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Tuesday, October 3, 2023

What is in your financial arsenal? Just like having multiple guns in your safe, diversifying your financial portfolio is essential. It enables you to protect and grow your wealth. But why would you need another gun?

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

Flyfishing in August in Western Pennsylvania may sound out of place. However, the regional Mayfly Project fundraiser is an excellent time of year.  If there is an off-season for flyfishing guides in Southwest PA, the dog days of...

Monday, August 28, 2023

Transitions come in all shapes and sizes—some sudden, like the immediate awareness of driving off the pavement and onto a gravel road. For me, that usually means I'm heading for a better place. Or maybe it's the rough transition...

Tuesday, August 15, 2023

Have you ever booked a trip in the “shoulder season?” You know, it’s not “high season” or prime time for travel. These less-than-prime dates are usually enjoyed or acquired at a discounted rate, often...

Thursday, July 13, 2023

In November of 2022, I wrote a blog titled "Bears and Bear Markets." The market had fallen into bear market territory about the same time a roaming bear had decided that his new territory included my property. Like dealing with a...

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Friday, July 7, 2023

One of the things that makes life-long hunters deeply passionate about their lifestyle is the years and layers of traditions. Some are small and seemingly mundane, like the scent that escapes your duffel bag that you only use for...

Tuesday, June 27, 2023

The Message, The Messenger, And You We are all aware of the phenomenon known as the Power of Suggestion. You see, you stroll into the office (remember when everyone did that), and someone asks, “Are you feeling...

Tuesday, June 13, 2023

I have asked it before, and I'm sure I'll ask it repeatedly. What is the value of your time? Very few people know. Sure, everyone says, "My time is valuable," particularly when they're upset and in a hurry. But that's usually nothing...

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

I supported a Veteran's fishing weekend for the second year in a row. The two-day event is part of the Veteran's Adventure Project sponsored by the Pittsburgh Chapter of Safari Club International. This year's event was significant...

Monday, May 8, 2023

I still wear a suit to the office. Not every day, but on the days I'm going to see a client. I've heard other Advisors say, "My clients don't expect me to wear a suit anymore." This statement is yet another example of how we get what...

Monday, April 24, 2023

I was thinking one day last week about all the professional projects I'd like to accomplish in the next three years and all the places I'd like to see. For the first time in a long time, I thought, "How in the h@3& is all that...

Monday, April 17, 2023

Is it possible to have too much of a (seemingly) good thing? Yes, it is possible. Everyone can come up with at least a short list of desirable things they could do that would not suit them if they had unlimited access to it. Some are...

Thursday, April 6, 2023

Can you recall a time when you purchased something you didn't need? It probably happened yesterday. It's ok. You can be honest and know you're not alone. It's safe to say that most Americans enjoy a comparatively high standard of...

Monday, April 3, 2023

We have all heard the saying, "Times Change." When it comes to the stock market, it's always one of those times. Over the past 20-plus years, we have seen the tech bubble burst, a terrorist attack that sent markets tumbling, a global...

Monday, March 27, 2023

Like it or not, if you watch TV, cable or otherwise, and tune in to the news, you have purchased your ticket to today's show. Whether you like theater or not, you're watching. Everything that is happening around us becomes exaggerated!...

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

Last month, I shared a blog and video about BPG Planning’s Build Phase that focused on your time allocation and vision for your life’s future. PLAN is the second phase of the planning process, and the focus shifts to your...

Monday, March 6, 2023

Sunday, March 5th, was an exceptionally beautiful day for early spring in Western Pennsylvania. And for someone that doesn't go to the movies or even own a television, a matinee is the last place you'd typically find me. However,...

Thursday, February 16, 2023

Why? Poor Vision = Poor decision. Vision building is about allocating your most precious asset, your time. It only makes sense to start at the beginning, but, as Stephen Covey said, with the end in mind. Living intentionally requires...

Friday, January 27, 2023

Have you reviewed your beneficiary designations lately? Most people don't realize that beneficiaries are a form of estate planning, and it ensures that your assets are transferred to the right person or entity upon your death....

