Money Monday Blog

In 2001, Jeff Bezos shared a piece of wisdom that’s stuck with me: “Stress comes primarily from not taking action over something you can have some control over.” At first glance, it’s easy to think that stress comes from long hours, hard work, or exhaustion. And sure, those things can be draining. But in my experience, the heaviest stress doesn’t come from being busy or tired—it comes from feeling powerless. It’s easy to become the victim in our own story.

Think about it. How often do we find ourselves lying awake at night, not because of what we did, but because of what we didn’t do? The difficult conversation we avoided. The decision we kept postponing. The problem we knew was brewing but chose to ignore. It’s the inaction that haunts us, that makes us feel trapped and overwhelmed.

When we don’t take action on the things we can influence, we surrender control. We allow circumstances to dictate our lives instead of stepping up and steering the course. And that feeling of helplessness? That’s where stress breeds. It’s the tension between knowing something needs to change and doing nothing about it.

But here’s the good news: action is the antidote. It doesn’t have to be massive, life-altering action. It’s about getting started - Sometimes it’s as simple as sending that email, making that phone call, or having that uncomfortable conversation. It’s about moving the needle, even just a little. Every step forward—no matter how small—reclaims a bit of control. And with that control comes relief.

I’ve found that most of my stress isn’t from doing too much but from avoiding the things I know need to be done. When I finally face those issues head-on, the weight lifts.

Maybe we don’t need less hard work or fewer responsibilities. Maybe we just need more courage to take action on the things we can control. Because when we do, stress loses its grip, and we gain our peace of mind.

This year marks my 25th year as a business owner. In the beginning, the motivation was simple: survival. I obsessed over how to take care of clients and, to be honest, how to avoid failure. There’s a certain urgency when failure feels like it’s lurking around every corner. It’s amazing how motivating the fear of falling short can be.

But as the years have gone by, the stakes have changed. While failure is always a possibility, the focus has shifted. The last 5 to 10 years have been less about survival and more about figuring out what a healthy level of ambition looks like. And that’s not as simple as it sounds.

The Double-Edged Sword of Ambition is a powerful force. It pushes us to dream big, to innovate, to grow. But unchecked, it can become an insatiable hunger for more—more success, more influence, more validation. When is ambition about honoring the talents and opportunities God has given us, and when is it just about chasing more for the sake of more?

I wrestle with this tension. I think many of us who’ve been fortunate enough to find success in business do. At its best, ambition is a way of stewarding the time, talent, and treasure we’ve been given. At its worst, it can consume us, making us forget why we were striving in the first place.

The pursuit of purpose, not just progress is the key in aligning ambition with purpose. If the drive to achieve is grounded in a desire to honor God, to serve others, and to make a meaningful impact, then ambition becomes a tool for good. But when it becomes about status, ego, or proving ourselves, it starts to take more than it gives.

There’s no easy answer to the question of how much ambition is healthy. It’s something we have to continually wrestle with, reflect on, and refine. But I do believe this: Ambition, like wealth, makes a wonderful servant but a terrible master.

My hope is that we strive, not out of a need to be the biggest or the best, but out of a desire to be faithful stewards of what we’ve been given. To pursue excellence without losing sight of what matters most.

That’s the kind of ambition worth having.

Morgan Housel recently said, “A bigger problem than price inflation is expectations inflation, which is a constant increase in what you need to be satisfied. People know when the price of eggs or the price of gasoline goes up, it’s much harder to track when your expectations go up, when your definition of a good life goes up. But that is a very pernicious form of inflation.” (From The Morgan Housel Podcast: A Few Things I’m Pretty Sure About, Feb 21, 2025).

As usual, Morgan hit the nail on the head. It’s easy to notice when things cost more at the store, but how often do we notice when our expectations cost us more? I’ve been a fan of Morgan’s thinking and writing for years—so much so that I invited him on my podcast a while back. You can revisit that conversation here. His insights have a way of sticking with me, and this one was no exception.

I’m often at the Waffle House with my son before school—one of my favorite restaurants. Side note: before you make fun of Waffle House, try the sausage, egg, and cheese hash brown bowl… it’s worth the 920 calories😀.

On a recent trip, I noticed a disclaimer on the menu: the price of eggs had gone up by 50 cents per egg. In the grand scheme of things, not a huge deal, but since this visit, I’ve seen people ranting on this issue online. Inflation is a satisfying foe to rally against until we realize there’s another kind of inflation we rarely talk about: the inflation of our expectations.

