Hello Harold

Welcome to Hello Harold (that’s me, Harold Evensky). I’ve been a practicing financial planner for over three decades; financial planning is my avocation as well as my vocation. I’ve had the privilege of participating in the growth of my profession, serving on the national Board of the International Association for Financial Planning, as Chair of the Certified Financial Planning Board, the International Certified Financial Planning Board of Standards, as well as on advisory boards for Charles Schwab and TIAA-CREF. In those three decades plus, I’ve seen a great many changes, not only in the markets but also in how investors—and their advisors—respond to them. Some of those responses make very little sense. Financial planning is a powerful tool that can help you develop and maintain the quality of life you want. Unfortunately, there’s a ton of noise and nonsense foisted on investors that can undermine their financial success. Maybe you’re one of the many unlucky folks who’ve tried using a broker or financial advisor and wound up with one of the few less than ethical ones who had you invest in easy-answer funds that did more for the advisor’s bottom line than yours. Maybe you decided to go it alone. Unfortunately, investing is not a simple task and without a grasp of the fundamentals many investors wind up making costly mistakes. Although there are innumerable books—many of them very good—designed to help you invest wisely, many are too long, too technical, too boring, too commercial, or too simplistic to hold the reader’s attention. So it’s my turn. I decided my book would be just right—not too long, not too short, not too technical, not too simplistic, not commercial and, most important, fun to read. Hello Harold gives you the foundation you need to navigate the markets and plan your financial future. I take you along with me on phone calls and meetings, conferences and classrooms, and let you eavesdrop on my thoughts, conversations, and brainstorming sessions with clients, colleagues, and students. I introduce you to actionable concepts that will make you a far better investor, with a sound plan for your future. You may even have some fun along the way. Unlike most books you’re familiar with, don’t feel obligated to move from page one through to the end. Each chapter stands on its own, so you can skip and jump to your heart’s content, chasing subjects you find of interest in any order that appeals to you. No matter where you land, whether it’s cash flow or market timing or taxes or any of a myriad of essential topics, you’re likely to find something you hadn’t considered before in quite that way. Each chapter is designed to give you insights that will improve your financial bottom line and your chances of achieving your financial goals.

Mr. Evensky is the Chairman of Evensky & Katz / Foldes Financial and a Professor of Practice in the Texas Tech University, Personal Financial Planning Department. Prior to forming his own company, he served as a Vice President of Investments with major investment banking firms. Mr. Evensky received his Bachelor's and Master's Degrees in engineering and business from Cornell University. He is the past Chair of the International CFP® Council, the CFP® Board of Governors, the Board of Examiners and the Board of Appeals and the TIAA-CREF Institute Advisory Board. He is on the Editorial Advisory Board of the Journal of Financial Planning and Journal of Retirement, and he is the Research Columnist for the Journal of Financial Planning. He has also served on the National Board of the IAFP and the Charles Schwab Institutional Advisory Board and Council. In 1999, he was awarded the Dow Jones Investment Advisor Portfolio Management Award for Lifetime Achievement. In 2001 he was listed by Financial Planning Magazine as one of five "Movers, Shakers and Decision Makers, The Most Influential People in the Financial Planning Profession," and, he was named one of the "25 Power Elite" in the financial services industry by Investment News. In 2009 he was included in Money Magazine’s Six Top Advisors and in 2010 he was included in Investment Advisor Magazine’s “Thirty for Thirty” – Investment Advisors most influential in building the profession over the last 30 years. In 2013 he was listed as one of the professions 15 Transformational Advisors by Investment News and is a recipient of the FPA Heart of Financial planning award. Mr. Evensky is an internationally recognized speaker on investment and financial planning issues. In addition, he has written for and is quoted frequently in the national press, and is the author of Wealth Management (McGraw Hill), co-author of The New Wealth Management, published in conjunction with the CFA Institute by Wiley & Sons and co-editor of The Investment Think Tank, Theory, Strategy, and Practice for Advisers and Retirement Income Redesigned - Master Plans for Distribution (Bloomberg).