| Our
friend Margaret is back from a cruise with The Pride of Hawaii. She’s having
coffee with Paul, a retired business owner. He created an enormously successful
yet low profile shoe repair franchise and considers himself fortunate to
have been bought out by a like-minded group of keen entrepreneurs. He admits,
however, to not being fully prepared to retire. |
|
“Look Paul, you’ve plenty of money,” Margaret
scolds him mildly. “Whatever is your problem? You can do whatever you like.
Life is yours. It’s a place that many people can’t even afford to dream
about.”
Paul isn’t deterred. “I’ve worked all my
life,” he retorts. “I’ve repaired thousands of shoes. My fingernails were
always dirty. There isn’t a shoe in this world I can’t fix and now I have
none. What am I going to do with all this time?”
Margaret tries to be helpful: “What are
you interested in?”
Paul is polite and doesn’t tell her that
she’s not helping him with such a large question. “People came to me to
get their shoes and boots fixed. They had a problem. I helped them solve
it. I saved them money. They needed me. I needed them.
“I’d like to give back. I’d like to volunteer
somewhere, somehow,” he’s almost stumbling through his words, as though
he’s never given life to his thoughts.
Margaret receives the information calmly
and looks at him. “Perhaps you could ask the editor of The Montrealer for
ideas. He knows a lot of people. He serves on boards of charitable organizations.
He’s reputable.” She’s on a roll. “Yes, Paul, I agree, you’ve a great deal
to give. You have so much business experience in making money, managing
people and jobs, in creating ideas and solving problems. No wonder you’re
a little lost right now. Go for it. Call him up!”
Paul’s a little taken aback at how well
his words have been received. “Ok,” he’s quieter now. “Another question?”
Margaret sips the last of her coffee. “Yes?”
“How did you decide on your money manager?
You see, I figure that if I’m busy doing what I really want, then I’ll
need someone to manage the nest egg.”
“Oh,” Margaret replies thoughtfully. “Of
course. Well, let me tell you that deciding on the person or on the company
was difficult. Initially, that is. There’s so much I didn’t know. Still
don’t. It became easier, however, once I committed to paper what I was
looking for. You know, being able to trust the people I work with, that
sort of thing. That’s number one on my list. Another is how quickly do
they fix problems. Are they competitive, and so on and so forth.
“You have to be able to trust who you’re
working with. Absolutely,” Margaret knows her grammar is out of line yet
she’s determined to underline the fact. “And you can tell,” her face
takes on another expression, “the minute you walk into a business, the
minute you meet the people, that there’s something different, something
special about who they are and their pride in helping you succeed. It’s
real.”
Paul is listening intently.
“It’s like hiring an employee in many ways,”
Margaret continues. “You make a list of the qualifications and characteristics
of the people for which you’re looking. Then you interview the candidates,
score them, weigh the pros and cons and voilà, make a decision.
Not easy, but if I can do it, so can you!”
Paul is slightly skeptical.
“No, no, Paul,” Margaret insists. “It works.
I did it myself. I made up a list. Trust is on the top, of course, followed
by competence, confidence, sensible advice, fixing mistakes, and so on.
This is what’s important to me; never mind what’s important to anyone else.
With this list, I tracked down the best. I found it, or eh hmmm,” she’s
between a stutter and a clearing of the throat, “I found her and her company.
I know I got the best for my money.”
Paul doesn’t notice the stammer. He’s thinking.
“Could you send me your list?”
“Of course, Paul. We’re friends.” Margaret’s
smile says it all.
If you’re interested in a copy of Margaret’s
list, send us an e-mail or call Pina Tria at 514-394-3771 and mention this
article in The Montrealer and we’ll be happy to forward it to you.
The Adena Franz Group has over 16 years’
experience of successful portfolio management and is with the independent
firm
MacDougall, MacDougall and MacTier Inc.
1010 de la Gauchetière West, Suite
2000
Montreal, Qc H3B 4J1
Phone: 514-394-3771
Email: ptria@3macs.com
The information contained
in this article is for general information purposes only. It does not account
for specific investment objectives or the financial situation of any person
reading it. Opinions expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily
represent the opinions of MacDougall, MacDougall & MacTier Inc. Investors
should seek professional advice regarding the appropriateness of investing
in any securities discussed or recommended here and should recognize that
statements regarding future prospects may not be realized. |
