Gifts that Keep on Giving

Stress. Time-consuming shopping. Expenses. Appreciation or lack thereof. Confusion.

Do you associate any of these thoughts with Christmas?

Most people do, and that is really sad when you consider why we celebrate this holiday.

Not a day goes by that I do not think about financial matters. That is what I do for a living and I am passionate about what I do along with the members of our firm. We care about our clients, our families, friends, and community.

Serving on four different foundation boards, I accepted the responsibility to support the mission of those foundations. As President of the Aiken Symphony Orchestra, I believe that the organization provides value to the Aiken community. We will celebrate the Christmas season with beautiful performances of The Messiah and Christmas holiday music.

My point is that we all have people and causes we believe in and give our time to.

Don’t we want to celebrate this season of the year by sharing gifts, time, and resources while also having the ability to enjoy it?

Well, follow the money. We have heard that statement many times when it comes to power
and politics.

If we are honest with ourselves, this also relates to the issues that I mentioned above.

When we spend money that we don’t have on people who don’t appreciate it and feel that we must do so out of obligation, there is no joy or satisfaction from these actions.

I can be guilty of oversimplifying matters at times, but I truly believe we need to get back to the root of what brings joy and value to life. It starts and ends with love. For God so loved the world…

Financial planning should start with the basis of loving your family. Hopefully, that love extends to friends and others who need that miracle-working ingredient. When you love others, you do not want them to suffer because of your actions, rather you hope that they will receive value from them.

Begin with protecting your family against risk that can undermine your finances. Creating a plan that addresses your current concerns and future objectives is good medicine for relieving stress and providing value to your own well-being.

Have you noticed that the people who often make others happy are happy with themselves? Have you also noticed that the people who support the financial needs of their church and charities do so because they are not struggling to provide for their own needs?

Give some serious thought to looking within and taking action to build upon the values that create joy in your life. Use the support of professionals and build your team of support in making your world a better place.

Picture of Thomas Herlong

Thomas Herlong

Thomas H Herlong, CLU, ChFC, CLTC: General Partner, Herlong & Doran Financial Group
Picture of Thomas Herlong

Thomas Herlong

Thomas H Herlong, CLU, ChFC, CLTC: General Partner, Herlong & Doran Financial Group

In the know

Related Stories

Social Media | On Tolerance | Aiken Bella Magazine

Social Media | On Tolerance

If we’re transparent and honest, negative comments can become opportunities to improve customer relationships. If you’re on social media for any length of time, you’re eventually going to offend someone, even if you don’t mean to. It’s bad enough when you accidentally anger someone on a personal account, but when one of your business’s social accounts offends someone, that can be particularly fraught. Online reviews and reputation are hugely important to businesses nowadays, so much so that companies will mention Yelp or other reviews in their advertising, and sometimes even hire reputation management consultants to make sure nothing negative shows up in a search. Realistically, it’s impossible to have only

Read More »
2020 Financial Vision | Aiken Bella Magazine

2020 Financial Vision

Where do you want to be at the end of 2020, or three years from now, or five years from now? One of the basic needs that we desire for making good decisions is clarity. Until my mid-forties, I had 20/20 vision. Today, clarity comes with the help of my glasses. Sometimes we need a professional to help with clarity in other matters of life. When it comes to making decisions about investing for the future, clarity is a challenge. Just read my article from December. Multiple money managers were recommending that we prepare for single digit returns in 2020 and that volatility could be significant. That could still be

Read More »
Social Media In Balance | Aiken Bella Magazine

Social Media In Balance

It’s January and your New Year’s Resolution is to give up social media entirely. You spend one day feeling virtuous, then a few more days feeling anxious as you wonder what you’re missing out on. By the end of the first week, you’ve caved, reinstalled all the apps on your phone, and spent hours binging on Facebook and Instagram. Spending too much time on social media isn’t healthy, but you don’t have to give it up entirely. If you’re worried that your virtual life has overtaken your real life, try going on a social media diet instead. When you go on a food diet to lose weight, you don’t stop

Read More »
Money Matters | As 2019 Closes & 2020 Begins | Aiken Bella Magazine

Money Matters | As 2019 Closes & 2020 Begins

What to Expect? You Need to Know! We have just experienced one of the best years of investment performance, and that is both good and bad. It is good if you benefited from the performance, but it can be bad if you don’t face the reality of what 2020 and the future can bring. How many times have you heard that past performance does not indicate future performance? I don’t want to throw cold water on your parade, but there are clouds on the horizon that we should pay attention to. In our firm, we often consult with a financial analyst who communicates with multiple money managers each week to

Read More »