o’dell, winkfield, roseman & shipp in the black€¦ · · 2017-07-16james a. balwin 7...

IN THE BLACKWWW.OWRSFIRM.COM • ISSUE NO. 4

Wellness & RetirementHow healthy habits improve your Golden Years PAGE 09

The Financial Tool We All Love To LabelAre assumptions ruining your retirement plans?PAGE 03

Do You Have Balance In Your Financial Ecosystem?The impact of a trophic cascade PAGE 10

O’Dell, Winkfield, Roseman & Shipp

In The Black (adj): 1. describing a financial statement that ends with a positive assessment. The term derives from the color of ink used to enter a profit figure on a financial statement.

FINANCIAL LITERACY

: able to read and write: having or showing knowledge about

a particular subject

Simple Definition of literate

If you’re reading this, you’ve officially passed the test for the first definition of “literacy,” per Merriam-Webster. The second definition? Well, this is where we call you names; are you ready?

You, most likely, are financially illiterate.

Most of us are.

And it’s OK.

Now that you know, you can do something about it.

Every day we see headlines and TV segments discussing money problems – what the newest ones are, how to fix them, how to avoid them and the like. Most of us see these segments and read these articles, fancying ourselves capable of discerning which of the advice is best for us, and how best to implement the “knowledge.”

This do-it-yourself mentality has been created by the phasing out of traditional pension systems and the introduction of the 401(k). Americans were told that they’d have to figure out their retirement income on their own, and as such, they have.

The result? Millions of people fearing retirement. People are working longer and taking larger financial risks. Financial entertainers on TV and the radio are selling their books and their one-size-fits-all systems, making people feel a little better about their day-to-day money

management, but leaving the big picture untouched. Managing cash flow is one thing, but figuring out how to create our own paychecks for 20 to 30 years during retirement is a completely different challenge. So, if we may be so bold, you are probably doing pretty well and you’ve probably made some solid investment decisions…but you’re still probably financially illiterate.

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Article By Ashley Adams

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You’ll note that Literacy is the first level of knowledge, so you can probably check that box. Financial Comprehension and Financial Intelligence are advanced levels, and honestly, the reason why you hire professionals. You don’t have to be Financially Intelligent, you just need to be literate. When you’re literate, or well-read, you can sniff out biases. When the financial headline gracing your newspaper shouts an alarming statistic or criticizes a financial product, you’ll raise your eyebrow in suspicion, not alarm. When the financial ‘guru’ at the office water cooler tells you what you should be investing in, you won’t go rushing

back to your desk to Google the products that you now think you should own. When Uncle Bob asks why you aren’t invested in XYZ mutual fund, you’ll be able to respond calmly instead of breaking into an “I don’t know what I’m doing” cold sweat. When financial gurus on a TV segment are telling you to max out your 401(k), you’ll question why they push one particular product so enthusiastically without considering other financial strategies with arguably better outcomes.

That, my friends, is financial literacy. Enough knowledge to instinctively question the status quo, to filter the “junk” that is pushed upon the masses. Enough information to ask informed questions instead of just nodding along. Understanding that there is no such thing as a bad financial tool or product, only misused/abused tools and bad advice. Your leg might have an infection; if the first doctor says amputation is the only way, do you amputate or do you get a second opinion? You can chop a tree down with a hammer, but is there a better tool for the job?

THE “THINK THEY KNOW STUFFS”

The single most dangerous group in America

Knows Stuff

Think They Know Stuff

Knows They Don’t Know Stuff

The water cooler guy at work, the financial entertainers, financial advisors, Uncle Bob, your ‘savvy’ friend. They might sound con-vincing; they might sound right.

That’s why they are so dangerous.

THREE LEVELS OF FINANCIAL KNOWLEDGE:

Financial Literacy

Financial Comprehension

Financial Intelligence

2877-821-OWRSowrsfirm.com

O’DELL, WINKFIELD, ROSEMAN & SHIPP

Annuities, one of the most loved and most hated financial tools in America. Neither “pro” nor “anti” annuities, we think it’s very important to become financially literate on the topic. Understanding their purpose, their pros and cons, and the differences between the types will put you in the “literate” category, advancing quickly towards “comprehension” depending on how much additional reading you’d like to do.

An important fact about annuities is that they aren’t new. While they’ve substantially increased in popularity over the last 25 years, they’ve been around since the days of Ancient Rome, and emerged in the United States in the 1700s.

The types of annuities vary, as do their relevance in your financial portfolio, but one

THE FINANCIAL TOOL WE LOVE TO LABEL

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Article By Kyle Winkfield & Ashley Adams

ANNUITIES IN AMERICA: 1776: National Pension Program for Soldiers was created to provide for soldiers and their families (source: annuity.org)

1905: Andrew Carnegie established the Teacher’s Pension Fund. This eventually became the Teacher’s Insurance and Annuity Association (TIAA) in 1918 to provide annuities to educators. (Source: LifeHealthPro.com)

1930s: During the Great Depression, investors looked to annuities and life insurance as safe havens from financial ruin. (source: annuity.org)

1935: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act. Social Security is essentially a lifetime income annuity. (Source: LifeHealthPro.com)


YOUR RETIREMENT IS OUR FOCUS

thing is certain – they are the backbone of financial security in America.

We are all familiar with the first two categories – social security is a federal government-administered annuity, and pensions are annuity programs established and administered within individual employment systems.

Asset Annuities are available on the open-market and greatly vary in type, scope, benefits, structure, and features. There are four very different types of Asset Annuities: Immediate Annuities, Fixed Annuities, Variable Annuities and Fixed Index Annuities (Indexed). These annuity types are very different, but because

they all share the name “annuity,” the media and many financial personalities often lump them all together, misleading the average (financially illiterate) consumer.

SO WHAT EXACTLY IS AN ANNUITY?

An annuity is a guaranteed income stream, paid to the annuity owner for a specified period of time (often their entire life), in exchange for a lump sum of money at time of purchase.

WHY WOULD SOMEONE PURCHASE AN ANNUITY?

Depending on the type, there are many different reasons one may decide to own one, but in the end, an annuity properly positioned in your portfolio can

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THERE ARE THREE BASIC CATEGORIES OF ANNUITIES:

Public Annuity: Social Security

Private Annuity: Pensions

Asset Annuity: Available for Purchase

FINANCIAL COMPREHENSION READING

Life Annuities: An Optimal Product for Retirement Income by Moshe A. Milevsky

Index Annuities: A Suitable Approach by Jack Marrion & John Olsen

Getting Started in Annuities by Gordon K. Williamson

Money Master the Game by Tony Robbins (”The best personal finance book for the 21st century” – Kyle Winkfield)

SOURCE: NewYorkLife



provide sustainable and reliable guaranteed income just like social security or a pension. So for many, purchasing an annuity is their way of creating their own personal pension program. At the end of the day, there is no other asset that can create a guaranteed income stream that you cannot outlive.

So depending on one’s goals, age, retirement plans, other investments and income streams, and a variety of other personalized factors, one type of annuity might have significantly more pros than another type of annuity. It’s important that individuals considering the purchase of an annuity understand the differences between the four types; not all annuities are the same.

A Honda Minivan and a VW Bug

are both cars, but they serve

very different audiences and

therefore, very different

purposes; financial tools, in this

case, annuities, are no different.

Annuities may or may not be appropriate for your financial toolbox. The key is making sure that you understand annuities when you are evaluating your options for retirement income planning. Annuities are a tool. We are neither pro-annuity or anti-annuity, as you’d never hear a carpenter say that he is pro-hammer and anti-screwdriver. Annuities are tools that should be evaluated based on what you need and want to do with your money.

SOURCE: Athene



LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF-TV Kyle Winkfield Financial Checklist for New Dads

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF-TV Kyle Winkfield Cool Down Your Summer Spending With These Tips!

