In early May of 2009 I was enjoying the company of a good friend who has young children that attend the same private school as mine. While the kids were playing he causally asked me what I knew about the Iraqi Dinar. "The Iraqi what?" was my reply. Though I am failrly well educated and tend to pay attention to current events I had never heard of the Iraqi Dinar or any type of Dinar at all. Such was the beginning of my journey that has landed me here in the Wealth Management Group.
My professional travels to that point had included 15 years as a US Naval Submarine officer plus five more years in the Navy Reserve which left me with the title Commander, USNR-retired. For the past ten years I've run a couple small businesses which included an online business akin to a private version of Amazon.com and also as a legal recruiter running my own consulting firm. Life had been good, but not great. After my friend floated the idea of the IQD it didn't take but several days of due diligence on my part to determine that this was something I didn't want to miss out on. After all, the RV was said to be immenient.
The big dreams really started to flow. The prospect of tens of millions of dollars really caused me to stop and think. Interestingly, as the months rolled by and summer became fall my understanding of the process grew and grew. I learned about geopolitics in ways I initially had no interest in but its amazing when one wraps himself around a business opportunity and really studies it, the methods of the business can become as interesting as the profit potential. As fall rolled into winter I did grow a little frusterated with the elusive date and rate and failed predictions from the "guru's". However, my belief that the RV would someday happen never changed. In fact, the more I studied, the more clear its necessity became.
During the winter months I spent countless hours on financial forums and websites and read books on financial planning. Navy officers tend to think they know a little about everything from investing to business to sports. The problem is that we don't know what we don't know. I became very confused with what would be an appropriate and meaningful and discreet way for me and my wife to handle our pending wealth. In fact, my goal then and now is to remain as anonymous as possible. I have friends and colleagues who've become wealthy and though their lives were full of material niceties there were stresses and strains amongst their relationships that I didn't want to become part of mine. I wanted to stay grounded, principally because of the example I felt I owed to my children. I also didn't want to be in a position where someone might look askance at me or become jealous because of my wealth or expect me to fund their enterprise simply because I'd been fortunate in an investment. I did want to be excessively charitable but wanted to be discreet about it and be in a position to sit back and enjoy being the giver of large but anonymous gifts. I'm not one to need a building named after me, not that there is anything wrong with that...
Finally, during a period of increasing confusion about what is going to be the best way to handle our new wealth I stumbled upon an article that had been posted on a IDQ forum. If was written by someone only known on that forum as Inmarc (Admin here) and it was about his introduction to the IQD investment a back in 2005 and where he felt it was going and why. It was the most insightful piece I'd read about the investment in the 11 months I'd been involved.
There was a link on the article that led to a company that dealt with retirement plans. Being a retired Naval Reserve officer with a pension waiting for me at age 60 and a SEP IRA that I'd been (under) funding I really didn't know or fully understand what the purpose was for a company like this. However, the article was so well written I sent an email to the company to inquire about this most insightful author. He answered back and said call me. That began a relationship that has been replete with coincidental historical path crossings that greatly challenged the traditional six degrees of separation.
Over this past month though this gentleman's counsel, guidance and direction I have been able to financially educate myself in ways that would never had been possible on my own. I had no idea how unprepared I was to deal with the resources that the RV of Iraqi Dinar was about to land into my hands. At this point I am grateful that the RV didn't happen last summer or fall or anytime prior to my introduction to this Wealth Management Group. Clearly, money has no character and is not good or bad. It is simply a tool. This tool, in large amounts, quickly dropped into the hands of the average person will probably not be used too effectively and likely will be used very selfishly. However, that same tool in in the hands of a skilled and experienced financial carpenter can be used to build a benevolent legacy that far outlives its original recipient.
I'm sure looking forward to this next phase of this investment and Post-RV experience with the counsel of the Wealth Management Group.
My professional travels to that point had included 15 years as a US Naval Submarine officer plus five more years in the Navy Reserve which left me with the title Commander, USNR-retired. For the past ten years I've run a couple small businesses which included an online business akin to a private version of Amazon.com and also as a legal recruiter running my own consulting firm. Life had been good, but not great. After my friend floated the idea of the IQD it didn't take but several days of due diligence on my part to determine that this was something I didn't want to miss out on. After all, the RV was said to be immenient.
The big dreams really started to flow. The prospect of tens of millions of dollars really caused me to stop and think. Interestingly, as the months rolled by and summer became fall my understanding of the process grew and grew. I learned about geopolitics in ways I initially had no interest in but its amazing when one wraps himself around a business opportunity and really studies it, the methods of the business can become as interesting as the profit potential. As fall rolled into winter I did grow a little frusterated with the elusive date and rate and failed predictions from the "guru's". However, my belief that the RV would someday happen never changed. In fact, the more I studied, the more clear its necessity became.
During the winter months I spent countless hours on financial forums and websites and read books on financial planning. Navy officers tend to think they know a little about everything from investing to business to sports. The problem is that we don't know what we don't know. I became very confused with what would be an appropriate and meaningful and discreet way for me and my wife to handle our pending wealth. In fact, my goal then and now is to remain as anonymous as possible. I have friends and colleagues who've become wealthy and though their lives were full of material niceties there were stresses and strains amongst their relationships that I didn't want to become part of mine. I wanted to stay grounded, principally because of the example I felt I owed to my children. I also didn't want to be in a position where someone might look askance at me or become jealous because of my wealth or expect me to fund their enterprise simply because I'd been fortunate in an investment. I did want to be excessively charitable but wanted to be discreet about it and be in a position to sit back and enjoy being the giver of large but anonymous gifts. I'm not one to need a building named after me, not that there is anything wrong with that...
Finally, during a period of increasing confusion about what is going to be the best way to handle our new wealth I stumbled upon an article that had been posted on a IDQ forum. If was written by someone only known on that forum as Inmarc (Admin here) and it was about his introduction to the IQD investment a back in 2005 and where he felt it was going and why. It was the most insightful piece I'd read about the investment in the 11 months I'd been involved.
There was a link on the article that led to a company that dealt with retirement plans. Being a retired Naval Reserve officer with a pension waiting for me at age 60 and a SEP IRA that I'd been (under) funding I really didn't know or fully understand what the purpose was for a company like this. However, the article was so well written I sent an email to the company to inquire about this most insightful author. He answered back and said call me. That began a relationship that has been replete with coincidental historical path crossings that greatly challenged the traditional six degrees of separation.
Over this past month though this gentleman's counsel, guidance and direction I have been able to financially educate myself in ways that would never had been possible on my own. I had no idea how unprepared I was to deal with the resources that the RV of Iraqi Dinar was about to land into my hands. At this point I am grateful that the RV didn't happen last summer or fall or anytime prior to my introduction to this Wealth Management Group. Clearly, money has no character and is not good or bad. It is simply a tool. This tool, in large amounts, quickly dropped into the hands of the average person will probably not be used too effectively and likely will be used very selfishly. However, that same tool in in the hands of a skilled and experienced financial carpenter can be used to build a benevolent legacy that far outlives its original recipient.
I'm sure looking forward to this next phase of this investment and Post-RV experience with the counsel of the Wealth Management Group.
A lot of people view a question about something they have said, as a negative. We view it as a positive opportunity for a re-analysis of the subject, it's relevance and timeliness.