BUSINESS - sfgweb.com · Planning, money-management and investment-advisory services, investment products ... and went into orbit around the earth . . . for a second time. Of course,

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FEATURED ADVISORSJeremy D. Schares, CFP®, CRPC, Associate Vice President, Wealth Management

ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENTAvailable on request

FINANCIAL SERVICES EXPERIENCEJeremy, 12 years

COMPENSATION METHODAsset-based and fixed fees

LARGEST CLIENT NET WORTHConfidential

MINIMUM ASSET REQUIREMENT$500,000 (investment services)

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES PROVIDEDPlanning, money-management and investment-advisory services, investment products

PRIMARY CUSTODIANS FOR INVESTOR ASSETSTD Ameritrade, Charles Schwab, Fidelity

[email protected]

WEBSITEwww.sfgweb.com

STRATEGIC FINANCIAL GROUP, LLC

1333 Burr Ridge Parkway, Suite 200, Burr Ridge, IL 60527; 30 South Wacker Drive, Suite 2200, Chicago, IL 60606;

101 East 90th Drive, Merrillville, IN 46410; 100 Executive Drive, Suite A, Lafayette, IN 47905888.363.7147

L E A D I N G W E A L T H A D V I S O R | C H I C A G O , I L

I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y K E V I N S P R O U L S

How can financialplanning turn my legacy into a “live-acey”?B Y J E R E M Y D . S C H A R E S

Standing, left to right: Chad E. Hassinger, Stephen J. Barrett, Michael A. Jankowske, Steven M. Gronceski, Susan R. Kuczera, Bradley J. Rathe; seated, left to right: Douglas J. Hoover, Markus R.F. Sleuwen

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STRATEGIC FINANCIAL GROUP, LLC

1333 Burr Ridge Parkway, Suite 200, Burr Ridge, IL 60527; 30 South Wacker Drive, Suite 2200, Chicago, IL 60606;

101 East 90th Drive, Merrillville, IN 46410; 100 Executive Drive, Suite A, Lafayette, IN 47905888.363.7147

’m not interested in my legacy. I made up a word: ‘live-acey.’ I’m more interested in living.’’

At age 77, the author of that quote not only held a seat in the United States Senate, he also took a seat as a crew member on the Space Shuttle Discovery and went into orbit around the earth . . . for a second time. Of course, we are talking about John Glenn.

So, what does the life of John Glenn, a true hero, have to do with the financial planning of us earthbound mortals? It has to do with Glenn’s wonderful coin-age: live-acey. The minute you start to plan for a financial “live-acey,” you change not only the conversation, but your vision, your attitude and, yes, your strategy.

You begin to think of a legacy not as something you leave behind, but something that you live now, something that you enjoy, now. Rather than saying, “Well, after I’m gone . . .,” you start saying, “Well, while I’m still here . . .”

It comes down to this: How you plan, in fact planning itself, determines your per-ception and handling of your wealth. When high net worth investors have no plan or just a skeletal version of one, chasing re-turns often becomes the central focus. This is not to say that returns are not important, but they should be one goal among a multi-tude of goals.

Chasing returns from the latest, suddenly hot category, leads to ineffective investing. Simply put, because an investment is hot, it has grown, maybe about as much as it will grow. Which means you are paying close to top dollar with little room for growth. Or, as someone once said, when you jump on a fi-nancial bandwagon, you have already missed the best part of the trip.

In contrast, when you start to plan, really plan—and if I may say, with a person who does planning for a living—several things happen. You end up with a true grasp of how much income your investments do, and can, deliver. You get an unbiased assessment of the health and growth potential of your busi-ness. As a corporate officer, you get an hon-est assessment of the current and potential worth of stock options.

In short, you don’t ignore growth, but you do focus on nurturing, cultivating and maxi-mizing the wealth you already have. For ex-ample, you make certain you pay only the taxes required by law. You also focus on your income needs now and in the future, while each year gifting your children the maximum allowed. It is all part of making sure that your children, and their children, have the same opportunities you had. And you get to watch it happen.

