FiLife

About 8 years ago, a Merrill Lynch broker emailed me and asked if I had anyone managing my money.

The company I worked for, TheStreet.com, had just gone public and I had a slug of stock that I needed to park somewhere. Our lead underwriter, Goldman Sachs, generously offered to handle our personal accounts. All I needed was another, um, several million dollars to meet its $10 million minimum balance requirement.

As I pondered not having the gazillions to join the cool cats, the email arrived from Tim. Fairly bold, I thought, emailing me about my money. No other broker or adviser emailed or contacted me during that time. Their calls didn’t come until several months later, by which time I had already made my decision to work with Tim.

At first blush, this seems like an insane way to choose a financial adviser, right? (more…)

I owe much to debt.

Many of the major decisions in my life have revolved around that four-letter word. And I am actually grateful for it. Debt is much maligned, but it shouldn’t be. The willingness to take on debt can indicate faith in a better future. 

Of course, you can believe too much. (more…)