Monday, January 23, 2023

Attempting to forecast economic conditions a year in advance can leave people wondering what "they" were thinking come December. It's part reflection, fact-finding, interpretation, intuition, and luck. I add "luck" because no matter...

Wednesday, January 11, 2023

Happy New Year! It is that time of year when most of us begin to set goals and intentions for the year. We start laying the foundation for the year and begin building. An important piece of planning that most people need to consider is...

Monday, December 19, 2022

Gift Your Presence to Someone this Holiday!It's amazing that the change in the calendar can bring about such a collective change in moods. 'Tis the season," of many things. Things like decorations, libations, celebrations, and giving...

Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Give Thanks and Express your Thankfulness this Thanksgiving!Thanksgiving is a favorite Holiday for many Americans. I still give Christmas the edge. Mainly, we celebrate Christmas more as a season than a single day. However, it is easy...

Tuesday, November 15, 2022

I find many parallels and lessons when comparing economics and markets to the natural world, which means Mother Nature. Think about how Economists talk about market patterns, behavior, and predictions and compare that to how...

Tuesday, November 1, 2022

Me, my shadow, and 25-plus miles to the next mountain. It was a beautiful place to be. All alone at 8,000 feet, with no cell service, no WI-FI, and electricity being an honest 20ish miles away, I "almost" find peace. The weather is...

Monday, October 24, 2022

We recently shared some important information about “What You Should Know About RMDs” and making sense of them. Part two of this video series discusses RMD calculations and QCDs (qualified charitable distributions).Brian...

Monday, October 17, 2022

Every year, many questions surround RMDs (required minimum distributions). Simply put, an RMD is an amount you must take out of your traditional retirement savings plan to avoid tax penalties once you’ve reached the mandatory age...

Wednesday, October 5, 2022

I feel like I have said it before, but traveling changes you. It makes you a better person, adjusts your perspective, and allows you to peer into the experiences of how others live. I find myself being drawn to how others live each...

Thursday, September 29, 2022

This year’s event was a sell-out—a great group of people gathering at an excellent shooting venue for a great cause. Defenders of Freedom is a 501(c)(3) organization that supports post-9/11 veterans in Western Pennsylvania...

Monday, September 19, 2022

Fall is my favorite time of year. There are many reasons I love Fall. Not the least of which is lower humidity! I'm all in for the Fall classics like cool nights, football under the lights, the changing colors, the changing wardrobes,...

Wednesday, September 14, 2022

At BPG Planning, we believe your time is your most valuable asset, and we strive to see that our clients are fully involved in life, creating their future by living intentionally. We partner with you to help you achieve this by...

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

As small business owners, you have a lot on your plate, and BPG Planning recognizes that TIME is your most valuable asset. We realize that it is important to consider a retirement plan that's right for you, your employees, and your...

Monday, August 29, 2022

BPG Planning has always been a committed partner in planning for your financial future. We support you in increasing the value of your most precious asset, your TIME. As we continue to grow and help you pursue your goals, we decided...

Tuesday, August 2, 2022

When I first started to travel to go fishing, I was nearly obsessed with the weather. I felt the weight of my limited time and finances and wanted to do everything I could to have the highest probability of an enjoyable trip, including...

Tuesday, July 5, 2022

I don’t really like to fly. It's not that I’m afraid to fly. I just don’t enjoy the experience of going to the airport, secure checks and delays and layovers are the worst. And if you’re traveling...

Monday, June 6, 2022

We have all heard the saying, “Times Change.” When it comes to the stock market its always one of those times. Over the past 20 plus years we have seen the tech bubble burst, a terrorist attack that sent the country and...

Tuesday, May 3, 2022

Isn’t it nice to feel comfortable? The feeling that everything’s ok. Nothing to worry about, no physical pains, no pressure from obligation. Is life ever like that? We as a country and I would say as a species love the...

Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Most Americans have the bulk of their net worth in their homes and employer sponsored plans, like a 401k. You may think that 401k’s have always been part of the work place but that’s not the case. The 401k got it’s...

