Life Insurance and Living Benefits

"Santa Claus buys life insurance" said Soleus Winters with Upper North Life Insurance Co.  Upper North is best known for their frozen asset distribution facility based in Iceland.    Winters said he enjoyed the conversation with Santa Claus over a snack served with buttermilk and shortbread cookies.  “It was a memorable meeting to say the least” said Winters. Every question was answered correctly, and each was checked twice. Santa had met with Winters and the North Pole attorney, Pot Hole to discuss an estate freeze. Things were dancing like sugar plums with Santa, Winters and Hole said; and then it was time for the medical questions. With the wink of an eye, Winters asked “Do you smoke?” Santa answered slowly as his marshmallow like hand tenderly embraced the corncob pipe which he had received from his good friend Frosty the snowman. “Just a little” he said “and I don’t inhale either. I just do it because I like the smoke rings which circle my hat”. “A...

Depending on what days you might work around Christmas, we only have 30 workdays left in 2015. While the Christmas rush is not necessarily upon us, the final 30 days of your work year certainly are. Whatever your 2015 New Year’s resolutions were, and no matter what your 2015 business and personal objectives were, you only have 30 days to make it all count. So, here is a question for you: What can you do in the next 30 work days that will help you complete 2015 in the best way you can? Are you going to close every last piece of business you can? Or, are you going to open as much as you can to get a jump on 2016? Regardless of your direction, the final 30 days are important. It’s the last leg of the year. Do you call your top 30 clients and ask them if you can help them in any way? Do you make a list of projects that need to be completed before the ball drops on 2015? Do you look back over 2015 and call all the clients you sold, and wish them a happy holiday? The specific ac...

Two weeks ago I was in Toronto and delivered a speech to a group of 750 insurance advisors from across Canada. The audience was diverse, made up of everyone from the brand new insurance advisors to a few celebrating their 55 th year with the company. I had butterflies in my stomach; but, truth be told they were all flying in formation. I was introduced and walked on to the stage to a round of polite applause. My talk began as usual with a few spots of clean humor to get the audience’s emotions moving, humor is a great way to test the emotion of a group. I introduced myself as one of them and told a few stories about my youth. Soon, the light laugher calmed down as people found themselves caught intently listening to my story; and as I spoke, the laughing became silent and then tears were seen. This is why the next joke seemed so funny… not because of the humor, because of the release. I was told later, the hour flew by as if my talk had only lasted minutes. One lady approache...

There are some things that you should just try to avoid at all costs. For one: brussels sprouts, those little cabbage looking things that your mother told you to eat, and supposedly are good for you. Fiber and protein are good; however, it’s that  funny  texture and odd aroma that gets me. Too bad some retirement investments didn’t come with an odd smell that would ward off unsuspecting baby boomers. I’m referring in particular to one aspect of a Mutual Fund which most investors are simply unaware… Your Estate . The question that you should ask is “If I predecease my spouse, what path will the proceeds in my RRSP “Mutual Fund” take?” The answer may surprise you, as it does most people. Let’s say you have a mutual fund and you use it as your retirement savings. You have named a beneficiary- say your husband or your wife. Let’s also say you are 60 years old, even though you look younger. At your death, the mutual fund becomes part of your estate regardless to whom you...

W hen we were kids, it was O.K. to be sick. You got to stay home, you were fed ice cream and popsicles and the best thing was, you did not have to go to school. Now the meaning of being sick has changed, now that we are grownups we don’t want to be sick. Being ill for the most part scares many people,  especially  when it comes to long term illnesses. Long term can be defined as the inability to do your job for 90 days or more. According to disability insurance carriers in Canada, if an individual is sick or hurt enough to be out for 90 days, statistics show that you will remain off work for 2-3 years depending on your age at the start of the disability. Protecting one’s self in the event of a disability is a basic financial strategy, yet financial planners often hear expressions like “I’m insurance poor”, “I can’t afford the premiums” or “It’s too expensive”. This is not a new adage either. Found in my desk drawer, I keep a booklet first printed in 1920. The...

There are no secrets to success, besides hard work. Nevertheless, one thing I have found to be fruitful and comes close to being a “secret to success” is this… “Do something every day that has the potential to earn $1,000.00.” Our lives and work keep us so busy that we sometimes don’t do the things we know make us successful. We talk on the phone too much, we spend too much time on the internet, we respond to emails as if a response is needed in 30 seconds or our computer will explode and we often spend too much time at the water cooler. In addition, we let the business run us, rather than us running the business. So, if we were to change one thing that would make a long term impact towards our success; what would it be? At the end of the day, we need to take an inventory of what we have actually accomplished. Did we do all the right things? Did our “to do” list actually get smaller? Did all the important things get done? Did you do something that had the potential to ear...

Have you ever gone to a presentation and as you watched and listened; you found yourself completely immersed in the conversation from the podium? Soon after you hear the words, “Thank you, you have been a great audience”, people applaud and it’s over. Upon reflection, you find that the time just whipped by.  Then, you find yourself talking about the presentation to your friends and colleagues. In contrast, have you ever gone to a presentation and as the presenter is talking, you are looking at your watch, wondering if you should read your emails, or think about getting up and going for a coffee? Imagine if you were the person who was responsible for choosing one of the two speakers above. Which one would you be proud of? I have been to hundreds of presentations in my 30 years as a financial planner, and I too have spoken in 10 countries around the globe. In fact I have spoken to audiences in English, and through translators. Today’s comments however have been learn...