In today's episode, producer Jon Gay is in for RJ King.  He and Lou Melone are joined by Certified Financial Planner Branden Carney to talk about financial planning for those under 30.

Financial education is not often focused on those between the ages of 18 and 30, despite the fact that this age range can include some of the most consequential financial moments of your life - from buying a house and getting married to having kids and more! Often, those under 30 are simply told "do this or else."

A lack of experience, when combined with a rapid rate of change, can sink a young person financially.  This is why it's best to create a financial plan.  Also, we go back to behavioral investing.  Not only are circumstances conspiring against you under 30, biology is too!

Functional MRI (FMRI) studies show that when a young person is thinking about their future self, the brain behaves as if it's thinking about a completely different person.   It disassociates that "future" you with the "current" you.  Lou explains.

Branden talks about younger folks using the word "time."   Time is a luxury they think they have.  There's also herding and optimism, which may lead to a sense of invincibility, or not needing to worry about money. 

Where are younger millennials and Gen Z getting information?  Well, largely from social media.  Most financial advice marketing is targeted toward folks that are much older.  This is a trend that needs to change.  So does the fallacy that a million dollars is some magic number for retirement.

We also touch on young entrepreneurs who may be focused on the short term, and naive investors who are hoping to strike it rich by buying the right stocks.  There are major pitfalls to both.

The best thing is to work with a financial advisor or CFP that can create a personalized plan for you early, that you can stick to.

In our next episode we will cover real life horror stories of bad financial behavior.

Resources:

Lou Melone's book, "Unpack Your Financial Baggage:" https://www.amazon.com/Unpack-Your-Financial-Baggage-Misconceptions/dp/1948237776

Melone Private Wealth Website: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

D Business Magazine Website: https://www.dbusiness.com/

In a special episode of our podcast, RJ and Lou bring on a good friend of theirs, Frank Guirlinger, to tell his story.

In 2005, Frank was living the American dream, working with in real estate development, building a seven-figure nest egg for he, his wife, and their two children.

One day, he started having neck pain, which he attributed to long hours and hard physical work.  Then, one morning he collapsed and couldn't move.  He had a spinal cord infection, an abscess in the C3 area of his neck.   He ended up at DMC Hospital in Detroit.  He later found out that, at the time, doctors gave him a 25% chance of surviving surgery.  And they believed if he did, he'd be paralyzed and never even be able to lift a finger.

But as he's always done, Frank kept fighting.   This included being unable to move, having to be intubated with pneumonia, and spending 40 days feeling like he was drowning.   But he improved, and was able to be moved to a facility in Ann Arbor.

After being released, Frank went through more rehab, eventually running out of money.  He didn't want to ask for help, but was left with no choice.   But he continued to improve, weaning himself off of narcotics, and treating his pain and injuries with more holistic methods.  Today, he's able to move around, drive, and has most of his motor function back.   

The last step in Frank's recovery is a trip to Panama for a stem cell transplant, which he hopes will alleviate more of his chronic pain.  He has a website where you can learn more.

https://helphopelive.org/campaign/16189/

Investors often want to know how a financial advisor is investing their money and how a portfolio is being built.  This is especially true in times of economic uncertainty, like we're experiencing now.  Today, Lou Melone of Melone Private Wealth rejoins RJ King to talk about this.

A portfolio begins with understanding the client and their goals for their future.  Once that's established, it comes down to asset allocation, diversification, and rebalancing.   Lou explains each of these, citing a study that shows 93% of a portfolio's success comes down to this plan. Only 7% is tied to timing, selection, and the other things you'll hear about in the financial media.

The word risk is often misused - a better term would be market volatility.  Whichever term you use, Lou talks about employing a 1 to 99 scale for a client's comfort in this area, as opposed to small, medium, and large.

The primary tools in building a portfolio are stocks, bonds, bills, and cash. Which of these have performed the best over time, dating all the way back to 1802? The answer may surprise you.

Lou talks about the "3 bucket strategy" for investing - putting money away for bear markets, for expected big ticket items, and finally, for your long-term future.

One of the key qualities in being a good financial planner is also being what Lou calls a "behavioral coach."  This involves educating clients so they don't give in to their natural, human emotions, and stay the course.

In our next episode, we'll talk to CFP Brandon Carney about the largest generation of wealth transfer that we've seen in quite some time.

Resources:

Lou Melone's book, "Unpack Your Financial Baggage:" https://www.amazon.com/Unpack-Your-Financial-Baggage-Misconceptions/dp/1948237776

Melone Private Wealth Website: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

D Business Magazine Website: https://www.dbusiness.com/

In our third episode,  RJ King of D Business Magazine asks Lou Melone of Melone Private Wealth how to choose a financial advisor.

The relationship is important from both sides, and Lou explains the difference between a "customer" and a "client."

From the investor perspective, think of it as a four step process:

1. Think of the person or team who will advise you
2. Think of the type of company they work at.
3. Understand how the advisor is compensated
4. What is their planning strategy?

There's a veritable alphabet soup of financial designations, and Lou tells the story of "chauffeur knowledge" vs. "Planck knowledge" (link below).

Lou breaks down four of the main financial designations:  CHFC, CFA, CIMA, and CFP.  When it comes to choosing an advisor, the Certified Financial Planning Board recommends asking 10 questions, which we explain.

