Filed under: personalfinancenewsss.wordpress.com | Tags: from, Street, Wall
Quick quiz, class. Which one has more power?
The guy with degrees from Wharton and Kellogg working on Wall Street and playing in the high stakes real estate gameThe guy who’s a master yoga instructor and actor in Los Angeles
Rich Tola is going with option B, hands down.
“Power also comes from clarity,” Tola said in a recent interview.
The man knows of what he speaks, for if you put A and B together, you have his life. The studious high schooler and athlete, who went on to get the crème de la crème business education at Penn and Northwestern, is now living in a Hollywood bungalow from which he can see the iconic “Hollywood” sign and get a daily dose of inspiration.
“Life prepared me 20 years to get here,” said Tola, whose debut feature film as an actor/filmmaker, Boulevard Zen , premieres in Los Angeles next week. “I knew from the very beginning [of working in finance] … it was like putting on a suit that doesn’t fit properly. But you’re making money. It’s the herd mentality, like this is what you’re supposed to do.”
That conventional path led Tola through years of working on Wall Street, consulting, founding an Internet company, and most recently, becoming an award-winning Historic Landmark real estate developer specializing in low-income neighborhoods in Trenton, N.J. In the mix were the 1987 stock market crash and the Internet crash in 1999-2000. For a kid whose fascination with film began with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid , this was a whole different path.
“When I graduated from college, I didn’t have the courage to pursue my interest in film,” Tola said.
Yet he did make the move, at least geographically. In fact, his first two moves to Los Angeles didn’t last more than six months. This time it’s different – it’s going to be three years in February and he’s more than ready to make it stick, thanks in great part to yoga.
But first a little back story.
Tola became a developer and finished his main project in Trenton in August of 2005. It had nine luxury condo units and that summer he and his partners had full-price offers on all of them. But by November, only one deal was in the can.
“I felt the tide turning,” Tola said. “I thought, this is going to blow up. About that time, I started practicing yoga.”
As is his studious way, Tola had begun reading about the 5,000-year-old practice when one day he saw a sign (call it a double entendre) that read: Unlimited yoga $20 for one week. He went to his first class, the only guy among 15 women. He didn’t know the language, the clothing, and wasn’t planning to return, but the instructor convinced him to try it one more time. He became hooked.
In the meantime, he dissolved his company by August of 2006. Having sold only the penthouse, the rest of the building went to rentals.
“It took us six months, but we refunded back capital to our partners,” he said. “We got a 30% return on that opportunity. It would have been a home run if we sold the units. Most of my net worth was tied up in it. In hindsight I did the right thing.”
Tola had already been writing stories, wondering who would play that character or this one.
“I thought, what about me?” Tola said. “I have to try the film making business. I wouldn’t say I’m wealthy, but I believed in myself enough to put my entire net worth behind me.”
So in September of 2006, right after dissolving his company, he put himself on the path of a full-time actor. By February of 2007 he had made his West Coast move. He had just earned his 200-hour yoga teacher certification and has to date taught more than12,000 students. Used to a swanky New York existence, he cut his expenses in half and now focuses on a healthy lifestyle.
“This is the best thing I’ve ever done,” Tola said. “I’m a student of the business. I’m training with acting coaches. I’m learning screen writing. I watch a movie, read the script, watch a movie, read the script. I must have done that 50 times.”
He formed a production company, Two-Strike Hitter, named for what his father taught him about baseball: You’ve got to learn to be a two-strike hitter, foul pitches off until you get the pitch you want. And then he wrote, acted in, and directed his first feature film, Boulevard Zen , about a 39-year-old real estate attorney from Atlantic City named Bobby D’Angelo who turns into a yoga master.
“It’s the framework of my life, but the details are not the same,” Tola said. “Bobby is much tougher than me. I wanted it to have an East Coast energy. The film is really about people and their struggles with personal issues like abuse, infertility and anorexia.”
