Author Archives: newharvest
Life in a Northern Town
My expertise is in retirement income planning. I can assure you that the number one fear that clients have as they approach retirement is running out of money. I have been a professional financial planner for a quarter century. When it comes to retirement income, there has always been the fear of finding out that…
Posted in Smart Money Blog
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The Stock Market is like Riding a Motorcycle.
Two of my favourite things are investments and motorcycles. The other day I realized that the stock market and riding a motorcycle have something in common. In order to turn a corner at speed on a motorcycle you need to counter-steer. Counter-steering is a pretty weird idea when a person is learning how to ride…
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The Great Goals in Life
Financial Planning is a process that can have a magnificent, meaningful impact on your quality of life. Some people equate financial planning with getting an adequate rate of return on your RRSP. That’s fine as far as it goes, but it’s and inadequate definition of financial planning. Financial Planning is a six step process that…
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Underestimating the Severity of Your Own Situation
I think that is human nature to underestimate the severity of your own situation. In my own life I started putting on some weight in my thirties. It was no big deal, I thought. And I did nothing about it. I still ate everything that I wanted, and I wanted a lot. But my metabolism…
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Entertainment is not Wisdom
A few days ago I was asked for some recommendations on books to read by a person who was looking to learn a little more about the world of finance. Normally, that’s something that I can help with. I read a lot, and as it happens I was in the local bookstore just a few…
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Financial Pornography
Yesterday I was looking for some information on the Internet, and I ended up watching a few video clips from one of these business news channels. This is unusual for me. When I say unusual I’m not referring to researching stuff – I usually spend about 2 hours a day reading – I’m referring to…
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The Secret to Financial Success
There is one thing that is of primary importance on the road to financial success. It’s not your income, or Registered Retirement Savings Plans, or home ownership, or negotiating a better interest rate from your bank. The most important thing that determines whether a person will be financially successful is controlling your cash flow. What…
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A Tale of Two Clients
This week I was speaking with two people who were looking at their investments in completely different ways. The first person had some mutual funds, and she was disappointed in their performance. She was looking to sell them and transfer her account to something else. Now I haven’t actually sat down with her yet, so…
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Rebuttal: Long-term Investment Alive and Well
Read Brad’s column on Advisor.ca, entitled Rebuttal: Long-term Investment Alive and Well.
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Clients Seek Growth with a Dose of Reassurance
Originally published in The Insurance & Investment Journal, February 2010. By Al Emid, featuring Brad Brain
Posted in Ask The Expert
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