We expect more out of life than we did a decade ago. We expect more luxury, more convenience, and more status symbols. We expect our experiences to be bigger and better than last time. And the kicker is, we don’t even realize it’s happening.

The Silent Thief of Joy

Expectations inflation is sneaky. It creeps in slowly, one small upgrade at a time. We start by buying a nicer car, then we get used to leather seats, then we expect heated seats, and before we know it, nothing less than a fully loaded model will do.

It’s not that there’s anything wrong with nice things. The problem is that once we adjust to a higher standard, it becomes the new normal. And then, we need even more to feel satisfied. It’s like a treadmill that speeds up every time we reach a new level. We’re running faster, but we’re no happier than when we started.

Morgan calls this a pernicious form of inflation because it’s self-imposed. We know when prices go up at the store, but we rarely recognize when our own standards go up. And unlike price inflation, which ebbs and flows, expectations inflation almost never goes down.

Chasing More, Finding Less

In the financial advice business, I see this all the time. People think they need more money, more investments, more security. But when we dig deeper, what they really need is less. Less expectation, less pressure, less comparison. They’re not chasing wealth—they’re chasing a moving target they’ll never catch. The irony is that I watch clients do it and I often fall into the same trap, often I miss the lesson I was so good at teaching them. It’s easy to be the teacher in the classroom of avoiding more, but hard to be the student.

When we expect more, we set ourselves up for disappointment. We compare our lives to curated social media feeds. We measure our success by someone else’s standards. And in the process, we lose sight of what truly matters.

I’m learning that one of the best financial decisions you can make isn’t about spending or saving. It’s about choosing to want less. It’s about recognizing when your expectations have inflated and consciously deflating them.

That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy nice things. It just means not letting them define your happiness. It means finding joy in the simple pleasures—a good breakfast with your son, a conversation with someone you admire, a quiet moment of gratitude.

Final Thoughts

Morgan Housel has a way of making you rethink what matters most. In a world obsessed with more—more money, more success, more stuff—he reminds us that true wealth is about expectations.

It’s about being content with enough. It’s about resisting the urge to compare, to upgrade, to always want more. And it’s about remembering that the good life is less about what you have and more about how you see it.

Retirement is a time of newfound freedom but also new uncertainties—particularly about how to manage money without a paycheck. Many retirees are familiar with the “4% rule” for withdrawing savings, yet most lack a formal spending plan. Nearly half of retirees (49%) withdraw money on an as-needed basis, leading to inconsistent cash flow and potential anxiety about spending. In the Wealth of Common Sense blog, Ben Carlson makes the point that in the absence of a spending plan, many retirees are too fearful to tap the retirement accounts they worked so hard to save.

Permission to Spend and Healthy Boundaries

One of the most overlooked benefits of setting up automatic monthly income is that it gives retirees permission to spend. Many people enter retirement with a disposition to fear of outliving their savings. By automating deposits into a checking account each month, retirees can maintain the familiarity of a steady paycheck—mirroring the budgeting habits they followed during their 30- to 40-year careers. On the other hand, this structure also creates a healthy boundary, preventing overspending and helping retirees stick to their financial plan.

Note: I’ve noticed monthly rather than quarterly retirement withdrawals are much easier for retirees to manage. Most bills come monthly, and most retirees are in a monthly routine because their budget during their career was monthly. This is a little behavioral thing that I believe drives positive outcomes for retirees.

A Practical Approach That Works

We often recommend setting up automatic monthly deposits for our clients, with taxes either withheld directly from IRAs or paid through automatic estimated tax payments from investment accounts. For most clients, their withdrawal rate, including taxes, falls between 3-5.5%, depending on age and risk tolerance. Retirees with a high percentage of discretionary expenses are often comfortable on the higher end of the range, knowing they could cut back if needed. This approach is paired with regular financial planning and Monte Carlo simulations to ensure the sustainability of their retirement income.

Avoiding Two Kinds of Failure in Retirement

The ultimate goal of a well-structured retirement income plan is to avoid two types of failure:

1. Running out of money: This is the more obvious risk that most retirees worry about.

2. Spending too little and dying with a pile of cash and regret over an unlived life: This is a quieter but equally significant failure, where fear of running out leads to an unnecessarily frugal lifestyle.