Those themes are meaningful to Tola. His father and grandmother were both abused, he has dated women with some of those issues, and he has seen yoga students come in with bruises that he deemed suspicious. That is why domestic abuse is at the heart of his foundation, The Boulevard Zen Foundation, and 10% of the film’s proceeds will benefit it.
The birth of the foundation, which is on the brink of starting its work, began when Tola went to a local battered women’s shelter to donate clothes.
“It looked like a rectory, like a place for a retreat,” he said. “I said, ‘This would be an amazing place to teach yoga.’ The woman leading me in said, ‘We don’t have money for that.”
That’s all it took to send Tola’s trained business mind into overdrive. He figured if he paid a yoga instructor $60 once a week for 50 weeks a year, all it would take to bring yoga to these women was $3,000 a year. Then, looking at it from the other side, if a student typically pays $20 per class and an average of 30 people would be getting yoga each week, that’s a $30,000 value being delivered.
“That teacher then develops a relationship with the students and educates them into a healthy lifestyle,” he said. “It builds self-esteem, not to mention the money saved. I believe the multiplier effect is a positive for society. I’d like to take it to other shelters around the world.”
It is all part of Tola’s vision for the next 30 years and lends credence to why this line from Maya Angelou is his favorite quote: “I believe the most important single thing, beyond discipline and creativity, is daring to dare.”
Tola is daring to dare. He has developed the courage, perseverance and confidence he believes are essential to success.
“I’ve definitely chosen the right career for me,” Tola said. “Now I have a new suit on that fits perfectly.”
No tie required.
Nancy Colasurdo is a practicing life coach and freelance writer. Her Web site is www.nancola.com. Please direct all questions/comments to FOXGamePlan@gmail.com.
Filed under: personalfinancenewsss.wordpress.com | Tags: 2008, Dead, Five, from, Predictions, that, Unforgettable, Were, Wrong
NEW YORK–In 2008, we certainly learned why some folks shouldn’t try to make predictions about the economy.
Let’s take a look at what some of our “in-charge” people had to say last year — and how we’ve all learned that we can’t always trust what we hear.
1. Barney Frank. In July, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee said: “I think this is a case where Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are fundamentally sound. They’re not in danger of going under…. I think they are in good shape going forward.”
Well, for another two months, anyway.
At least he followed up those comments with: “We made a mistake as a society in promoting home ownership as a universal achievable goal.” I like it when people admit mistakes. We need more of that.
2. George W. Bush. In March, the president said the “market is still in the process of correcting itself.”
No kidding! This is one of the grand understatements of the year. In about as much of an about-face as we can expect from Bush, his position changed to “Wall Street got drunk, and now it’s got a hangover.” If he were still commenting on the topic, I’m guessing Bush would say Wall Street is now passed out next to the porcelain throne.
3. John McCain. The Republican presidential nominee told us in April and again in September that “the fundamentals of our economy are still strong.”
Perhaps he was trying to spin positive the sinking of the Titanic. But statements like this are likely why November’s election turned out the way it did.
4. Oil prices to hit $200? I’m not sure I’ve seen anything rise and fall as fast as the price of oil this year. And of course, as oil was going up, and much of the demand seemed to be “made in China,” forecasting ever higher prices became fashionable.
Oil industry guru T. Boone Pickens forecast $150 a barrel by the end of this year (it almost got there, but it’s now hovering at about $48). The normally reserved Goldman Sachs pegged it at $200 in the “not too distant future” with a supply disruption. And naturally those forecasts drove increases — apparently much more than the fundamentals did.
I should note, in Goldman’s defense, they predicted a possible drop to $60 if “normalized” trends returned to the marketplace. Guess things got more normal than they expected.
5. Bernie Madoff. In late 2007, Madoff said: “In today’s environment, it is virtually impossible to violate rules.”
Apparently, he figured out a way to do just that.
