Our Philosophy

The Four Quadrants of Knowledge

In the context of financial planning, what exactly do these phrases mean? Examples can be easily identified for three of the four quadrants:

Quadrant 1 – “You know what you know.” Things you are aware of and understand: the need to save, the importance of insurance, or the necessity of being well-diversified.
Quadrant 2 – “You know what you don’t know.” Things you don’t know, but you recognize that you don’t know them: how to most efficiently save (e.g., IRA vs Roth IRA), how much life insurance is needed, and when to start taking Social Security.
Quadrant 4 – “You don’t know what you don’t know.” This quadrant is typically different for everyone, but we have seen it include things like:

“I didn’t know…
• … a 1% fee difference could have such a drastic impact on my retirement!”
• … my ex was still listed as my beneficiary. I thought that changed when I remarried!”
• … my variable annuity had over 4% in fees!”
• … I could have stretched my inherited IRA and saved thousands of dollars on taxes!”
• … my long-term care policy was not accumulating a cash value after all these years!”
• … I was eligible for spousal social security benefits!”

As your Retirement Navigator, we will gain a deep understanding of you, your philosophy, and what goals you are looking to achieve. This will help guide you and keep you on the path to reaching retirement and beyond through all of life’s curveballs. On top of that, we will have the critical responsibility of identifying all the risks, opportunities, and strategies to handle the things you don’t know you don’t know. We want to empower you by transitioning as many things from quadrant 4 to quadrant 1, allowing you to make well-informed decisions to better your financial situation.

But, how exactly is this done? Learn about Our Process.