VOLUME 13, NUMBER 4 :: 1525 SPRUCE STREET, SUITE 300, BOULDER, COLORADO 80302 :: 4TH QUARTER 2012
Honoringyourworth/Takingcareofyourwealth
PRESENTED BY
From One Generation to the Next
Probably in part because I am a financial planner, and in
part because I enjoy studying trends and statistics, I tend to
pay attention to studies about generational differences. These
days, there is a bunch coming out about the different generations, their varying attitudes about money, and how they experience our struggling economy.
U.S. Trust released a study in June called the “2012 Insights on Wealth and Worth” that contained some very interesting insights that reminded me of a commentary written by
Steve in January 2008. His commentary was about a book
called The Fourth Turning, written by William Struass and
Neil Howe, which talked about the cycle of generations and
how there are basically four different generational “types”
that tend to repeat themselves and which, in turn, shape history (see chart, pg. 4). To paraphrase, one part of the discussion mentioned how generations typical of the GI Bill generation are a sort of “save the world/hero” generation that sticks
together and solves many societal problems because they
have an attitude of all for one rather than one for all. This
attitude is a reaction to the world in which they were raised
and the values held by their parents. As children, the Hero
generation were typically raised in an environment of tremendous upheaval; economic collapse, war, virulent ideology,
etc. As a result, they tend to be “good” kids and selfless
adults, with a strong sense of community, and a good chance
of seeing prosperity if they survive the crisis years of their
youth.
ly considered to be “bad” children,
with a survival mentality and, thus, a
tendency to overprotect their own
children. The Nomad generation of
today is Generation X.
Each generation following the Heroes becomes progressively more self-centered, and entitled, with economic and
political policies to match, until a sort of breaking point is
reached, at which time a new Hero generation emerges.
Today, most people agree that our society is again at a
tipping point, with crisis in the recent past and, if you believe
Steve, also likely to come in the next few years. Is it possible
that a new Hero generation will emerge and that they will find
ways to solve the problems with our healthcare systems, our
politicians, the economy and maybe even the growing divide
between the wealthy and the poor?
Skip forward to today and to the recently released U.S.
Trust survey that studied some of the differences in money
attitudes between generations in wealthy families. The study
contains findings that, at least to me, seem to provide some
credence to the theories put forth in “The Fourth Turning.”
When it comes to passing an inheritance to children, the
study found that many baby boomers feel it was important to
invest in their children while young but only 55% believe it is
important to leave an inheritance to their children. The children of baby boomers are expected to create their own path,
Heroes also tend to be indulgent parents, who like to pro- and their own wealth, and have been given the education and
tect their children and provide for them all the things they
tools to do so. Children of the baby boomers may end up
never had. Their children, the Prophets (we know them as the
being the next Hero generation.
Baby Boomers), are spirited and indulged as children, narcisOne example of the behavior that typifies the Hero
sistic and principled crusaders as young people, and are often
generation stands out to me: their choice of heroes.
considered wise elder statesmen in their older years.
The book noted that rather than glorifying individual
Meanwhile, the generation in-between the Heroes and
superheroes such as Superman and Spiderman, the
their children, commonly known today as “The Silent Gener- Hero generation tends to enjoy clean-cut heroes who work as
ation,” were old enough to witness the crisis but too young to part of a group.
do anything about it. This generation tends to be silent, sensiMy husband is a young Baby Boomer and I am among
tive and placid. They were overprotected as children and in
the
oldest
of Generation X; our two boys are among the
reaction to that, tend to underprotect their own children.
youngest
of
the Millennials, likely the next group of Heroes.
Their underprotected children, known as Nomads, are typical(Continued on page 4)
Hail to the Chiefs
The election is almost here and our nation seems more divided than ever. As a result, this seems
like a perfect time to introduce some interesting facts, and maybe even a little levity, by sharing
some presidential trivia. Did you know:
* Abraham Lincoln is the only U.S. president who was also a licensed bartender. He co-owned Berry and Lincoln, a saloon in
Springfield, IL.a
* Grover Cleveland once held the job of hangman. He was sheriff of Erie County, New York, and had to spring the trap twice at
hangings.a
* George Washington is the only president in history who didn’t represent a political party and he was also the only president to be
unanimously elected. He initially refused to accept his presidential salary of $25,000 per year because he liked the idea of being a
selfless public servant. He was persuaded to accept the salary by Congress, though, to avoid the perception that only independently
wealthy individuals could serve.a,b
* George Washington also made the shortest inauguration speech on record; 133 words and less than 2 minutes long. At one hour
45 minutes, William Harrison gave the longest inauguration speech, and followed up with the shortest term as president (30 days).
