposal for a financial exchange coming from a Nigerian prince. We dodge these scamming attempts daily. Yet, these scams are still in high production. Why? Unfortunately, because they still work; people are still being duped daily. These scams try to lure you in with a request for a small commitment in exchange for a big reward. Maybe a better way to say this, people are tempted by the opportunity to get something for nothing. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/467qQf8 I am guessing that most of us reading this article have moved at least once or twice in our lifetime. For me, I’ve moved four times over the last ten years. I’ve become familiar with this feeling I get, that tinge of anxiety as I’m preparing for or staring down the barrel of a move. The organizing, the packing, the lifting, the loading, the unloading, the unpacking, etc. It’s a big undertaking. I will say this, though, I’ve definitely matured as a mover. Good labeling and a solid process go a long way. This whole operation reminds me a lot of financial planning. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/44yuUnl Do you ever notice those habitual lane-changers in traffic?  There is a lot of activity going on, but they make little progress.  There doesn’t seem to be a correlation between how many times you switch lanes and a reduction in your drive time.  Often you will observe “lane change regret.”  The driver sees opportunity, so they get over, only to then realize that their former lane is now taking off. Investors today are trying to change lanes in traffic, and they will inevitably experience lane change regret.  How do I know this? Because investors on average – myself included – are horrible at trying to time markets and what we are talking about is exactly that, market timing. The peaks and troughs of markets are driven by extreme sentiment; peaking in irrational exuberance or greed and reaching a trough at levels of excessive fear.  Lane-changers aren’t enticed back into markets at the troughs, yet it is a fear that lures them back in, a fear of missing out (FOMO).  This FOMO, or point of capitulation, tends to come after a rise or rally in markets, which is often an expensive re-entry point. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3OHt2Ti Legacy. Leaving a legacy. Your legacy. What a loaded finance word, right? We know it has depth and meaning, but we don’t always really know what it looks like practically. Join me as I walk through a real life story of legacy and share some practical steps for how you can leave a legacy.   Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3QDVM25 Suppose I wrote two different articles – one on how to improve investment returns and another on how to reduce your tax bill.  Which article would you be most likely to read?  Regardless of your answer, I think you will enjoy today’s discussion on Thoughts On Money.  We will dive into ideas for improving investment returns by looking for opportunities to reduce your tax bill.  Please join me as I bring some life to the topic of taxes and provide you with some basic real-life applications.  Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/47jPdrg Thank you for your faithful readership of Thoughts On Money. You and I, we are in this together. As iron sharpens iron, So one person sharpens another. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/44LNvxf We understand this idea of flourishing as individuals, but even furthermore in a corporate sense. Flourishing as a church community or flourishing alongside your colleagues in business, or flourishing as a family. This is an even deeper aspiration that we would prosper in and with our community. Yet, flourishing isn’t how all of us would describe our life and current status. So, what’s missing? If flourishing is the goal, what is the path to get there? I can’t claim to be able to pave that whole path in this article, but I do want to submit one key thought/idea for you to meditate on. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3Q8lStI I was filling in for David Bahnsen this week on DC Today, and I was reminded how much I enjoy the Ask David section. This is where readers send in questions, and David addresses one question a day on this published public platform. I remember an old teacher always used to encourage our class, “Ask, please ask all the questions you have. If you have a question on your mind, surely that same question is on the mind of a few others.” It was our civic duty to ask questions; it was for the greater good of the class. Our teacher actually used to give us [the class] an ultimatum – either ask questions for the entire period of the class, or he’d tee up a boring lecture. That’s right, an entire class, an entire semester, of just our questions. Sounds odd, right? But this professor knew the subject well, and our inquiries were based on the assigned reading, so it was our actual questions that made up the tapestry of his lecture. Yet, because we were the inquirers, we were much more engaged. Participation was a large portion of your grade, so it was also a motivator to complete the daily reading and be prepared for the discussion. It was quite a genius approach to teaching. In that vein, I should probably be better about sharing the questions that I get from clients, friends, and readers. Why? Because surely these questions are on the minds of many others. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3DdMjXk Today’s discussion was a lecture I was giving myself. Is there a place of vulnerability in my financial plan that needs to be addressed? Maybe your plan has some vulnerabilities and gaps, too. I encourage you to get a second pair of eyes on your plan and make sure everything is buttoned up and tidy. Why? Because everything can change in a moment. Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3JLysv2 The Choice is Yours I recently watched the movie Race, the story of Olympian Jesse Owens. One particular scene stood out to me. Coach Larry Snyder is advising Owens on life/relationship decisions, and he warns, “The choices you’re making right now won’t even feel like choices until it’s too late.” I couldn’t shake that statement. The truth of it haunted me a bit. Whether we realize it or not, the micro-decisions we make today will have an impact on our future. Yet, the size of that impact can only be measured and realized in hindsight. Helping or Hindering These thoughts came on the heels of a discussion that Sean Latimer and I had on last week’s podcast about 529 plans. We wrestled with the reality that each of us – in one sense or another – struggled to pay our way through college and we both wanted to spare our kids from that same struggle. We wondered whether these 529 plans would be hindering or helping. Was it, in fact, these very struggles that built our character and work ethic? Where would we be today if we were eased from those struggles? As a parent, these are weighty decisions. Whether your kids are toddlers or young adults, or even nearing retirement themselves, you have to be conscious about how you teach them about money and how you help them with money. Why? Because “The choices you’re making right now won’t even feel like choices until it’s too late.” Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3CVMVkh For me, it was working full-time and attending class in the evening.     I saw the burden student debt had on many of my peers, so I chose to pay-as-I-go.  Cost and availability of evening classes definitely filtered down my options for college.     Today, I want to discuss how you can expand those education options for future generations with good planning and one particular strategy.   I hope you will join us as I provide a little more background on my own experience and dive deeper into some planning ideas.   Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com

This week's blogpost - https://bahnsen.co/3qJPIu7 Don’t get me started on medical billing; we’ve got history.   In all seriousness, the whole healthcare system has been a major frustration of mine for years. As a single guy, I never had to interact much with my health coverage – I rarely went to the doctor. With getting married and starting a family, much of this changed.   Today I will discuss how I morphed these frustrations into a financial planning solution.  My hope is that by sharing my approach and process, it will help to sharpen your planning mind as well.  Links mentioned in this episode: http://thoughtsonmoney.comhttp://thebahnsengroup.com