Tag Archives: empowerment

A Man and His Word

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Some of you may be too young to remember a time when “your word was your bond”.   I won’t tell you that those times were easier, or harder, than the times we are now experiencing.   What I can say is that at one time we placed a very high value on a person’s word.    Whether upheld or broken there was reward and consequences associated with a man’s words.  It is sad to think we have “evolved” to a point where the word is simply a mechanism to garner support for one’s own purpose, position or gain.   Even sadder is that we as a nation don’t stand up and demand accountability once associated with a person’s word.   I believe part of the problem is a disconnect between what someone says and the barrage of media interpretation that follows.   For example, in politics, if a candidate speaks in the morning by mid-day the media has already added its own interpretation.   Sadly, depending how it plays in the polls the candidate may or may not issue a correction even if it contradicts what they originally said.   Most media “experts” pass their interpretation on as fact and shoves it down the throat of an American audience.   Is it any wonder that American’s are confused, disgusted or fed up with what they see in the media?   There is an ongoing debate calling segments of our society “disenfranchised”.     Let me suggest that the real word is “disengaged”.   Many Americans, including myself, are angry as we look at what is going on in Washington but we cannot rollover and play dead.   You snooze you lose.   It has to stop….let’s get reengaged.   Let’s start with the one area that regardless of our race, color or creed we can agree on.  Let’s reaffirm that a person’s word is, and should be judged as, the essence of their character.   It is not some piece of malleable crap to be, molded, modified, taken lightly or spoken without consequence.  We Americans are smart enough to know that regardless of the shape, height or color, crap still stinks!   

Here is my suggestion for a beginning.  Let’s let our elected officials, and candidates, know that we will hold them accountable for their words both past and future.   Be fair and let them all speak, listen to their opinions, contrast what they say with what you know, ask your questions and determine how you will reward their answers with your vote this fall.  Turn off attack ads unless you are willing to take the time to investigate the merits of such indictments.  Let’s claim our right as American Citizens to reestablish the importance of the vote through the value we place on a person’s word.    

I am going do my part in removing the media bias to some very fundamental promises made by our current president.    In his own words:

 

Transparency and Open Government

Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies

SUBJECT:      Transparency and Open Government

My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government.  We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.

Government should be transparent.  Transparency promotes accountability and provides information for citizens about what their Government is doing.  Information maintained by the Federal Government is a national asset. My Administration will take appropriate action, consistent with law and policy, to disclose information rapidly in forms that the public can readily find and use. Executive departments and agencies should harness new technologies to put information about their operations and decisions online and readily available to the public. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public feedback to identify information of greatest use to the public.

Government should be participatory. Public engagement enhances the Government’s effectiveness and improves the quality of its decisions. Knowledge is widely dispersed in society, and public officials benefit from having access to that dispersed knowledge. Executive departments and agencies should offer Americans increased opportunities to participate in policymaking and to provide their Government with the benefits of their collective expertise and information. Executive departments and agencies should also solicit public input on how we can increase and improve opportunities for public participation in Government.

Government should be collaborative.  Collaboration actively engages Americans in the work of their Government. Executive departments and agencies should use innovative tools, methods, and systems to cooperate among themselves, across all levels of Government, and with nonprofit organizations, businesses, and individuals in the private sector.  Executive departments and agencies should solicit public feedback to assess and improve their level of collaboration and to identify new opportunities for cooperation.

I direct the Chief Technology Officer, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Administrator of General Services, to coordinate the development by appropriate executive departments and agencies, within 120 days, of recommendations for an Open Government Directive, to be issued by the Director of OMB, that instructs executive departments and agencies to take specific actions implementing the principles set forth in this memorandum. The independent agencies should comply with the Open Government Directive.

This memorandum is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by a party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.

This memorandum shall be published in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA

(Source:  http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/TransparencyandOpenGovernment)

 

Ok you decide.  How true has the President been to his word?   Step back, think, validate or challenge.

Personally I believe that there is not an American alive who wouldn’t embrace the promises outlined in these words.    The promises presented here are without media bias, what do you think?   Both Presidential candidates have called this election a critical juncture in our nation’s history.   I couldn’t agree more.             

On a final note, notice the second to last sentence of the presidential statement above.   Do you recognize it?   It is a disclaimer.

