Jennifer Carlson, an estate planning attorney, will be speaking at our next client event on Thursday, April 7, at 7:00 p.m. at our office at 533 S. Main St. in Council Bluffs.

Mrs. Carlson’s presentation will answer these estate-related questions: What happens when a person dies? What does the post-death administration of a revocable trust look like? What is the estate administration process? How long does it take? How expensive is it? What can go wrong? What happens when no estate planning has been done?

Furthermore, we have created our client events to be a comfortable environment for you to be able to introduce people to our team. For those folks who do bring along a friend, we have a special gift for you.

Please RSVP by calling us at 712-256-4856.

Jennifer Carlson’s Bio

Our guest speaker will be Jennifer A. Carlson, an attorney with Stuart Tinley Law Firm LLP in Council Bluffs. She practices primarily in Estate Planning, Probate, Wills, and Trusts. Ms. Carlson’s background includes:

Education:

Buena Vista University – B.A., Magna Cum Laude, 1978

Southern Illinois University School of Law – J.D., Summa Cum Laude, 1982

Biography:

Ms. Carlson graduated first in her law school class receiving outstanding achievement awards in Trusts and Estates, Property, and Commercial Law. She served as Editor-in-Chief of the Southern Illinois University Law Journal and has been inducted into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi. In addition to her law practice, Ms. Carlson also has experience in federal income taxation and is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association, the Nebraska State Bar Association, the Pottawattamie County Bar Association, and the Council Bluffs Estate Planning Council.

Ms. Carlson and her family are dedicated community volunteers. She has served nonprofit organizations throughout the Council Bluffs and Omaha metro area for more than 25 years. Heartland Family Services, the Omaha Symphony Guild, the Knights of Aksarben Foundation, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, among others, have recognized the Carlson family for commitment to community. She is a current member of Leadership Council Bluffs.

Stuart Tinley Law Firm LLP and it predecessor partnerships have been practicing in Council Bluffs for 150 years. The firm is a full service multidisciplinary law office serving the Council Bluffs/Omaha metro area, southwest Iowa, regional, and national clients.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

Hi folks. This is Tom Sperling from the team here at Dickinson Investments. I wanted to take just a few moments to share with you about our Advisory Council. We met just recently, and Ron led us in a discussion whereby we asked five of our clients to come together for a couple of hours and give us some direct feedback about how we’re doing as a firm.

We reviewed where we were at last year with several key initiatives: bringing Dave onboard our team as a wealth adviser, rolling out two new service models to provide services for you, and also our technology push – upgrading the technology that we use to manage your accounts.

Then we asked for feedback from them specifically about our website, our video communications, and our client portal. We also asked for some feedback about some ideas about client events.

Probably the most important aspect of our meeting was to ask them how we can most effectively communicate the five areas whereby we bring value to our clients. Those areas include financial planning, asset allocation, and investment selection. We do systematic rebalancing of our clients’ accounts.

A key differentiator for us has to do with how we provide tax management which can save considerable money and resources for our clients in managing their taxes most effectively.

We do a lot more than just manage investments here because we’re thinking in terms of the needs and goals of our clients, so we ask for feedback that way from our clients and we really appreciate the input they provide to us. They spurred us on to do some really great brainstorming. We want to continue to roll out ideas from our meeting in weeks to come, and we’ll share with you more about that. But we really appreciate the input and feedback from our Advisory Council.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

We can show you how to save money with your Medicare drug plan.

Our next client event will be held on October 11, and will feature George Gillespie as our special speaker.  George is a counselor with the SHIIP (Senior Health Insurance Information Program) Office in Council Bluffs.

Medicare’s annual open enrollment season is an ideal time for you to shop around for new Medicare coverage — even if you have been happy with your current plan — to see if it is still appropriate for your needs. However, no insurance is being offered or sold at this client event. Dickinson Investment Advisors is not in the insurance business, and we are not recommending one policy over another. We offer seminars like these for informational purposes so as to help you make your own wise choices.

Here is the agenda for this presentation:

• Overview of Original Medicare (Parts A & B)
• Overview of Medicare Advantage (which includes Part D)
• The Annual Coordinated Election Period
• Changes in the laws related to Medicare for 2017
• Strategies for shopping for the best drug plan
• Q&A session

You can attend either the 2:00 pm session or the 7:00 pm session on Tuesday, October 11.  The event will be held in our Training Room at 533 S. Main St. in downtown Council Bluffs.

