Cris Carter Law

Do you have a trust that will allow for your loved ones to live “happily ever after?”

A Must Read From Cris’ Library:

”The Power of the Purse” by Fava Warner is a Must Read! Those who know me well know that Sunday evening is my night to review my business plan and gear up for the next week. (Yes, every Sunday I review my business plan and make my plan for the coming week; we’ll talk about that another day.) When I’m done, I reward myself by picking out books to read from the Pikes Peak library. There are always books in my queue and I love stopping in and grabbing them off of my special reserved shelf. Shhhh- I don’t mind telling you how to get the latest and greatest but I don’t want too much competition for the best new books!

This week I picked up The Power of the Purse. A great, engaging book that shows what happens when companies stop taking their women customers for granted. The book has a number of case-studies about corporate marketing innovations, including Home Depot’s female-friendly power-tools seminars; Nike’s women only stores that broadened Nike’s appeal to every sport, and the Bratz doll as the doll that finally beat out Barbie as a national icon. Companies are now seeking to reach modern women by not thinking of them only as wives and mothers or token females but recognizing women finally as majority consumers and decision drivers.

My favorite anecdote was the DeBeers’s bittersweet campaign to get women to buy their own diamonds instead of pining for a man to buy a diamond for them. DeBeers came out with the campaign that declared “The left hand rocks the cradle, but the right hand rules the world!!! So Women of the World, Raise Your Right Hand and honor yourself, Buy a diamond for your right hand. The diamond on the left hand is because he loves you, the diamond on the right hand is because I love me too!” Wonderful.

Empowerment comes in many shapes and sizes. Just like diamonds. I urge you to check this book out.

This week I came across a quote from one of the amazing Supreme Court Justices that is worthy of sharing and furthers this theme:
The great and invigorating influences in American life have been the unorthodox; the people who challenge an existing institution or way of life, or say and do things that make people think. William O. Douglas Supreme Court Justice

And on the other side of seriousness: Only one man in a thousand is a leader of men—the other 999 follow women. Groucho Marx I remember seeing Harpo Marx on an “I Love Lucy” episode where they were mirror images of each other. Yes I grew up with “I Love Lucy”

Women are at the center of an unprecedented social and economic shift. Yeehaw!!! 2007 was the tipping point when women came to control more than half of all wealth in the world’s richest countries. It was predicted that by 2010, women would control an unprecedented 60 percent of our nation’s wealth! Sounds like good news and more good news. But….if women control that amount of wealth, then…
-Why do 76% of Americans believe that men control more wealth than women? And
-Why do 90 % of women surveyed say they feel “somewhat” or “not at all” financially secure?

Several factors in our upbringing have kept us apart from financial matters; history (women’s suffrage didn’t fix everything); role models (ask your father dear); stereotypes (girls aren’t good at math); and etiquette (it just wasn’t ‘cool’ to talk about money). BIGYAWN. All that is history. The women in my circle of influence are ready to embrace wealth.

It is not only the single executive women who chose not to marry, but single mothers and divorced women realize that they must look after their own financial needs.

Sorry to remind you but our life span is longer than our male counterparts. So it is time for women to stop burying their head in the sand or running away from the responsibility of handling money matters. It is time to become educated and engaged with your money. After all, it has to last you your lifetime; who better than you to make sure it does? I remember how at one point in my life I didn’t have time to pay attention to my money because I was too busy. That’s why in retirement I took courses and got the top licenses in the securities and insurance fields. Yes, it took some work but the rewards have far exceeded that effort.

Studies done by Finra, (the largest independent securities regulator in the US that regulates financial advisors through the adoption and enforcement of rules and regulations) found that on average, women produce better investment results than men because women are planners, are cautious, are not afraid to admit what they don’t know, and once they begin, they are committed to being successful.

Begin the education process now. TODAY. Don’t just think about it. Don’t just talk about it. DO IT. One step at a time. Slow and steady. More so then ever before we have financial resources and tools at our disposal (See upcoming workshops by Cass Mullane on “Let’s Talk Money” and the “Wine, Wealth & Women” Series). We have unfettered access if we will just step up. The way to reach our goal is to break it down into action steps. Then take the first step, followed by the second step. As we learn about money, we will become more and more comfortable with our finances. Not only do we owe it to ourselves to become financially savvy to protect our future, but we owe it to our daughters to be good role models. It only takes a minute to change direction and do something that can enhance your life forever. Education is the key to being the financially savvy SuperPower!

THANKS to all who wrote to me after my last article…………………. “What do Sandra Bullock, Christopher Reeves and Princess Di have in common?” I appreciate your insight and the topics you have suggested for future columns.