Tuesday, March 1, 2022

The age old question, “How do you win at the game of life?” (I’d start by challenging the question, sorry, it’s in my nature.) How do YOU define “win?” For me, I think that if I were truly happy and...

Tuesday, February 1, 2022

“In life, often times distractions come to us disguised as opportunities.” I have a friend that I have now known for 20 years. That’s 40% of my life. Many times over the years I have gone to him and asked if he would...

Tuesday, January 4, 2022

You may have heard that people need to hear things three times before it really sinks in. For some of us, depending on the message, three times isn’t nearly enough. Yet there are other messages that ring true on the first pass...

Tuesday, December 7, 2021

“If you don’t prioritize your life someone else will.” We have all had things in our lives that have or are currently influencing our behavior. Whether it’s a person, a substance, or an activity, it’s...

Monday, November 15, 2021

Last Fall I was standing in my living room just after getting back from a bike ride when I noticed a doe and her fawn out in the back yard. It was September 16th. We stared at one another for a while and I was struck by how small the...

Monday, November 8, 2021

Fall, my favorite time of year. There are many reasons I love Fall. Not the least of which is lower humidity! I’m all in for the Fall classics like, cool nights, football under the lights, the changing colors, the changing...

Tuesday, November 2, 2021

Once upon a time there was the stone age, then the bronze age, then the industrial age (yes, I’m skipping a few but you get the point), then the information age. All of which refer to what drove human development, civilizations,...

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

What is Financial Planning? We’ll in 1999 it was an industry buzz word. And since that time the financial services industry as well as what financial planning looks like has changed. In the early years several large, well...

Tuesday, September 7, 2021

The intrinsic value of all time is the same. How we perceive and experience each moment can greatly influence how we feel about our time. As humans our resource of time is finite. Unlike our currency, you can’t print more time....

Monday, August 30, 2021

Now that we are again allowed to “move freely about the cabin,” I certainly have found myself out and about. I felt like I really wanted to support those local restaurateurs that are still kicking. And like many of you, I...

Wednesday, August 25, 2021

I have never traveled to make a living. Many of my peers who ended up with consulting jobs out of grad school were “out” on Sunday and back on Thursday or Friday every week. I usually fly two or three times a year. Well, I...

Thursday, August 12, 2021

I know that there were a lot of negative things that happened in 2020. It’s a year that many people would just as soon forget and for good reason. But some good did come from those 365 days. One simple benefit I realized was the...

Monday, August 2, 2021

Inflation is like gravity. You may not understand it, you may not believe in it, you may not like it, but you will live your life in a world impacted by it. Therefore, like it or not it is relevant. But is it going to wreck your...

Friday, January 15, 2021

Economics The big picture for 2021, at least from an economic sense, looks positive. Of course, there are always market headwinds and there is always the opportunity for a surprise when forecasting. But the word is that we will remain...

Monday, December 21, 2020

This can certainly be considered a holy or religious season. Many religions celebrate a significant holiday in December, the early winter season. There are some 14 different religious holidays celebrated in early winter. I find it...

Monday, November 16, 2020

We may be finding that there are more reasons to just “get out” these days than in prior fall seasons. How you “choose” to spend your time plays a large part in the quality of your life. I say...

Monday, October 12, 2020

How many people have visited Loyalsock Canyon in Sullivan County Pennsylvania? My guess is that most people have never even heard of the place. My recent social post talks about the vibrant color that can be witness there this time of...

Friday, October 9, 2020

In my recent social post, “Money Management in the Time of COVID” the article outlines five action items someone could consider when planning for retirement. Normally content with such a title consists of content that...

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

I’m not an expert, but I sure do enjoy wine, learning about it, and trying something new. Willamette has become a more common word on wine labels here in PA over the past several years. For me, if a Pinot Noir was from the...

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Why even publish this article? I chose it, for the same reason I chose many other articles to post; to provide an example of now people can get turned around when it comes to generic financial advice. If you can really call it advice...

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

The article about “Why the First Five Years of Your Retirement are Critical” is full of important points that could be reviewed and discussed. I’m going to focus in on four. The first being that the five years prior...