Our client events are provided for your education as well as for you to invite guests to come along with you.

Please RSVP to our office by calling 712-256-4856.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

The Board of Directors of Iowa West recently elected Ron Dickinson as a new board member to serve a 3-year term on the Iowa West Foundation Board.

The Foundation’s vision is “a community where families choose to live, and businesses choose to locate, because of the quality of life and standard of living.”

“Our Board members have the significant responsibility of being good stewards of the Foundation’s assets and ensuring that our investments have a lasting impact,” said Pete Tulipana,  President and CEO of the Iowa West Foundation. “We are confident that Ron and all our board members will serve as great contributors to achieving the vision for the Iowa West Foundation.”

Ron added, “As a long-time active resident in Council Bluffs, I’m looking forward to finding multiple ways to add value to our way of life in this vibrant community.”

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

I often tease my daughter Lydia about being “such a millennial.” In our process of launching her into adulthood and into her career as a nurse, my wife Connie and I have had a number of talks with her in recent years about her growing list of adult responsibilities. Connie has tended to talk with her more about relational matters, and I’ve talked with her more about money. Such conversations have brought out some clear differences between our generations.

A Millenial Mindset

As our “beloved millennial,” Lydia is so much more of an adventurer than I ever was. She loves to travel and meet new people. (She had her passport years before I ever did.) She is constantly connected with her network of friends through social media, and her phone is one of her body parts. She relishes opportunities to experience new places and new activities. She doesn’t live an extravagant lifestyle, but her focus is all about experiencing life now.

Supporting such a lifestyle shines a spotlight on how she makes decisions about her personal finances.

My Parents’ Mindset

As I’ve sought to impart to Lydia a few of the financial best practices I’ve learned from over the years, I’ve often reflected on how different the norms were with my parents and their personal finances. My parents were part of The Greatest Generation, raising their five sons through the post-World War II era.

My parents set an excellent example for me about their personal finances. Dad and Mom lived debt-free, drove used cars, maintained a conservative lifestyle, and gave sacrificially and generously to their church and other ministries. However, I don’t recall any personal conversation that Dad ever had with me about money. I had no idea whether they balanced their checkbook, how much they saved, and whether they planned ahead for higher costs of medical care in their later years.

They just didn’t talk about money. It was a taboo subject – right up there with sex.

Intentional Conversations

When I became a parent, I made some new decisions about how I would raise my own children. One such decision was to have intentional talks with them about money.

When Lydia and her two brothers were young children, we gave them an allowance. We used four boxes for helping them learn decision-making skills about their money – one box each for giving/tithing, short-term savings, long-term savings, and spending.

When Lydia became “3 times 7” (a term that we adopted from my beloved mother-in-law in describing the age of 21 when people are deemed to be fully responsible for themselves), I began to have intentional conversations with Lydia about…

• Being a faithful steward with everything God has given to her
• Balancing her checkbook every month
• Keeping detailed maintenance records for her vehicle
• Doing comparison shopping for the best deals on clothes and travel
• Paying off her student loans as soon as possible
• Saying no sometimes to buying the latest electronic device
• Pounding the maximum amount available into her company 401(k)
• Working with a trusted financial advisor
• Diversifying her long-term retirement savings portfolio into high quality funds
• Explaining clearly about our beneficiary designations on our investment accounts
• Informing her where our wills and other estate documents are stored.

It’s not just about having “the talk” with her. My desire has been to keep cultivating a relationship with her of transparency and respect for her as an autonomous adult.

Lydia and I have plenty of differences as a baby boomer and a millenial. And yes, she’ll probably continue to sleep with her phone. But just as we have set forth in our mission statement here as a financial advisory firm, I want her to make wise decisions with her personal finances so she can eventually achieve her own dreams for retirement.

Tom Sperling

Financial Advisor Representative

Dickinson Investment Advisors

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

What keeps both spouses from being mutually engaged with the financial affairs of your family?

In many marriage relationships, spouses have divvied up their roles for the sake of keeping the household functioning smoothly. It’s normal to delegate duties based on your skill set and interests. This often involves one spouse being the primary bill payer and keeping tabs on bank accounts and investment accounts. What tends to happen though is that the other spouse is often much less engaged when it comes to the details of investing.

Why? It has absolutely nothing to do with aptitude, skill, or motivation. Rather, it stems from all the competing interests for your time and energy.

So the question becomes, what will it take for you both to become more engaged with the personal finances of your household?