By setting up automatic monthly income, retirees can confidently enjoy their retirement years, knowing they’re living fully within the means of a sustainable financial plan. A good financial advisor can help retirees minimize the risk of running out of money. A great financial advisor can also help minimize this risk while coaching clients how to optimize their life goals and live confidently in retirement.

Even if you are only a casual observer of the markets, it’s been hard to miss the constant speculation on where inflation is headed. Inflation is one of the biggest concerns in financial planning, and rightfully so. When the cost of living rises, the purchasing power of your money shrinks. Most people immediately think about their portfolio: how to allocate assets, where to invest, how to hedge against inflation with commodities, real estate, or stocks. But few people ask a more important question, how am I getting better?

Alex Hormozi said it best… “Skills are the ultimate hedge against inflation.”

Why Skills Matter More Than Market

The stock market goes up and down. Interest rates fluctuate. The job market shifts. But one thing remains constant—your ability to create value. The more skills you develop, the less dependent you are on the economy’s whims.

Think about it this way, if you’re someone with a rare and valuable skill set, your earning potential isn’t dictated by inflation. It’s dictated by your ability to solve problems, create solutions, and generate impact. A strong portfolio can protect your assets, but a strong skill set protects your income.

The 10,000-Hour Rule and the Compounding Effect of Growth

Malcolm Gladwell’s famous 10,000-hour rule suggests that expertise comes from deliberate practice over time. If you invest in a skill with the same level of consistency and patience as you invest in your portfolio, the return is exponential.

This is one of the reasons I love writing, podcasting, and public speaking. A weekly blog creates a deadline to think, process, and articulate ideas more clearly. A monthly podcast forces me to hone my ability to ask good questions and interview well. Public speaking pushes me to gauge audience engagement, refine messaging, and iterate based on what did or didn’t work. In addition, most of my speaking/training is on financial advising strategies and speaking about it forces me to become consciously competent on what is working well in my practice. Becoming aware of why something is working also creates another positive feedback loop because you can double down on the places of most potential.

These are all compounding skills, getting better at them today makes you even better at them tomorrow. Just like compound interest in an investment account, growth accelerates over time.

The Skillset Investment Plan

In addition to asking, how do I protect my portfolio from inflation? Also ask, how do I build skills that make inflation irrelevant?

The Takeaway

Inflation erodes the value of money, but it has no impact on the value of mastery. The best hedge isn’t just a diversified portfolio—it’s becoming someone who can adapt, create, and thrive in any economic environment.

So, the real question isn’t how is my portfolio doing, but how am I getting better?

There’s a quote I’ve seen in different variations over the years:

“In peace, men become enemies of themselves; in war, they unite against a common foe.”

It’s a fascinating concept. While physical war is a tragedy—bringing loss, suffering, and destruction—the analogy behind this idea speaks to something deeper in human nature. Most of us long for an easier life. We want a flexible schedule, fewer responsibilities, less pressure. In short, we crave peace. But when life gets too easy—when we lack a challenge, a mission, or a reason to get up in the morning—that peace can quietly become self-destruction.

I’ve seen it happen to people who retire early without a plan, who suddenly find themselves adrift. At first, it feels like freedom. No alarm clocks. No obligations. No one to answer to. But then, without something meaningful to work toward, bad habits creep in. Happy hour starts earlier. Endless scrolling, online gaming, or just numbing out replaces real engagement with life. People surround themselves with others who are also drifting—without purpose, without direction.

My pastor once described it like this: If a pickup truck doesn’t have enough weight in the bed, it bounces all over the road. It doesn’t drive right. The weight keeps it steady, grounded, moving in the right direction. In the same way, we need a certain amount of weight in our lives—pressure, responsibility, something pulling us forward.

Ironically, the life many of us fantasize about—total freedom, no stress, no obligations—is often the path to feeling lost. As Morgan Housel recently said, "what we actually need is the right balance of freedom and purpose. Too much purpose without freedom feels like a grind. Too much freedom without purpose feels empty."

The best version of ourselves doesn’t come from avoiding responsibility—it comes from choosing the right responsibilities. From stepping into challenges instead of running from them. From understanding that while peace is nice, purpose is necessary.

So be careful what you wish for. You might just get it—and find yourself wishing for something more.

