Check out the butterfly effect: @KPMG_US chief economist @dianeswonk gauges how much the oil spike could affect the US economy, depending on how long it lasts.
https://t.co/1TqXfCFMOp
“This idea that we should work our whole lives and then finally retire in our 60s is outdated. People should plan to take breaks every five to 10 years. And if more people did that, they’d have longer careers.” I loved this convo w/@AuthorDavidBach 👇 https://t.co/cLKZoGzDp1
JUNE 2028.
The S&P is down 38% from its highs. Unemployment just printed 10.2%. Private credit is unraveling. Prime mortgages are cracking. AI didn’t disappoint. It exceeded every expectation.
What happened?
https://t.co/JzzwCrbJgS
The truth about millionaires in America:
-Half have less than $2M in net worth (and less than $340k in liquid assets).
-Most are NOT business owners.
-Almost all are house/401k rich but cash poor.
Is this what you expected?
My mother makes friends wherever she goes.
And they stay friends.
One example: We took a vacation to Kauai decades ago. We are rushing back to the airport and stop at a McDonalds to grab some food before the long flight.
My mom sees an older man sitting by himself drinking a coffee. She introduces herself, makes small talk, they laugh, and I am getting nervous because we do not have much time to get to the airport. I interrupt them and she says "Wayne before I go back to Virginia, can I get your address and we can stay in touch?"
And this is how my mother became friends with Police Captain Wayne Tanaka (retired) for years and years until he passed away.
They would write letters, send emails, and chat on the phone. He would tell her stories about crazy shootouts and the infamous Taylor Camp hippies on Kauai in the 70s.
She would tell him stories of Virginia and her poorly behaved children.
And the thing is, she makes friends like this all the time. In an elevator. At the market. Anywhere.
My "Uncle Dave" Farrelly was a cowboy out in California. He was originally from Woodstock VT, the town where I was born. He knew everything you ever wanted to know about a firearm, from historical to modern day. He advised my on my first handgun. He wasn't kin to me, he was just a penpal that my mother wrote to. Eventually I started exchanging letters with him as well.
When I got married he gave my wife Laila one of the most thoughtful gifts we ever received. It was a toolbox with a bunch of tools, all engraved with the name "Laila". He wrote her a letter to my new bride and said "now that you are getting married, you will see that your husband will never put his tools away properly, and when you need one you won't be able to find it. So I made a toolbox just for you and engraved them with your name so Adam can't steal them."
The little tape measurer from that toolbox now sits in my desk drawer. I did steal it. In fact I stole them all. But that is not the point.
The point is, I had a friend and mentor that came into my life through a chance interaction with my mom, who is an expert at collecting friends.
And its not just making friends. She excels at keeping in touch with them.
I know people are suffering from loneliness today. The screens are keeping us from each other. But if you take my mom's example, you will never suffer from loneliness.
Take the opportunity to smile and make a joke in the elevator. Introduce yourself to the guy who does your car inspection at the gas station. Get to know them. Stay in touch.
There are so many amazing people out there.
Net worth* chart by age, by percentile, updated as of 2025.
*Includes your primary residence home equity.
Do you feel you are behind, in-line, or ahead the tier you want to be at?
The question every endowment and foundation should honestly ask themselves:
"Can we beat a low-cost ETF?"
The answer for nearly all of them is "No".
"We study nearly 375,000 nonprofit organizations, including about 40,000 that maintain endowment assets...Many funds underperform simple passive benchmarks, and governance practices are closely linked to these outcomes...The average net return across all endowments is 4.3% per year."
via @AndrewWLo
https://t.co/er1xoI27PU
18% of American households are now millionaires (if you include home equity)
For many that wealth is mostly tied up in their home and retirement accts
Some thoughts on the pros and cons of being house/retirement acct rich:
https://t.co/F66wL58QlI
Nah. Once your LIQUID net worth becomes high enough, the true value to your life of your next dollar, by itself , gets smaller and smaller as your liquid net worth goes up.
The value of those dollars become much greater,to you, and so many others, when you use your business, or other expertise to help others. That is the greater reward.
Whatever got you to that level of liquidity most likely gives you a unique expertise, that can be put to work to help people who really need it now, or will need it in the future
And you might even make money from it. That's ok.
Compassion and capitalism, not greed , are what can make this country far greater
One of my favorite things about NYC is that it's a paradox. Most densely populated city in America, but also gives you the most privacy. Wealthiest city in America, but it's hard to tell who actually has money
See a townhouse in a popular neighborhood. No idea if someone owns the entire building, or if they're renting a studio unit in one of them. Could be worth millions or price stabilized at $2k/month. Cool either way. They all look similar on the outside and in passing, so nobody cares to bother you. Everyone focuses on their own lives
Look around. You don't know if the guy on the Citi bike is an 8 figure founder or an entry level analyst. There's an older guy in a suit sitting next to a younger guy in a shirt and sweatpants. Who's the rich one? Maybe both or neither? Can't tell, who cares, and again, doesn't matter. Everyone is walking somewhere. Everyone has places to go. No status is the default status
The city is just always in motion so it makes everyone feel small in the best way. In other cities, maybe someone flexes by having a 911 instead of a Camry. House in the hills surrounded by cameras instead of an ungated suburb. But in NYC, you're just a part of society like everyone else. Try to draw attention, nobody really has the time or interest to give it to you. Everyone has their own idea of status, so you stop trying to keep up with the Joneses because they don't exist
People are there to get after their own goals and grow forever. Be filthy rich, kind of rich, or not so rich. Be whatever and whoever you want to be. Receive the same access to the city's energy regardless of who you are. Feel like you're always a part of the flow of society at any step of your personal journey. Get to be yourself
Oldies vs Newbies
How generations rank investments
Wealthy Americans were asked which investments offer the greatest opportunities for growth
A pretty sharp divide between the generations
source: Bank of America, 2024 Study of Wealthy Americans
In the San Francisco Bay Area, specifically in counties like San Francisco, Marin, and Santa Clara, individuals earning up to $111,700 annually are now considered low-income and qualify for certain affordable housing programs, per NBC
I know stats don't help most people relax about air travel when it seems like accidents are clustering, but the stats are calming for me, so here they are.
For American drivers, there's one passenger vehicle injury per 2 million miles traveled. Given ~37 miles a day is the driving average, it means a typical American driver should expect one injury every 150 years of life.
For US flyers, the average is about 14 billion miles flown for every 1 air travel injury. If cars were that safe, there would be one driving injury every 1 million years of typical commuting—a period of time longer than the existence of the homo sapien species.
I serve 45 multi-millionaire households across 13 states and have served dozens more for the last 12 years.
I’ve dedicated my professional and academic life to helping people connect with and manage wealth.
Here are 10 more things I wish more people knew about humans & money: