Last week, I—we, to many FLiP readers—lost a friend and colleague, Molly Zerjal, just days after she was involved in a tragic car accident. Even if you weren't fortunate enough to know Molly, you’ll get a glimpse into her inimitable sense of humor by just reading her obituary.

A celebration of life is planned for today, where, in addition to the tears of sorrow, I expect there will be many tears of joy shed as stories of Molly’s hilarity are shared. But still…

She was 35. Driving to work. And now gone.

It’s a reminder of the fragility of life, a life in which so much of our time seems focused on documenting the past and projecting into the future. A future which may never come.

As a financial advisor, this is something that has often challenged, even troubled, me; especially as the perception of so many is that financial planning is a practice that is almost wholly dedicated to preparation for that uncertain future.

I think it’s also one of the reasons that so many people deprioritize financial planning in the face of so many seemingly pressing concerns today.

So today, we'll address three ways that financial planning can help you live for today, even as you plan for tomorrow.

In this FLiP weekly you'll find:

• Financial LIFE Planning:
  • Plan For Tomorrow, Live For Today
• Quote O' The Week:
  • Gilda Radner
• Weekly Market Update:
  • 2023 So Far

Financial LIFE Planning

Plan For Tomorrow, Live For Today

I could use the example of someone’s untimely passing as a rallying cry for long-term financial planning—reminding us to do proper estate planning and consider the benefits of life insurance—but that’s not where I’m going with this.

I believe those things are important, but today, I’m more concerned with how financial planning can be of benefit in the present. Right now.

I’ll posit three possibilities:

1. It offers the time and space for discussing things that matter. As we often say here, all great financial planning is really financial life planning. Anyone who carries the Certified Financial Planner™ credential is held to a (newer, higher) standard that requires them to “understand the client’s personal and financial circumstances.”

They must obtain the quantitative information you’d expect, but also qualitative information, like “family circumstances, values, attitudes, expectations…goals, needs, priorities…”

You see, financial planning isn’t just about numbers and spreadsheets—it’s supposed to be about you and the stuff in life that is most important to you. And in the midst of our hectic lives, just having the time and space to discuss these matters is a gift in itself.

2. Financial planning begins with the present. In order to determine where you’d like to go, you have to know where you are. Even something like a simple net worth statement—a list of everything you own and owe at the given moment—has a very present focus to it. Whenever I show someone their net worth statement for the first time, I’ll ask, “When was the last time you looked at everything in one place like this?” The answer is invariably, “Rarely” or “Never.”

But then I’ll follow it up with, “So, does this statement of net worth look as you would have hoped at this point in life?” This almost always leads to a productive conversation, but whether the situation appears better or worse than one would expect, there is a certain catharsis that comes with simply knowing where you stand.

3. Knowing you’re prepared for the future helps us worry less in the present. While financial planning can’t predict a certain future, it can help eliminate certain negative outcomes and it can be effective at hypothesizing the success or failure of various patterns of behavior, eliminating some of the stress associated with uncertainty. “Uncertainty about the future,” Dr. Liji Thomas says, “makes us less capable of coping with negative events when they happen.”

While it can’t eliminate uncertainty, financial planning can help us identify and name the unknown, giving us one less to worry about and making us better prepared when those negative events do happen.

And they will. Negative things will happen, the stark reminder that has jolted me as I reflect on Molly’s passing. Yet as I mourn the loss that so many have experienced in facing a future without her, I’m also inspired to live more like she did—bringing a lightness, creativity, humor, and joy to every interaction in the present.

Quote O' The Week

Gilda Radner

Here's a prescient quote from Molly's favorite comic on living for today:

Weekly Market Update

First, let's take a glance at how the markets performed this past week:

• + 1.90% .SPX (500 U.S. large companies)
• + 1.55% IWD (U.S. large value companies)
• + 2.13% IWM (U.S. small companies)
• + 1.48% IWN (U.S. small value companies)
• + 2.76% EFV (International value companies)
• + 2.69% SCZ (International small companies)
• - 0.24% VGIT (U.S. intermediate-term Treasury bonds

Year-To-Date

And now a glance at the markets' performance so far in 2023:

• + 5.37% .SPX (500 U.S. large companies)
• + 3.36% IWD (U.S. large value companies)
• + 9.83% IWM (U.S. small companies)
• + 8.48 IWN (U.S. small value companies)
• + 8.04% EFV (International value companies)
• + 6.62% SCZ (International small companies)
• - 0.85% VGIT (U.S. intermediate-term Treasury bonds

2023 - So Far

After being up big in January and down in February, the market sought to find a new footing this week. The net results are still looking pretty darn good for 2023 so far.

In this weekend's Wall Street Journal, State Street Global Advisors' Michael Arone said, "Investors are getting comfortable that higher rates aren't going to crush the economy."

Is this a shift in the narrative that has pervaded now for months--where signs of economic weakness were greeted with green market movements in hopes that the Fed would slow its acceleration of rising interest rates and signs of economic strength inspired red days in fear of higher rates?

We'll see, but the market's digestion of economic indicators this week seemed to be a bit of a departure from the recent script.

In other news:

• "Google hits pause" on its much-hyped second headquarters in Arlington, VA. Is this a sign of a new, post-Covid approach to commercial real estate?
• Will we see an upward revision in the age at which retirees can receive Social Security benefits--and higher payroll taxes? That seems to be the trend of talks on Social Security reform.

Life is short and precious. I hope you make the most of it for what's left of this weekend and the week ahead.

Best,

Tim

Tim Maurer, CFP®, RLP®

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Oh, and BTW, The information in this article is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as specific investment, accounting, legal, or tax advice. That should really come from your financial advisor. Also, my opinions may--or may not--be shared by my employer.