Kennedy Financial : Learning Center

Leap Year

admin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 17:02:54 +0000

Here we go! Leap Year: the year we add February 29^th to our calendar —a full extra 24 hours. How are you going to spend it?

If you have ever watched the movie City Slickers, you may recall Curly telling Mitch (Billy Crystal’s character) that the secret to life is “one thing.” When Mitch asks what that “one thing” is, Curly says, “That’s what you have to figure out.”

Have you figured that “one thing” out?

Although it will be different for every one of us, we consider that “one thing” the core of your ability to Live Life on Purpose. I can’t tell you what it means for you – but I can tell you what it doesn’t mean. It doesn’t mean stress or worry. It doesn’t mean resentment or anger. It doesn’t mean confusion or chaos. And it doesn’t mean doubt or hesitation.

In his book “Today Matters”, John Maxwell discusses the art of building a better life through making good decisions regarding the “Daily Dozen.” He says, “I’m not trying to add twelve more things to your daily to-do list. What I’m suggesting is that you take some time to think through these areas and make a major decision in each that will be lifelong.” I encourage you to read this empowering book, but for now I would like to share with you his brief overview of the “Daily Dozen.”

Attitude: Choose and display the right attitudes daily.
Priorities: Determine and act on important priorities daily.
Health: Know and follow healthy guidelines daily.
Family: Communicate with and care for my family daily.
Thinking: Practice and develop good thinking daily.
Commitment: Make and keep proper commitments daily.
Finances: Make and properly manage dollars daily.
Faith: Deepen and live out my faith daily.
Relationships: Initiate and invest in solid relationships daily.
Generosity: Plan for and model generosity daily.
Values: Embrace and practice good values daily.
Growth: Seek and experience improvements daily.

I want you to take Mr. Maxwell’s Daily Dozen to heart. Start by giving yourself a score of where you currently are in regard to each one. On a 1-10 scale, 10 being the best, what would you score yourself? And remember, progress starts by telling the truth.

Then, as Mr. Maxwell stated, take time to think through each one. Take number one for example:

What are the habits you have that support a good “attitude?”
Can you think of any instances that are examples of this?
What are the habits you have that support a negative “attitude?”
Can you think of any instances that are examples of this?
Then, what is that “one thing” or that major decision you will make regarding your attitude that will become lifelong?

Last, set a goal and track your progress. On a scale of 1-10 where do you want to be in regard to each area in 90 days? Write it down and put it on your calendar to review it in 90 days. Then, repeat. Take it from me. One of my coaches, Dr. John Rhodes, has my group do something similar called the “LifeScore Card.” We grade ourselves every quarter to see how we are balanced our lives and where we need to work to improve our lives. I tend to get so caught up in the day-to-day challenges life throws at me that I often find myself losing balance. It has been a wonderful tool for me to take time out of the day-to-day and reflect on where I am and where I want to be.

I forget who the first to quote it was, but I have heard time and again the very best investment you can make is an investment in yourself. The only problem is we seldom do just that. So maybe the best way to spend the extra day we have this year is making this investment. Maybe it is seeing out one of the goals you set in your “Daily Dozen.” Or maybe, it is doing that “one thing.” Whatever it is, I encourage you to write it on a small a piece of paper and put it in a place that you will see it every day—your mirror, a bookmarker for your daily devotional, your makeup bag or wallet. Just keep it there until you make it happen!

Securities & Advisory Services offered through VSR Financial Services, Inc., a Registered Investment Adviser and Member FINRA/SIPC. Kennedy Financial Services is independent of VSR Financial Services, Inc. VSR does not provide tax or legal advice.

My Farm & Ranch: Transitioning & Retirement Planning

admin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 22:05:06 +0000

I recently read an article offering a few statistics from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and one in particular caught my eye: Did you know that the median age of a farm operator in the U.S. is 57?! At age 57, every farmer or rancher should be considering – or have already considered – how they are going to transition their farm or ranch and what their retirement will look like. Now, if you’re like my dad, you may plan to work forever. But even he knows that this may not be realistic and regardless, he can’t run his ranch from the grave.

So, if you haven’t thought about your own legacy, please do. In order to help you get off on the right foot, here are some things you need to consider. We call it the “Who, What, When, How, Sam and Plan Approach”

Who? By this I mean, who will be the next generation to run the farm or ranch? Take Farmer Bill for example. Only one of his three children has any interest in adopting the farm life. How will he successfully transition the operation to his son and yet secure his own retirement? How can he divide his estate equally among all three children? How can he ensure his son, who will be the farm operator, will not be giving 2/3 of the proceeds from his work to his siblings?

