Wealth Resources Network
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Have you ever taken a good long look at your comprehensive plan for wealth, growth, and retirement? I took a fairly lax approach to these in my 20′s and early 30′s trading it in for the spirit of entrepreneurship. Being a sole proprietor or freelancer has its significant advantages. I get to roll into work when I want to, plug in remotely if I want to get out of town, and I don’t have to answer to a boss. Correction, I was married last year and that changed everything. Anyhow, I digress. The point is I, like many Americans today, exchanged the security that a company brings in the form of steady income, insurance plans, and retirement plans for the opportunity to launch off on my own. Lately, there is a component to this adventure that has been haunting me. Long-term resources.
Over the past year I’ve had the opportunity to get to know Deron Glickert, Wealth Advisor for Wealth Resources Network. Deron is one of those guys who, unlike myself, commands the attention of a room with seemingly little effort. He’s a well-spoken professional who always has something positive to say. This October I took him up on his offer to visit him at the Wealth Resources Network office off of Old Liverpool Road in Syracuse. The plan was to take a look at my situation and determine a plan to get me where I need to be in 30 years.
First off, I have to commend Deron and his staff for the diligent follow up leading up to the meeting. I received a gentle phone and email reminder of the upcoming meeting and confirmed that we were still a “go”. Upon arrival I was greeted at the front in a way that made me feel important by Lorraine. It wasn’t one of those “have a seat and sign in” greetings. No, this was a “Hello Mr. Waterman, we’ve been expecting you. How do you take your coffee?” greetings. From there I was escorted back to Mr. Glickert’s office which was pleasantly decorated, organized, clean, and we were undistributed. I cannot tell you how much this means to me after the hundreds of one-on-ones that I’ve been in where this was not the case.
Deron immediately made me feel right at home and introduced me to his plan – to listen to me and find out my goals. We talked about what it was that I was seeking to build over the next few months, years, and decades. He really opened my eyes to the reality of short-term and long-term goal planning. The meeting wasn’t without effort on my end. I helped Deron gain a thorough understanding of my current situation by providing all of my insurance policies, mortgage information, income sources, and more. Fast-forward a couple of weeks and Deron and I are meeting again, only this time he is repeating back to me what I told him in our initial interview to ensure he has the proper understanding of my needs. He is 100% accurate. Not only is he 100% accurate but he’s also providing advice that could help other aspects of my life and reduce overall stress and wasted resources.
I anticipate that over the next few years Deron and I will be working hard on getting me set up for retirement. He is already enrolling me in seminars and planning 90-day “sprints” to achieve short-term goals. He is my coach and my motivator. Before I wrap up this review I’d like to share with you one personal moment that I had with Deron, who is a self-titled “touchy-feely wealth advisor”. Deron truly invests himself in your well-being. He seems to connect with your aspirations and concerns. At one point I sat there in a shocked state realizing that I didn’t have much in the way of savings, financial wealth, or investments. I felt a wave of panic sweep over me that was quickly followed with a true sense of urgency and concern coupled with emptiness. I realize this isn’t a desirable state of emotion, but it was necessary to make the change I need so much. In that moment Deron drew out a cross on a blank piece of paper which broke the page up into quadrants. It was here that he explained that wealth isn’t defined solely by financial resources. He explained that my relationships, experience/wisdom gained, and even the taxes I’ve paid over the years are also investments. He indicated that of the 4 quadrants, financial resources are the only resources that we as humans can outsource. And, although he is there to provide that service, he was also very interested in seeing the other 3 quadrants remain healthy and continue to grow. Now that’s a great advisor.
Dan’s Scores:
Innovation: 5 Stars (great job of taking something that already exists and making it more amazing)
Technology: 5 Stars (great choice in local web design talent)
Environment: 5 Stars (expansion is underway at the time of this blog)
Eagle Newspapers
Eagle News
A few months back I was sitting in a networking meeting in Syracuse, NY listening to the job/title descriptions of everyone in attendance. I was the “newbie” that day and was mostly taking everything in as I usually do in the beginning of a new environment. There were some pretty impressive individuals there (I may expand on this in the future, but for now it’s a “secret” group) and I was a fairly new freelancer so there was a slight sense of intimidation. But, as I’ve learned over the years, the best way to get past that is to get to know the people around you. So I did.
As I was mingling around I happened to meet a lady by the name of Carol Eggert. I don’t know if I’ve ever told Carol this before, but I recognized her from previous Syracuse networking events. I can’t say whether or not we’d met formally prior to this day, but I did know who she was. Carol is a very comfortable, knowledgeable, very professional woman who intrigued me right away with her nonchalant demeanor. I couldn’t resist the urge to learn more about her company, Eagle Newspapers (although I had never picked one up prior to our first one-on-one), and what they could possibly do to enhance the awareness of my fledgling business.
Getting to know Carol was one of the best moves I made that month for a couple of reasons. First of all, I had a great cup of coffee (she had cider) in the new Tim Horton’s on 7th North where I learned about the Eagle Newspaper’s various advertising packages. A guy like me who doesn’t have the “Benjamins” flowing out of his wallet needs to identify ways to spread his marketing out on a slim budget. When I found out that I could get going with a nice color ad that was 2.5″ x 2.5″ for $25 per week in a paper that had a circulation in the downtown area (best for my target audience) of 10,000 I jumped on it like a bulldog on a porkchop.
DWE Eagle news ad
Next, Carol cordially invited me to attend the grand opening of the Eagle Newspapers new location in Eastwood on James Street which, ironically, is the former location of Keller Williams whom I did a lot of business with. The morning started off with coffee (score!) and a meet-and-greet session. The main level was packed to the gills and I didn’t know a soul, however; I was bound-and-determined to turn this into a great opportunity. A simple cascade of events took place that quickly fueled several introductions and even a photo opp with the 3 co-owners of the Paper which appeared in their online news feed the following day.
Eagle News Photo Opp
I learned a lot about Eagle Newspapers through Carol. I learned that their paper is a free publication with a very large distribution. I learned that their advertising works (my attorney texted me after he saw my ad for the first time). And, most of all, I learned that they have a great working environment and are respected by many. The owner of the local branch, David Tyler, was an approachable, educated man who was fully-engaged during our initial conversation – something I can’t say is common nowadays by men in his position. It was evident that he surrounds himself with professionals of similar character after having several conversations with Eagle employees, some of whom are now Facebook friends of mine ( Ned and Doug, the young bucks of the operation are manning the social media).
Dan’s Scores:
Innovation: 4 Stars (everyone loves a free, quality publication)
Technology: 3 1/2 Stars (need more social media interaction and video)
Environment: 4 1/2 Stars (Could use some aesthetic improvements)