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - KUSA-9 NEWS Kyle O’Dell Money Questions to Ask Before You Say “I Do”

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF-TV Kyle Winkfield Social Security

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF-TV Kyle Winkfield Retirement in Football Terms

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - KUSA-9 NEWS Kyle O’Dell Financial Checklist for New Dads

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF-TV Kyle Winkfield Tips to Avoid All Time High ATM Fees

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBFF FOX Kyle Winkfield | Baltimore How to Budget for Gifts

OWRS IN THE MEDIA (TV)

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - KUSA-9 NEWS Kyle O’Dell

Get Smart About Credit Day

LIVE, ON-AIR INTERVIEW - WJLA ABC 7 Kyle Winkfield - Good Morning Washington Thanksgiving on a Budget

LIVE ON AIR INTERVIEW - WBTV-3 Joe Roseman | Charlotte, Why you should use cash instead of plastic for holiday shopping



OWRS IN THE MEDIA (PRINT)4 Credit Lessons Women Can Learn From Men

Three Moves to Boost Your Odds of an Early Retirement

Three Moves to Boost Your Odds of an Early Retirement

How to Find a Financial Advisor You Can Trust

Can Runners Save on Life Insur-ance?

6 Best Card Perks for Summertime

Top 5 Reasons to Walk Away From a Client

View from the Top of the Life Insur-ance Industry

Money Mistakes You Made Today



How to be a Winner in the Game of Life Insurance

25 Brilliant Retirement Ideas

5 Justifiable Reasons Why You Can and Should Fire Your Financial Advisor

How Much Life Insurance Do You Really Need?



Building Brand and Visibility Stokes Growth from Within

You Won’t Believe Average Cost of Using an ATM

YOU CANNOT FIX WHAT YOU WILL NOT FACE.James A. Balwin



Eddie Murphy stars in the independent film “Mr. Church,” inspired by a true story, which tells the story of a unique friendship that develops when a little girl and her dying mother retain the services of a talented cook - Henry Joseph Church. What begins as a six-month arrangement, instead spans fifteen years, and creates a family bond that lasts forever.

MOVIE TIP: MR. CHURCH

UPCOMING EVENTS

Washington, D.C. Dec 13 | Dinner Seminar Gaithersburg | Maryland

Dec 14 | Lunch n’ Learn Aberdeen Proving Ground | Maryland

Charlotte, NCJan 17 | Social Security Workshop Charlotte | North Carolina

Jan 25 | Social Security Workshop Charlotte | North Carolina

Jan 26 | Federal Employee Retirement Benefits Workshop Charlotte | North Carolina

Richmond, VAJan 10 | Social Security Workshop Henrico | Virginia

Jan 26 | Social Security Workshop Richmond | Virginia

Kansas City, MODec 6 | Social Security Workshop Kansas City | Missouri



Enjoying retirement takes a lot more than financial peace of mind – you have to physically be able to enjoy yourself.

My grandfather recently passed away at the still-sparkling age of 90. And you know what? He was more active than people in our family 30 years his junior; he could even pass them climbing the stairs. He was so active, that many years ago, when Ashley and I visited my grandparents in Albany, Georgia, we weren’t the only ones jumping off the diving board into the backyard pool.

This was the grandpa who set the tone in my life; how I want to be as a father, and especially how I want to be as a grandfather one day. I was so fortunate to have his life, his energy, his spirit in my own life, and a lot of that comes from feeling good on the inside. He battled numerous health issues that sideline many, but because he chose to stay active by pushing himself physically, he wasn’t held back.

Retirement should be fun. Fun requires energy, and energy is a result of positive healthy habits done consistently over time. Accumulation

of wealth is mainly the result of time and solid savings habits. Likewise, great health is a result of activity, good habits and nutrition done over time. It’s never too late to start feeling better.

WELLNESS AND RETIREMENT CHALLENGEArticle By Kyle Winkfield

The best memories of my childhood were spent with my grandfather, Jack Finley Hall (center).

DAILY ROUTINE * 10 push ups a day

* 5 pull ups a day

* 1 minute plank a day

* 10 air squats a day

* 4 mile walk in 75 minutes once to twice a week

“I just want to do two things:

1. Lose Weight

2. Eat Food.”



DO YOU HAVE BALANCE IN YOUR FINANCIAL ECOSYSTEM?Article By Jeremy Shipp

I saw a story over the summer that highlighted the importance of balance in nature. And when I thought about how important balance is in retirement, I knew I had to share the story.

