Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 6A
£so
Chris Khmas
Columnist
It’s a new year, and, if you’re like
many people, you’ve made some
New Year’s resolutions. Maybe
you’ve decided to visit the gym
more often. Maybe you’re going to
become better informed on cur
rent events. Or maybe you’re just
going to take more time to enjoy
life. All of these are admirable and
worthwhile objectives, but they
probably won’t help you achieve
your long-term goals, such as a
comfortable retirement. And
that’s why you might want to add
one more resolution: Get quality
financial advice in 2003.
Of course, if you already rely on
a qualified financial professional,
and you’re satisfied with the help
you’re receiving, then you proba
bly won’t need to make any
changes this year. But if you’re not
working with someone, then now
is the time to start.
In an age of financial Web sites,
financial news programs and
financial publications, why is it so
important to seek face-to-face
assistance from an investment
professional? Can’t you get all the
information and recommenda
tions you need from a variety of
media?
To understand why these other
sources are no substitute for per
sonal interaction with an experi
enced financial professional, you
need only consider two events of
the past couple of years: the series
of corporate accounting scandals
and the long bear market.
These stories grabbed headlines
and shook investor confidence in
the financial sector. And yet, peo
ple did not lose faith in their indi
vidual advisers. In fact, 85 percent
of respondents were “very satis
fied” or “somewhat satisfied” with
the services of their own financial
professionals, according to a 2002
survey conducted by the Securities
Industry Association, an organiza
tion representing more than 600
securities firms.
Why do people maintain faith in
their investment representatives
in good times and bad? Just con
sider what financial professionals
offer:
• Appropriate recommenda
tions - You can find “hot invest
ment tips” on the Internet, on tel
evision and in magazines. But
what good are these tips if they
aren’t right for you? A qualified
investment professional will only
make recommendations based on
your tolerance for risk, investment
preferences and long-term goals.
• Diversification strategies -
Diversification is one of the most
important factors in effective
investing. By spreading your
investment dollars among a vari
ety of asset classes - stocks, mutu
al funds, bonds, government secu
rities and money market accounts
- you help to reduce your overall
risk level and increase your
chances for success.
• Portfolio reviews - Over time,
your life will change in many
ways. When you’re first starting
out, you might just want to save
enough money to make a down
payment on a house. Later on,
you’ll want to send your kids to
college. Still later, you’ll want to
manage your assets in retirement.
And at each of these stages, your
investment needs will be different.
A financial professional can help
you review your portfolio at regu
lar intervals to make sure you’re
on track toward meeting your
goals.
As you can see, a qualified finan
cial professional can help you in
many ways. How do you find one
that’s right for you? Start by ask
ing your friends and relatives who
they use. Then, interview a num
ber of professionals to see if their
style and investment philosophy
suits your needs. Don’t be afraid to
ask as many questions as you
want - and make sure you know
how a prospective financial profes
sional gets paid.
Start 2003 off right by commit
ting yourself to finding a suitable,
capable investment representa
tive. By fillfilling this one New
Year’s resolution, you can reap the
rewards for decades to come.
Lunchtime study group—space available
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Photo by Judy Hall
Dennis Hooper and Joy Skeen look over the book
the Wednesday Noon study group will be using
next.
There are still a few spaces
for a personal and professional
development opportunity that
will begin Wednesday.
A study group will meet at
noon each Wednesday at The
Swanson restaurant. Members
of the group will read John
Maxwell’s book “Your Road
Map for Success: You Can Get
There From Here.”
Wednesday’s meeting will be
an organizational meeting for
the group. Thereafter, the
group will meet each
Wednesday for ten weeks, cov
ering one chapter of the book
each week.
Dennis Hooper, who led two
lunchtime study groups last
year, will lead the group.
“Our first study group read
Andy Stanley’s ‘Visioneering,’”
Hooper said. “It was a big suc
cess, and the group almost dou
bled in size for the second book
we studied, ‘First, Break All the
Rules: What the World’s
Greatest Managers Do
Differently.’ Both sessions were
very successful, with the partic
ipants feeling that their
involvement was ‘growthful’
and a valuable learning experi
ence.”
O'Neal: Development authorities are
important voices in legislative efforts
WARNER ROBINS - State Rep. Larry O’Neal
urged members of the Houston County
Development Authority to let him know how
they feel about upcoming issues before the
Georgia General Assembly begins.
O’Neal told the group during its Thursday
meeting that development authorities around the
state should voice their opinions on various
issues.
He said striving for new development is some
thing “we’re all for” and some authorities may
not realize the influence they may have on legis
lators.
Three issues he told members they should be
aware of include tort reform initiatives that will
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Business
The sessions
start at noon
with lunch.
About twenty
minutes later, a
one-page outline
of the chapter is
distributed and
quickly
reviewed. Then
the final half
hour is a dia
logue involving
all members of
the group,
focused on ideas
and suggestions
for accomplish
ing the advice
offered in that
particular chap
ter.
