A Little Reminder

Sometimes life provides little examples of the importance of financial planning.

For me, the entire month of October was one of those financial planning reminders.  Have you ever experienced an entire month that just sucked?  Unfortunately, it can happen more often than we like to admit.  Let me tell you a little story.

On September 30, 2024, I started choking during dinner.  We didn’t have to do the Heimlich Maneuver, but it was definitely a struggle.  I felt my neck and shoulder muscles move like never before, which is a blessing I couldn’t really appreciate at that moment.  Something popped in my neck and, fortunately, the food came up.

Things get pretty scary when you can’t breathe, but I always try to stay calm in a crisis for my family.  If they freak out, then they cannot help me work through the ordeal.  We have had some tough times in my 42 years, but we have made it through.  As my mom has said before, “God isn’t done with me yet.”

Once I got the food out and started breathing again, exhaustion followed as expected.  I also expected a sore throat because of the strain, but it didn’t happen.  Instead, a horrible pain radiated down my neck and through my shoulders, which made daily life a bit more challenging.

This speed bump has given me even more confidence that financial planning is the right career for me.

Of course, I am no stranger to aches and pains.  Either this injury was more severe than I thought, or maybe this is part of being middle-aged, but the healing process is taking forever.  My doctor even prescribed steroids for inflammation and to speed up the process.financial planning

Needless to say, I wasn’t able to work much in October.  On the one hand, it was pretty depressing because things were going well.  I could feel the business growing and our family life has settled to a level where I can focus more on work.  I hated having to slow down.

On the other hand, this challenging experience gave me more hope.  I believe the devil puts speed bumps on your journey when you’re following your God-given purpose.  As we learned in the Book of Job, the devil cannot kill us.  However, he can harass us hoping we lose our Faith and give up on our journey.

I was reassured that I needed to keep going forward because when the journey becomes hard, you’re doing something right!

Digging a little deeper as to why financial planning is the right career for me, let’s think about daily living.

Had I been in any other job, working for an hourly wage, I probably would have been fired if I missed a month of work.  Many things, including my supervisor’s job, as well as my contribution to the local economy would be impacted by me missing work.

Of course, by not working, I would not be paid, so paying bills would be a struggle.  Considering the fact that people with disabilities cannot save money without jumping through legal hoops, I do not have an emergency fund to cover expenses during times like this.

It’s a pretty bleak picture, but people face these exact challenges each day, with or without a disability.  Studies show that about half of all Americans could not afford an additional $500 expense because we spend everything we make.  I did see something about the American savings rate increasing recently, so yay us!

Fortunately, my fees earned in Assets Under Management are divided into monthly payments instead of in bulk payments once a new account is opened.  Basically, it has created a salaried position for me, so I can still earn income even in times I cannot work.

Enough about me, let’s talk about why financial planning is important for you.

Yes, my clients are still taken care of when I am sick or injured.  The good people at Brookstone are still hard at work when I am unable…or at least they better be!

The trading teams are actively monitoring your portfolio, support staff make sure everything works, and the compliance group makes sure we are operating legally.  My clients may only talk to me, but taking care of them is a total team effort.

financial planningI’m sure there are some potential clients sitting on the fence about working with me because of my disability.  I accept that and even applaud the honesty.  However, the healthiest advisor could die in a car wreck tomorrow.

That’s the sad reality.  Nobody knows when our time is up in this world.  Considering that when making your decision, the succession plan may be more important than the advisor.

Your financial planner is a very important part of your life and one of your more expensive annual bills.  You should be careful and do your research before making the decision.  However, you should never doubt the level of care your assets will receive with my team.  If I didn’t trust them, I wouldn’t work with them.

Working with me is going to be different from other financial planners.

No, I will not take you to a steak dinner or play a round of golf while blowing smoke and promising you impossibly high returns.  Basically, I try to do the complete opposite of what we all hate about salesman.  I sleep better at night knowing that honesty is my best tool for helping my clients.

The truth is that any licensed professional in the financial services industry had to pass some tests.  We are all good with numbers and have particular areas of focus in our practice.  We may not offer the same investment products, but they are all similar with the technological advances of today.

The days of hot stock tips and back-alley deals are gone.  Sure, they still happen, and some shady companies still promote that mess, but I don’t think most people want that anymore.  That type of investing is dangerous, risky, and gives the entire industry a bad name.

Investing is not a get rich quick scheme.  It is a slow, grinding commitment to the chance at reaching your reasonable financial goals.  More than the numbers, I will help you prepare for those inevitable speed bumps in your life.

There will be many highs and lows.  As my pastor says, “If you haven’t experienced some struggles in life, then you haven’t lived long enough yet.”  In our fallen world we are bound to face adversity, so it just makes sense to plan for it.

I’ll be glad to face these challenges with you.  Email me!

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Jonathan Greeson is located west of 117 and south of E. Main St.
Jonathan Greeson is located west of 117 and south of E. Main St.

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Pikeville, NC 27863

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