Let’s start with a question: What do you think about wolves? Do you think they serve a purpose, or could we get along just fine without these vicious predators?

Well, if you wanted to change the course of the rivers in one of the largest national parks in the country, would you believe that one way to do it is to increase the wolf population in the park?

TROPHIC CASCADES: ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING SCIENTIFIC FINDINGS OF THE PAST HALF CENTURY.

A trophic cascade is an ecological process that starts at the top of the food chain, tumbling all the way down to the bottom, with the effect on the surrounding ecosystem being quite astounding.

During 1995 and 1996, 31 wolves were re-introduced to Yellowstone National Park after being absent from the park for over 70 years. Since wolves are at the top of the natural food chain, their absence created an imbalance in nature. Absent natural predators, the deer population in Yellowstone exploded to unmanageable levels, despite human attempts to control their numbers. As a result, the park’s natural vegetation was gradually eaten away to next to nothing – there were too many deer and not enough food.

The re-introduction of wolves obviously had an immediate impact, as they killed some of the deer. However, the more dramatic effect was seen in the migration patterns of the deer. Now that they were being hunted, the deer tried to steer clear of easy hunting grounds, particularly the valleys and gorges in Yellowstone. As a result, the vegetation in those

areas drastically increased, so much so that the trees actually quintupled in size in just 6 years. Birds returned to these trees, and beavers moved into the ecosystem. The beavers built dams, which subsequently created habitats for fish, muskrat, otters, ducks, amphibians, and reptiles.

The wolves also kil led coyotes, so the numbers of rabbits and mice began to rise. This meant more hawks , more weasels, more foxes and badgers. Ravens and bald eagles moved in to feed on the carcasses left by the wolves. Bears fed on the leftovers too, and

there were more berries for them to eat due to the growing vegetation, thus allowing the bear population to grow. The bears also further reinforced the impact of the wolves by killing some of the calves of the deer.

So over time, as the vegetation grew and the ecosystem came back into balance, soil erosion decreased and the banks of the rivers became more stable. This created new channels through which the waters could flow until the general course of the rivers in Yellowstone actually changed!

What began as an experiment to control the deer population turned into a profound discovery of the effects on an entire ecosystem when it is allowed to operate with proper balance. Without balance, by removing one single piece of the puzzle, the result was desolation. With balance restored, we once again have one of the most robust and beautiful habitats in North America.

As in nature, balance is critical when it comes to finances and retirement. And I’m not talking simply about the balance between stocks and bonds. That



is only one measure of balance in one’s overall asset picture, and possibly the least important. Based on our experience, a more important determination of balance centers on liquid assets (money in a savings account) versus non-liquid assets (home equity). Financial assets are only useful to you if you have access to them and can have control over the money.

Balance also becomes even more important when we consider the single biggest risk to current and soon-to-be retirees: taxes. This refers to taxable money (401k, IRA) versus non-taxable money (ROTH, cash value life insurance). If all of your retirement money is taxable, and tax rates go up, you will not only have to pay more taxes, you will also have less income on which to live. Sure, you received a tax deduction when you put money into that 401k or IRA, but if you pay more taxes to take money out of the account than the tax deduction that you initially received, that is a losing financial transaction.

So the questions become, is all of your money in a taxable account, and where will tax rates go over the next 10-20 years? Everyone has their own opinion, but most would agree that tax rates have only one direction at this point – up. Consider what David Walker, former

comptroller general of the United States and head of the Government Accountability Office, had to say in 2009: “Based on the current fiscal path, future taxes will have to double or our country will go bankrupt.” And that was back in 2009 when our national debt was $11 trillion instead of the $19.5 trillion it is today.