Planning also focuses the conversation on what really should concern you, and reduces the angst from every single financial ripple across the globe, ripples that in most cases

will affect your position little if at all. After the planning process, clients have said to me, “I literally sleep better at night.”

In my experience, once the planning pro-cess concludes, clients are often pleasantly surprised to find out that it will take a whole lot less than they thought to achieve all of their goals. And that is what really changes the conversation.

With a surplus, you can start on some seri-ous “live-acey” projects. Maybe you found a charity, or a scholarship in your name, or cre-ate and donate an art collection, etc. All are “legacies” that you can see come to fruition.

Meaning, you enjoy your well-deserved emotional reward while you are, yes, “still here.” l

Investing involves risk. Investment return and theprincipal value of an investment will fluctuate, and aninvestor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth moreor less than their original cost. Advisory Services offeredthrough Strategic Financial Group, LLC (dba SFGI, LLC inIllinois), a Registered Investment Advisor.

S T R A T E G I C F I N A N C I A L G R O U P , L L C

STRATEGIC FINANCIAL GROUP, LLC (SFG) IS AN INTEGRATED AND COMPREHEN-

SIVE WEALTH-MANAGEMENT FIRM THAT HAS BEEN HELPING A SELECT GROUP

OF FAMILIES, BUSINESSES, INDIVIDUALS AND INSTITUTIONS ACHIEVE THEIR

FINANCIAL-PLANNING AND WEALTH-MANAGEMENT GOALS SINCE 1996. With a business

practice modeled after family offices, SFG takes a holistic approach to financial plan-

ning for its clients. Each SFG client has a tailored team of highly skilled professionals

suited to solving the issues and financial concerns unique to that client’s financial

situation. Client success rests on the firm’s ability to integrate well-constructed

and dynamic plans that are reviewed and amended over time. These plans integrate

tax, estate, risk-management, legal and succession and inheritance issues, to name a

few. SFG prides itself on nurturing client relationships that are not “one and done,”

but are structured to last a lifetime and beyond. l

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You begin to think of a legacy not as something you leave behind, but something that you live now.

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Strategic Financial Group, LLC is featured in Worth® 2017 Leading Wealth Advisors™, a special section in every edition of Worth® magazine. All persons and firms appearing in this section have completed questionnaires, have been vetted by an advisory group following submission by Worth®, and thereafter paid the standard fees to Worth® to be featured in this section. The information contained herein is for informational purposes, and although the list of advisors presented in this section is drawn from sources believed to be reliable and independently reviewed, the accuracy or completeness of this information is not guaranteed. No person or firm listed in this section should be construed as an endorsement by Worth®, and Worth® will not be responsible for the performance, acts or omissions of any such advisor. It should not be assumed that the past performance of any advisors featured in this special section will equal or be an indicator of future performance. Worth®, a publication of the Worth Group LLC, is a financial publisher and does not recommend or endorse investment, legal or tax advisors, investment strategies or particular investments. Those seeking specific investment advice should consider a qualified and licensed investment professional. Worth® is a registered trademark of the Worth Group LLC.

Chad E. Hassinger, CFP® Chief Executive Officer

Bradley J. Rathe Chief Investment Officer

Steven M. Gronceski, CFP®, AIF® Vice President, Wealth Management

Jeremy D. Schares, CFP®, CRPC Associate Vice President, Wealth Management

Strategic Financial Group, LLC1333 Burr Ridge Parkway, Suite 200

Burr Ridge, IL, 60527Tel. 888.363.7147

30 South Wacker Drive, Suite 2200Chicago, IL 60606

101 East 90th DriveMerrillville, IN 46410

100 Executive Drive, Suite ALafayette, IN 47905

2815 Forbs Ave #107 Hoffman Estates, IL 60192

[email protected]

R E P R I N T E D F R O M

®

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