Humans are subject to an insidious push and pull between comfort and discomfort. Like any species with the evolutionary persistence to survive for millions of years, we’ve survived largely by our ability to identify and avoid threats — toothsome predators in days long past, nebulous anxieties of moneylessness and failure today.
Read MoreDue to the highly sensitive nature of my work, I cannot share details that haven’t been anonymized and veiled. So, I wrote a short story. It’s a work of realistic fiction, much like the numerous historical fiction books I consume.
Read MoreIn order to wrap our minds around a client’s purpose, wealth advisors must go below the surface, beyond the realm of technical issues such as alpha, beta, and standard deviations, into what matters most: the land of emotional intelligence — EQ.
Read MoreI lay in a rescue toboggan — the emergency-red sled ski patrols use to transport injured skiers to safety — whizzing down a run ironically called Twister, pelted on all sides by cold, biting February snow, peering into a chasm of questions.
Read MoreIn this article, Andrea and Randy review some of the most common — and destructive — messages in our respective fields and put forth some tips on how to take back control.
Read MoreIf you’d seen me at six, in tears at the base of the rope-tow line, my parents ski-footed and taking the slow ride up to the top of Butternut Basin, you’d never think that protestful, bratty little girl would turn into a passionate skier.
Read MoreMy love of reading was built on a foundation of fiction. I have vivid memories of reading under a tree in Westchester with one of our family’s many dogs, devouring Gone with the Wind. This love would extend through my travels of early adulthood — to the otherworldly classics of French and Russian literature.
Read MoreMy father named our family’s first dog — a medium-sized, regal brown poodle — Cato. During Cato’s long life, many assumed the name “Cato” came from the Green Hornet’s sidekick, similarly named “Kato.” However, my father, never a TV watcher, insisted that he’d named the dog for some long-dead Ancient Roman senator.
Read MoreCruising down the FDR Drive, I felt ten pounds lighter. That unmistakable feeling hovered: The ceaseless churn, the infinitude of events and minds and souls, the millions of stories flaring up and dying away under lights that never burned out.
Read MoreI heard my father’s message of resilience throughout my childhood. It, and other better-known variations of the sentiment — ”The only way out is through” (a Robert Frost paraphrase), “If you’re going through hell, keep going” (Winston Churchill) — turned grit into my north star.
Read MoreI didn’t plan to spend most of 2022 reading books about the darkness of the human spirit. But whether it was a coincidence or an unconscious effort to match the darkness of the year, that’s what happened.
Read MoreHere are some of the most impactful books I've read so far this year. I heartily recommend them to anyone looking to fuel their own personal growth journeys.
Read MoreIn the early sixties, my parents decided that their Brooklyn children should have a life that included the country. My frugal dad, who never believed in mortgages, saved enough to buy a small house in Columbia County for summer weekends replete with frog catching, hiking and mandatory Tanglewood concerts.
Read MoreAs a young corporate tax lawyer, I never gave a moment’s thought to portfolios — mine or anyone else’s. October 1987, found me with my head buried in the Tax Code, vaguely aware of market turbulence, blissfully unaware of the consequences.
Read MoreI’ve been in wealth management since 1998. Before that, I practiced corporate tax law at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton, & Garrison and worked as an investment banker at JP Morgan. I’ve seen the topic of financial security from many angles: the legal, the numerical, and most recently, the psychological and emotional.
Read MoreNo one experiences higher highs or lower lows than entrepreneurs. Google “entrepreneurial mindset” and you’ll find that the five key characteristics of successful entrepreneurs are: a positive attitude, creativity, persuasive communication, intrinsic motivation, and tenacity.
Read MoreRené Syler co-anchored the CBS Morning Show from 2002-2006. Having started out as a local news anchor in Reno, NV, her ascent to the network level was meteoric. So, when she lost the job amid a network shakeup, it was that much harder to take.
Read MoreIn the early 20th century, experiments on parasites revealed that when rose bushes infested with them died, the parasites, previously wingless, would grow wings. Once their source of food was dead, a metamorphosis took place, and they grew wings to help them avoid starvation and support them in finding a new source of food.
Read MoreIn 2011, a freak cycling accident nearly killed Michael O’Brien. Doctors were bearish on Michael’s chances to resume normal function — but Michael felt otherwise.
Read MoreAs a wealth advisor, I often have conversations with parents concerned about spoiling their children. “I just don’t want my kid to turn into Paris Hilton,” they tell me, using “Hilton” as a byword for all that can go wrong with a privileged upbringing. Their children are often either adolescents or young adults, displaying some Hilton-esque warning signs.
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