Generosity with Intention

It’s that time of year again! Your mail box is filling with requests for donations. Maybe your phone is ringing or your neighbor is at the door asking for a donation for his favorite organization. How does that make you feel?

Do you have an intentional giving strategy for your family or, like so many, do you respond to requests for contributions based on who approaches you or what comes in your mailbox, and then find that you have little left to give to causes you’d really like to support? Planned giving can provide some structure to your gifts and allow you to feel more intentional about your choices. It’s really not so

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Canary in the Coal Mine

Is Greece the world’s “Canary in the coal mine?”

There was a time when caged canaries were used in coal mining as sacrificial warning signs of the presence of toxic gases.  When the canaries stopped singing, the miners knew it was time to get out.

While Greece has been receiving much of the attention, the size of Greece and magnitude of their potential default doesn’t seem to be in line with the markets’ response of late.  In his blog, linked below, Scott Grannis discusses this issue and suggests the magnitude of recent market reactions to the back-and-forth of a potential Greek default may be a

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Emotional Roller Coaster

We have a children’s book in our house titled, “The Way I Feel” that encompasses the range of emotions kids seemingly go through on a routine basis; happy, sad, excited, angry, fearful.  Ironically, I think we adults experience these same emotions in our daily lives, perhaps even more than our kids.

The current renewed volatility in financial markets is reviving unwelcome feelings among many investors – ultimately creating a sense of powerlessness.  The sovereign debt strains in the US and Europe, renewed worries over financial institutions and fears of another recession are leading market participants to

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An Excuse to Relax

There’s a thought in the world of exercise science that it’s good for the body, once in a while, to actually get "out of shape."  In order to continually improve and not plateau your level of fitness, it’s thought that the body needs to “reset” itself.  Think of a computer . . .  every so often your computer starts running slow, acts in odd ways, makes you want to punch it, and the list goes on.  Often, the fix is just a matter of rebooting.  Same goes with our bodies - a little extended rest and then back to sweating can be a useful strategy to continue increasing your level of

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Look Who's Buying

Yearning for any bit of positive news within the madness that is Wall Street these days?  Ed Green and Kent Kramer have been providing excellent perspective on the recent volatility, so if you have yet to read their contributions, check them out (link).

Here's a not-so-well-publicized anecdote that may help you avoid further bouts of hyperventilation…

Seems many corporate executives are recognizing opportunity amid the recent market freefall.  As of mid-August, these higher-ups have individually purchased, or increased corporate buybacks of, their own company’s stock to the tune of $900 million. That is the most for a

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Markets under the Magnifying Glass

 


Terror in the Markets! The latest "B" Movie?

The 1954 "B" movie, "Them" is based on the premise that irradiated ants in New Mexico grow to an enormous size and then threaten to end civilization.  While I have not seen the movie (and who really needs to?), the basis for many "B" horror movies is to take relatively small threats in ordinary life and put them under the magnifying glass so that they look truly terrifying on the big screen.

The US and European stock markets opened to an immediate sell-off this morning, down over 4% in the first 60 minutes of trading on US exchanges.  Why was there so much volatility?  It's usually

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