Given the current state of politics in America, the holidays will no doubt result in some uncomfortable, if not downright contentious conversations between millennials and their boomer parents at the holiday dinner table. Over the coming weeks, you will likely see countless articles about how to talk with family members who disagree with you politically.While millennials and boomers can agree to disagree on uncomfortable topics like politics and religion, there is one important topic which should not be ignored, despite how uncomfortable it is, money.It’s tempting to avoid financial conversations altogether, because, let’s face it, nobody wants to feel like they are prying into their parents’ business, and most parents don’t want to take financial advice from someone whose diapers they’ve changed countless times. But as uncomfortable as it is, the consequences of avoiding this topic can be costly.Here are 5 important financial conversations that you would ...

November 25, 2014Recently, I overheard a friend of mine having a phone conversation. He said, “I heard Schwab is rolling out their version of a Robo-Advisor….yeah and it’s gonna be free if you have $50 thousand with them.”Once I got over my feelings about the prospect that my career was going to be taken over by robots, I got to thinking. “How will advisors like myself compete with the proliferation of online robo advisors? How can I add enough value for my clients over online services to justify them keeping me around?” Thankfully, noted financial planning author/speaker Michael Kitces has already written a thorough explanation of how financial advisors must change to coexist with “robo advisors." Kitces notes that robo-advisors like Wealthfront, Betterment and FutureAdvisor can effectively replace “commoditized” functions of investment management such as: utilizing low-cost, tax efficient investment vehicles, setting up an “optimal” asset allocation, auto-rebalancing and t...

June 26, 2014The San Antonio Spurs just dispensed of LeBron James and the defending champion Miami Heat in five games in the 2014 NBA Finals. They did so in impressive fashion with another lopsided victory en route to their 5th championship.As a financial advisor and avid sports fan, I couldn’t help but reflect on the past decade and a half of excellence by the Spurs and how we can apply their model to investing. I believe that the following five strategies employed by the Spurs should also be remembered when investing.1. Boring can be beautiful.Even the casual NBA fan can tell you they’ve heard this a hundred times. “The Spurs are boring.” Today’s SportsCenter culture loves the “Lob City” LA Clippers with highlight reel dunks and above the rim hijinks. There’s no doubt that’s it’s a lot more exciting to watch a lob being slammed down by the likes of All-Star forward Blake Griffin or DeAndre Jordan than a perfectly executed back door pass.However, basketball purists appreciat...