His job is to provide sound financial investing and stewardship advice to his clients. But it takes time to follow and understand the markets and the options available, and I follow them religiously. Not that this would deter any of us from accepting a windfall, however. According to Christiansen, new and unexpected wealth can result in getting hit from all sides. Christiansen says some people would invest it all, while others would make large purchases without concern for the consequences.
New money means an entire set of new life experiences.
According to Christiansen, there are seven essential steps to be taken in order to maximize and preserve any windfall. Pay them off immediately. Christiansen suggests looking at your current annual income and expenses and construct a personal balance sheet to find out where you're at. Figure this out and re-calculate annual expenses based on the anticipated lifestyle changes. Invest enough in fixed income securities to produce the additional income needed to support the new lifestyle, and anything left over can be invested for growth.