Trust your instincts
So what does it all mean? A few chuckles, yes. And much to wonder about in the folks in charge and the best and the brightest they hire. But it also brings this thought to mind: Most of the time, you’re your own best judge of the facts. Others can help, and some will be right on. But as chief executive of your own finances and your own destiny, act on what you see and what you know. Trust your instincts when it comes to your investments. If you find a product that works great for you, look into whether the company that makes it is publicly traded. If you can buy shares, maybe you should check it out.
Jennifer Openshaw is co-founder and president of WeSeed, a new approach to demystifying the stock market for everyday people, and author of “The Millionaire Zone.” You can reach her at jopenshaw@weseed.com.
Copyright © 2009 MarketWatch, Inc. (more…)
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: 2008, Dead, Five, from, Predictions, that, Unforgettable, Were, Wrong
NEW YORK–In 2008, we certainly learned why some folks shouldn’t try to make predictions about the economy.
Let’s take a look at what some of our “in-charge” people had to say last year — and how we’ve all learned that we can’t always trust what we hear.
1. Barney Frank. In July, the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee said: “I think this is a case where Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are fundamentally sound. They’re not in danger of going under…. I think they are in good shape going forward.”
Well, for another two months, anyway.
At least he followed up those comments with: “We made a mistake as a society in promoting home ownership as a universal achievable goal.” I like it when people admit mistakes. We need more of that.
2. George W. Bush. In March, the president said the “market is still in the process of correcting itself.”
No kidding! This is one of the grand understatements of the year. In about as much of an about-face as we can expect from Bush, his position changed to “Wall Street got drunk, and now it’s got a hangover.” If he were still commenting on the topic, I’m guessing Bush would say Wall Street is now passed out next to the porcelain throne.
3. John McCain. The Republican presidential nominee told us in April and again in September that “the fundamentals of our economy are still strong.”
Perhaps he was trying to spin positive the sinking of the Titanic. But statements like this are likely why November’s election turned out the way it did.
4. Oil prices to hit $200? I’m not sure I’ve seen anything rise and fall as fast as the price of oil this year. And of course, as oil was going up, and much of the demand seemed to be “made in China,” forecasting ever higher prices became fashionable.
Oil industry guru T. Boone Pickens forecast $150 a barrel by the end of this year (it almost got there, but it’s now hovering at about $48). The normally reserved Goldman Sachs pegged it at $200 in the “not too distant future” with a supply disruption. And naturally those forecasts drove increases — apparently much more than the fundamentals did.
I should note, in Goldman’s defense, they predicted a possible drop to $60 if “normalized” trends returned to the marketplace. Guess things got more normal than they expected.
5. Bernie Madoff. In late 2007, Madoff said: “In today’s environment, it is virtually impossible to violate rules.”
Apparently, he figured out a way to do just that.
Trust your instincts
So what does it all mean? A few chuckles, yes. And much to wonder about in the folks in charge and the best and the brightest they hire. But it also brings this thought to mind: Most of the time, you’re your own best judge of the facts. Others can help, and some will be right on. But as chief executive of your own finances and your own destiny, act on what you see and what you know. Trust your instincts when it comes to your investments. If you find a product that works great for you, look into whether the company that makes it is publicly traded. If you can buy shares, maybe you should check it out.
Jennifer Openshaw is co-founder and president of WeSeed, a new approach to demystifying the stock market for everyday people, and author of “The Millionaire Zone.” You can reach her at jopenshaw@weseed.com.
Copyright © 2009 MarketWatch, Inc. (more…)
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Financial, from, Hide, Kids, Problems, them, your
Tell the truth: Did you emit an audible moan when you ripped open the third-quarter statement from your 401(k) plan? Have you and your spouse had a heated argument over how much was charged on your joint credit card last month? Do you work in the financial, auto or another industry making headlines about lay offs?
Don?t think you can hide the financial stress from your kids. They?re more perceptive than perhaps we?d like to admit. Regardless of the ages of your children, ?It?s a safe assumption that if you and your spouse are stressing about money, they are picking it up,? says Eric Tyson, author of ?Personal Finance for Dummies.?
