You’ve worked hard to grow your wealth, but have you ever paused to ask yourself what it’s all for? Many executives focus on building their financial portfolios without stopping to define the purpose behind it.

Just because you’ve sold your business doesn’t mean your life is over. To the contrary, it means the opposite. Owning and operating a business is a time-consuming endeavor, and now that you’ve transitioned away from it, there are endless ways to fill your time after you cashed in. Your lifestyle may have changed, but you still need enough cash to meet your living expenses.

Why do you need a buy-sell agreement in the event that a business partner dies? Here are the benefits, structures, and tips to help you set up a plan.

Entrepreneurs and business owners often approach risk differently than most, especially when it comes to their comfort with uncertainty. As one founder put it, “The risks are endless…they never go away when you’re an entrepreneur.” This is the reality business owners face daily as they strive for growth and earnings. Managing risk becomes even more complex when balancing a business with personal financial health.

Knowing what you are earning at work is pretty transparent – knowing what’s going on inside of your investment portfolio is a different story for many busy professionals. Ideally, you should keep tabs on this throughout the year to see if estimated taxes need to be paid, but I’m a realist.

Did you panic in 2021 when Congress was discussing lowering the federal estate tax exemption amount? Did you ask yourself, “Should I be doing something?” Congress ultimately nixed any changes to estate tax laws as part of the Build Back Better (BBB) negotiations. Great, no one needs to rush into any decisions. BUT the federal estate tax exemption is still going to be cut in half in 2026, which begs the question again: Should you be doing something?

Individual donors contributed $319.04 billion to charities in 2023. Almost all donors (97%) cite impact as their main reason for giving, while 56% of donors see tax deductions as a motivating factor to give. Ideally, you can do both! Thinking beyond “checkbook giving” to leverage more strategic forms of charitable giving will benefit both you and your nonprofit(s) of choice.

How should you be paid for a thriving business? This guide will walk you through the earnout structure and guide your decision-making.