It's hard to believe, but come August I will have officially been in the financial planning industry for three years. Or if you want to go by how my VP does time in the business, half a decade. I can't wait until I hit year five so that I can say "the better part of a decade."
I must say that it's becoming increasingly more and more apparent that there can be some crazy clients out there. A few of the guys that I work with and I have been telling war/horror stories of what we've experienced thus far just from our short time in the business. There is some weird stuff! So I've decided to compile a list of the ridiculous/frustrating/hilarious moments that have already been encountered.
*One day I was calling to follow up with a client to see if they had signed the paperwork yet and the wife answered the phone. I explained who I was and why I was calling and she replied with "honey, he died!" After I call the life insurance company, I come to find out that he was murdered and she is a suspect. Awesome....never going out there by myself again.
*A guy that I work with came over from Edward Jones, and he literally had someone drive their car through his office front right into the lobby....twice. After the second time he of course asked for cement barriers to go in front. What were these people looking for...drive thru mutual funds? A literal one stop shop?
*On a trip to the middle of no where with one of my partners, I asked him what the weirdest thing that has ever happened to him in a meeting was. His answer was very short, but oh so funny. He said "Laura, last week I had a lady move from her seat over to the couch I was sitting on and put her head in my lap." If that's not awkward, I don't know what is.
There are so many other stories...but sadly the time has come for me to actually do some work and be what my parents call a "productive member of society." More stories to come I'm sure!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Taking Over the World
So my friends and my clients have started a tradition of sending me pictures of AXA signs whenever they travel out of the country. Most of them write back and tell me that I should move to wherever they saw the sign. I can't decide if my friends are trying to be subtle and hint for me to move far away, or if they're just really excited about seeing the place I work all over the world. I'm hoping it's the second option and not the first. If I move out of the country it's not going to be to become a financial advisor, that's for sure! Anywho, here's one from Versailles, France.
It's kind of hard to see the AXA sign, but it's the tiny blue box in the middle of the picture. Trust me, it says AXA.
Roll Call for the Absent
In many lands and climes this April day
Proud sons of Texas A&M unite.
Our loyalty to country, school, we pray,
and seal our pact with bond of common might.
We live again those happy days of yore
on campus, field, in classroom, dorm, at drill
Fond memory brings a sigh -- but nothing more;
Now we are men and life’s a greater thrill,
On Corregidor * years ago today
A band of gallant Aggies, led by Moore,
Held simple rites which led to us doth all to say:
The spirit shall prevail through cannon roar.
Before we part and go upon our way,
We pause to honor those we knew so well;
The old familiar faces we miss so much today
Left cherished recollections that time cannot dispel.
Softly call the Muster,
Let comrade answer, “Here!”
Their spirits hover ‘round us
As if to bring us cheer!
Mark them ‘present’ in our hearts.
We’ll meet some other day
There is no death, but life etern
For our old friends such as they!
by Dr. John Ashton ‘06
* The third stanza is original to the poem and had been deleted over the years. It was intended that each year, the number of years since Corregidor would be inserted.
Proud sons of Texas A&M unite.
Our loyalty to country, school, we pray,
and seal our pact with bond of common might.
We live again those happy days of yore
on campus, field, in classroom, dorm, at drill
Fond memory brings a sigh -- but nothing more;
Now we are men and life’s a greater thrill,
On Corregidor * years ago today
A band of gallant Aggies, led by Moore,
Held simple rites which led to us doth all to say:
The spirit shall prevail through cannon roar.
Before we part and go upon our way,
We pause to honor those we knew so well;
The old familiar faces we miss so much today
Left cherished recollections that time cannot dispel.
Softly call the Muster,
Let comrade answer, “Here!”
Their spirits hover ‘round us
As if to bring us cheer!
Mark them ‘present’ in our hearts.
We’ll meet some other day
There is no death, but life etern
For our old friends such as they!
by Dr. John Ashton ‘06
* The third stanza is original to the poem and had been deleted over the years. It was intended that each year, the number of years since Corregidor would be inserted.
Friday, April 17, 2009
What the craic?
So, if all you're seeing is "Bar, Restaurant and Nightclub," you're clearly looking at the wrong part of the picture. Shift your eyes over to the left and take note of the name. How cool is that?! My friend Spencer was in Ireland and he saw this while roaming the streets of Dublin. Oh, also ignore the fact that my last name is spelled wrong. But you still get the idea!
By the way, the title of the blog translates as "Any news?" or "Hello!" I promise it's not shady.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Just a Fad...
