"We all live with the objective of being happy; our lives are all different and yet the same. We chose the pictures in our banner above to reflect our philosophy and our mission, to help you succeed and reach your goals."
Betty-Anne Howard
M.S.W., B.A. (Hon.), CFP, CLU, CHS
|
By Betty-anne, on December 8th, 2011  What is money? A piece of paper, coin, plastic, all seeming very simple. And yet it controls our lives in so many ways.
Viewing money compassionately means looking more closely at the complexities of this commodity, how we feel about it, how we treat it & what we do with it, physically, emotionally, spiritually, psychically. Examining our attitudes & perceptions about money means looking at the messages we received as we were growing up; from our parents, our community & the society around us. Examining how those beliefs help or hinder us in reaching our life goals & realizing our dreams.
Many of us tend to have an ambivalent relationship with money. We love it at times & loathe it at other times. We ignore it, neglect it, hoping it might go away & yet each day it’s there, a part of our everyday lives.
Recognizing that we have a relationship with money and working on keeping it a healthy one, is all part of the soul process – going deeper, looking at the meaning behind the money & treating it with the respect it deserves – how you handle it, what you do with it & being mindful of your intentions.
To do otherwise keeps it stark & cold, with no meaning other than what we can buy with it. Money is infused with spirit & I believe in the importance of treating it respectfully, like all relationships.
By Betty-anne, on October 3rd, 2011 What does this “intense & gut wrenching market volatility” really mean?
 Craig Alexander, Senior Vice President & the Chief Economist for TD Bank Financial Group helped give us some insight in answering that question when he presented at our IPG Annual Conference, Saturday Sept 24/11 in Quebec City.
We can always count on Craig to present a well balanced, somewhat comical version of how he, as an economist, sees the world, current market volatility & what could happen in the days, months & years to come.
I decided to present Craig’s information in a question & answer format in order to make it more interesting for the reader, taken from my notes. Therefore, this is my interpretation of what he said & not his exact words, it was the jist of his comments. I am hoping this information will provide you with additional insight into the craziness that is going on in the markets as this amount of volatility is unprecented for this length of time.
Continue reading Has the world gone crazy?
By Betty-anne, on October 3rd, 2011 Let me start by providing you with some background information.
I moved to Bass Lake (near Lyndhurst) just over a year ago. One of my dreams was to live on a lake in a home with a panoramic view, quiet setting, clean lake & thanks to my partner, it came true.
Whenever I get into a body of water I always need a place to go, a destination, preferably one where I can go there & then get back. For example, I see an island within eye shot, I have to swim to it, I see another shore, same thing so, when we got to Bass Lake I thought “I’d really like to swim this lake” – meaning the entire length of lake because it’s a long & narrow lake. Long is not that long – it’s about 3km in length. It’s also a very beautiful lake with one shore that has virtually no development on it which gives it a more rugged & Algonquin Parkish feel. Not only did I decide that I would indeed have to swim the length of Bass Lake, I also decided to make it a fundraiser for the Lyndhurst Rejuvenation Committee by seeking sponsors & added to that a goal of raising $5500.
Continue reading SWIMMING & FINANCIAL PLANNING – WHAT COULD THEY POSSIBLY HAVE IN COMMON?
By Betty-anne, on September 8th, 2011 I was asked by Kathy Sage, Minister at the Kingston Unitarian Fellowship, to participate in the Sydenham St. United Church’s Charter for Compassion Series this summer, in Kingston. Interfaith Services were taking place with the focus on how different religions & spiritual beliefs bring the Charter into their ministry.
How this came about is because, Karen Armstrong; Author, Theologian & Recipient of a TED Award brought together represenative leaders from all faiths & religions, a few years ago, to map out the Charter, seeking to find the common ground within all belief systems.
I am happy to say that I was one of the first people in Kingston to sign the Charter along with organizing two events in Kingston as part of this endeavour. I was asked by Kathy when it came time for the Unitarian Fellowship to address the congregation to talk about how, as a Unitarian, my work is guided by The Charter For Compassion.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, I believe a story can have an equivalent currency.
There are two aspects to the work I do in Financial Services with the ultimate goal of “Making Dreams a Reality”. One is investing money & the other is, financial planning – designing a plan to achieve all that you want, for your life, with a focus on mindfulness & compassion.
