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"It's better to be lucky than good." - Lefty Gomez, National Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher for the New York Yankees  The longer I live, the more impressed I am by the big truths that are hidden in plain sight. Who doesn't love the simple bit of brilliance that was made real when someone created a rear hatch on a SUV that opens with a touch to the bumper? Or how about the genius that created the cup holder in the grocery store shopping cart? I tip my cap to the people that could SEE what the truth was.....and that brings me to today's topic....the paradox of skill.
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"America is the most educated, unskilled nation on the planet." - Mike Rowe  I like this time of year, particularly for kids entering their senior year of high school. They are excited to be at the end of this stage of their lives and look forward to college. I am excited too, but I’m also a little worried. My wife and I were the first people in our respective families to graduate from college. Things are much different for people going to college today.
When I started college, 23% of men in the country had a 4-year college degree. Contrast that with the reality that nearly 65% of today’s high school graduates go to college. If college degrees really differentiated one person from another thirty years ago, that “degree” of differentiation no longer exists.
“If you want a house, you have to work hard for it. And, oh Lord, am I working hard.”
— Anita, future Habitat homeowner 
As crazy as it seems, we are on the downhill run to Christmas, with 134 days remaining until the big day. It is in this half of the year when we begin to recognize our respective good fortune, and that tends to put us in a charitable state of mind. As a result, this is the first in a series of newsletters where I'll profile a non-profit organization that you might consider supporting. You know I like to be different, so I'm not going to bore you with their financials. Instead, I want you to know about the people that founded them, the people that run them now, and what they hope to accomplish.
To start, we are going to look at Habitat for Humanity International. Its story is very cool.... "Oh, you don't like being treated the way you treat me?"  I’m a man formally educated in economics and finance. I don’t like tariffs and I believe in the importance of free-trade. In fact, I once believed so strongly in those subjects that you could have called me a "purist." Not anymore. Today, I believe that Donald Trump is right to impose tariffs on China.
In researching this topic, I have fallen down a rabbit hole. The story about China is deep and dark and it is frightening. I worry about the future of our democracy. For all ye who enter here, beware… He was paying $10,000 a year LESS than just about everyone else I knew for healthcare coverage. I wasn't really sure what a "healthcare sharing plan" was, but if it was doing what I understood it to be doing, I knew it was really inexpensive.  To set up this story, I need to tell you how this topic came to my attention in the first place.
A few months ago, a fellow came through the door looking for help in designing a financial plan. He's a good guy....married, two kids, and a business he started a number of years ago. He's making good money....and like a lot of entrepreneurs, he's concerned that it won't last forever. |
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December 2019
Bruce WingEntrepreneur, financial guy, husband and father of two great kids. |
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