There is a very big difference between asset management and comprehensive planning.  And due to certain rules and regulations, an asset manager can appear to be a comprehensive planner - even when they are not.  This is why it's important to do your research and ask questions.   This includes learning about the fiduciary standard.

RJ also asks Lou about big Wall Street brokerage houses, and if there is still an advantage to using a larger firm over a smaller one.   Also, should an investor consider some Do-It-Yourself online tools?

We cover costs and fees and the different ways financial advisors are paid.  Lou talks about the differences, and why they are crucial to understand.

Finally, what is the value of a financial planner?  Lou cites articles from Vanguard and Russell Investments that quantify how important it can be to work with a planner - and why.

In our next episode, Lou and RJ will cover how to build a portfolio for retirement that matches your financial plan.

Resources:

Lou Melone's book, "Unpack Your Financial Baggage:" https://www.amazon.com/Unpack-Your-Financial-Baggage-Misconceptions/dp/1948237776

Melone Private Wealth Website: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

D Business Magazine Website: https://www.dbusiness.com/

Mentioned in this episode:

Lou's article on the Alphabet Soup of Credentials and "Chauffeur Knowledge:" https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/blog/alphabet-soup-of-credential-and-chauffeur-knowledge

Charlie Monger's USC Commencement Address: https://jamesclear.com/great-speeches/2007-usc-law-school-commencement-address-by-charlie-munger

Ron Rhoades article in Think Advisor: https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2019/06/21/ron-rhoades-sec-reg-bi-is-greatest-securities-fraud-in-history/

Russell Investments Value of an Advisor: https://russellinvestments.com/us/resources/financial-professionals/value-of-advisor

Vanguard Value of an Advisor:https://advisors.vanguard.com/insights/article/IWE_ResPuttingAValueOnValue

The average investor underperforms both the markets themselves and their own investments.  Today, Lou Melone of Melone Private Wealth joins RJ King of D Business magazine to break down why.  Much of it comes down to behavior.  Investor's thoughts trigger their emotions, emotions define behavior, and behavior determines performance.

Through 26 years of financial planning, incorporating data from Dalbar, Lou has developed a model for the anatomy of investor returns, made up of five parts.

1. The Stimulus
2. The Behavior
3. The Volatility
4. The Retention Rate
5. The Asset Class

Human nature often responds to a stimulus.  And the fear response of the amygdala in our brain will bypass our higher brain functions.  This is what saved cavemen from being eaten by sabre toothed tigers.  Unfortunately, today, that fear comes from strategists, friends, family, and the financial media.   And it takes planning, practice, and education to override this natural, fearful response.

Lou and RJ break down 5 behaviors, or cognitive biases, that plague investors.  They are Loss Aversion, Mental Accounting, Anchoring, Herding, and Availability Bias.

Volatility is an often-misunderstood part of the markets and investing.  Often, investors confuse market volatility with risk.  Lou explains the difference, and why volatility can be a good thing.

Retention Rate is often affected by market conditions - and investors often abandon their strategies in both good and bad times. And while there's always someone claiming they can time the market, it's never worked consistently in the long term.

Finally, RJ and Lou break down returns by asset class, including stocks, bonds, T-bills, gold, and the US Dollar. Higher volatility tends to lead to larger long-term returns.

Behavioral investing boils down to psychology, and this is why it's so important to work with a Financial Planner.  In our next episode, we will explore what to look for when hiring one.

Resources:

Lou Melone's book, "Unpack Your Financial Baggage:" https://www.amazon.com/Unpack-Your-Financial-Baggage-Misconceptions/dp/1948237776

Melone Private Wealth Website: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

D Business Magazine Website: https://www.dbusiness.com/

In the first episode of our podcast, Lou Melone, CFP®, managing partner of Melone Private Wealth , sits down with RJ King, editor of D Business magazine.  And our conversation starts with the idea of behavioral investing.

Financial planning comes down to one simple question - will you outlive your money or will your money outlive you?  Lou talks about "winning the race to the wrong finish line."   He tells a story of two 85 year old men - the man who ran out of money at 80 is now in the same position as the man whose wealth lasted until 84!

The amygdala is the part of our brain that we sometimes know as "fight or flight." Believe it or not, the same instincts that had our ancestors run from saber toothed tigers now triggers us to move away from the market in times of volatility. The key is to create a financial plan and stick do it -and not give in to our emotions.

Lou cites some numbers regarding how individual investors often under-perform market returns. This is because they give in to their emotions! Even a difference of a couple percentage points in a given year will grow exponentially when compounded over time.  This is why it's important to work with an advisor.

In our next episode, we will discuss the anatomy of investor returns, including: stimulus, investor behavior, volatility, retention rate, and asset class. 

Resources:

Lou Melone's book, "Unpack Your Financial Baggage:" https://www.amazon.com/Unpack-Your-Financial-Baggage-Misconceptions/dp/1948237776

Melone Private Wealth Website: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

D Business Magazine Website: https://www.dbusiness.com/

It's time to Unpack Your Financial Baggage. Meet Lou Melone, managing member of Melone private wealth.  He's joined by RJ King, editor of D Business Magazine.  Together, will explore the one key question about retirement.  Will you outlive your money? Or will your money outlive you?

Follow our show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you're listening  right now.

More:

Melone Private Wealth Website:https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/

About Lou Melone: https://www.meloneprivatewealth.com/team/lou-melone

D Business Magazine: https://www.dbusiness.com/