Hello, On the way back from Savannah we stopped at a Cracker Barrel, and if you’ve ever been to one you may be familiar with the country store you walk through to go to the dining room. Amelia and I were standing in the store area waiting on Mallory and Ansley. I think half of the stuff in the store is designed to make a parent’s life more difficult. Toys are everywhere! Amelia found a pink ball that easily fits in the palm of my hand and when you tap the ball it lights up. The girls came by for lunch one day recently.

Of course, she asked if she could have it. Our strategy recently has been to tell her we’ll think about it. Our hope is she’ll forget about it. Well, she set the ball down and we patiently stood there waiting for Mallory and Ansley. A lady comes up and picks the ball up and begins looking at it in great detail. You should have seen Amelia’s face. I guess the ball had been misplaced because there wasn’t another anywhere around where we were. So, Amelia thought it was the only one. It felt like that lady looked at the ball forever. She finally looked at Amelia and saw her despairing face and said, “Oh, you want the ball? This is a great ball. You’ll really enjoy it.” And she went on about how wonderful the ball was. I’m thinking then, “Well, it looks like we have to for sure buy the ball now…” Amelia and Ansley with the ball below.

Walking out of Cracker Barrel I said to Amelia, “I bet you won’t know where that ball is a week from now. It will shock me if you do.” Like clockwork every night last week she showed me where the ball was. I asked her why she kept up with it and she said she wanted to shock me. It's easy to allow one thing that is said to us to inform whole swaths of what we do or how we act. Someone once told me that they didn’t think I’d ever make a certain amount of money. I just took it in the first time. I guess when they saw my reaction, they repeated in later days. I didn’t argue with them. I just took it in like fuel going in a car. I made it a point to shock them or to prove them wrong.

While achieving things is important, proving people wrong isn’t always the best approach. It caused me to work really hard to prove that person wrong and it felt really good to look back on those comments and grin to myself. But it also taught me that we should be careful whose opinion we’re listening to. I met a person in 2019 who lost a lot of money in 2008. It was a scary time as the media frequently told us it was the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. The man I met had taken his retirement funds and sold his investments in the low and left it there in cash. He was too afraid to invest again because of the investing trauma he experienced in 2008. He didn’t want to have to earn his money twice, and stopping the bleeding was the most important thing to him. Amelia below at the playground.

What’s sad is that he missed out on a period of growth in the market that created significant wealth for some people. In 2010 the average 401k balance was $71,500. In 2019 that had grown to $105,200. About a 47% increase. Even when inflation is low, we need our money to grow just to stay above water. When investing, like with most things, we want to understand things from numerous points of view and make decisions accordingly. If we cling to one thing we hear or read and allow it to inform our decisions we tend to get lopsided results. It may go well, but we may make ourselves miserable in the process. Until next week, David C. Treece, Financial Planner 864.641.7955

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Clients Excel, LLC is an independent financial services firm that utilizes a variety of investment and insurance products. Investment advisory services offered only by duly registered individuals through Creative One Wealth. Creative One Wealth and Clients Excel, LLC are not affiliated companies. Neither the firm nor its agents or representatives may give tax or legal advice. Individuals should consult with a qualified tax professional for guidance before making any purchasing decisions. Clients Excel, LLC is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Government or any governmental agency. Clients Excel, LLC has a strategic partnership with tax professionals and attorneys who can provide tax and/or legal advice. Published on 01.10.2024.