While even a teenager probably doesn?t grasp the issues surrounding the current problems with the economy (most adults couldn?t tell you either), the messages they?re getting from the media, at school, and possibly at home are that things are bad, going to get worse, and could last a long time.
A friend of mine who works for a money management firm — and whose job is quite secure — was taken aback recently when his 16-year-old son came home from school one day and asked, ?Dad, are we going to be OK? Will I still be able to go to college??
According to Dr. E. Mark Cummings, professor of psychology at Notre Dame University, ?The most important issue for a child is psychological and emotional security. Can they rely on their community and their family to be there for them? Disruption in the financial markets suggests they might be less safe.?
In other words, it?s not about whether the family ski vacation will have to be cancelled or how many presents they can expect this holiday. ?What disturbs kids is not the dollars and cents of it, but that mom and dad are upset with each other,? says Cummings. ?Children are very sensitive to conflict between dad and mom. If there?s fighting, anger, it will affect a child much more significantly than what?s going on in the outside world.?
Last week I ran into actor Kathi Carlson, a friend of a friend, at a local caf and sat down to chat for a bit. After she shared some of what she is up to, I decided to check out her Web site and saw she had done a stand-up comedy gig at Caroline?s in New York. Intrigued, I emailed her, asking what the experience was like. Her answer led to a lesson in how taking one step can change your life.
?Basically over the past couple of years I had these two thoughts or ideas that kept nagging at me,? Carlson wrote. ?One was to sky dive and the other was to do stand up. Both were sheer lunacy in my mind, kind of like a moth flying into a flame, so I ignored them for a long time.?
But then, three years ago, when her husband asked her what she wanted to do for her birthday, Carlson replied ?a tandem skydive.? What made this particularly strange for her was that she had ?an intense, paralyzing fear of heights, or more specifically, edges: cliffs, drop-offs, steps with no railings, that sort of thing.?
And so she took the very literal plunge, eventually relaxing into the scenery — the Hudson River in the distance, the Wallkill River right below, and the Shawangunk and Catskill Mountains as stunning backdrop.
?No fear — not ever — not even for a single instant,? Carlson recalled. ?It still astonishes me to this day that this is how it was.?
It bears mentioning that this is a now 55-year-old woman who five years ago made the switch from living a suburban life in Ithaca, N.Y., to urban life in Hoboken, N.J. Now an empty-nester whose two children are pursuing careers in law and engineering, she was a stay-at-home mother, president of the PTA, Cub Scout den mother — what she calls a ?typical? suburban mother. Carlson worked in the insurance industry for a while and was a broker up until a few years ago when her youngest graduated college.
Meanwhile, as part of her new lifestyle in Hoboken, Carlson had begun working with a personal trainer.
?I was worried I might be patronized because I was older and a woman, but quite the opposite proved to be the case,? Carlson said. ?Roger [Ansanelli] would often declare ?you?re strong — you?re a woman? and he challenged me to do things I never thought I could do. Because he believed in me, I believed in me. I far exceeded the goals I?d set for myself, much to my surprise and utter delight. Something else happened which I hadn?t anticipated. As I gained strength physically, I also grew stronger mentally and emotionally.?
It is that newfound confidence that led Carlson to the skydive and, since she had been actively embracing her inner performer and had become immersed in fine-tuning her acting craft, it was natural that ?lunacy? idea No. 2 would come up again.
?Stand-up comedy for me was a whole lot scarier than jumping out of a plane,? Carlson said.
But she took it on. The day before she was supposed to do a timed routine for her final class at the Manhattan Comedy School, she was ?having a complete breakdown.? Her husband suggested she quit, which she was not prone to do, but she also realized that she had done what she set out to do — explore stand-up comedy. She let it go and felt peaceful, but the next day as she went through her normal routine, she realized she was writing comedy material in her head. It caught her by surprise, but she went with it and started bullet-pointing the things that were coming to her.
