David's Foreword to Shari's New Book

I'm pleased to share my foreword to Shari's terrific new book, Maximize Your Return on Life.

Let me introduce you to Shari Greco Reiches. 

Wait, what’s that? You already know her? You go way back with her? You have friends in common? You’ve worked together? You know her family? All of the above? As her business partner, I hear this all the time. 

I’ve come to realize that Shari is connected to just about everyone. Once, I was in the process of buying a house, and I mentioned the location to Shari. “Oh yeah, that’s my mom’s cousin’s house, you’ll like it,” she told me. Of course she knew the house! You’ve heard of Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon? It should be Six Degrees of Shari Greco Reiches ... 

And everybody has a story about her. How she went the extra mile for a friend during a tough time. How she guided a client through a difficult change in life. How successful she was in leading one of her non-profit boards. How hard she works. How thoughtful she is. It goes on …

My story with Shari goes back to college. We met at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, where we both studied accounting. Over the years we kept in touch, and eventually found ourselves working as financial advisors in Sanford Bernstein’s Chicago office. One day I mentioned to her that a professional colleague we both knew might be looking to start a private client advisory practice. What did she think about going there with me? 

Of course, she was one step ahead. She usually is. “Why do that for him when we can do it for ourselves?” she asked. And, with that, Rappaport Reiches Capital Management began.

It’s been a great adventure, and we still have lots of chapters to write. And Shari’s husband Stephen, who joined us during our first year in business, has been such a good friend and partner as well. 

From day one her ideas, plans, and visions came furiously. A mile a minute. Or a minute a mile. We’re used to sometimes having words mixed up a bit! But when Shari starts shaking her hands back and forth—just wait, something new is coming. 

I have no idea where all that energy comes from. She is a force of nature. But her focus always begins and ends with doing the right thing for our clients. 

Shari has a gift for taking complex concepts and bringing them to life so that they are understandable and relatable. I think she realized early on that I have a gift for the opposite…

And that’s what this book is about—taking financial planning and investing ideas that often can be complicated, and helping you use them to take control over the “money” part of your life. 

You won’t find the graphs and charts that adorn a typical financial planning book here. No mention of alpha or R-squared ratios (R-twos as Shari calls them) or anything like that. Just lots of common-sense ideas you can begin using today. And some pretty funny and heartwarming stories too.

Shari’s approach works. I see its positive impact everyday on our clients. It’s the peace of mind they get from financial clarity and organization. The satisfaction of knowing their values are reflected in their financial decisions. The confidence they gain from following a thoughtful and disciplined plan.

If you know Shari, you know how much she cares about impacting as many lives as possible. Empowering people, especially women, to make smart decisions with their money is her life’s mission. I think this book goes a long way towards accomplishing that.

And if you don’t know her, you soon will. It’s inevitable!

David Rappaport

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The author does not intend to provide investment, legal or tax advice as these materials are for general educational purposes only.  Please consult your legal, tax or investment professional for advice on your particular situation. This material is derived from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy and the opinions based thereon are not guaranteed. It is not intended to be a solicitation, offer or recommendation to acquire or dispose of any investment or to engage in any other transaction. Investing involves risk including the possible loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Please refer to RRCM’s Form ADV Part 2 for additional disclosures regarding RRCM and its practices.