When prospective clients tell me, “We want preservation of principal and growth,” I think of the Soup Nazi from Seinfeld and feel like responding, “No soup for you!” Because this happens all the time. And I get it.
Part of our precious time together at www.yoursurvivalguy.com, dear reader, is to learn about each other and to learn the rules of the road. And our road isn’t for everyone. And clearly what we learned in kindergarten still applies, yet is often forgotten: Wait your turn and be nice.
Now, this couple in their early 80s were nice. But they are needy: wanting preservation and growth.
“We’re sure you get that a lot,” she said. “But we really need to make more on this money.” Then she told me how they’re loaded with annuities, and I knew I needed to handle them with kid gloves. We had a thirty-minute master class on investing the Richard C. Young way, and I told them the two most important questions to ask your advisor.
“Well, how much can you make for us this year? Because we need as much as possible,” she reminded me. She kept saying how much they needed from the market. And then it hit me: They’re looking over their shoulder at last year’s 24% return on the S&P 500, didn’t get close to that sitting in cash, and are driving themselves crazy. There is nothing worse than losing money, but a close second is seeing others make it.
“We want to try you out,” she said.
But then, later in the day, I received a phone message that she had decided not to come with us. When I called her to ask why, she said, “Another guy we’ve been talking to promised us a return we like, and we really need what he’s promising.”
Action Line: Educate yourself. Protect yourself. Because promises are…
Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.
