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“Everyone Told Him He Was Good!”

Monday, April 28th, 2008

As far back as anyone can remember, even when Ted was a real little kid, he loved to draw. So much, that he often drew all over his parent’s nice clean white walls with magic markers and crayons. (One time, he got a hold of a paint can his dad was using to paint the shed, and painted a pretty picture of the family on the kitchen table. Ouch!)

Anyway, with Ted’s natural affinity for drawing, everyone kept telling him how good he was. He received unending encouragement from family and friends alike. “You’re so good, you should become an artist!” everyone said. And over the years, Ted’s interest in art kept growing with him. To be honest, he didn’t like school very much, and got pretty bad grades, except of course, in any type of art class. When he finished high school, he decided not to go to college, because he didn’t want to suffer through all the required classes he’d have to take outside of art classes. (Much to his parent’s disappointment, I might add.) He took a job in a fast food restaurant as an assistant manager, and worked the late shift, from 3 pm to 1 am, so he could be home during the day and draw or paint.

It’s a good thing he kept his day job, too. Those first few years were rough for Ted financially and emotionally. In the beginning, he made these great paintings, but didn’t know how to get them converted into cash. He went to art galleries and stores that sold pictures, frames, anything related to art, and made friends with the owners and managers. No one took him too seriously however, so his stuff sat in his one bedroom apartment, staring back at him, unsold and unprofitable. Here he was at age 22, broke and struggling.

But Ted wouldn’t give up. He knew he was getting close, and one day a break would come. (He hoped.) And it finally did, in the form of a woman he met at a framing store one day. Charlene, who was 31 and divorced with two little girls at the time, wasn’t rich or a high society socialite who could introduce Ted to the right people. She was a paralegal secretary, and when she saw Ted’s work, she saw the magic others didn’t see.

Her encouragement and friendship gave Ted some truly needed positive energy. But her help with showing people Ted’s work was the key. One afternoon, on a whim, she brought a few of Ted’s most imaginative pieces to work, and showed them to the attorneys and staff in the office. The head partner loved two of the paintings, and asked how much they cost to buy. (Charlene hadn’t expected this, and made up a relatively high price on the spur of the moment, which was quickly accepted by her boss.)

Once Ted’s paintings hung in the owner’s office, other lawyers wanted to buy some as well. (They all sucked up to the boss, you know.) Next thing you know, Ted’s stuff is all over the office. One of the woman attorneys asked Ted to make a special painting for her home, which led to several of her friends hiring him.

The ball was now rolling down the hill. At age 25, Ted finally made it. Charlene and Ted got married the next year, and everything was fine. With one minor exception.
Ted hadn’t bothered filing any tax returns during those hard years, and when they went to their accountant for their first joint tax return, Ted’s disastrous financial life came to light.

The accountant gave us a call, because besides having to straighten out the tax mess, they had no other financial planning of any kind going what so ever. Ted had all of his money in a bank account, and Charlene had basically nothing saved at all. With the kind of money Ted was now making, (and reporting, finally) their tax situation was pretty bad too.

When Ted and Charlene came into the office, we saw a remarkably happy couple with a remarkably blank financial scenario. We had to go through many issues with them, and find out what they wanted, so we could develop alternative planning strategies for them to follow.

We had to take into account their kid’s father (Charlene’s ex) and the inherent instability of being an artist. We had to show them different ways they could save money on taxes, set up educational funding so they would be able to save money and still be able to qualify for financial aid, how to get the right kinds of insurance, set up retirement plans, etc. Our work, like Ted’s required imagination and some artistic flair. We had to show them different ways they could do things, what the ramifications of those choices were, and paint a “financial picture” for them to look at.

They were really happy we showed them a lot of legal loopholes and little known strategies to get their finances in order. They were surprised at how much they didn’t know, and how many strategies we revealed to them that they had never heard of. They didn’t know you could save literally thousands of dollars a month in income taxes, or get twice as much insurance for less than half the cost, get tax breaks for money being put away for college, and so on.

See, we all have our own way of expressing ourselves. Ted does it through his paintings, and we do it through our “financial drawings”! Everyone is good at something, but when it comes to money, many people don’t have the time or inclination to become “masters”.

Well, while your story might not be the same as Ted and Charlene’s, you shouldn’t take that to mean your planning needs aren’t just as critical! PLANNING BEFORE TAKING ACTIONS IS THE MOST FUNDAMENTAL, AND IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF FINANCIAL SUCCESS!!

Do you have a Financial Road Map and written Action Plan to give you the best chance of having (and keeping) a “Worry-Free Retirement”, so you’ll never run out of money, no matter how long you live, and never be a burden on anyone?

That’s what we’re here for. We create Financial Road Maps and written Action Plans for retirees and people planning to retire within the next 5 years—to give you the best possible chance of having a “Worry-Free Retirement.”