Untangling Christmas Lights

Read Time / 2 Minutes

Theme / Financial Planning

I stood in our front yard on a clear cold November afternoon and slowly untangled the strands of Christmas lights that had been carefully wrapped, or so we thought, after last Christmas.  It took time, but eventually I ended up with a long straight strand laying on the lawn, soon to adorn our house gutters.  That tangled pile of green wires eventually became a pleasant Christmas glow across our front porch.

Over time our investments can become like a tangled pile of Christmas lights.  We have old retirement plans that should be rolled over, annuities that have finished their surrender period, IRAs inherited from loved ones, QDRO divorce settlements to reinvest, pension decisions to be made (take lump sump or stream of payments), gifts from grandparents for children’s college simply sitting in savings accounts, and existing investments that could be realigned to better reflect our goals and values.

Scripture teaches us that “By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established” (Proverbs 24:3).  A family making a house a home, working hard to create a loving environment, is a thing of beauty.  As we look at our tangled pile of investments, we would be wise to takes steps to bring financial order to disorder.  It may take time, as untangling the lights did for me, but the payoff was worth it.  Having our investments strategically work together towards our goals is a thing of beauty knowing that we are building our financial house with wisdom.

Doug Hanson, MBA

Wealth Advisor

208.697.3699

doug@christianwm.com