He contracted pneumonia shortly after his inauguration and died within days. a,c
* James Madison, at 5’4”, was the shortest president. He never weighed more than 100 pounds.a
* James Garfield could write Latin with one hand and Greek with the other hand simultaneously.a
* President James Buchanan quietly but consistently bought slaves in Washington, D.C. and then set them free in Pennsylvania.a
* Every member of Teddy Roosevelt’s family owned a pair of stilts, including the first lady.a
* The “S” in Harry S Truman doesn’t stand for anything; therefore there is no period after his middle initial.a
* Jimmy Carter was the first president to be born in a hospital.a He is also the first president to go on record as seeing a UFO.
* Warren Harding loved poker and once bet (and lost) a priceless set of White House china.
By Raquel Hinman
a. “99 Interesting Facts about…The US Presidents,” http://facts.randomhistory.com/interesting-facts-about-us-presidents.html, 10/4/2012
b. Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Washington, 10/4/2012
c. Presidential Fun Facts, http://www.littleknownfactsshow.com/presidents.html
Owning a Vacation Rental Property
Have you ever thought about owning and renting a vacation home?
Well, two years ago I made the leap and bought a townhouse in Summit
County, Colorado, (ski country) and have never looked back.
Often, people are afraid of the potentially onerous nature of
being a short-term landlord. They may think that guests would
be troublesome or that marketing a property would be difficult.
This hasn’t been the case for me at all, and in fact I would recommend
the experience to others.
the majority of our available calendar. When it comes to
the guests, I can honestly say they’ve all been really wonderful. Sometimes, the feedback left behind on both the on
-line and handwritten guest books makes me blush, as
people post such effusive comments about their vacation
experiences. In the end, I get a great feeling to know that
I’ve helped make someone’s vacation truly special.
Finally, as a financial planner I would be remiss not to mention the
investment advantages of owning and renting a vacation home. Historically low mortgage rates and a still depressed real estate market makes
investing in a second home more attractive than it was just four years
ago. You can also use your property for either 14 days or 10% of the
number of days rented (whichever is greater) and still write off all the
associated expenses of a qualified rental property. Section 1031 exchanges allow you to forego paying capital gains taxes if you decide you might
want to swap your existing property for a different one later on. Of
course, in the meantime, the rents you collect allow you to build equity
As for marketing, I’ve listed my property through VRBO and without using your own cash. All in all, it can add up to a very positive
HomeAway. For a very modest price (around $700 per year) these web- experience, and I encourage you to consider trying it. If you want to
sites do all the marketing and reservation management for you. All one
learn more, please feel free to call me.
has to do is upload pictures of the property, create a few templates and
respond to the inquiries that naturally come in. Because these sites are
By Dianna Chiow
well recognized they draw a lot of web traffic, and I’ve been able to fill
TWC does not provide tax or legal advice.
First, imagine tapping into your inner design diva at full throttle.
Unlike at home, where my family and I have dragged around mismatched
furniture over three states, the vacation townhouse was a clean slate.
Everything I bought was centered on the famous William Morris quote
“Own nothing that you don’t know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.” To me, this was such a satisfying approach, and in the end, we’ve
ended up with a place that we are proud to share with others and love to
use ourselves.
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PERIODIC PROFILES: Kristin Keffeler
with an introduction by Myra Salzer
I first met Kristin at DIA (Denver International Airport) through colleagues. We were all
going to the same conference. That was just a couple years ago. Since then, our paths have
crossed several times through common clients, Kristin coaching team TWC on adapting to
change, me attending speaking engagements of hers, or our working together on a project. Every
interaction is a joy. The more time I get to spend with Kristin, the more I respect and admire the
gifts she brings to all in her path.
MS: Kristin, if you will, for the benefit of the reader, introduce yourself and give us some
details about who Kristin is.
