Tune In

Over the weekend, tensions in the Middle East escalated due to an attack on Israel by Iran, the first time a direct attack between the two countries has occurred. The attack involved hundreds of drones and missiles launched from Iran. While it’s uncertain how Israel might respond, this is an unprecedented escalation in the region with one of our closest Allies.

With the next phase of monetary policy and the presidential election on the horizon, many investors are leery. These worries are only amplified by the markets’ hovering near all-time highs.

At last week's post-Fed meeting press conference, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell gave forward guidance on the future path of the central bank's interest rate policy, messaging seemingly coming directly from the plot of an Orwellian novel or from an '80s British Pub Rock Band.

In this episode, of the Husband and Wife Talk podcast, my wife (Jenna) and I were interviewed about how to balance finances in a relationship, how to communicate about money as well as when it is best to hire a financial planner.

My interview with Jacob Straub of Mission Driven Made, where we discuss long-term wealth building, financial literacy, financial freedom, and cryptocurrency. I'm also able to tell my entrepreneurial story of leaving the comfort of his job to start his own successful wealth management business.

My Interview with Broc Buckles & Peter C. Ciravolo, the founders of BC Brokerage, on their Only Fee-Only Podcast pulling my entrepreneurial story out of me! It was so awesome to get to talk about the different challenges and triumphs that come along with owning a business and serving clients at the highest level.

The stock market has been supported by a healthier-than-expected economy this year, generating returns that have helped many portfolios to partially recover from last year's bear market. Investors now hope these growth trends will translate into stronger corporate earnings since, in the long run, markets tend to follow the same trajectory as profits. With the economy's future still uncertain, what signs are there that companies might begin to see improved profitability?

While the holiday season is a time for family and friends, it is also the best time to review tax strategies for the coming year. Given the complexity of these tax considerations, it's vital to work with a trusted wealth manager to best understand each approach and its implications.

There's a common saying among investors that markets take the stairs up and the elevator down. This is because the long-term trends that drive markets higher tend to be slow-moving and compound over time, whereas the events that create short-term panic tend to be sudden and unexpected. For investors, understanding this dynamic in the current environment is critical to staying focused on important financial goals.

The author F. Scott Fitzgerald once wrote that "the test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in the mind at the same time, and still retain the ability to function." This concept, often referred to as "cognitive dissonance," is something all investors must continually grapple with. This is because financial markets can swoon seemingly without reason and, in the worst case, in a way that appears to contradict underlying fundamentals. In these situations, investors can either try to justify these market swings or recognize that they are likely to be temporary. How is this relevant to investors in today's market and economic environment?