Continue reading Making Dreams A Reality with Compassion
By Betty-anne, on April 27th, 2011 
Visiting Iceland & Audur Capital
April 15, 2011
I read an article* over two years ago about Audur Capital, written by Ruth Sunderland, in The Guardian, which is a very popular newspaper, published in the United Kingdom. I was amazed at what they had accomplished, having left behind successful careers within the traditional banking sector in order to create a new way of doing business in Iceland. They managed to make their way through the financial crises & meltdown during 2008 & 2009, largely unscathed, while attributing their success to their feminine values & principles.
I was invited to visit them, should I ever be in Iceland. I finally got my chance last week & returned to Canada filled with even greater admiration for these incredible women who are devoted & committed to making a difference in the lives of women, businesses & investors.
Continue reading Visiting Iceland
By Betty-anne, on March 22nd, 2011 
Spring is an exciting time of the year, filled with anticipation & patience, knowing that we will soon be seeing the beauty of what Mother Nature has in store for us. I gently moved some of the leaves in my flower beds & was thrilled to see the tender shoots of the crocuses, daffodils & the not so fragile hyacinths. I covered them back up as I also know that it could snow & they may need that protection in order to bloom, in a few months. I love watching the trees go from budding to blooming, a process that never ceases to amaze me. That & seeing my surroundings go from grey to so many different shades of green.
Many of the themes that come with spring can be applied to Financial Planning.
Continue reading Ode to Spring
By Betty-anne, on February 15th, 2011  March 17th is St. Patrick’s Day where we celebrate the death of the patron saint of Ireland, who hails from the Emerald Ise (that’s why we wear green) and, as the legend goes, was the saint who drove the snakes out of Ireland. I bet you didn’t know all that! You may be wondering how the leprechauns fit into all of this. Did you know that if you can catch a leprechaun (the male version of a fairy) you can make him tell you where he hides his gold. Notice how the male fairies have the money and the girl fairies grant wishes. So what prey tell does this have to do with Financial Planning?
Continue reading St Patrick’s Day
By Betty-anne, on January 24th, 2011 [Battlestar Galactica (BSG) Fans only]
Disclaimer: The following opinions are mine alone and no one else can be held responsible for them. The following must not be misconstrued as advice. See your Financial Planner/Advisor for more information, please.
I must confess, I have never been a science fiction fan so when friends of mine, highly intelligent feminists, were raving & drooling over BSG I had to pay attention. They talked excitedly about the deep philosophical themes in the show so I decided to give it a whirl. Surprisingly it didn’t take me long to get hooked and like multiple orgasms (finally a tie into Valentines Day!), I just keep coming back for more.
Shamelessly now, I want to draw on what I’ve learned from BSG and bring it into play with our final taboo; you guessed it – money! Talk about money needn’t be boring, complex and anxiety provoking. Why can’t we make it a little more fun, interesting and, heaven forbid, sexy! Accessible would be good too!
So, let’s start with a little primer, a few acronyms and a take off from BSG for some heart warming thoughts to help you deal with the final taboo. Let’s start with, foreplay.
Continue reading Warm & Fuzzies for the Big Heart Day
By Paul, on October 8th, 2010 That’s what I used to think. As a young man the thought of a Critical Illness or any disease, that would impair my abilities or impact my life, was not in my scope of thinking. In fact, I had such a negative experience with a very demanding & overbearing Insurance Salesperson when I was younger, I proceeded to kick him out of my house and, it left me with a very negative impression of Insurance and the people who put it in place.
Obviously over the years my attitude towards Insurance has changed drastically and now being uninsurable, I regret not having more insurance in place but am grateful for what I do have and thank my sister (Betty-Anne) for putting that in place for me.
Continue reading Critical Illness – Not Me!
By Paul, on April 30th, 2010 Submitted by: Katherine Davidson
There are many ways to save money through insurance. Let’s begin with the biggest investment of our lives – purchasing a home.
The homes we live in are big investments. Often they are the biggest investment we make and inevitably, whether purchasing a home for the first time or refinancing, someone has suggested you purchase mortgage insurance – life insurance on the home owners, in the event that either of you die, then your mortgage balance is paid off.
There are other options you need to know about that have proven to be incredibly beneficial to our clients and will be for you as well.
Continue reading How to save money with insurance
|
