Brian Cochran, Financial Planner | CFP® | CKA®
Death by Comparison
Most of us are familiar with the negative impact stress has on our health. We are also familiar with the common causes of stress: troubled relationships, busy schedules, demanding work environments, etc. New research shows an additional cause of stress related to money: relative socioeconomic status. Socioeconomic status can be measured two ways. We can…
Big Things Come in Small Packages
The power of compound interest is a broadly understood and well-documented phenomenon. I learned about compound interest and how it applies to personal finance early on in my financial planning training, but I recently came across an extreme example of it that took my appreciation of its capabilities to a whole different level. My story…
The $80 Billion Voluntary Tax
Taxes are due soon. But there’s one tax that gets paid all year long. Brian shines some light on its dark repercussions.
A Broken Sneaker: A Metaphor for Uncertainty
The future is always uncertain, no matter how much we agree on what may come next. A recent example of this is the Duke and North Carolina basketball game on February 20th. This much-anticipated event drew significant attention. Tickets were selling at prices similar to the NFL Championship game. The packed crowd included big name…
Clearing Up Tax Refund Confusion
As if tax refunds weren’t already a misunderstood area of personal finance, politicians and media outlets are adding unnecessary anger and confusion to them. Tax refunds are really quite simple. If you overpay funds to your state or the US Treasury, you are entitled to a refund upon filing your taxes. Refunds are not a…