Money, not love, is the glue that keeps couples together.

This may seem like a very shallow statement. But if you hang in there with me I think you’ll see exactly why money is more important than love . First, let me explain what I mean.

I’m not saying that money should be the objective of your relationship. Quite the opposite.

Financial success results from a partnership that works. Creating wealth can’t be your primary objective when you deal with other people if you want to be successful.

Anytime you do something just for the money you are going to feel empty and unsatisfied. Based on my own personal and professional experience I feel very strongly about that. And this goes for all relationships. Marriage, friendship and even business.

And I’m not saying that having a lot of money will make your relationship successful either. No amount of money in the world can guarantee that. So what am I referring to? I’m talking about the agreements you have with your partner about finance (how money works and what it’s for).

Without agreement on your goals, values, attitudes and financial behaviors, your relationship is doomed. One of you will dump the other or you’ll live a miserable life together. This may take weeks, months, years or decades to manifest but it absolutely will happen sooner or later. I know this sounds harsh but only because it’s true.

This is not to say that you have to agree on all things financial from the get go. Often, it takes time to see eye-to-eye on money. But if you or your “lovie dovie” aren’t willing to discuss these issues openly and honestly and be willing to change your financial behavior in a meaningful way when required, you should take a hard look at the relationship and stop kidding yourself.

I’ll give you a few examples of how my wife and I handled our financial differences. I think that might help. When we first got married, we had different opinions about charity, spending and income. Fortunately this didn’t cause too many problems. We divided up the financial responsibilities and resources. And we gave each other complete responsibility and freedom within our respective realms. We also set up separate checking accounts. That’s what worked for us at first.

But this wasn’t a perfect solution. We did have our differences about spending and every now and then, it caused angst.

My bride is anything but a spendthrift but she was more willing to open up the purse strings to enjoy life. I was still living in a great deal of financial fear when I started my career. I can honestly tell you that I was way too tight for no good reason. But we were both convinced that we were right and the other was being silly.

We eventually learned that we had to honestly address each other’s values and concerns. And we each had to compromise. We had to listen to each other. Really listen and hear what the other was thinking and understand what they were feeling. Then we had to actually implement the agreements we came up with. Agreement without action has no value. Until we did that, we figuratively slugged it out.

So when I say that money is more important than love I’m really saying that a relationship is in jeopardy as long as money disagreements go unaddressed. All the love in the world isn’t going to solve that problem. Money problems will beach your love boat whether or not you fight about them, ignore them or lie to yourself and tell yourself that everything is fine and/or will work out.

Until you fix what’s broken, the problem isn’t going to disappear. And as long as there is a basic structural fault in your financial foundation, you are walking on very thin ice. You are wasting your time and your partner’s time. You are either being enabled or enabling. Either way, you are being unfair to each other because you are both stuck.

Money symbolizes security and happiness. That’s because, to some extent, money provides those things. Take the time to listen to how your other half thinks and feels about money. As you listen, ask yourself,”what is right about what they are saying” rather than thinking of ways to protect your position. Make sure your partner/spouse does the same. If you are willing to do this and your huggie bear isn’t – it may be time to find a new companion.

Come up with tangible and meaningful ways to improve your joint financial life over the short and long run. Then put those changes in place immediately. If either of you are unable to do this, I strongly recommend that you seek counseling.

There is a lot at stake when it comes to money and your relationship. My experience tells me that you can never be happy with another person if there is wide disagreement on money and/or disconnects between shared values and actions. This is true no matter how much two people love each other.

What has been your experience? Have you seen this issue come up in your own life or in the lives of others you are close to?

Read more: http://wealthpilgrim.com/why-money-is-more-important-than-love/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=why-money-is-more-important-than-love#ixzz2UTv4TaTe

Who doesn’t want to invest like Warren Buffett? It’s easier than you think. You just have to follow these 7 easy steps:

1) Talk all sorts of smack about hedge funds but first spend the initial 10 years of your career running a hedge fund that charges 25% performance fees on top of 6% gains.

2) Amass enough capital (by charging massive fees) to buy multiple entire companies. Do it in a distressed debt/activist strategy, but later on spin it off as “value investing”.

3) Use your insurance arm (from the company you bought in a distressed debt play) as a massive cash flow machine in which you’re essentially a leveraged covered call option writing operation.

4) Tell the world that they should just buy index funds and then spend most of your time building a portfolio around individual equities.

5) Tell the world that fixed income is dangerous while maintaining billion dollar positions in bonds.

6) Constantly refer to derivatives as “time bombs” while maintaining billion dollar derivative positions.

7) Obtain a red phone to the US Treasury department so you can help them arrange a rescue plan that starts by rescuing your operation when it looks like the economy is collapsing.

See, it’s easy. Now go get started. You’re welcome.

Read more: http://pragcap.com/7-easy-steps-to-invest-like-warren-buffett#ixzz2UUVshIPM

With so many financial products available it can be difficult to compare all the options and make the right decision for you. If you are confused by what is on offer, it's best to get independent financial advice.

You might consider getting financial advice especially if you are making long-term financial decisions, like:

• Planning for your retirement and looking at pension options
• Dealing with the financial effects of big changes in your life, such as separation or divorce
• Buying someone out of a joint mortgage or selling your portion of a house to the person you bought it with
• Investing for the first time
• Getting a mortgage
• Protecting you and your family against loss of income if you become ill or die

Think about your needs

You need to think carefully about what you want from an advisor. Do you need overall advice on financial planning or more specific advice about a particular decision or product? Being clear about what you want from an advisor will make it easier to choose the right type of advisor for your needs.

A qualified and experienced financial advisor can:

• Help you understand your own needs, plan ahead and become more financially secure
• Save you money and time by shopping around on your behalf
• Help you understand the risks involved in certain financial products
• Recommend the most suitable products for your needs

However, you may decide you want to deal with a financial services firm directly instead - so you need to consider all your options.