Joy Skeen,
owner of The Swift Street Inn
and a participant in the previ
ous study group that just
ended, praised the group.
“This is the best organized
and managed study group I
have been in,” she said.
“Dennis keeps things on track
as far as our goals and the time
constraints.”
The cost to participate in the
11-week study group is $l5O,
plouaton ante Journal
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I YOUR I
I ROAD MAP I
I FOR I
I SUCCESS I
S You CAN Get There from Here fl
18
look at insurance costs for physicians; imminent
domain legislation involving different entities
and power companies; and another look at the
predatory lending law, which he said needs some
tweaking, especially in the area of VA loans.
In other items of business, Houston County
Commission Chairman Ned Sanders gave an
update on road projects around the county.
Sanders also said a four-person committee is
looking at the future of the old courthouse locat
ed in downtown Perry.
Design and construction of a new juvenile
court building is also in the works.
Emily Johnstone
and that covers lunches at The
Swanson, a hardback copy of
the book, and the collaborative
conversations each week.
Due to the limited capacity of
the private room at The
Swanson, this group will be lim
ited to a dozen individuals. If
you have a desire to participate,
contact Dennis Hooper at 988-
0237.
Group to study "success"
What is success? I could
conduct a survey on the
streets of our city and find
thousands of different
answers. Tomorrow, and on
Wednesdays for the next ten
weeks, a small group will be
gathering for lunch to consider
this question, using John
Maxwell’s book Your Road
as a basis for
their study. Maxwell is one of
the most esteemed authorities
on leadership development in
America today, and this recent
book shares his unique
insights on what it means to
be successful.
Elsewhere in today’s
Houston Home Journal is an
article that describes the
upcoming study group. I was
asked recently if the study
group was exclusive or open to
anyone interested.
As far as who may con
tribute, the study group is very
open. Men and women of all
races have participated, and
the level of experience in busi
ness is quite diverse. The only
requirement is that the indi
vidual has interest in expand
ing knowledge and skills,
openly asks questions, and
shares past experiences with
others in the group.
As far as size of the group,
however, participation is limit
ed. To allow a healthy conver
sation, the group size is limit
ed to about a dozen people.
Some people will be excluded
from joining once the maxi
mum size of the group has
been reached. For this reason,
each participant is expected to
be there once the commitment
is made.
Last week in this column, I
wrote about "Helping People
Excel," and that’s what I
intend with this study group.
Too many people settle for
some societal definition of suc
cess that limits their dreams
and enjoyment of life.
Studying this book will stimu
late a conscious evaluation by
participants of their life pur
poses, methods to develop
ment personal potential, and
opportunities to serve others
with their gifts.
I had the privilege of talking
this weekend with a friend
who made a major career
change about five years ago.
He had been a manager for a
restaurant chain and was
quite good at it. But his real
Serving the Lord 1 ‘ .
-and His people- ■ m|
with gladness.
Persona! Coach and Collaborator
“Is there a ”ap between where you are
EEpSpl and where you want to be?”
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PUBLIC NOTICE
The Houston County Board of Commissioners
will hold a public hearing at 6:00 p.m. on
Tuesday, January 21, 2003 in the Family Life
Center of the First Baptist Church in
Hayneville, Georgia 811 Grovania Road, to
hear public comments regarding a petition to
change the name of the community of
Hayneville to Haynesville. All interested
persons are invited to attend.
JANUARY 14, 2003
A
.. even greater tilings..
Dennis Hooper
dhooper2@juno.com
dream was to write songs for
country music artists.
Years ago, we had talked
about which direction he
should pursue. The security of
continuing in the restaurant
business had its appeal, but he
had already accomplished
most of what was possible
there. Starting over and pay
ing his dues in the music pub
lishing business held the
potential of adventure, but
also fear of the unknown. He
chose to head off to Nashville.
I had lost contact with him
until he arranged a visit this
weekend with a mutual friend
Though we only spoke briefly,
it was fun to reconnect with
the budding songwriter. He
has, indeed, worked hard these
past five years, with little yet
to show for it. But he’s had a
blast learning about the
details of his dream career
(and according to John
Maxwell’s book, that’s a huge
part of "success"!). Some of his
learning has been intentional
and planned, and much of it
has been in the school of hard
knocks! My friend is sticking
with it, and we’ll likely hear of
his success soon (on a country
music station!).
Success is not a destination;
it’s a journey. It’s not wealth,
power, possessions, achieve
ment, or even good feelings.
There is no special secret,
magic potion, or unusual
genius required to enjoy suc
cess. Members of this study
group will explore their ques
tions and share their experi
ences in the context of John
Maxwell’s book.
If you’d like to participate in
a leadership development
study group, call me at 988-
0237. You can either join this
one, or we can design another
one focused on a topic you’d
prefer to investigate!