KK: My name is Kristin Keffeler and I am the principal at Kinetic Enterprise, a one-person consulting firm that focuses primarily on working with next-generation wealth inheritors, helping them to build the courage and the vision to be
able to bring their own unique vision to life.
MS: When you say next-generation, are you talking about an age group or a relative distance from the wealth creation?
KK: That’s a great question. Typically there is an age group that seems to be attracted to working with me, and
those people are around 21 to 40. It tends to be more about “life stage” than anything else and not necessarily so much
the distance from the wealth creator. They feel like they don’t have the kind of traction they want to have or don’t have
the kind of confidence, or they realize that somehow they’re struggling. They have a desire to figure out how to thrive in
the presence of wealth and to find a “right relationship” with their resources and feel empowered with their resources. I
have clients in my practice who are 4th and 5th generations back from the original wealth creator, and I have clients who
are 2nd generation—just one generation removed from the wealth creator.
MS: If your client’s work with you is complete, what will they say they got out of the process?
KK: Another great question. If my client’s work with me is complete, I think what they would generally say is that
they feel in right relationship with their monetary resources, their material assets. They have the sense of what money is
and what it isn’t to them. They have the life skills to be able to feel like they are engaged with their monetary assets; they
figure out how to hire the right advisors that they trust and how to ask the questions to make sure they have those right
advisors on their team. They’ve learned how to read their trust documents. They’ve learned how to budget and to track
their expenses and understand from a monetary sense what their inflows and their outflows are. So they’ve learned some
of those basic life skills that many of them don’t have when they start working with me. I would say, more importantly,
they’ve learned to build a vision for their life and their livelihood that is really exciting to them and that very often honors
the legacy of their family; that they are embracing what has been handed down to them; that they want to integrate and
still have their own unique flavor of who they are and the things they are passionate about, and that they’re able to navigate both how they’ve been raised as well as who they want to become.
MS: What qualifies you to do this work?
KK: There are a couple of pieces that feed into this: I have a bachelor’s degree in biology and chemistry with a focus on human biology, which set me up to work with health behavior change; I have ten years’ experience working in
Fortune 500 companies, focusing primarily on helping employees adopt specific behavior change. I have several different coaching certifications, and I have a master’s degree in public health and a master’s degree in business administration.
All of those skill sets have woven together, from a credential aspect, to give me the skills to do what I do. And where
I get the real juice for this is from my own personal story of being a second-generation daughter of an entrepreneur and
having worked through a lot of my own confusion around what money is and what it isn’t, and what my vision is, and
what it means to be a success, and how would I define that myself. After having done a lot of that work myself, I realized
I wasn’t alone in my journey, and I wanted to bring my experience to bear with other people who are in a similar situation. So I have both an education background to support this work and my personal experience that feeds the fire for it
for me.
MS: What was the journey like for you?
KK: It was really confusing. I come from a really solid family; we had the culture of open communication, and my
money story doesn’t feel like a really complex one. Money hasn’t been power or love in my family. It’s always been a
very free-flowing resource in a lot of ways. It wasn’t held over our heads, and yet even with all of that positive set-up,
I’ve struggled a lot in my 20s trying to understand if I could be successful working in public health, which I didn’t make
(See “Keffeler” continued on page 5)
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Shakin’ & Bakin’
With
Katie Wolf
The holidays will be here before we know it; family has been on my mind. As I’m new to the area, and they are
quite a few states away, it’s the little things that make me feel closer to them. This recipe is one of those little things.
Every year this casserole is part of our Christmas morning brunch. Originally, the recipe was given to my mother by
her Aunt Alice over 30 years ago, and for the last decade or so I have been charged with preparing it. The casserole is
tastiest when prepared the night before, placed in the fridge, covered, and baked in the morning.
Breakfast Casserole
4 slices bread (any kind)
1lb. bulk sausage or links (I prefer the bulk sausage)
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
6 eggs
2 cups milk
Dash pepper (season to taste; if you like, add other spices you enjoy)
Tear up 4 slices of bread (any kind) and place in a 13x9x2 greased baking dish. Brown and drain 1 lb. of bulk sausage or links cut into slices. Drain off fat and spoon sausage over the torn bread. Sprinkle with 2 cups of grated, sharp
cheddar cheese. In a large bowl, beat together 6 eggs, 2 cups milk, dash pepper. Pour over mixture in baking dish.