I’ve written about asset allocation before, but when markets turn volatile, it’s always worth revisiting how we set a portfolio’s allocation in the first place. Roughly every four years, U.S. stocks experience an intra-year decline of 20% or more. When that happens, concerns rise, and both advisors and clients are reminded why allocation matters. Interestingly, no one questions risk when the market is soaring.

At our firm, we use three key approaches to determine asset allocation, and in practice, we combine all three. Here’s the framework:

1. Goals-Based Asset Allocation

The best starting point is a client’s goals. Asset allocation should align with when money will be needed. If a retired client requires a 4% withdrawal rate, they should have 5–10 years of spending in bonds, cash, or a bond ladder. If a client is buying a home in two years, that money should be in a money market fund—not stocks. This approach creates a buffer, so clients aren’t forced to sell equities during a downturn.

2. Risk Tolerance

Once goals are accounted for, we consider a client’s comfort with volatility. Risk tolerance tends to be forgotten in bull markets but becomes painfully relevant in bear markets. If a client is likely to panic and sell during a downturn, we need to structure their portfolio accordingly. Wealth without peace of mind isn’t really wealth. Finding the right allocation helps clients stay invested, which is often the most important factor in long-term success.

3. Market Valuations & Tactical Tilts

While we never advocate market timing, valuation-aware investing can play a role. If U.S. equities become expensive relative to history, we may tilt 3–5% of a portfolio toward international stocks or other asset classes that offer better risk-adjusted return potential. Conversely, when valuations shift, we adjust accordingly. These tilts are incremental—not wholesale shifts—but they help improve long-term outcomes.

The Right Mix

A strong asset allocation strategy starts with goals, adjusts for risk tolerance, and fine-tunes based on market conditions. This framework helps clients balance short-term security with long-term growth. Market volatility will always test investor confidence, but having a thoughtful and disciplined approach ensures that clients stay on track—no matter what the headlines say.

The Tension Between Serving Present Jim and Future Jim

Behavioral coaching is one of the most complex and valuable things we do as advisors. Markets move, emotions rise, and life circumstances shift—but through it all, we must be the steady voice of reason, helping clients make decisions that serve not just who they are today, but who they will be decades from now.

As General John M. Schofield once said, “The most important thing to do is to be able to do the ordinary thing when things are extraordinary.” That’s easier said than done, especially when markets feel anything but ordinary.

I was reminded of this recently in a conversation with a longtime client—we’ll call him Jim.

Jim is financially secure. His portfolio is well-structured, his income needs are covered, and the money he has in equities is unlikely to ever be spent. And yet, when volatility hits, Present Jim feels the pull toward safety. He considers shifting a portion of his investments into bonds and cash—just to take some risk off the table.

But what about Future Jim?

Future Jim has big goals. He wants to grow his wealth over the next several decades, create a lasting impact for his family, and make the most of his financial resources. He has generational wealth goals for his family and charity. The dilemma is clear: The steps that feel “safe” to Present Jim today may quietly sabotage the outcomes that matter most to Future Jim down the road.

The Cost of Playing It Safe

I walked Jim through some simple math.

Historically, stocks have returned around 10% per year, while bonds have returned just under 5%. Over 40 years, $1 million at 5% grows to $7 million. At 10%, it grows to $45 million.

Jim has several million dollars in equities. Each million he shifts to bonds and cash isn’t just $1 million moved to safety—it’s a (potential) long-term tradeoff of $45 million versus $7 million.

That number obviously surprised him. Even smart people underestimate compound interest over time. Most resort to the simplistic thinking that 10% would yield twice the result that 5% yields. This causes them to underestimate the opportunity cost of fear.

A brief detour and disclosure (for our friends in compliance that may be reading😀)… There is no guarantee that past stock to bond performance relationships will continue exactly as they have in the past. Will stocks return twice as much as bonds in the future? Maybe they will and maybe they won’t, but it is incredibly likely there will always be some risk premium that leads to superior returns for stocks over the long term. It can also be said that these calculations don’t include taxes, investment fees, or inflation. When these numbers are included, it actually makes the real impact of owning stocks over time even more pronounced because the bond returns round to zero when including these 3 costs are included.

Ok, back to Jim…

It is our job to serve both present and future Jim… as much as I want to advocate for Future Jim, I also have to acknowledge that investing isn’t just about math—it’s about behavior.

