Blog

Year-End Planning: Do Something Today That Your Future Self Will Thank You For

Published by: Mark Lookabill

As November comes to a close and we head into the end of year holiday season, I thought this would be the perfect time to provide some tips to help you get a jump on year-end planning. While this is by no means an exhaustive or comprehensive list of everything that you could tackle, these three broad areas will get you headed in the right direction as we approach year end.  As you are thinking about these topics, please remember to consult with your wealth advisor to make sure the information you have is accurate and you make the best decision for your situation.

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The 4 Pitfalls of No Plan

There are some things in life you just can’t plan for: an unexpected illness, job loss, death of spouse, disability…While these major events can impact your life, having an effective game plan can help ensure that it doesn’t ruin your financial well-being. Read more

If It Doesn’t Challenge You, It Won’t Change You . . .

Published by Teresa Milner

Have you ever participated in a fitness challenge? The purpose of the challenge is to help you accomplish your fitness goals; i.e., losing weight, increasing muscle mass, etc. The same concept can be applied to money challenges. Money challenges can be used to accomplish both short and long term financial goals. As with fitness challenges, money challenges can be measured too; i.e., buying Christmas gifts, funding a college savings plan, giving yourself the ability to retire early.

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Football and Finance: The Secret Sauce to Success

Published by Jim Caldwell

Welcome to fall, almost everyone’s favorite time of the year. School starts up, the colors change, and football at all levels kicks into high gear. Growing up in the Midwest, and having been both a high school and college football coach in the past, I see a very distinct similarity between football and finances.

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Improving The Traditionally Allocated Portfolio

Published by Tyler Schlumpf

We’re going to introduce a few mathematical concepts in this article that are crucial to building a portfolio. For those that are already moving their cursor up to the X in the right hand corner, just stick with it! These concepts, whether we choose to learn them or not, have a significant impact on the way we combine investments and are important to understand as we discuss portfolio construction. Read more

5 Things to Consider When Facing a Life Defining Moment: Unexpected Job Transition

Published by Paul West

Life Defining Moments happen to all of us. Sometimes they are positive, joyous things that you want to happen: engagement; marriage; the birth of a child; buying your dream home. Other times, they are things that feel less positive and you wonder why they have to happen to you: illness; divorce; unexpected career change; death. However difficult and challenging the trying Life Defining Moments are initially, they can sometimes ultimately lead to change and growth in a positive direction. Though it’s hard, think, “glass half full.” Read more

My Top Money Saving Tips

Published by Shayla Kriha, Relationship Manager

We all know saving money is not the most exciting or even the easiest thing to do, but we all know that it’s important to do! Over my years at Carson Wealth, I have learned lots of ways to help save money. Read more

Spending Habits of Thirty-Somethings: How Do You Measure Up?

Published by Pamela Pena, CFP® Associate Wealth Advisor

Welcome! You’ve hit your mid 30’s and life is amazing, or maybe you realize the “Friends” theme song was a pretty accurate depiction of young adult life. No matter how delayed your maturity was or if you were one of the few responsible twenty-year-olds, you can’t deny it; you are now an adult. Measuring up used to be called “Keeping up with the Joneses” and now it is called “social media scrolling.” As much as we’d all like to pretend we don’t need to compare ourselves to anyone else, we do. So instead of worrying whether we have the right car or right OOTD, let’s compare ourselves on things that may help our future selves, like how we spend our money!

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What Is Your Number?

Published by Mark Petersen, CPA, CFP®

“What is your number?” is a question one frequently hears in the financial services industry. It may refer to many different things, depending upon the company with whom one is working. At Carson Wealth Management Group, your number refers to your Family Index Number (FIN), which is unique to every family. For example, there is a XX Jones Family Index Number as well as a XX Smith Family Index Number.

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4 Simple Steps to Creating an Estate Plan

Published by Beth Schanou, JD

Most of the time, it feels like life is moving at the speed of light. I often feel my entire day, both at home and at the office, is spent in fast forward mode. As if it’s a race to get done as much as possible, I’m running from one thing to the next, all day long, and making sure every household member is fed, cared for, and attends school and their activities. Of course this includes the four-legged members of the family too. Read more