Are there limitations to having only one spouse handle the majority of duties in the household? It’s normal for each of you to gravitate toward your own talents and interests. However, when one spouse is engaged and one is not, there’s a danger that only one point of view is reflected in the decisions that are made. Even worse yet, if the engaged spouse is no longer available, the other spouse may feel lost or vulnerable.

Life happens. You need to be better prepared when it does.

Here are examples of five life change events that can force people to sit in the financial management chair:
• Death of a spouse
• Change in marital status
• Medical emergencies in the family
• Death of a parent or sibling
• Personal health crises.

As an advisory team, we place a premium on financial planning. Because we base our recommendations for your investment portfolio on your personal needs and goals for retirement, we think in family terms. Thus, it’s important for both spouses to…
• Be aware of account balances.
• Know where the legal documents of the household are stored.
• Have access to user names and passwords for online access.
• Provide input to the planning process.

As part of the services that we provide for you, we…
• Listen to you about your personal situation and needs.
• Learn about your risk tolerance.
• Ask about your children and grandchildren.
• Offer tools for organizing your financial accounts.
• Check to make sure that the beneficiaries on your accounts are up-to-date.
• Provide seminars on estate planning and recommend for you to establish a will or a trust.
• Provide your own portal through our website so you can check your accounts at any time.
• Prepare to answer any questions you may have about how your financial assets impact you and your loved ones.

Summing it up, here are my recommendations for you:
1. Be proactive. Don’t wait for a family or health crisis to hit.

2. Become informed. Reach out to us as an advisory team that many families have trusted in working through their financial issues over the years.

3. It’s OK to divide up household duties, but it’s important to have conversations around how decisions are made. For example, “What is our strategy for paying down debt? Why did we buy this particular investment and what would cause us to sell it? How do we budget our finances?” Our core belief is that the best run households recognize the value of both voices in the marriage and reflect joint decision-making.

4. Invest in building your financial confidence. Believe you can do it. You can be a wise steward of your investments from a lifetime of love, work and sacrifice.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor. Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

What headwinds do you face with your own personal finances, especially in regards to your retirement planning? My recent bike tour provided for me some vivid experiences and lessons learned in conquering headwinds.

The RAGBRAI Pre-Ride

Every year since 1973 during the fourth week of July, thousands of people have been flocking to Iowa to experience RAGBRAI (The Register’s Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa). I’ve participated in the ride every year since 2000 – and Ron has completed the ride many years as well.

This summer I decided to do my own personal bike tour of Iowa so as to incorporate the first three days of the RAGBRAI route. My bike tour over seven days included these towns: Glenwood to Sioux City, Orange City, Spencer, Algona, Mason City, Cedar Falls, Webster City, and Rockwell City to Atlantic (743 miles in all).

As weather patterns unfolded that week, it was not unseasonably hot. However, I rode into a headwind for most of six of the seven days!

Choices on the Bike

Although I had absolutely no control over the direction and velocity of the wind, I realized that I had choices to make about…
• My pace and riding style
• How much to carry with me on the bike
• The terrain and type of roads to venture onto
• What I would eat and drink, i.e. how often to stop in at a Casey’s
• How often to get off the bike and take a break
• Whether to ride alone or engage in conversations with others in a group.

Headwinds in Retirement

To take on the challenges of this bike tour was a choice I made because I really enjoy biking. When it comes to planning for your retirement years, you want to focus on the people and the great experiences that you cherish so that your life is fulfilling.

Sometimes there are difficulties to be confronted. How you deal with those challenges makes all the difference in the world because you want to enjoy the fruits of all your years of hard work and sacrifice.

Some examples of headwinds that can impact your retirement include…
• Stock market volatility
• Gridlock in Washington
• Geopolitical unrest
• The integrity of the Social Security Administration
• Family dynamics that can impact your estate planning
• An ever changing body and ever increasing health care costs.

Choices About Your Retirement Planning

So, what are the choices you can make so as to respond positively to such headwinds so that your retirement years can be successful? You can…
• Choose to work with our trusted, experienced advisory team.
• Collaborate with your advisor in developing a financial plan tailored to your unique needs, dreams, and goals.
• Follow our behavioral coaching that’s based on time-tested principles – so you can avoid the wealth-destroying consequences that come from emotional, knee-jerk decisions.
• Stay the course with a well-diversified investment portfolio.
• Take care of your body and remain physically active.
• Acknowledge that you are a steward of what God has given you to manage for awhile.

