Travis Blum - IG Wealth Management

Late last month we celebrated the career of Sue Waymouth. Over the years I’ve been guilty many times of lovingly telling Sue she wasn’t allowed to retire. She has become like family to Kathleen & I.

Well, in December she came to me to let me know that she wasn’t having any of that kind of talk anymore 😂

June 1 was the date.

I didn’t challenge her on it, and I couldn’t be happier for her.

Instead, we got to work. We planned a party at our office, hired Stratford legendary Ken’s French fries, busted out my old DJ gear, and had a time.

Thank you Sue, for everything you have done for us, and for how much you mean to us.

We will see you at our team Christmas parties!

A Kodak engineer invented the digital camera in 1975. His own company buried the project to protect film sales. A few decades later, Kodak was bankrupt.

It wasn't a technology failure. It was a planning failure. Protecting what you have today can quietly kill tomorrow.

The same pattern shows up in financial plans more often than people realize. Three minutes inside.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

Ray Kroc almost went bankrupt trying to build McDonald's. The franchise model wasn't generating enough cash to survive.

Then a financial advisor told him the truth about his business. McDonald's wasn't a hamburger company. It was a real estate company. That reframe saved the entire operation.

The point isn't burgers. It's that the business you think you're running isn't always the business that actually pays you.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

A statement is not a plan. It's a receipt.

Most Canadians walk out of their annual bank review holding a statement and a feeling. The feeling is usually "I think I'm fine." The statement shows balances, not strategy.

A plan is a different document. It has tax, risk, structure, timing, and a reason for every account.

Three minutes on the gap between a statement and a plan.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

In 1989, Sears was the largest retailer in the world. By 2018, it was bankrupt. There was no single villain, no one bad quarter. Just a slow failure to reinvest, adapt, and plan for a market that kept moving.

Businesses rarely die in a dramatic moment. They drift into it.

The same thing happens to financial plans.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

In 2000, Blockbuster had the chance to buy Netflix for 50 million dollars. They passed. Ten years later, Blockbuster was bankrupt and Netflix was on its way to becoming a 300 billion dollar company.

The lesson isn't about streaming. It's about what happens when you protect what's already working instead of planning for what's coming.

Three minutes on the business version of that same mistake.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

Most business owners plan to fund their retirement by selling the company. It sounds like a plan. It's a hope.

The average business sale takes two to four years. A significant chunk of businesses listed for sale never actually sell. Of the ones that do, many sell for a number nowhere close to what the owner expected.

Three minutes on the difference between expecting to sell and being ready to sell.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

Higher income earners are statistically more likely to make bad financial decisions. Not despite being smart. Because of it.

Confidence in one domain rarely transfers into another. The research on this is consistent and slightly uncomfortable.

Three minutes on why the top of the earning curve is usually the most under-planned part of it.

Travis Blum
Executive Consultant
Division Manager
IG Wealth Management Inc. Mutual Fund Division

Disclaimer: This is a general source of information only. It is not intended to provide personalized tax, legal or investment advice, and is not intended as a solicitation to purchase securities. Travis Blum is solely responsible for its content. Seek advice on your specific circumstances from an Advisor.

Nobody warns you about the moment business tension follows you into the bedroom.