Carlson went to class that night, delivered the routine and a week later she was doing it at Caroline?s. A month later, she was invited back for New Talent Night.
?I had a blast,? Carlson said. ?Do I think I had the best material of the evening? No. Was I the most comfortable, at-ease person of the evening? Oh yeah.?
While Carlson gained immense respect for stand-up comics, the one-time experience was enough for her know it?s not a profession for her. What was important was she had conquered her two biggest fears.
?I have come to realize it was my empowering experience in the gym that helped me find the confidence and courage that was already within me so that when that crazy idea to sky dive came into my head, this time I didn?t dismiss it,? Carlson said. ?At that moment I knew that I could do anything … I can do anything.?
Nancy Colasurdo is a practicing life coach and freelance writer. Her Web site is www.nancola.com. Please direct all questions/comments to FOXGamePlan@gmail.com. (more…)
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Crisis, Financial, from, learned, lessons, Three, Valuable
NEW YORK–Wow. I bet a lot of you are surprised at the size of the bubble and the size of the burst. Didn’t see that coming, right?
Established businesses, managed and staffed by experienced financial risk management professionals, lending to people who didn’t need to borrow, just like the good old days of “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
I saw the exploding debt load America was carrying as I was meeting and coaching real people on shows like Dr. Phil. But that’s not the point. What to do now is the point.
Going forward, the following investing and money management principles are right on, now more than ever:
1. If you don’t understand it, don’t invest in it
I’m still a value investor. I don’t invest in a stock, I invest in a business. And if I don’t understand the business, I don’t invest in it. Yes, I thought I understood financial companies better than I did. As it turns out, they didn’t understand themselves very well, either.
The lesson remains crystal clear: only invest in businesses you understand. Understand what they buy and sell, and how they make money. But remember this: just because you understand a business doesn’t mean it’s time to buy it.
2. Manage your asset allocations
You’ve heard it a thousand times: the stock market provides better returns over time.
A new study by Javier Estrade, a professor of finance at IESE Business School in Barcelona, examined the stock markets of 15 nations (including the U.S.) over several decades and found that the person who sold and missed out on the best 10 days of those 15 markets ultimately ended up, on average, with a portfolio worth about half what the person had who sat tight.
Still, many people fall victim to a demographic surprise and don’t have much “long term” left. They forgot that stocks are for those with a long-term horizon – meaning 10 years or more. Retiring baby boomers and younger boomers funding college for their offspring are in a bad way now. A double whammy, if stuck with declining investments and declining property values. A triple whammy if also stuck with a big mortgage payment for an oversized house or an oversized lifestyle.
Especially with today’s volatility and sharper up-down, bubble-crash cycles, it’s more important than ever to lock some money away in relatively fixed investments.
We get older faster than we think. Don’t just talk about shifting assets — do it. If you need cash within five years, you shouldn’t be in stocks. If this crisis is making you finally wake up and re-think how much you have in stocks vs. bonds vs. cash, do it. If you have some investments that have held up well or are still ahead compared to your basis, now’s a good time to assess your allocations.
3. Live within your means
Last but not least, no matter how old you are, the signals are clear: it’s time to live within our means. We got drunk on easy credit. Now the binge is over, and we can’t expect to borrow to support an expanded lifestyle forever. And realize that “means” might decrease too – those who adjust fastest to reduced living standards will fare best.
So it’s time to live not just within your means but below your means. That will give you the margin of safety to handle bad times, present and future. Think about it this way: if prosperity returns quickly, you’ll be that much farther ahead.
Margin of safety — another oh-so-true mantra of value investing applied to daily life.
Jennifer Openshaw is co-founder and president of the soon-to-launch WeSeed, a new approach to demystifying the stock market for everyday people, and author of “The Millionaire Zone.” You can reach her at jopenshaw@themillionairezone.com.
Copyright © 2008 MarketWatch, Inc.