Bake in 350 F oven for 35-45 minutes.
Enjoy!
(Continued from page 1)
When they were five, my boys could not get enough of the
Power Rangers, a very clean cut group of teenagers who
fight against the forces of evil. Now, at ten and twelve,
they have become fans of The Avengers, another group of
superheroes who learn they have to band together to be
successful.
Referring back to the U.S. Trust study, the youngest
generation studied, born after 1964, do intend to leave their
legacy to their children and are taking steps to educate and
prepare their children so they will be prepared to receive it.
They are protecting their family and this survivalist mentality is typical of the Nomads, or Generation X.
Upon reading the results of the study, I couldn’t help
but think back to the 2008 commentary written by Steve
about the book. Maybe they really were onto something.
I do see in my kids, their friends, and their school a tolerance of varying viewpoints, a sense of community and an
understanding that what is good for the community is also
good for the individual. A sense of community is one of
the core values at my kids’ schools.
The different experiences among generations, and the
behaviors that result, are fascinating to me and I tend to
think that when the inevitable reckoning comes with regards to our broken political system and similarly broken
economy, differences in generational thinking may drive
much of the battle, and eventual resolution. While many of
our problems may appear today to be quite unsolvable, I do
believe our younger generation will be able to find solutions to bring people together again.
Generation
Archetype
Currently Known As
G1
Hero
The Greatest Generation/G.I.
G2
Artist
The Silent Generation
G3
Prophet
Baby Boomers
G4
Nomads
Generation X
G1
Hero
Millenials
4
(“Keffeler” continued from page 3)
very much money at, and wondering if I only ever made a public health servant’s salary, would that be successful? So in that
regard, money did absolutely equate with success.
One of the things I found that was challenging was I often felt like I was a farce. I knew that there was a lot of monetary
resource behind me and yet I didn’t feel there was anybody I could talk to about that or any way I could understand what it
really meant to me in terms of what my opportunities were. It was certainly not an experience I could share with friends, so I
ended up feeling like I was living this double life where, on one hand, I had this façade of someone living on a public servant’s salary and, on the other hand, I knew that my family had a vacation home in the mountains and that my parents had just
taken me on this exquisite trip to New York City for my 21st birthday. I felt very confused about who I really was. One of the
points of demarcation that was a turning point for me was when I decided in my late twenties that I really wanted to follow
this passion I had for coaching and working with individuals on behavior change, but a broader paradigm than just health behavior change—I wanted to work with them on human performance and human potential.
I started this business and a lot of people patted me on the back and said how brave and what an amazing risk-taker, and
the whole while I knew that if things really went south and I couldn’t make it work, I would still be able to pay my mortgage,
I wouldn’t be on the streets, and that I would always have a net. So I didn’t really feel like I was a brave risk-taker or like I
was doing anything special because I knew that I had a safety net, and that was very, very confusing. It wasn’t until I was a
year or two into that journey that I realized the work I really wanted to do was to help other people put away the duplicitous
life to come to be proud and excited about what they have and how they might make it work for them to create a ripple effect
in a very positive way through their communities.
I feel in many ways like there’s always this refining level of coming into relationship with money, but I feel like I’ve
done a huge bulk of work to understand what it is to me and what my family’s resources are and how I might be able to use
them to have my gift have a greater impact on my community.
MS: How does your family’s wealth play a part in your marriage?
KK: When my husband and I were dating, it was challenging for him. My parents have a practice of giving the four of
us kids [Kristin has three brothers] an annual distribution from their estate. It was never enough to totally change your life,
like you could stop working, but it was enough that it made a pretty big difference. My husband-to-be was totally blown
away by it at first, and he got more uncomfortable the longer we dated and got closer to getting married because of whatever
that money meant in his own mind, like was he beholden to my family or would it decrease his “providership.” We had many
conversations about my family’s orientation to money and particularly my dad and the way he gives, and that he really, truly,
gives without strings. It’s not a reflection on his belief in our ability to create money for ourselves, it’s his joyful way of getting to see his money have impact in his lifetime. It’s been really neat to see that over the course of the four years we’ve been
married Mike has found a way to feel comfortable with the money we get and participate in deciding whether to use it and for
what (we’re very intentional about what we use it for) or whether to save it.
