06 Jul More Than Financial Advice from Hoon Kang, Cultivant
More Than Financial Advice from Hoon Kang, CFP®, AEP, CPA, Financial Advisor
Cultivant LLC
“Life sucks!”
I was shocked to hear my friend blurt this out over dinner. From the outside, his life seemed picture-perfect, as good as it gets for this middle-aged man – or anyone at any age. He has a great family with a caring wife. His three kids excelled in school and stayed out of trouble, and they are now launching to be productive and responsible adults and citizens. He and his wife are both professionals and well-respected in their community. They have an active social life and are set financially.
What was so sucky about his life?
I probed a bit and learned that, understandably, he had good reasons for his sentiment. But life sucks? Hmm, I couldn’t agree.
“I understand,” I told him, “but you have a good family with great kids, you’re in a respectable profession, you’re financially stable and set for comfortable retirement. A lot of people aren’t so fortunate. Let’s try to focus on the positive.”
Given that we were both born in South Korea, I wondered out loud, what if we were born a couple of hundred miles north? We would be living under the dictator with a funny haircut who likes to shoot missiles and indulge in luxury while his people starve. Who knows? We might not even be alive today.
Fortunately, we both live and work as professionals in the wealthiest and the most powerful nation in the world – the land of opportunity (yes, still). No, America is not perfect. You don’t have to be a news junkie to pick up on all the ugly stuff that’s going on.
Still, it was in this country – flawed though it may be – where we were able to flourish. We could freely choose from the many top educational institutions, acquire skills, and find jobs that pay fairly. We had to work hard at times, but we were generally rewarded for our hard work in one form or another.
Oh, by the way, let’s not forget that we had nothing to do with being able to live in this country. Goodness, I feel like I won the lottery, I exclaimed. Don’t you feel lucky?
On balance, maybe we don’t control our destiny (as they say) as much as we’d like to admit. For starters, we can’t choose our parents or where we are born. We certainly contributed nothing to the talents or other genetic attributes we were born with.
He nodded his head slowly, his gaze softening again.
Life throws us a lot of curve balls to be sure. It’s not always smooth sailing. Still, I believe, it’s good for our souls to zoom out once in a while and count our blessings. Perhaps many of us can see that we are fortunate enough to be able to give to good causes or those in need. Some of us can maybe even give a lot.
Northshore School Foundation’s mission is “to raise funds and build community partnerships that enhance and inspire learning potential, remove barriers, and build skills for life, thereby amplifying District priorities for student and teacher education and excellence.”
We have a wonderful opportunity to give to help children in the Northshore community to learn and grow academically, socially, emotionally, and physically. They say, it takes a village to raise a child. Why not do your part and give to Northshore School Foundation to help raise our children one by one?
And before I sign off, shout out to my E.S.L. teachers who were patient and kind with me and my awkward sentences with missing articles and incorrect subject-verb agreements. Now, I’m older than when you taught me, and this old man still remembers your faces fondly like yesterday.
###
Cultivant designs and implements comprehensive financial strategies that will address all of your financial objectives. Their financial planning process involves holistically integrating the following elements:
- Retirement planning
- Estate planning
- Investment planning
- Tax planning
- Education planning
- Insurance planning
Comprehensive financial planning can be a complex, multi-layered endeavor that often requires expertise in other disciplines like law, tax, insurance, mortgage, and others. Cultivant, LLC collaborates with experts in various disciplines as necessary and coordinate the activities of these advisors.
Neither Cultivant or the Northshore Schools Foundation provides legal or tax advice. You should consult your own legal or tax advisor. This information is intended for educational purposes, and it is not to be construed as an offer, solicitation, recommendation, or endorsement of any particular security, products, or services.
###
Northshore Schools Foundation
The Northshore Schools Foundation is a local 501 (c)(3) local non-profit charity that serves students, and teachers in the Northshore School District located in the communities of Bothell, Kenmore, Woodinville. The Foundation is funded solely by private contributions and operates separately from the Northshore School District.
We are most proud of our efforts to enrich the educational experience for students, supporting teachers, and making a meaningful contribution to public education and the community. The Foundation has granted over $3 million dollars to our schools, funding programs, and resources that benefit every student, nearly every day during their school career.
We are honored to have been voted “Best Local Non-profit” in the Best of Northshore three times; to have received the “Top-Rated” classification from Great Non-Profits and; to be a “Gold Participant” on Guidestar.
Our Mission is to raise funds and build community partnerships that enhance and inspire learning potential, remove barriers, and build skills for life, thereby amplifying District priorities for student and teacher education and excellence.