Words of Wisdom
You probably are bombarded daily with advice from the latest pundit that is presented as universal truth. Wisdom that is aimed at everyone, is probably not right for anyone because it fails to take into consideration that everyone’s situation is different. Don’t let general advice guide you in structuring your investments and managing risk. (Say good bye to Susie and Dave)

Opportunities to Enhance Your Financial Learning

Wine, Women & Wealth, Monday, August 16, 2010 at 6:30 p.m. Cris Carter Law, 3230 E. Woodmen Rd, Suite 110, 80920

Cass Mullane of Beyond the Budget, Thursday, August 26, 2010, Penrose Library at 8:00 a.m. will present “Let’s Talk Money.” (Networking starts at 7:30 a.m.)

What do Sandra Bullock, Christopher Reeves and Princess Diana have in common? They (and the majority of the people in the world) thought that their lifestyle, akin to a fairy tale existence, would never end in the manner it did. And just as people shook their heads and had trouble believing that an unpredicted life event had captured someone that most of the world idolized, those very same people did not grasp the real lesson behind these tragic events. Sandra Bullock, Christopher Reeves and Princess Di were victimized by the BIG D. Divorce, Disability, Death…….prematurely.

So what was the real lesson that we can learn from Sandra Bullock, Christopher Reeves and Princess Di? The lesson was that unpredictable life events can happen to anyone at anytime. If that is true (and we all know it is), why then is it that the majority of peeps, still bury their head in the sand, and pretend that they are invincible? Or better yet, many believe that they have some control over the timing of such events and will have time to take care of the planning and details Before the big event happens.

Frankly, I too spent part of my life on that river in Egypt known as the Nile, (what a clever reference for denial). Interestingly enough, the concept of denial was postulated by Sigmund Freud, early in the 1900s as he recognized that a person rejects facts that are too uncomfortable for them to accept. Denial can arise where one refuses to acknowledge the existence or severity of unpleasant external realities as well as internal thoughts and feelings. If we didn’t have the great sport of football already filling the position, I feel confident that denial might be a shoe in candidate for the great American past time.

Personally, I think it’s a toss up as to whether the BIG D is divorce, disability or death. Death has finality and a fixed one time expense upon burial (assuming that the deceased had planned for death and didn’t leave heirs with a financial mess to work out with attorneys and judges). But if you talk to people that have suffered a severe disability, you come to understand that disability can be worse than death due to the length of time someone lives with a significantly reduced quality of life, if any quality at all. At least there is finality to the money drain of a divorce action. But the financial fall out from the Big D;Divorce can go on indefinitely just as with a disability.

If we can get past denial, we can find comfort in building safety nets, for the “just in case” unpredictables in life. Just in case one of the Big Ds pop up in our lives or other difficulties. I’ve learned a lot about safety nets over the course of cleaning up the messes of peeps that either didn’t know how to protect themselves by setting up a safety net, or worse, those who knew how to do it but didn’t take the time because they thought they could handle those details some other day. So column by column, let me share what I have learned of how to put safety nets in place. While there is certainly some truth in the saying, “the greater the risk, the greater the reward” that does not mean that you shouldn’t minimize the risks you take by planning ahead by putting your safety net in place.

The saying “Planning pays off” is seldom wrong.

Pearls Of Wisdom
We may not be totally responsible for what comes into our lives but we are totally responsible for what it is we do with it.

THANKS to all who wrote to me after my last article. A Man in Not a Plan. I appreciate your insight and the topics you asked me to write about in future columns.

SIDE COLUMN
What a Conference. As I write this, the swelling in my head is just starting to subside. I spent the last 5 days at the International eWomen conference in Dallas. When Sandra Yancey, the CEO of eWomen and I met here in the springs, a couple of months ago, she invited me to the conference and tried to explain how life changing it could be. It was hard to understand how much was real and how much was hype. I stand confirmed that Sandra spoke the truth.

The people I connected with were amazing, powerful women (Yes, there were a handful of guys too Michael). I am not going to drop names but one. Zig Ziglar. Yes, at 84 years old and still contributing to society as a front runner of motivating people to transform their lives. Ok maybe 2; Tony Hseih the founder of Zappos was amazing as well. I also met several authors of best selling books on business and finance. And when I say, I met them, I don’t mean they signed a copy of their books. I met them, spent time in conversation connecting with them. I also met some other fabulous attorneys, ad visors, coaches that are intuitive and quick whom I had the pleasure of sharing the story of our life’s journey and how we came to be on similar paths at this juncture in our lives. Ahhh, but I ramble. My purpose in sharing my attendance at this conference, was to tell you how many people poured whatever they had to share into me. I will be sharing the jewels from the conference, as I believe part of my job is to share the wealth.

