"The only way to get positive feelings about yourself is to take positive actions. Man does not live as he thinks, he thinks as he lives." – Vaughan Quinn The other day, I received probably the 20th "Consider including _____ in your holiday giving plans" request of the season. I’m not tired of it (in fact, I welcome it), but … Read More
If This Bubble Don’t Burst, It’s Going To Be Scary
"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." – Leonardo da Vinci Brace yourself, because this blog post could hurt a little. Let me start here: I’m writing this on Monday morning (Halloween), and the Occupy Wall Street folks are … Read More
Northridge Accountant Reports: “Financial Mistakes Hardly Anyone Talks About”
"The men who succeed are the efficient few. They are the few who have the ambition and will power to develop themselves." – Robert Burton In the course of our daily work around here, we not only work with numbers a LOT … but we also get a regular course on how people (our clients, mostly) *think* about those numbers. … Read More
Northridge Accountant Writes On: “The Fashionable Trend Towards Renting (Not Buying)”
“There is no medicine like hope, no incentive so great and no tonic so powerful as expectation of something tomorrow.” – O.S. Marden Earthquakes, hurricanes, and … homeownership? Well, the first two have left us in a mixture of annoyance, grief (there has been real tragedy in the wake of Irene, I must say), and a growing cynicism over crisis … Read More
Northridge Tax Professional’s: “Back-of-the-Napkin Financial Principles Even *I* Use”
"The game of life is not so much in holding a good hand as playing a poor hand well." – H. T. Leslie Meeting with clients this past week (and the week before) has been a blast. No — really! And yes, I know, I should get out more. The reason we enjoy doing this (especially this time of year), … Read More
Washington Really is a Different Kind of Town
"If it’s not something you can decide about, if it’s not something you can avoid, then all you can do is worry. And what’s the point of that?" -Seth Godin There are just some stories where nobody comes out looking good — and this "debt ceiling" debacle is one of them, in my humble opinion. Yes, a deal was struck. … Read More
Raising Wealthy Children
Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. – Og Mandino These last couple weeks, I’ve been ruminating on how the rich can "act" poor. And there have been a variety of responses — and the questions: "Enzo, fine — but how about what it takes to teach wealthy thinking?" A great question — and the … Read More
Putting Your Money Where Your Heart Is
"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." – Luke 12:34 I’m in a bit of a contemplative mood as I write, this morning. After a restful weekend with friends and family … being out and about, listening to the radio and watching some TV, I’m struck by this question — why is it that so many people … Read More
Northridge Tax Professional Answers, “How Warren Buffett Did It”
“Fortune favors the bold.” – Virgil Ah, sweet May. I love it. The birds are chirping and the flowers are blooming. Once the weather begins to get warmer, you see people start thinking about summer and, of course, they want to lose weight to look good in their bathing suits. Why do so many wait until it gets warmer until … Read More