There will always be headwinds out there that challenge your resolve. However, our team provides the guidance and resources to help you conquer those headwinds.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor. Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

40 years of marriage – that’s a milestone that was so enjoyable for my wife and I to celebrate last month with a family trip to Banff, Alberta, Canada.

Connie and I, together with our daughter and two married sons and their wives, had been planning this trip for the past six months. We mapped out our travel arrangements in an RV, the food and other supplies we would need, and how we would divide up the expenses.

Our trip started from Leach Camper Sales in Council Bluffs where we picked up our RV to rent for the week. On the route up to Canada, we passed through Kearney, NE, the Sandhills, Mt. Rushmore, Sheridan, WY, Great Falls, MT, and Glacier National Park. Then we crossed the border and drove up to Calgary, then west to Banff. (By coincidence we were in the region during the same week as the Calgary Stampede.)

When we arrived in Banff, we parked the RV in a campground on the edge of town. Our three days there included a canoe trip together on Lake Louise, a quick trip over into British Columbia, and an excursion on the Banff Gondola up to the summit of Sulphur Mountain. (My daughter and I decided to bypass the gondola ride down the mountain, and opted rather to hike the 3.4 miles of trail to join back up with the family.)

The scenery there in the Canadian Rockies was stunningly beautiful!

However, the highlight of our trip was spending time together as a family. Yes, we missed our seven grandchildren during the week, but this experience was for us as adults to celebrate together. Our conversations focused more on our current lives and plans for the future than on reminiscing about family life when the kids were growing up.

In keeping with our “people first” mantra as a family, we looked for opportunities to visit with people from all over the world. In our campground, we enjoyed conversations with a family from South Korea and playing Washers with a dad and his two daughters from Alberta. Our restaurant server from Toronto was spending the summer waiting tables there in Banff.

At the peak of Sulphur Mountain, we visited with a couple from Pender, NE – he liked my Nebraska hat – and with another couple who described how they had taken ten years to map out their retirement dreams before settling in North Carolina.

As our trip ended (after driving 3,149 miles in all), I felt some relief to deliver the RV unscathed back to the dealership, but the trip underscored several vital conclusions for me:
• I am so very blessed to have been able to share over 40 years together with my wife.
• It’s such a joy to have launched our adult kids and see how they are raising their own families.
• God’s creative handiwork in the Canadian Rockies is incredible!
• It’s fun to invest time in planning for an excursion like this – and to see those plans all come together.
• Finally, I’m very thankful to be part of the team here at Dickinson Investment Advisors where our mission is to empower people to experience their retirement dreams and be able to celebrate big milestones in their lives.

We want you to thrive in retirement, and one way you can do that is through providing volunteer service for other people.

Ron Dickinson has often written about two rules regarding our approach to planning for  your retirement:

1. Don’t run out of money.
2. After you have solved Rule #1, don’t forget to enjoy your young retirement years.

Choices in Retirement

Most people throughout the bulk of their working years sacrifice extensively for their families. They end up delaying gratification for many of the things they enjoy until the time when they can quit working.

But once they do actually retire, they have some key decisions to make. Will they just stay at home most of the time? Will they basically retreat and hibernate? Will they focus mostly on leisure, travel, and play?

God created us to be relational beings. So, will they also invest in other people during their young retirement years?

Personally, my goal for my life in retirement down the road is not to just “quit and sit.” I enjoy biking. I want to keep moving as long as I possibly can. And I certainly want to continue to be involved in serving other people.

As a team our job is to provide you with financial planning, tax planning, and investment management so as to free up your time. Why? So you can invest your prime time and energy in relationships and activities that you really enjoy.

Ways You Can Be a Volunteer

Here are just a few examples of ways you can invest in volunteer positions in serving other people: (The first three are part of the RSVP volunteer program through Connections Area Agency on Aging.)

• Meals on Wheels: delivering hot meals to homebound residents.
• Nursing Home Opportunities: being a friendly visitor with residents who need social contact or someone to read to them.
• Reading Buddies: pairing up with elementary school students for one-to-one reading.
• Teaching a class for children or teenagers at your church.
• Participating in missions trips through your church or through parachurch organizations.
• Being a Senior Companion through the Senior Corps.
• Being a Foster Grandparent through the Senior Corps.
• Volunteering at The Center.
• Serving at missions such as Heartland Hope Mission (faith-based food pantry), New Visions Homeless Services (MOHMS Place), and Open Door Mission.
• Volunteering at the Union Pacific Railroad Museum.
• Serving as a counselor at a local SHIIP (Senior Health Insurance Information Program) office.
• Working with Habitat for Humanity.
• Being part of the TeamMates Mentoring Program.

