Donald Trump the famous billionaire attended a seminar and afterwards while seated in the lounge, a cell phone rang. One of the seminar presenters reached into his pocket and answered the call. Afterwards, Donald Trump approached the presenter and told him that it was clear he wasn't making enough money. The presenter protested. He admitted he wasn't a billionaire but he sure had more wealth than any regular Joe.  Donald Trump repeated, "If you had enough money you wouldn't answer your own phone." 

According to SmartMoney.com article by Daren Fonda, there are 10 things that millionaires won't tell you. Among them is that using other people's resources helps them belong in the millionaire's club. 

Millionaires use OPM – Other People's Money. Virtually all of them borrowed to invest in their businesses and professions.  

Millionaires use OPE – Other People's Expertise. They surround themselves with financial advisors, lawyers, personal assistants, concierge etc. 

Millionaires use OPT – Other People's Time. They delegate boring and routine tasks and engage in tasks which they enjoy and those they are good at.   

Now contrast the above with the habits and attitudes of Regular Joe.  

Regular Joe thinks it is too risky to borrow money for large investments with huge income potential but easily acquires consumer credit card debt with the highest interest rates. 

Regular Joe thinks he knows everything and overrates his ability. Consequently he rarely seeks expert help and prefers to rely on uninformed friends, relatives and hearsay. When failure ultimately catches up with him, he finds a scapegoat, passes the buck and ignores the log in his own eye. 

Regular Joe thinks he has the magical ability to expand time. He therefore prides himself in being a jack of all trades and consequently becomes a master of none. He loathes relinquishing control and assumes his mode of operation and way of seeing things is the best. 

I wish you Godspeed to the day you will afford to pay somebody else to answer your cellphone.
 

Quote: People experience their day very differently when they have a lot of money. Betsey Stevenson.

The world of personal finance seems very simple at a glance, yet it is very complicated. However, most people are not able to differentiate the simple from the complex. The goods news is that you can easily get someone who understands the complexity and is able to plan your finances. The small problem is – he costs money. Is it worth it to spend money on a Personal Financial Advisor? 

Let us start with the simple stuff which everyone understands. To become financially successful you need to do 3 simple things as a minimum.
1)      Save regularly
2)      Invest wisely
3)      Spend less than you earn


Complexity arises when you consider the myriad tools of finance designed to help you do the simple stuff and the legal and taxation effects of each tool. 

For example, how well do you understand the following?

1)      Investment – Portfolio diversification, Asset allocation and Re-balancing
2)      Insurance – How to use insurance as an investment tool
3)      Estate Planning – How to protect your wealth from personal lawsuits, inheritance wars and avoidable  taxes

If you wish to pursue wealth building on your own, you need to answer the following 3 questions regarding your Knowledge, Time and Desire. 


Knowledge – Do you wish to learn about Money Market Instruments, Fixed-Income Capital Market, Equity Securities, Equity Derivatives, Investment Companies etc, budgets, retirement plans, estate planning, insurance, taxation, personal liabilities and more?

Time – In addition to your regular job, family, hobbies and friends, can you spare at least 10 hours a week, every week, to study the financial market in relation to your wealth building plan? 

Desire – Do you seriously consider finance to be so interesting that you can pursue it for the rest of your life?

If you answered yes to all three then probably paying a financial advisor is a total waste of money. Otherwise, you will be penny wise and pound foolish.

Well, before you consider hiring a financial advisor, you need to put your house in order first. Pay off all credit card debt, maximize contributions to your 401K and roth IRA and have at least 3 months income saved.


Quote: a lawyer who represents himself has a fool for a client.