I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and is getting ready for the holidays.

I wanted to share one of my end of the year goals with you. I’ve been wanting to try recording video messages but, if you know me, I am not the most technologically advanced person in the world and have been avoiding it. With the new year looming, I finally did it.  Below is a link to my first Video Insights.

 

Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you are able to enjoy a long weekend and spend time with friends and family.

If you have some down-time between the food and football (or just need an excuse to get away from that annoying cousin), here are some Wall Street Journal articles that I’ve been meaning to share.

CFP Ethics CE

Thank you to all that took my CFP Ethics CE yesterday. We had quite a turnout - almost 300 participants!

The next CE is scheduled for Tuesday, January 23, 2018, 2-4pm. Follow the link below for more information.

CFP® Board Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

Hope to "see" you there!

Brett

This may NOT apply to many of you that work for larger firms.  However, for those at smaller firms, this could be a valuable opportunity.

No matter where you work, you want to make sure there is adequate disability coverage for you and your clients.  My experience is most of my students have NO idea how much disability coverage they have. Not good.

People have been asking me about the Equifax data breach in which the personal information of 140+ million was stolen.

So, what does it mean for YOUR clients???  

I have partnered with Stockton University to offer a Fast Track CFP® Certification Professional Education Program. Classes begin in August in Mt. Holly, NJ and will complete in time for the March 2018 CFP® Exam.  The program consists of seven courses and classes normally meet for one four-day period per month for seven months. Upon completion of the educational courses, students are eligible to take the CFP Board Examination in March 2018.

Earlier this week we officially announced my "Retirement Bootcamps" coming up in Philadelphia (May 2} and in the Boston area (May 9).  I've held similar events - or as I like to call them, "Extravaganzas!" - in the Philly area, but this is the first time that I'll be doing it in the Boston area, so I am really excited about that.

I wanted to discuss a question I received from an Audio Insights subscriber who asked, "What should I tell a client’s family after the death of a client or client’s spouse?"

In case you missed it, below is a comedy sketch from John Oliver from HBO’s “Last Week Tonight”. Your clients/prospects may ask you about it so I want all to have seen it. It is about 20 minutes long but worth viewing. Yes, it is funny and irreverent but it does paint our entire industry (even those like you that are doing it right) with a broad, negative brush. It is a window into the perception that many people have of us.

https://youtu.be/gvZSpET11ZY

The following article appears on PlanSponsor.com.  Americans are concerned not only with retirement, but also with unexpected heath care costs, unemployment, student loan debt, and other day-to-day expenses.  What are you doing to ease your clients' financial anxiety?  Are you talking with your clients about their short-term and long-term goals and the sources of their financial anxieties?

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