Financing Your Future – Excerpt From The Financial Shepherd

Should Children Be Involved In Family Financial Discussions?

Excerpt Adapted From: The Financial Shepherd-
Why Dollars + Change = Sense by Glen Wright and Sy Pugh

Training and teaching children how to become Financial Shepherds starts before they know anything about money. It begins with the toys and the belongings that parents provide for them. As parents, we should teach our children to take care of the things that belong to others even better than their own things. Notice this change from the typical mindset of our society.

Since everything belongs to God, we teach our children “everything belongs to God”: the house, cars, money, everything! Since this is the case, we are to take care of God’s possessions better than our own. Children are more impressionable, so this will sink in sooner than you realize. In fact, my 5-year-old daughter finds joy in saying, “Daddy, this is God’s house.” If she understands that lesson at age 5, imagine how far ahead of the financial game she will be when she’s older and responsible for her own finances. The most important way to teach this principle to children is for parents to live it daily. When you change the way you think about finances, those that depend on you and follow your lead, will also have a changed mindset.    

Don’t be afraid to talk to your children even if you aren’t where you want to be financially. Make it a point to tell your children the truth (age-appropriate information that they can comprehend). Even if you are in a bad place, give them a basic sense of your family’s financial reality so they don’t live in fairy tale land and have unreasonable expectations. This level of honesty will prevent your children from making the same mistakes you made. On the flip side, if you are financially stable or well-to-do, inform your children of that as well. Focus on the fact that God has blessed your family with more resources so that they will demonstrate the principle of ‘blessed to be a blessing.’ The point is to be honest with your children and prepare them to be good stewards and future Financial Shepherds.

Invest in Yourself – March 2017

Notes from The Financial Shepherd

Why Dollars + Change = Sense by Glen Wright and Sy Pugh

 

Proper investing allows you to purchase into tangible companies, products, and services that meet a real need or supply a demand. True investing correlates with the cycle of business and the production of goods and services, not a whim, lucky numbers, or a hunch. Even still, it is important to seek out qualified professionals to lessen the chances of losing in the market. And remember there are some strategies that allow you to participate in market gains, but not market losses (Index Annuity). Did you know that (former) Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has nearly all of his retirement dollars in annuities? Not a bad strategy. And if it is good enough for the chairman of the FED, then it might work for you as well.

 

When you invest in the stock market you are literally buying companies. The stronger and larger the company, the better the odds are for success. For example, we know Walmart probably will not be going away anytime soon. Also, investing allows you to participate in the collective brain trust of experts and access the experience of successful people. I often hear people say that because they didn’t go to the “right” school or get in the “right” circles, they can’t succeed on a higher level. That is not the case. Although you may not know John Bogle personally (Vanguard Funds Founder) and may not have his Ivy-league education, you can still invest in his Vanguard mutual funds and benefit from the company’s expertise. Investing opens a whole new world!

 

The people who are most successful in life are those who envision the future-based version of themselves and use their present-day self to plan on achieving that goal. Our God is a God of vision, and not just for today. We can learn a lot from other people who are already where we want to be in life. We can pray to God to send us the right people to help guide us down the path to financial independence so that we don’t get misled by wolves in Financial Shepherd clothing. If you desire to be wealthy, you have to purposely meet with professionals who are trained to work with wealthy individuals and who know how to grow and maintain wealth. Also, if you know someone who has amassed wealth the right way, don’t let your pride get in the way of reaching out to them.

Here and Now

Notes From The Financial Shepherd

Why Dollars + Change = Sense by Glen Wright and Sy Pugh


The next step to overcoming failure in finances and being a good financial steward is understanding that choices have consequences. When looking at the past, present, and future, we must realize and accept that the only thing we can control or change is the “here and now.” We are in a present state of being because of what we did in the past. And even though we cannot change the past, we can glance back over our shoulder to learn from past experiences (good or bad) and then adjust our behavior to make different or better decisions in the future. Even though we can’t predict or dictate future occurrences, we can make decisions that will positively affect our future results.

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Life has its Challenges, Be Prepared

Notes From The Financial Shepherd

Why Dollars + Change = Sense by Glen Wright and Sy Pugh


I find that there are many families that are stable with good employment, savings, and low debt levels – but who still demonstrate poor financial planning. This is one good reason to establish a board of directors and to be surrounded with other Financial Shepherds who support your life vision and want the best for you. One of the dangerous things about venturing into unknown territory is that you simply don’t know what you don’t know.

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Budgeting 101

Notes From The Financial Shepherd

Why Dollars + Change = Sense by Glen Wright and Sy Pugh


The main purpose for the budget is to plan how someone’s money will be spent. Since most of us have limited resources, budgeting provides a way for us to monitor and manage personal cash flow, and to meet both current and future needs. Everyone needs a budget, regardless of how much or how little money they have, because everyone needs to have a solid understanding of their individual financial position. Following the example of the wealthy, it is important to know that most affluent people have an excellent understanding of their personal budget and a keen awareness of how money comes in and where money goes out.

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