The object of our work can be distilled into four words: Invest wisely, spend well.
You’ll notice that half those words have nothing to do with saving more, investing more, or putting off pleasure today in order to have more wealth tomorrow. They are a call to action for the present moment: spend well.
But who gets to do the spending? And for whose benefit?
(To put it more bluntly, as one of you has told us before, “I’m not living my life to make my kids rich.”)
We each have to decide what it means to spend well. Our spending habits have a chance to make an impression on the next generation. In fact, what we give away today might inspire even more generous habits in our offspring, or our neighbors, or our students.
It can be downright fun to spend today rather than waiting to leave our mark. Bequeathments, retirement gifts, and other forms of legacy planning can be fitting vehicles for our generosity, but for some people, it might also be prudent to consider what it is we’re waiting for.
If “enough is as good as a feast”—another gem one of you taught us!—then the excess might be spent in a specific direction, today.
A Donor Advised Fund (DAF) is one vehicle for committing to a charitable intent, whether or not the exact destination of the gift is known right now. Spending well might actually mean investing for someone else’s long haul: an organization or cause near and dear to us, a community effort that’s bigger than what any one of us could achieve alone.
This is what we do at 228 Main: help connect the resources we manage to their sources of meaning. We’re not accumulating wealth for the sake of having it. It’s what those resources might mean, what they might do.
But if you can “invest wisely,” you may end up with even more to “spend well”—both now and in the future. No guarantees, but this is what we strive toward: Invest wisely, spend well.
Clients, if you would like to talk about this or anything else, email us or call.
Investing involves risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results.
Content in this material is for general information only and not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.
To determine which strategies or investments may be suitable for you, consult the appropriate qualified professional prior to making a decision.
This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific tax issues with a qualified tax advisor.
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