Wednesday, July 29, 2020

Wine, It’s a Deep Subject The topic of wine is amazingly diverse. It’s not just tastes and types. Wine has been part of societies and cultures for centuries. It even has a role in religion. Today grapes are grown, and wine...

Friday, July 17, 2020

Thought I would give everyone a bit of a break from my e-mails. Hard to believe we are over halfway through the year and what a year its been. Some of you may be asking, “what’s next?” Here are my “second half...

Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Happy 4th of July everyone! I’m sure I’m not the only one asking what happened to the first six months of 2020, but in the same breath, I don’t think many of us want to go back and rehash the details. So, let’s...

Monday, June 29, 2020

The US is officially in a recession… Well, there’s no surprise here. I’m not sure that there is anyone that thought we would not be experiencing a recession at this point in time. Stating that it’s...

Friday, June 19, 2020

There is really one over-riding point to the article, Don’t Go it Alone, Four Reasons to Have a Financial Advisor. It’s that advisors, good advisors, bring value that isn’t directly posted on an account statement. The...

Friday, June 12, 2020

Cycling can be anything you want it to be. A commute to work, a family outing, part of a cross fit program, or a complete all-encompassing way of life. For all of the gear heads and hammer heads out there traveling every weekend to...

Friday, June 5, 2020

The article that I posted on Debunking the Most Common Sports Nutrition Myths is one of my favorites so far. Why? Because as I have always said, there are endless and accurate parallels between success in health and fitness and...

Friday, June 5, 2020

Well, more regulation is coming. Some of you may remember the Department of Labor Ruling several years ago. Not to bore anyone, but basically the DOL took it upon itself to draft over 1,000 pages of regulation, that in the end simply...

Friday, May 29, 2020

I'm going to keep the numbers to a minimum and, as with previous messages, I'll add my usual disclaimer.....we aren't out of the woods yet. Actually, we are far from it, but we are now witnessing the significant disconnect between the...

Friday, May 29, 2020

This article is priceless. For anyone that’s been touch by diabetes you know the challenges. For anyone that has been or attempted to be an elite level athlete, you know the challenges. But both. And to stay on top year after...

Friday, May 29, 2020

Know anyone with a shopping addiction? You know, they just love getting their daily package. Now with being at home every day you find you’re on a first name basis with the FedEx driver. Or is this just me. Look, its easy to lose...

Monday, May 25, 2020

If there is one thing I can say about cycling nutrition (eating on the bike) is that, it depends. Nutrition in general is a lot like financial advice. It needs to be tailored to the individual. What works for one person may not work...

Monday, May 25, 2020

This piece is dry, very dry. But, if you really want to know the basics of retirement accounts it’s well done. Easy to read with very straight forward and current information. If you are someone that hasn’t spent time...

Monday, May 18, 2020

COVID 19 has and will change a lot of things. How we communicate, travel, do business and socialize have been altered in significant ways. But that is just the obvious changes. Others are happening that many are not aware of and some...

Monday, May 11, 2020

I have always thought there were a lot of analogies between wine and investing. In one of my recent social media posts, “Why Some Wines Command a Hefty Price,” the author outlines some of variables that can influence the...

Friday, May 8, 2020

I recently posted an article from Zacks titled “When Does Market Timing Actually Work.” The post was not an indication that I feel market timing is a good idea, because it isn’t. But the it does provide a simple,...

Monday, March 30, 2020

As the Roman poet, Horace, so eloquently said: "Adversity reveals genius, prosperity conceals it" -- the Italian version of that old saw, "Necessity is the mother of invention." Make no mistake, my intent is not to lighten the gravity...

Friday, February 28, 2020

Yes, the year has just started but plans are already underway for this year’s Veterans Appreciation Shoot at Nemacolin! A big thanks goes out to all of those that attended last year. We are looking forward to seeing everyone...

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

10/16/19 On September 26th, we hosted our first annual Veterans Appreciation Shoot (VAS) at Nemacolin’s Field Club. This year’s benefactor was The Veterans Breakfast Club (VBC). The VBC is a Pittsburgh founded organization...