e all agree, the last few
months have been terrible. I
have no interest in recounting the difficulties
we have experienced, in one form
or another. It is time to move forward.
What a great Spring! I have enjoyed
watching young people master the art
of online meetings. For example we
have been holding Scout meetings
online. The imagination and diligence
of young people to remain task oriented,
while documenting that they completed
certain requirements without someone
standing over them is fantastic. I am
confident we have a great deal to look
forward to with this next generation of
young people.
Although I look forward to the future,
I am concerned about the desire for too
much too fast. We are beginning to see
many more articles about young adults
drawing comparisons to their peers, the
envy of one about the income of
another, or the unfairness that one still
has help from parents while another
struggles.
Envy and jealousy have been around
forever, and it’s not just about money. It
can be about improving your mind, your
body, or even your attitude. In order to
improve, you have to surround yourself
with supporters, not destructors.
So, as a supporter, how do we prepare
for the success of young people that
genuinely process faster than we do and
will certainly be smarter than we are?
Trust and Trusts.
We trust our children to make good
decisions and we can teach them and
guide them up until they are adults.
Then all of the sudden, we know less.
We then move from trust to Trusts.
The Trust document is a great way to
continue coaching toward success, in
spite of a desire not to be coached. You
can encourage your beneficiaries to be
productive, encourage their thriftiness,
even keep them from reaching too far
into the account for purchases that may
sound great at the time but cannot be
supported in the future. A Trust
becomes a bit of a crystal ball that promotes
good choices based on wisdom,
experience, and your personal and normally
correct expectations of your beneficiary’s
future ability to manage.
Money Matters | FINANCE
There is little more gratifying than a
beneficiary acknowledging that their
parents knew they couldn’t manage
“that”. “That” can be an inheritance, or
the pressure of running their parent’s
business, the sale of the parents’ home,
or even the management and settling of
their parents’ estate.
I encouraged my employees to take
the time to review their estate plans
while they had more downtime than
normal. Before we all get back to our
previous normal, ridiculously busy lives,
I hope you will take a few minutes and
make certain you have created a plan
that works for your family. ∞
Welcome back!
Hope you have a great summer!
LIFE & HOME 09
WWelcome Back World!
Bill Kerst President,
Community First Trust Company
He has been conducting
educational seminars on
IRAs, asset management,
and trust management for
over 15 years. He has
served as the moderator for
the Income Taxation of
Estates and Trusts course
offered by the Arkansas
Society of CPAs and provided many seminars to
civic and church groups in the community. For
more information, call 501-520-3660.