You can find many other volunteer opportunities at volunteermatch.org.

When you serve others as a volunteer, now that’s a life well lived. That’s a legacy that endures.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor. Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

Ron Dickinson and Dave Piatkowski will be providing analysis and commentary regarding the markets at our “Forecast 2018” client event for our clients and their guests.

This event will be held on Thursday, January 25, at our office which is located at 533 S. Main St. in Council Bluffs.  Ron and Dave will be speaking at 2:00 pm and again at 7:00 pm.  You may attend either session.

The following topics will be discussed:
•   A perspective on market history and the context of events shaping the markets today
•   A review of the major asset classes this past year
•   The big stories as we begin this new year

You will come away from the presentation being informed and entertained, and Ron and Dave will be glad to answer your questions.

As with all of our client events, we encourage you to invite a friend to come along with you to introduce them to our team.

You are invited to attend our next client event to hear Attorney Jennifer Carlson. You’ll be able to learn practical tips for communicating with your family members in the process of establishing your estate plans.

Mrs. Carlson’s presentation will include several role plays, and we will have practical handout materials for you regarding issues with estate planning.

You may attend either the 2:00 pm session or the 7:00 pm session on Thursday, April 26 at our offices at 533 S. Main St. in Council Bluffs.

Mrs. Carlson will be addressing these topics:

• Choosing a will or a trust
• Power-of-attorney
• Concerns with a parent’s diminished mental capacity
• Conservatorship and guardianship
• Co-ownership of bank accounts
• Iowa’s Elder Abuse statute regarding financial exploitation
• The process of comprehensive estate planning

Our client events are provided for your education as well as for you to to invite your friends and family members to come along with you.

RSVP at 712-256-4856.

Jennifer Carlson’s Bio

Jennifer A. Carlson is an attorney with Stuart Tinley Law Firm LLP in Council Bluffs. She practices primarily in Estate Planning, Probate, Wills, and Trusts. Mrs. Carlson’s background includes:

Education:

Buena Vista University – B.A., Magna Cum Laude, 1978

Southern Illinois University School of Law – J.D., Summa Cum Laude, 1982

Biography:

Mrs. Carlson graduated first in her law school class receiving outstanding achievement awards in Trusts and Estates, Property, and Commercial Law. She served as Editor-in-Chief of the Southern Illinois University Law Journal and has been inducted into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi. In addition to her law practice, Ms. Carlson also has experience in federal income taxation and is a member of the Iowa State Bar Association, the Nebraska State Bar Association, the Pottawattamie County Bar Association, and the Council Bluffs Estate Planning Council.

Mrs. Carlson and her family are dedicated community volunteers. She has served nonprofit organizations throughout the Council Bluffs and Omaha metro area for more than 25 years. Heartland Family Services, the Omaha Symphony Guild, the Knights of Aksarben Foundation, and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, among others, have recognized the Carlson family for commitment to community. She is an alumnus of Leadership Council Bluffs.

Mrs. Carlson is also a member of the Iowa Academy of Trust and Estate Counsel, which has membership limited to 250 Iowa attorneys by invitation only. The Academy’s mission is to seek to foster cooperation and collective discussions among trust and estate attorneys, trust officers, law professors, and other interested professionals in Iowa concerning estate and business succession. The Academy further seeks to educate and support legislative efforts and initiatives for facilitating effective transmission of wealth and values by Iowa families.

Stuart Tinley Law Firm LLP and it predecessor partnerships have been practicing in Council Bluffs for over 150 years. The firm is a full service multidisciplinary law office serving the Council Bluffs/Omaha metro area, southwest Iowa, regional, and national clients.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor.  Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

1. Click on the “About Us“ tab of our website to learn more about our firm.
2. Compile your vital personal documents and information about your financial accounts.
3. Jot down any questions you may have related to your retirement planning, your tax issues, and/or how we take care of our clients.
4. Call us to schedule a discovery meeting with one of our advisors.
5. After you have decided whether we are a good fit for you, come in for a forms signing meeting.  New client forms include the Asset Management Agreement as well as the appropriate account application(s) at Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (“Schwab”). We’ll also walk you through a risk assessment questionnaire.
6. Sign a transfer form for you to authorize transferring assets into your new Schwab account(s).
7. Once your assets have transferred over, come in for an investment meeting with one of our advisors.  They can make recommendations for your asset allocation, based on the portfolio model suited to your goals, income needs, and time horizon.
8. Amy and Julie look forward to getting to know you and providing service for you as well.  As a team, we want to assist you in turning your retirement dreams into reality through proven, time-tested investment solutions.

