A few weeks ago I attended the retirement party of someone I’ve called a dear friend for over 49 years. Long ago, we were both young financial advisors chasing similar career paths. We even migrated to independent businesses around the same time. His retirement prompted me to reflect with gratitude on all my opportunities and […]
October 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most tumultuous months in American history. Do you recall the events of October 1973? October 6, 1973 – On Yom Kippur, the most sacred day in the Jewish calendar, Arab states led by Egypt and Syria and supported by the Soviet Union launched an all-out […]
Have you ever tried shaking one of those magic eight balls found in the toy aisle? You know the gist: Ask a random but important question like, “Will the Broncos win the Super Bowl this year?” Then get a generic answer like, “Ask again tomorrow.” And finally in frustration, ask the same question and vigorously […]
With markets improving and the overall economy strengthening, why is everyone so negative about our country’s current financial state? By many measures, I believe our economy is far better than people’s sentiment toward it. The last two years brought the strongest labor market in a generation, for example. Yet many are convinced of an impending […]
My business coach, Dan Sullivan, often speaks of freedoms. It’s his belief that entrepreneurs create and own businesses primarily for the freedom to conduct business in their own unique way. They often aren’t seeking freedom “from” something per se, but rather freedom “to” something. They may desire to escape from the doldrums of an office […]
With interest rates on the rise, we’ve had an uptick in people asking us about bonds and whether it makes sense to re-evaluate fixed income in a portfolio. For readers of my column, you might remember that I’m not a fan of bonds for one simple reason: The payment amount is fixed. While some see […]
Netflix has a new documentary chronicling the Bernie Madoff story. My wife and I aren’t the biggest TV watchers, but we started the series at the recommendation of a friend. If you haven’t heard the name, Madoff was the architect of arguably the biggest Ponzi scheme in history, carefully orchestrating the flow of billions of […]
As a child, I found history class to be an insufferable bore. The study of people well before my time in circumstances far different than anything I would likely encounter seemed like an act in futility. But age brings wisdom, and as a chronologically gifted person, I now find history enthralling. Younger me was caught […]
At the time of its construction, the Brooklyn Bridge was one of the largest structures the world had ever seen. Opening in 1883 to connect Brooklyn with Manhattan, it was twice the size of any other suspension bridge. But the then-modern marvel of engineering raised suspicion from the general public. Citizens feared the massive structure […]
The SECURE 2.0 Act aims to expand retirement savings options for Americans. It includes provisions such as increasing the age for required minimum distributions, allowing long-term, part-time employees to participate in 401(k) plans, and creating a new type of retirement account known as a “pooled employer plan,” which would allow small businesses to join together […]
Just over 50 years ago on January 11, 1973, while Carly Simon was on the radio singing her new number-one hit “You’re So Vain,” the S&P 500 closed at a then all-time high of $120.20. Unbeknownst to the U.S., many things were about to change. The following 21 months saw a decline in the S&P […]
One of my favorite sayings is that personal finance is far more personal than it is finance. Simple math would tell you the wisest course of action is putting extra cash to work in the market, but the best advice isn’t always driven by cold hard math.
During a recent new client meeting, we had a couple tell us they had purchased property in north Denver several years ago. What was once a run-down area in the stockyards has now become a hot market, with development skyrocketing as the neighborhood reinvents itself.
With fall in full swing and snow adorning the mountain tops, I turn to a classic dish for a little winter comfort: Campbell’s Tomato Soup. First introduced in 1895, the can would don its familiar red and white label in 1898 after an executive attended the annual Cornell-Penn football game and “was impressed by Cornell’s […]
Imagine the entire economic output of the United States is measured in apples. For the sake of simplicity, let’s say our country produced ten apples in 2021. Collectively, we had $10 to spend on those ten apples. As a result, each apple costs $1. Simple right?
AI raises an important question, especially for any business that offers advice: What can technology do, and what can it never truly replace? I believe technology can provide information, but a good advisor provides understanding.
