Colours of Wealth

BY WHITNEY HAMMOND, CFP, CLU PRINCIPAL, SOVEREIGN WEALTH MANAGEMENT Implementing wealth building strategies for business owners and executives for 25 years

Money and ROMANCE

When we think of money, who would connect this to unconditional love, mothering, romance, sensuality, compassion, and the rest of the fabulous attributes of pink? I would. And so would many others, although they may not have this in the forefront of their mind, but more so in their subconscious. Men listen up (and women you are next!) I divorced 3 times by the time I was 36 and have remained single for 21 years. Why? Certainly not because I do not love men, I do. I greatly admire them and aspire to be more like them as they THINK BIG. This helps me to think bigger. Being a tom boy at heart, we cannot change genetics. I am a woman and I look for “the nesting and safety” of my family. I am loaded with intuition and compassion, but when it comes to mothering, I have an unconditional love that roars like a bear and I will ruthlessly cast out anything that affects the contents of my nest: my family. This brings me to finance. With all these firm qualities, many women are looking for financial safety in order to feel complete and sensual in our relationships. Money can break down the best of relationships. Rule #1. Make the money Rule #2. Keep the money Rule #3. Build the family empire. Let’s take a look at each one of these.

I love co-creating with you!

Rule #1

Many times it has been said that “women will marry for money.” I am sure some will, but most will marry for love, affection and family. Look at both incomes and add them together. Decide your BURN RATE, yes, your budget. (For example: if your joint income is $8000/mo. and your monthly budget is $6000/mo. Together you will need to decide what you would like to do with the $2000/mo.) You can blow the $2000/mo. However, at some point, there will be no nest egg, no family formation, stress, arguing about who spent what and then sooner or later, someone will bail out. Make a joint family goal, and watch the passion come alive in the relationship. Couples love to co-create! Wealth is honestly built one dollar at a time. The get quick rich schemes do not exist. Ask anyone with sustained wealth, like myself, it is built one dollar at a time with shrewd decisions as to what to invest in.

Rule #2

How did that family do it? How did they get the family home, the 2 cars and the annual vacations? A family who plans together, stays together. In my 25 years of experience in my financial practice and working with hundreds of families, I can count the number of family breaks up on 2 hands. Why? It is true, the people planning together stay together. Keep the money. Assign each dollar to the family goals. Decide on an annual amount to be invested into RRSP’s. Create family buckets: Trip bucket, house savings bucket, short savings bucket. Marriage is a partnership. Partners make decisions together. Create a business plan of family goals, net income, and dollar amount needed to save each year. The only difference between reaching these goals and not, is the lack of your joint focus of your family outcome. Compare this to aviation: Make your flight plan, fly the plane, use your rudder. The rudder steers the nose of your plane. Yaw the wrong way and both of you will be off course, the nest egg goes, the safety goes, and so does the passion. It’s all out the window and downhill from here.

Rule #3

Now for the women. Men LOVE TO BUILD. It is in their DNA to build. They will take chances. They can build, fail, land on their feet and rebuild again. Here is where the partnership can jilter. Women are focusing on the nest egg, so much so, that they may want to avoid taking the risks that allow for substantial empire building results. Review the family goal, upgrade it if need be. Focus together on the outcome. When in agreement, it will come. Dream big, take calculated risks that you both agree on the downside. Buying into something that seems too good to be true, will likely be, too good to be true. There are 3 long term avenues to wealth that have proved themselves overtime: hard work, buying real estate, and investing in the stock market. Here is the recipe. Mentor with others who have done it. Hire an investment planner. Ask them their net worth. Choose a wealthy person to show you the ropes. I have built significant wealth over the years, and I can tell you, it works. The more you accumulate, the more that will show up building that family empire. Wealth accumulates from one generation to the next, mentoring children to become educated, responsible, moral, and dedicated to building their family and legacy - it all runs in the family!!

What could be better than being in love for decades and building a strong family unit that becomes your empire.

Women love to love and feel they are taken care of. Men love to be proud of their family and relish in their woman’s happiness. And the final triumph: children grow up seeing two responsible adults making joint decisions, providing deep respect for one another and thinking of others, then just themselves.