Please join us for some light hors d’oeuvres, wine tasting, and good conversation with our team.

Our Christmas Open House will be on Tuesday, December 4 at 4:00-6:00 pm at the Council Bluffs Public Library located at 400 Willow Avenue.

We encourage you to invite a guest to come along with you as well to introduce to our team.

RSVP prior to November 30 by calling our office at 712-256-4856.

To talk about money or not?

I’ve got some choices to make about talks with my extended family when we’re together on holidays and other special occasions.

Since both of my parents have passed away, family gatherings have a different atmosphere these days. When my brothers and I meet together, we tend to reminisce about our parents and about our early family life back in Kansas.

My parents demonstrated many trustworthy principles regarding faith and family as I observed how they lived. However, one topic missing from conversations with my parents was money. It was very revealing to go through their checkbook ledgers after they were gone to see what was truly important in their lives. But in actual talks with them, money was almost as much a taboo subject as sex.

So, now as I consider how to approach conversations with my brothers and with my adult children, I could (a) continue the old taboo, or (b) grow past my fears and address money matters with a legacy-focused mindset.

Fear-based strategies

What keeps me from engaging in money talks with my family? Likely it has a lot to do with comparing myself to others and is based upon my fears and insecurities.

• I might be exposed that “I don’t have enough.”
• We might revert back to sibling roles from our childhoods – e.g. controller, black sheep, peacemaker, pampered child. (After all, each of us wanted to be Mom’s favorite!)
• The flow of conversation may bleed over to politics. Now that would really be dicey!
• We might end up in an argument and have hurt feelings. After all, aren’t the most common activities in a family gathering to just eat, play games, and watch sports and movies?

Legacy-minded strategies

What would it look like for you to sprinkle topics about money into your family conversations?

(To be sure, it’s not helpful for money talks to focus on the latest short-term market move or a hot stock tip or the number of zeroes in your portfolio balance.)

However, you could agree to put your phones away for a few minutes and actually look at each other for awhile rather than at a screen. You could…

• Identify legitimate causes to support with charitable giving.
• Celebrate success in getting out of debt.
• Reminisce about loved ones who saved faithfully and gave sacrificially.
• Encourage each other to make sure your beneficiary designations and other estate planning documents are up-to-date.
• Share the name of a trusted tax advisor, financial advisor, and estate planning attorney.
• Highlight opportunities for volunteering time at your churches and in your communities.

It’s true that having these types of legacy-minded money talks can be quite uncomfortable!

But who knows? These money talks might lead you to a deeper experience of gratitude. You might become more committed to faithful stewardship of your material possessions. You might be prompted to forgive somebody. You might grow in your faith. You might establish some new family traditions. And you might begin making plans to invest in new adventures with the next generation.

After all, the next generation is watching and listening and learning, whether from your taboo subjects or from your intentional conversations.

[Financial Planning and Investment Management Services offered through Dickinson Investment Advisors, Registered Investment Advisor. Statistics and market information provided by Litman Gregory Advisor Intelligence.]

We invite you to attend our Forecast 2019 client event on January 22.

Ron and Dave will be presenting our analysis about…

• Why the markets have been so crazy, especially in the 4th Quarter last year.
• Our best projections about market trends in 2019.
• How our investment process serves to help our clients.

Our client event will be on Tuesday, January 22 at our office (533 S. Main St. in Council Bluffs). You can attend our session at 2:00 pm or 7:00 pm.

As with all of our client events, we encourage you to bring along a friend or family member who would find value in this learning opportunity.

RSVP to our office at 712-256-4856 to reserve your seat.

We invite you to attend our client seminar to hear Attorney Jennifer Carlson.

You may attend either the 2:00 pm session or the 7:00 pm session on Tuesday, May 14 at our offices at 533 S. Main St. in Council Bluffs.

Mrs. Carlson will be addressing the following topics in this seminar:

• The importance of estate planning and what can go wrong when one does not have an estate plan
• Decisions whether to have a will or trust
• Tax issues in estate planning
• How to use your estate plan to leave a legacy for your loved ones or for charity.

Our client events are provided for your education as well as for you to invite your friends and family members to come along with you.

RSVP by calling our office at 712-256-4856.