MS: What else would you like our readers to know about you?
KK: After having met me, I would want people to walk away with the sense that I walk my talk, and that I really deeply
value people’s stories—all of our various stories, how we’ve come to where we are. Also, that I have a deep and true belief
that every single one of us has the tools within us to live liberated from whatever fears or stigmas we feel we have and to truly
find a life path that is enriching and fulfilling. I hope they realize it’s something that I do; it’s the path I walk for myself. I
would want people to know that I’m on the path too.

Published by
THE WEALTH CONSERVANCY, INC.
1525 Spruce Street, Suite 300
Boulder, Colorado 80302
303-444-1919
FAX 303-444-1479
thewealthconservancy.com
[email protected]
© 2012 The Wealth Conservancy, Inc.
Honoring your worth /
Taking care of your wealth
5
Life is Good Here at TWC!
We are having a fun and interesting fall at The Wealth old “eddresses” continue to work.
Conservancy! Many different things going on, and all of
Raquel has been training for the Marine Corp
them positive! It’s hard to know where to start to tell you
Marathon,
which she will run in Washington, D.C.,
about them, but here goes:
on October 28th.
Katie Wolf came to work with us a couple of months
Melissa is taking the next step in her Life
ago to replace Brian who left to further his education in another state. Not only is Katie very well qualified for this Coaching education and is in the midst of the Leadership
position, but she is a huge breath of fresh air! Upbeat voices Program.
and laughter ring through the air throughout the day—even
As soon as this reporting period is over, Barbara is
her sneezes (of which there are plenty in our dry air) are upheaded for a much needed vacation in gastronomical heavbeat!
en—southwestern France. This is truffle and foie gras counSusan Formica (pronounced For mee ka) just started as try, both of which pair well with Bordeaux and cogour “front runner.” She will be who you most likely talk to nac, other local offerings.
when you call, and will greet you when you come into the
Myra is pursuing further education with the
office. Along with a warm and welcoming nature, Susan has
“Time to Think” program which she began in England
a good depth of experience in office administration and will
during her sabbatical last summer.
afford Myra and Barbara much needed support.
Steve is attending various conferences soaking up inWe are in the process of remodeling our reception arformation like a sponge because he loves learning for the
ea. As with most construction projects, it is taking longer
pure joy of it and because it better prepares him to navigate
than expected, as we have experienced several delays due to
financial waters.
problems with the beautiful, blue glass desk top. At the same
time, we are creating a glass buffer between our employee
All of us will be spending the day on November 13th
lounge and the kitchen, which gives the lounge some future cleaning, polishing and repairing donated kids’ bikes for the
flexibility.
Longmont Holiday Bike Program, started 25 years ago on the
premise that every kid should get a bike for Christmas. Last
We’ve also redesigned our look. Our logo is upyear this program gave away 473 bikes .
dated in design, color and font (see above). Our
stationery is now white. And we are renovating our
And, of course, we’re all—probably like you—
website, which, when finished, will reflect these changes. beginning to think about the holidays, that special, magical
Dianna deserves the thanks for getting this project off the time of year. With that in mind, Katie offers a family recipe
ground and seeing it through. She was also instrumental in that may make a hectic morning easier. (See page 4.)
condensing the length of our email addresses, which are now
By Barbara Denny
“[email protected].” If we are automatically plugged
in to your contacts, though, and you don’t care to revise, the
TWC Hours and Holiday Closures
Office hours: Monday - Friday,
8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. (MT)
Closed November 13 for TWC Volunteer Day
Closed November 22 and 23 for Thanksgiving.
Closed December 25 for Christmas.
Closed January 1, 2013, for New Year’s.
6.9 million TVs in the U.S. can show
3-D programming. That’s just 2% of
our country’s 330+ million TV sets!
From the National Center for Policy Analysis, National Endowment for Financial Education: 59% of parents are providing financial support to children 18-39 who are no longer in school—48% are helping with living expenses; 35% are providing
insurance coverage; 28% are helping with medical bills; 41% are aiding with transportation costs; and 29% are handing out
spending money.
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