...Or at least that's what the internet is at our house. My brother came to paint a few weeks ago and the day he left the internet mysteriously stopped working along with my computer. Coincidence? I think not. Personally, I think he did it on purpose because I told him I would help him apply for jobs in Dallas. Michael, if you don't want to live in the same city as me then just tell me. There's no need to break my computer and the internet. Anyways, all that to say that there was a reason for the hiatus from writing on the blog. I no longer have to depend on the iPhone for internet or for checking the email. So get ready for lots of reading material during your workday because I have some catching up to do!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
My Story of Grace
I think it would be fair to say that I grew up in a family of churchgoers. My parents made sure my brother and I were at church every week and were involved in everything possible…youth group, church choir…you name it, we were in it. My family very much lived the life of “appearances were everything” and it was important for everyone to see that we had it all put together. For as long as I can remember I always wanted to make sure people were pleased with me and what I was doing. I guess you could say I was a people pleaser to the core. I was constantly trying to find my significance in how involved I was at church and school, my grades, in tennis, and then of course in how my parents, teachers and friends responded to me and praised my good work.
Even though I grew up in the church, I don’t remember being clearly presented the gospel until I was 11 years old. I was actually with my church youth group at a concert and I remember someone standing on stage and just sharing God’s truth with me. It was like I was the only there and he was talking directly to me. The thing that struck me immediately was the question he asked. He asked that if we were to die tonight, how sure are we that we would go to Heaven. My answer was “not very sure.” He then explained how we are all born sinners and in need of a Savior. He explained that because of sin we are forever separated from God because God is perfect. Then He shared the good news that I remember bringing me great relief. He explained how God sent His Son Jesus to live a perfect life, die on the cross for my sins and then conquered death so that one day I could have eternal life. I immediately jumped at the hope that he offered.
For about the next week or two that followed, I remember that all I wanted to do was spend time reading my Bible. I just couldn’t get enough. But after that week or two, my life quickly went back to normal. Once again I was wrapped up in what others thought of me and had a constant feeling of inadequacy. Junior High and High School could easily be characterized by people pleasing and having a relationship with God that was minimal at best. The most important thing to me was looking like I had it all put together. It wasn’t until college that I got to see what it looked like to have a real relationship with the Lord. I saw that it wasn’t easy and I wasn’t always going to have those happy, fluffy feelings. I found that I would go through periods of time where I wouldn’t even desire spending time with God, but in spite of that discipline was necessary. Even today I still struggle with wanting to please people and wanting to control what others think of me, but the Lord is consistently having to remind me that my adequacy is found in Him and no where else. 2 Corinthians 3:4-6 says “Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” That’s the best news in the world to me! Because of Christ and what He did for me on the cross, God sees me as more than adequate and He loves me as His own.
Even though I grew up in the church, I don’t remember being clearly presented the gospel until I was 11 years old. I was actually with my church youth group at a concert and I remember someone standing on stage and just sharing God’s truth with me. It was like I was the only there and he was talking directly to me. The thing that struck me immediately was the question he asked. He asked that if we were to die tonight, how sure are we that we would go to Heaven. My answer was “not very sure.” He then explained how we are all born sinners and in need of a Savior. He explained that because of sin we are forever separated from God because God is perfect. Then He shared the good news that I remember bringing me great relief. He explained how God sent His Son Jesus to live a perfect life, die on the cross for my sins and then conquered death so that one day I could have eternal life. I immediately jumped at the hope that he offered.
For about the next week or two that followed, I remember that all I wanted to do was spend time reading my Bible. I just couldn’t get enough. But after that week or two, my life quickly went back to normal. Once again I was wrapped up in what others thought of me and had a constant feeling of inadequacy. Junior High and High School could easily be characterized by people pleasing and having a relationship with God that was minimal at best. The most important thing to me was looking like I had it all put together. It wasn’t until college that I got to see what it looked like to have a real relationship with the Lord. I saw that it wasn’t easy and I wasn’t always going to have those happy, fluffy feelings. I found that I would go through periods of time where I wouldn’t even desire spending time with God, but in spite of that discipline was necessary. Even today I still struggle with wanting to please people and wanting to control what others think of me, but the Lord is consistently having to remind me that my adequacy is found in Him and no where else. 2 Corinthians 3:4-6 says “Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” That’s the best news in the world to me! Because of Christ and what He did for me on the cross, God sees me as more than adequate and He loves me as His own.
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