Coming back too soon

Published 7/15/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  Thinking back to when my son was born in 2007, I feel very lucky that I was able to take a true maternity leave. Like many mothers, I had really clear ideas about how I wanted things to be; like many babies, my son had his own ideas that ruled the day. Thankfully, despite being born early, he was able to leave the hospital on schedule with the only real concern that he gain weight at a rapid pace. Certain things, like his bris ceremony, were delayed beyond the Jewish custom of the…

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When good is good enough

Published 6/17/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  In the course of all of our daily lives, written communication is most likely the primary way we are communicating. Between email, text messages and social media, we are tasked with scrutinizing our grammar, spelling, content, context and most of all tone of how and what we write. Think about the heated feeling that has washed over you when you realized that you sent something with a spelling mistake. As recently as this week, President Donald Trump tweeted a post with a spelling mistake that solicited comment after comment about the presumed typo…

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Useful advice for new job seekers

Published 5/20/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  It’s that time of year when school is ending and students are starting summer internships and new, full-time positions post-graduation. We have long had interns in our office, so I am familiar with the range of what this experience can provide to our small business. We have had the good, the bad and the ugly in terms of readiness to work and ability to transition from school mode to professional life. This summer, we have hired an intern who attends NYU – Stern School of Business. I share this to call out the…

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Having a true connection to philanthropy

Published 4/15/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  For as long as I can remember, my family volunteered together with various organizations in our community in Providence, Rhode Island, where I grew up. The memory that stands out the most is on Thanksgiving Day, when my brother, father and I would work in the kitchen of a local church preparing the meal for those without homes or families to eat with. When I reached high school, I began volunteering at a local safe house shelter for women who were victims of domestic violence. This shelter created a safe haven for women…

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A happy ending to a search for an office home

Published 3/18/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  In October 2015, I wrote a column about the challenges I was having with finding new office space. It shocks me to realize that I wrote this article two and a half years ago. I never would have imagined at that time that it would take me over two more years to find our new office home. Thankfully, I write this article on March 13, 2018, the actual day of my ninth anniversary of founding &Wealth, happy to report that the Baltimore office of &Wealth has successfully moved into our new space. It…

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The tenets of forgiveness

Published 2/27/2018 in The Maryland Daily Record  The year 2018 has started out with as fast a pace as I ever remember. My travel schedule to see clients has kicked off as we begin our planning, and people are focused on what lies ahead for the coming year. Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting with a client and his trusted friend, whom he has selected to be involved in some aspects of his personal financial planning. This man and his family are simply extraordinary. My client has long raved about them, yet this meeting still caught me by…

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A graceful goodbye to 2017

Published 12/8/2017 in The Maryland Daily Record  As we approach the last days of 2017, I have heard a number of people say how ready they are to close out this year and bring on a fresh start in 2018. I am also feeling like 2017 was a year that I am ready to log in the record books.  It’s not so much that anything terrible happened, because this was a positive year personally and professionally. I think it has more to do with the time and energy that comes with growing pains – something I felt profoundly this year…

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The Inevitable Stock Market Cycle

Published 11/7/2017 in the Maryland Daily Record I have been thinking a lot about the inevitable cycle of the stock market. For a while, it has felt like we are in a period where the market is lulling people into a sense that things aren’t cyclical anymore but are in fact in a new state of permanence. The expectation that each monthly or quarterly statement will show an increased balance along with waning interest in the subject is evidence of the general mindset of investors today. There have been other periods throughout my career as an investment adviser where this…

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The power of protecting your time

Published 8/11/2017 in The Maryland Daily Record  After I had spent many years in what is considered a relationship development role, it wasn’t until I worked with a business coach that I really learned the power of protecting my time. I used to run around keeping a nonstop schedule with appointments. I was taught in my early days of training at a large investment firm that if I kept myself in front of as many people as possible, the numbers game would go my way. I was very good at getting people to meet with me. That part was actually…

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When to pay cash and when to finance

Published 7/9/2017 in The Maryland Daily Record  When considering a new home purchase, many of our clients debate the merits of paying all cash or financing a portion of their purchase with a mortgage. For clients who are fortunate enough to have the options, there are benefits to both scenarios that depend on each person’s situation and what will make the choice right for them. Before advising a client as to which path to take, we start with the CPA for our client to understand the full picture of tax benefits of having a mortgage. In some cases, there are…

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