The Real Role of an Advisor

There are times when the right answer is a simple pep talk about thinking long term and turning off the news. There are also times when reallocating to reduce risk is absolutely the right move. If someone truly can’t sleep at night, what’s the point of maximizing returns? Peace of mind is its own kind of wealth. If risk leads to stress that undermines someone’s health, relationships, or ability to enjoy their life, then holding a more conservative portfolio isn’t a failure—it’s wisdom.

This is why I don’t believe AI will replace what we do as advisors anytime soon. The right answer isn’t always clear. Sometimes, our job is to push back—to remind clients of their long-term goals and show them what’s at stake. Other times, it’s to listen deeply, recognize their emotional needs, and adjust accordingly.

The real art of financial advising is knowing which response is right in the moment.

For Jim, the key wasn’t making a drastic shift. It was stepping back and recognizing the real tradeoff—not just moving to safety but potentially sacrificing millions in future wealth. In the end, we didn’t move everything, but we made an intentional decision—balancing both Present Jim’s peace of mind and Future Jim’s long-term goals.

The Question We Must Keep Asking

This tension—between serving the client today and protecting the client decades from now—is at the core of what we do.

Today’s discussion was about market volatility, but this same dilemma shows up in spending habits, tax decisions, and countless other areas. In every case, the question remains:

Are we serving Present Jim at the expense of Future Jim?

There’s no perfect answer. But the more we help clients navigate this tension with clarity, empathy, and wisdom, the more valuable our role becomes.

Making Decisions with Your Heart, Brain, and Gut

In the world of decision-making, there’s a growing body of thought that suggests we don’t just think with our brains—we also “think” with our hearts and our guts. This idea is rooted in the concept of “three brains” popularized by neuroscientist Dr. Paul MacLean and later expanded by Dr. Michael Gershon, who studied the enteric nervous system (the “second brain” in the gut). The notion is that our head, heart, and gut each contribute uniquely to the decision-making process:

• The Brain (Head): Analyzes, calculates, and rationalizes. It’s where logic and reasoning live.

• The Heart: Connects to emotions, values, and relationships. It guides us through compassion, love, and empathy.

• The Gut: Taps into intuition and instinct. It gives us that “feeling” or hunch, often without a clear logical reason.

When All Three Align

The most powerful decisions come when your head, heart, and gut are in harmony. You feel confident, assured, and at peace with the choice. But what happens when they don’t agree?

When the Gut Disagrees

I recently faced a situation where my heart and my brain were fully onboard, but my gut wasn’t. These are the toughest decisions to navigate because, on the surface, everything makes sense. The logic checks out. The emotions align. But something deep inside is uneasy. It’s a whisper that says, “Something’s off.” And I’ve learned that ignoring that whisper can lead to regret.

These gut-feeling dilemmas are often the most critical decisions because they require the courage to pause and dig deeper, even when it’s inconvenient or uncomfortable. It’s about asking hard questions: Is fear influencing my gut? Is my intuition picking up on something my brain hasn’t processed yet?

Balancing All Three: 7 Tips for Decision-Making

1. Start with the Brain: Analyze and Evaluate

Begin with logic. Gather facts, evaluate pros and cons, and consider consequences. Make sure you understand the situation intellectually before moving to the emotional and intuitive realms.

2. Check in with Your Heart: Feel and Reflect

How does this decision make you feel? Does it align with your values and who you are? If your heart isn’t in it, it’s likely that passion and commitment will wane over time.

3. Listen to Your Gut: Trust Your Intuition

What’s your instinctive reaction? If your gut feels unsettled, don’t rush to dismiss it. This is often your subconscious picking up on subtle clues or patterns your conscious mind hasn’t fully recognized.

4. Find the Conflict and Explore It

When one part disagrees, explore the conflict. For example, if your brain and heart are in, but your gut isn’t, dig into the “why.” Is it fear of risk or change? Or is it genuine insight warning you of potential issues?

5. Give It Time

Sometimes clarity comes with time. Sleep on it. Go for a walk. Give your mind space to process and see if alignment naturally emerges.

6. Seek Outside Perspective

Talk to trusted mentors or friends who can offer an objective view. Sometimes an outside perspective can help you see what you’re too close to recognize.

7. Accept Imperfection

Not every decision will be perfect. Sometimes you have to move forward with the best choice possible, knowing that you can adjust and learn along the way.

The Most Important Decisions

The hardest decisions are the ones where two out of three are aligned. These decisions require patience, courage, and a willingness to live in the tension until the right path becomes clear. But they’re also the most important decisions to get right, because they shape the direction of our lives in profound ways.

Conclusion

Making decisions using your heart, brain, and gut isn’t always easy, but it’s worth the effort. It leads to choices that are not only logically sound but also emotionally fulfilling and intuitively right. And when all three align, that’s where the magic happens.

If you’re facing a tough decision, take a moment to check in with all three. It might just be the key to making the best choice possible. I’ve learned taking time to reflect is really hard, but really worth it. Most successful people found success in part because of their ability to act fast and make decisions in real time. For many of us, the mindset that got us to this point, might need to evolve to get to the next mountaintop. In this next season, I’m trying to slow down a little bit… trusting all three brains might allow me and our team to go further even if it isn’t fastest.

Will AI Take Over Financial Advice?

I get asked all the time, “Will AI ever fully take over financial advice?”

It’s ironic, really, because I’m using AI right now to assist me in writing this. AI is woven into so many aspects of our lives, from the way we shop online to the way we navigate our schedules. It’s made tasks faster, more efficient, and, in many cases, better.

In the world of financial advice, AI is already revolutionizing the way we analyze data, construct investment portfolios, and monitor financial plans. Algorithms can sift through mountains of financial information in seconds, helping us make informed decisions quicker than ever before.

But that question lingers: Will AI take over?

I think about a quote often attributed to Miles Kington:

“Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.”

It’s a clever line, but it carries a deeper truth about the difference between knowledge and wisdom. AI has the potential to accumulate an almost limitless amount of knowledge. It can analyze markets, predict trends, and calculate probabilities with mind-blowing precision. But will it ever truly have wisdom?

The Limits of Algorithms

A financial plan is more than a collection of numbers. It’s more than tax strategies and investment allocations. It’s about hopes and dreams, fears and uncertainties. It’s about the widow who worries if her husband’s life insurance will be enough, the young couple saving for their first home, or the retiree wondering how to leave a legacy that matters.

Sure, AI can tell you some of the most tax-efficient ways to withdraw from your retirement account, but will it understand the anxiety of running out of money? It can suggest an optimal savings rate, but will it grasp the tension between saving for the future and enjoying life now?

Knowledge vs. Wisdom in Financial Advice

Knowledge is knowing what the data says. Wisdom is understanding what that data means in the context of someone’s life. Ultimately the best financial plan is the one that is implemented. Human advisors often know that the goal isn’t a perfect plan, it’s designing a plan through the lens of human behavior - Deeply knowing someone’s “money story,” their tendencies, their motivations and their fears and building an imperfect plan that actually gets done is the real job of the real advisor. Imperfect plans that are implemented will always beat perfect plans that sit on the shelf. Wisdom is understanding what each client can stick with for the long term and knowing progress trumps perfection when it comes to human behavior.

This is where I believe AI, for all its brilliance, meets its limits. AI can be trained to recognize patterns and make predictions, but can it understand the nuances of a family’s dynamic? Can it empathize with a client’s grief after losing a loved one or join in the joy of welcoming a new grandchild? Even further, can it predict how clients might react to a down market or how a loss might be a trigger for past trauma.

This isn’t just about emotional intelligence—it’s about tailoring financial advice to who a client is as a person, not just who they are on paper. It’s about hearing a client’s story and crafting a plan that resonates with their values, hopes, and dreams.

AI as a Tool, Not a Replacement

I believe AI will continue to assist us in serving clients better. It will make investing more efficient and streamline the strategic parts of financial planning. It will help us cut through complexity and bring clarity to decision-making. In many ways, it will make us better at what we do.

But I don’t believe it will replace the need for human advice.

Because financial advice isn’t just about numbers; it’s about people. And people need more than knowledge—they need wisdom. They need someone who sees them, understands them, and walks alongside them through life’s ups and downs.

The Future of Financial Advice

Will AI take over financial advice? I don’t know for sure. But I do know that as long as clients need someone who can listen, empathize, and help them live a life beyond money, there will be a place for human advisors.

I think the future is human + digital. This means empathy and efficiency will lead to better client outcomes. This pairing will be great for clients and advisors.

We may use AI to enhance our services, but the heart of what we do—the wisdom to know what matters most to each client—will always require a human touch.

Because at the end of the day, knowledge is knowing how to make a financial plan. Wisdom is knowing how to make it truly theirs.