One of my passions is sharing wisdom with others. I have been helping people avoid making mistakes or fixing others’ mistakes since 1981. Trust me. I have seen it all. (OMG you cannot imagine!) But the good news is that I have learned many lessons from other people’s mistakes. I much prefer learning lessons from others based on their mistakes rather than having to make the mistakes myself. Thankfully, I am a quick study so I have absorbed many lessons from those whom I have represented. However, I can be as hard headed as the next person so there are some lessons that I have had to learn over and over; and yes there are lessons I am still working on. Drats! Do you prefer to learn lessons the easy way, through others, or make the mess yourself?

Last month I had the opportunity to speak to a dynamic, professional Woman’s Group here in the springs. The title of my presentation was “Equip & Empower.” The feedback has continued to be positive. Interestingly enough, one of the big “take aways” that the audience gained from my words of wisdom was “A Man is Not a Plan.” Yes, I said that and Yes, I meant it. But perhaps that isn’t quite fair to my male counterparts. It actually cuts both ways. Not as catchy but equally as true is that there are many risks inherent in putting your life in someone else’s hands, whether you are female or male. It never ceases to amaze me how many people come into my office, devastated because they have been scammed….emotionally or financially.

I can’t tell you how many people I have seen over the course of nearly 30 years of being a lawyer that live their lives as though “it will never happen to me.” Whether it is not wanting the hassle of understanding and monitoring the family finances including debts and credit cards; burying their head in the sand and not making any plans for when they leave this world (face it, we all will be leaving this world and very few of us know the date of our departure); by not purchasing insurance before they need it (When you need the insurance, it is too late to purchase it); or those who operate a business without the legal protections afforded by law, thereby exposing their families and themselves to financial ruin. Part of becoming empowered, my friend, is protecting yourself and your loved ones by being proactive. Being proactive allows you a safety net to avoid heartache, financial distress, bankruptcy, and protects you from being sued.

So let’s take this journey together. Step by Step. Let me share with you the wisdom I have learned over the course of my lifetime. And perhaps there will be lessons for you to learn through osmosis, rather than trial and error.

Carpe Diem! I always loved that phrase even before Dead Poet’s Society as I learned when I took latin in college. Seizing the Day is precisely what I am doing; each and every day! To those who follow my blog, I apologize that I have been “out to lunch!” All is well. No wait. All is outrageously terrific; although time is at a premium which is why I haven’t been blogging. But it is all good. Busy hands are happy hands in my world.

Grandbaby Lincoln is almost 4 months old. He is a joy to be with. We have special times as we read, sing and play together every day. It was worth the wait as he is as incredible as my children and allows me to reminisce of the wonderful days when I had babes.

This weekend is the Parade of Retirement Homes, sponsored by the Senior Resource Council compliments of Amy Sudak and Red Energy. The weather is great for the event as the high today is in the 50’s.
It no doubt will be a stellar event as that is how Amy does things.

I look forward to the brainstorming sessions that I have with my Mastermind Group, community leaders and others that allow me to grow. Most recently, I have been honored in being part of the Colorado Springs giving community as an Athena nominee. Talk about a WOW experience. It sure was.

Next month I will be in Dallas for the 10th E-Women’s International Conference & Business Expo. I will be going to the Smart Women Publish event before the conference so the book I have been writing will become a reality this year.

Looking forward to the local E-Women meeting this Friday, June 18th, where Derrick Wilburn will share his expertise on Strengthening Your Business by Strengthening Your Mind and Body. I have been working out with Derrick which is yet another wonder. Nothing like sharpening the saw!

I love practicing law again and coaching others to success. I love using my education and skills in allowing others to reach their goals. It was great to take a sabbatical but it is even more wonderful to be able to assist friends and clients who need my expertise. During my time off, I came to learn and understand so much about human nature and myself. So the perspective I have now is remarkable. It just doesn’t get any better than this. I continue to meet many amazing people who allow me to learn just the right lessons.

So many good things in life happen when you are open to it. I can hardly wait for the week to come and what that will bring to me. Until next time, Best Regards, Cris Carter

Video Message

Lawyers teach clients to be proactive, reduce risks & success strategies for finances, business & life. Results = The good life. Great Job!!

Law office moved thanks to Carly, Grant & Payton! What gifts my loved ones have & share. Now I can do what I love & do best; help others!

New Mailing address:

3230 E. Woodmen Road, Suite 110

ColoradoSprings, CO 80920

719-434-0000 Fax: 719-325-8350

Just did session with Mary Kelly! Fabulous information. She is brilliant at social media.