What? Or what about Rancher Ted? It is extremely important to him that his ranch stay a ranch as long as possible. He has four children, yet none of them have any interest in the ranch. Moreover, Ted can’t find any young ranchers who want to lease him out. How can Ted retire and secure his income? How can the ranch be preserved?

When? Do you want to die at your plow? Are you sick and tired of the plow? Or, do you want to have options? What if a disability doesn’t allow you to carry out your original plan? How will your spouse be protected?

How? Let’s take a look at Farmer Bill again. He is a rugged individualist and decides that he has all the answers. There is just one small problem. He won’t let go. How can he? His retirement depends on the farm’s success. By the way, this is the story of most farmers and ranchers. Do you have a plan for a source of funding separate from the farm or ranch that will allow you the psychological and financial ability to systematically turn over the responsibilities of the operation to the next generation?

Sam? By Sam, I mean Uncle Sam. Taxes are an inevitable issue for farm and ranch transitioning. For instance, how can Rancher Ted sell his equipment without paying taxes on significantly depreciated assets? Or how will Farmer Bill’s son be able to make land payments with excess cash flow that he will have to pay a high tax liability for? Or what about the land itself? My bet is your cost basis is very low, but the value is very high. Uncle Sam really likes this situation.

Plan One of the biggest mistakes we see farmers and ranchers make is that they try to answer these questions one by one by using resources and advisors that are independent of one another. Rarely does this NOT cause additional problems. A tax advisor is merely concerned about Farmer Bill paying less in taxes, but his solutions might tie Bill’s hands when it comes to equitably distributing his estate between his three children. Rancher Ted might find the perfect young rancher to transition his legacy to, but the taxes eat up over half of his retirement. It is critical to plan with a transition and retirement specialist who can communicate with these different resources and advisors to create a solid, successful plan for you, your family and your legacy.

For more information about farm and ranch transitioning as well as retirement planning, please visit our website: www.kennedy-financial.com.

Retirement – Are We All on the Same Page?

admin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:48:45 +0000

After one of our “Retirement Directions” classes a few years back, a gentleman walked up and started telling us about his retirement goals. He had a lot of pride in the fact that he had thought out his life in retirement with such detail. He spoke of moving to the Colorado and living in the mountains, what life would be like there, etc., etc. Then, his wife, who had listened intently to this tale of their future, spoke up and asked her husband, “And…when were you going to tell me about all of this?”

Surprise! The funny thing is this happens more often than not. Both with couples who are preparing to retire in the future and couples who are already retired. Why? Well, it can be for many reasons. Think about your own situation with your spouse for a moment.

Is retirement a regular dinner table topic?

Perhaps your career or careers have positioned you that you each spend some time alone. Maybe you commute each day, travel or stay at home. During this time, have you ever imagined your retirement? Does any part of retirement scare you or make you uncomfortable, so that you don’t think about it? Do you tend to avoid discussing that aspect – or even planning altogether – with your spouse?

As you can see, it is very easy for couples to have or develop different retirement goals.

There is a great new book out by Roberta Taylor and Dori Mintzer: The Couple’s Retirement Puzzle. I want to share with you a short assessment that is in the book that can possibly help you and your spouse determine if you are in sync with each other about retirement.

Instructions: Do the assessment separately and then share your results. Put a T after the statements you believe are true. Then add up all the true statements to get your score. Notice the areas that you may want to talk more about.

We have talked about our timetable for retirement.
We have planned our future medical and health care needs.
We know that our roles may change as we go through transition.
Intimacy and affection are an important part of our relationship.
We make financial decisions together.
Having time together and time apart is important to both of us.
We talk about lifestyle and where we may want to live.
We agree on our obligations and responsibilities to family.
Social and community connections are a satisfying part of our lives.
We have shared values and know what is important to each other.

Scoring:

10 Give each other a big hug. You are ready to write your own “How To” book for couples

7-9 Sounds like you’re in sync. Ongoing communication is important as you plan for what’s next.

4-6 You’re on the right track. Practice listening to each other and sharing what’s important to you.

1-3 Make time to talk about important issues related to retirement.

We always talk about what it means to “Live Life on Purpose.” That concept is a little different for everyone, but one there is one constant: Everyone wants to get rid of the complexity and stress in their life so that they can have the freedom to focus on the things in life that are most important to them. The recipe for “Living Retirement on Purpose” is no different. It begins with communication between you and your spouse. Talk about your future and goals. What direction do you want to be headed?

Then, you can let us do what we do best—help you coordinate and correlate these dreams and goals and create the necessary disciplines to give you confidence so that you may continue to “Live Retirement on Purpose!”