Advanced Wellbeing offers financial therapy insights each week to inform more details about financial therapy.
“But we can’t cut back our giving; they depend on us.” A retired couple wanted to continue giving generously to their church, even though it would have jeopardized their own financial health. Their money scripts included a belief that giving until it hurt was a virtue.
Religious trauma is one of the childhood experiences that can shape money scripts with damaging lifelong consequences.
A common issue I see with financial planning clients is whether and how to provide financial help to adult children. Should they pay for college? Take care of debt? Bail out financial mistakes? These decisions are made from a complicated mix of love, fear, guilt, hope, and sometimes unresolved history.
Cancel culture has caught up with this year’s Christmas column. I can’t bring myself to write another column with sensible guidance we all know and rarely follow. “Make a list and stick to it. Set a budget. Avoid credit cards. Give homemade gifts. Remember the reason for the season.” This advice skims over the deeper forces at play in December. Holiday overspending doesn’t happen because we’ve forgotten how to add. It happens because we’re human.
Sorry, any children of Boomers who may be hoping for a big inheritance someday. We’re spending your legacy.
This is the finding of a recent Schwab survey of more than 1,000 high net worth Americans that highlighted a generational divide in intentions for passing on wealth. Many Boomers plan to enjoy their money during their lifetimes—and we’re okay with that.
You don’t need a fortune to channel your giving through a Donor Advised Fund. These funds are designed for everyday people who want to make charitable donations in a way that offers tax efficiency, flexibility, and choices.
One of my clients, whose immediate family includes 30 people, has described himself as a Grinch when it comes to holiday gift-giving. “I never know what to get for people, and it seems pointless to buy some generic stuff they probably won’t even care about. I hate Christmas shopping!”
This year, however, he decided to take a closer look at his expectations and emotions around the season.
Being left solely responsible for wealth through divorce or widowhood later in life comes with its own set of responsibilities, opportunities, and challenges. As with so many financial life events, it is often the emotional challenges that are the hardest.
For many of us, our home is more than just a piece of property. It holds deep memories and emotional meaning, especially if we raised our families there. For this reason, estate planning discussions often include leaving the family home to the kids.
This can be a way to keep the property so family members can continue to enjoy it for generations to come. It also can be a burden.
What was the most expensive single item on your Christmas shopping list? That special gift for your partner? The latest electronic gizmo for your teenager? Your family’s holiday travel? Certainly, with inflation hitting a 40-year high, all these items cost significantly more than last year. However, for some Christmas shoppers, the most expensive holiday purchase this year could be interest.
With all the supply chain chaos, inflation, and uncertainty in the economy, this year is a perfect time to celebrate Christmas in the manner of Ebenezer Scrooge.
If you’re superficially familiar with Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, the first thought that may come to mind is that I’m suggesting you celebrate Christmas like a cold-hearted skinflint. After all, Ebenezer Scrooge is probably the most famous miser in literary history. With the current economic uncertainty, most of us could logically support following his example of spending less, or even nothing, as we observe the holidays.
