Meridian Blog

Last week, the ladies of Meridian all attended Leadercast Women, brought to Warrenton by LFCC Workforce Solutions.  It was a powerful day of speakers and networking with other women in the community, and we all left with a lot to think about.

One of the speakers was Dr. Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King.  Born to two gifted speakers, Dr. King was a captivating and thoughtful speaker, and she quoted from this poem from Linda Ellis:

I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on the tombstone
from the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth
and spoke the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
that they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.

So, think about this long and hard.
Are there things you’d like to change?
For you never know how much time is left
that can still be rearranged.

If we could just slow down enough
to consider what’s true and real
and always try to understand
the way other people feel.

And be less quick to anger
and show appreciation more
and love the people in our lives
like we’ve never loved before.

If we treat each other with respect
and more often wear a smile,
remembering that this special dash
might only last a little while.

So, when your eulogy is being read,
with your life’s actions to rehash…
would you be proud of the things they say
about how you spent YOUR dash?

At Meridian, we want to help our clients make the most of their “dash”.  Psychologist Maslow defined a hierarchy of needs that humans desire—at the bottom are base human needs to survive—at the top of the needs pyramid are things like acceptance and higher purpose:

(Source: http://www.teach-nology.com/tutorials/teaching/whatareneeds.html)

The things at the bottom of the pyramid are basic needs that generally must be fulfilled in order to allow a person to pursue a higher purpose and achieve fulfillment.  In recent research, Fidelity Investments translated this need hierarchy into financial terms:

At the top of this pyramid are values that we think most of us agree would make our “dash” worthwhile—accomplishing our life’s purpose, leaving a legacy.  At the base are things that things that generally need to be in place to achieve the higher values.

We think that a good financial advisor should help you accomplish everything at the bottom of this pyramid.  A good advisor should be competent at things like managing your portfolio, selecting securities that are appropriate for you, and helping you generate income.

A great advisor should help you with the achievement of the second stack—a great advisor should be focused on your goals and helping you to achieve success at things that matter to you like retiring on your terms or getting your children through college.

An invaluable advisor should be giving you the values on the third line—peace of mind.  This is Meridian’s goal.  Our firm was founded with the mission of bringing peace to the pursuit of financial dreams.  We want to help our clients feel organized financially, know their families are taken care of, and free them to go and do the things they are great at—or love to do.

It is our desire that each of our clients is able to live their “dash” to the fullest—clarifying the path so our clients can enjoy the journey!