As the owner and lead planner of Upward Financial Planning, I have a controversial take on vacations for business owners. I will be taking a month-long vacation to live in my camper van in Utah, starting May 10.
I know a lot of entrepreneurs and business owners who work so much that they never have time to take off. They may even like the idea of vacation and spending time with family, but they simply can’t find the time. Of course, I could work more and probably make a lot more money if I worked during this time, but financial planning is about helping you live the life that you want to live, not about glorifying budgets, balance sheets, and investment returns.
As a financial advisor who prides himself in helping people live the lives that they want to live through the power of financial planning, I am practicing what I preach by spending a month living in my van with my fiancé in Utah. We will be hitting the road on May 10 to drive down to Florida where we will spend a week with my family vising my sister in Mascotte, FL and probably going to Disney and the beach. Then we will take the southern route to Scottsdale, AZ where I will be attending a conference about helping business owners accelerate their business growth and make a plan to exit their business at retirement with the highest sense of accomplishment, legacy, and/or the most dollars in their pockets possible.
Then we will visit Los Angeles, Vegas, and then head towards Utah and visit the national parks and spend some time on BLM land before driving back through Colorado, Nashville, and other spots on our way back to Virginia.
I am sure there will be challenges along the way, maybe a flat tire, or a hot day, but that is the plan so far. Just like in financial planning, we have the initial plan, and then we monitor and adjust along the way. That’s all that you can do.
We are so excited to be going on this trip. Aren’t the moments of joy and happiness what we work so hard for in this life? You take care of buying life insurance to protect your family. You contribute to your retirement account to protect your future. You work extra hours to pay your bills. The reward is spending time with your loved ones and enjoying what this world has to offer.
Yes this is a vacation, but we will also be doing some work since we’ll be going to the conference in Scottsdale. And we’ll be planning for tax-efficiency (hello, tax-deductible business expenses). I will also be available via phone and email most days, although I can’t tell you exactly when since we might be living in the desert without access to cell service or Wi-Fi some of those days. If you need anything, please feel free to reach out to my assistant Alyssa who can be reached at admin@upwardfp.com or schedule a meeting with me before May 10. For more information about how I saved up enough money to afford #vanlife and built my van, you can read the blog I wrote on that subject here.
Milestone Celebrations
As a driven business owner, we are celebrating several milestones on this trip. Please join us in celebrating the milestones that we have achieved in a short 10 months of launching the business.
Since launching on July 1, 2022 we have done about 20 comprehensive financial plans, completed 45 tax returns, opened 105 investment accounts, and built relationships with our clients to now be managing right around $8,000,000, all in a down market.
I was featured in over a dozen national publications as an expert financial advisor giving advice on various financial topics. I was featured on both local channel 7 and channel 10 as an expert financial advisor.
I went through a study program and passed a test, achieving the Certified Exit Planning Advisor credential which will allow me to better help business owners to transition their businesses at retirement and plan for the tax implications of selling a business as well as the personal goals and lifestyle planning needs of this pivotal time.
We hosted a client appreciation dinner at Rendezvous Events in downtown Roanoke.
We hired another advisor, Zechariah Schaeffer, to help us serve our clients and grow the firm. He’s also been growing his own firm in Denver, CO and we are so happy to see him succeeding in that.
We hired an administrative assistant, Alyssa Osorio, who is taking our client service to the next level with mastery of Schwab’s endless forms and bank links, processes, etc.
And more recently we hired a business development consultant, Josh Yerkes, who will make inroads with the business networking community in Roanoke and foster relationships that will continue to feed into our success.
Financial Planning really is about helping you enjoy your life, not about glorifying budgets, balance sheets, and investment returns.
I recently had a breakthrough moment with this whole concept about financial planning improving your quality of life. No, it’s not just about getting better investment returns so you can have more money, opportunity, etc (though we certainly aim to beat the benchmarks for your level of risk). It truly is about achieving peace of mind and clearer headspace. It’s about removing anxiety around finances. It’s about hiring a professional who can hold your hand and help you wade through all of these hundreds of small decisions to optimize your situation so that you know you are making the right decisions. This fosters peace of mind, less emotional attachment to the whims of the markets and the news cycles. It’s about removing the worries and anxiety around money so that you can simply enjoy your life. It’s about sleeping better at night because you know you have someone helping you make the best decisions.
This hit me recently when I was invested personally in a specific stock. I put enough money into it that if it popped off, then I would make a very significant, life-changing amount of money, but there was a possibility that it could go to zero. I experienced anxiety around this stock for about a week. I would check the ticker symbol on my phone or computer dozens of times a day. It was exhausting. I came to the realization that I didn’t want to be a slave to this stock, even if it could make me that much money. I didn’t want to be distracted in times when I should be focused on work or spending time with my friends or family. I made the decision to get out of the stock, take my money, and invest it in less volatile assets that help me sleep better at night. That is the power of financial planning. You don’t have to be controlled by your money or lack of money. You can control your finances and live the life that you want to live.
Take control of your finances.
If you would like to learn more about how you can take control of your finances and experience less anxiety around money, schedule a free consultation today or contact us to learn more. I look forward to experiencing some rest and relaxation on this trip and coming back rejuvenated to serve you and help us all move Upward.
Sincerely,
Daniel Colston, CFP®, CEPA®
Upward Financial Planning, 5301-B Williamson Rd. Roanoke, VA 24012
(540) 580-2501 www.upwardfp.com Schedule a meeting with me.
When Daniel is not giving financial advice or managing investments, he enjoys renovating properties, real estate investing, drinking coffee, hanging out with friends, spending weekend trips in his camper van, and exploring the outdoors on a hiking or biking trail in his hometown of Roanoke, VA and beyond.