Proper balance is important in nature, life, and especially your finances. As you can see with the Yellowstone story, you can restore balance in nature, and you can certainly restore it in your financial world. If your overall financial picture is out of balance, it is never too early, or too late, to address it. Just like in Yellowstone, you can create a trophic cascade in your financial ecosystem with minor tweaks to your plan. Once you make a change at the top of your financial food chain (the way you manage your assets), you increase the potential to experience the trickle-down benefits of financial balance - less stress, deeper personal relationships, more time to spend with loved ones, better health, etc. The possibilities are truly limitless.

There is no single approach or plan that is right for everyone, but a holistic approach helps provide balance in one’s financial ecosystem.

UPDATES FROM THE OWRS FAMILYKyle, Ashley and Jackson welcomed Cooper Avery Winkfield on July 21st.

Jeremy Shipp obtained his Certified Financial Planner designation. CFP® professionals must pass the comprehensive CFP® Certification Exam-ination, pass CFP® Board’s Fitness Standards for Candidates and Pro-fessionals Eligible for Reinstatement, agree to abide by CFP® Board’s Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility and Rules of Conduct.

Kyle tests the healing powers of -240 degrees Fahrenheit in the Thrive Cryostudio.



IN THE BLACK

WHAT WE DOWe go out into the world of finance to find the best, cutting-edge products and solu-tions to meet our clients’ specific financial goals. As an independent firm, we are not restricted in the products and services that we can offer to our clientele. We feel that our professional independence is critical to our ability to serve our clients’ best in-terests.

The variety of options that we can offer as a result of our independence is one of the main reasons that prospective clients choose to join our firm. Once they are educated on all of their available options, they realize what they were missing with their previous investment firm. We feel that the financial options available to a client should only be limited to what is available within the world of finance.

WHY WE DO ITMost people spend the majority of their lives trading their most valuable asset - time - for money (in the form of labor). Why are we so willing to sacrifice our most valuable asset in pursuit of money, yet so apathetic when it comes to preserving, securing, and safely managing it? This mindset combined with the disappearing traditional pension plan (all but phased out with the Greatest Generation) has our country heading for the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression: The Retirement Crisis. The first wave of do-it-yourself retirement planning is upon us and most people are not getting a passing grade (see above study).

WHY IT MATTERSCan we as a country afford to be spec-tators (or contributors) to the impending

crisis? Bearing the burden of millions of failed retirement plans means more than just higher taxes for you and me. The more you know, the more you understand, the more you can prepare yourself and the more you can help others. The biggest challenge that most of our clients face is that they want their friends and family to get help, but they don’t know how to have the conversation.

SPREAD THE WORDMost of our clients are so happy with the financial tools and education we provide that they want to spread the word with their friends and family, but they don’t know how to have the conversation. So here are a few ideas to make that conver-sation easier:

Owrsfirm.com. Our website is a great and subtle way to share our firm with others. People can learn more about what services we provide, who we are as advisors, and what national publications we’ve recently been featured in!

Public Seminars. We typically hold regular public seminars in our respective locations. Grab some friends and have dinner on us!

Lunch & Learns. Want the seminar and meal to come to you? No problem. Get some colleagues together and we’ll bring the lunch and information!

Ultimately, the best way to start a con-versation with those you care about is to share why you decided to work with us and what our planning has meant to you.

Whether that be making sure you don’t run out of money in retirement, increasing your retirement income, increasing your liquidity, reducing your exposure to tax in-creases, or giving you more control over your money, it is important to talk about the results and not the specific monetary vehicle(s) that are getting you there.

Just like automobile models change every few years, financial products are re-tooled and adjusted based on market conditions and government regulations, so the spe-cific vehicle(s) you are using may not be available any longer. Products come and go, but strategies and options are always available. Need help having the conversa-tion? Give us a call!

80% of Americans don’t have the foggi-est clue about retirement. That’s right. In a 2014 study done by the New York Life Center for Retirement Income only 20% of those surveyed received a passing score of 60%. This is not good news for the 70 Million people that are going to retire over the next 15 years.

O’Dell, Winkfield, Roseman & Shipp12



o’dell, winkfield, roseman & shipp in the black€¦ · · 2017-07-16james a. balwin 7...

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