Fear & Greed: A Wall Street Story

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During times like these when investor fatigue, disillusionment and market uncertainty seems to be at an all-time high it is time to step back, think, validate or challenge.  Our starting point is a frank observation about your own vulnerability. There are two factors that drive markets: Fear and Greed.  The stronger the market moves in either direction and the longer the duration of the move the more prevalent is our fear or greed. Emotions then become a big part of how you will act or react in your decision process.  Unless you recognize and control your emotions, you run the risk of becoming vulnerable to those that know how to manipulate those emotions. I refer to this technique as pushing your hot buttons.

Have you noticed that in bull markets that there is no shortage of those who promise to help you achieve great returns?  They are pushing your greed button.  Then there are markets like we have experienced over the past few years that has brought out the emotion of fear.  That emotion usually makes us more vulnerable as fear lays you open to those who find ways to persuade you that what they have to sell will protect you.  Here is an example in the form of a commercial.  “I saw the crash of 2008 coming and I protected my clients and they did not lose money”.  Translation: I sell annuities and some of what I said is true.  Fear can also place you in a position of inaction when steps can and should be taken to protect your assets but you are not sure who to trust. Many times over the years I have heard “we are happy with our advisor” which in many cases translates into “we are holding hands hoping to get through this market decline together because they don’t know what to do either.”  You may find that waiting for markets that are more conducive to the skills of those who are better at selling than advising is a costly proposition.

So how can you help protect yourself from becoming a victim of your own emotions as it applies to your finances?  A starting point is accepting that a changing world requires a willingness to be aware of and evaluate those changes periodically.  A major change over the past few years has been the introduction of technology based financial planning/tracking tools.  The best tools currently available are robust and dynamic, easily modified to incorporate life changes and have risk control as the centerpiece of its platform.   To those of you that are skeptical and ask if there is really anything out there that is that unique, the answer is an emphatic yes.   The caveat is that like any leading edge technology, at the beginning public awareness and skilled practitioners are both in short supply. Candidly speaking this approach doesn’t fit the stock traders’ business model of buying or selling as each action must first be considered for its fit in the overall plan. This has the effect of removing the emotion from the decision and mitigates the use of hot buttons.

My experience has shown that most investors take too much risk and thereby reduce the probability of reaching their financial goals. The sad thing is that most consultants are clueless when it comes to quantifying risk in the portfolios they manage. Go ahead and ask them to explain risk (standard deviation) in terms you would understand and how much risk you are assuming in your portfolio.   Remember 10 questions in an asset allocation model, placing you in the categories of conservative, moderate or aggressive, does not measure risk.  So your question might be, “If tools exist which individualize financial plans and mitigate risk why I am not being introduced to such an approach by my consultant or firm?”  Simple, there is no incentive for firms to be proactive in this area. It is all about their bottom line not yours.  Additionally, my experience has shown that when it comes to incorporating advances in technology most consultants will not spend the time to even evaluate how it may benefit the client. Why?  The answer is that if it takes time and effort to learn, doesn’t produce immediate financial reward, doesn’t fit the model of the consultants practice, it is unlikely to get much attention. Would you be surprised to know that one of the major Wall Street firms has made this type of software available to its consultants since December 2008?  The result seems to be one of the best kept secrets in town.  I say, shame on the firms who have this technology but fail to be proactive and inform their clients. To those few consultants who offer this service I applaud you.

What can you expect from this new technology and why speak out to incorporate it? It promotes meaningful client/consultant dialogue, the plans are designed to be client specific, goal tracking is measurable, and it holds the consultant accountable to a higher standard for their knowledge and advice.  The most important element of this approach is that risk management becomes the guiding factor and not performance.  Put the control where it belongs; in your hands.  After all, how many times have you been told by your consultant “remember is it your decision”?   It is time to stop the use of Fear and Greed tactics.

It is apparent that to effect change it is going to have to be a consumer driven effort. What next?  Step back, think, and validate or challenge what has been said.   Ask your consultant if their firm has planning/tracking software available.  If the answer is yes maybe the next question should be; why aren’t we using it? Don’t let them play down the importance of a tool that levels the playing field.  Do independent research. Be prepared, stay informed. Begin by looking at a program called Money Guide Pro.  www.moneyguidepro.com/.  You might even want to give them a call to see if your Wall Street firm is using this software under a different name.  Hint: it probably is.  Finally, never forget that the person sitting across from you is a salesperson first and certainly understands Fear & Greed.

(Note: most firms provide this type of software free to the consultant; however they allow the consultant to charge a fee for the plan. Don’t pay for something that you deserve.  If you need to, remind them that you are paying the bills by being a client of the firm.)