Wealth Wisdom Podcast

It has been a wild decade for investors thus far. Which begs the question, what does 2024 have in store? On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by Bob Swanson (SVP and Co-Head of Equities, CI Global Asset Management) to talk about what lies ahead for investors in 2024. Could we see a return to “normalcy” (if there is such a thing), or will the 2020s continue to be a wild ride?

Do you know much about Private Market Investments?   On this episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, we dive into the world of Private Market Investments with with Geof Marshall (Senior Vice President, Head of Fixed Income & Lead – Private Markets), one of the fund managers behind CI's new Private Growth and Private Income Funds.   We touch on what Private Market Investments are, the features and risks associated with Private Market Investments, and why you might want to consider adding Private Market Investments to your portfolio.  

Better days are ahead for Canadian stocks. So far in 2023, Canadian stocks are up, but they are lagging behind both US and International equities. That should change soon, according to Kevin McSweeney, Senior VP and Portfolio Manager at CI Global Asset Management. On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, Kevin provides insight on a number of topics including why Canadian stocks are undervalued, what sectors he and his team are bullish on, the outlook for inflation, interest rates and more.

Performance coaching is unequivocally on the rise. If you're a business owner and you haven't hired a performance coach, chances are you know someone who has. According to the International Coaching Federation, the global coaching industry was worth $20 billion in 2022. That's a steep increase from just a few years ago. Back in 2019, the global coaching industry was worth an estimated $15 billion. For today's guest on the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, he's seen his business shift dramatically over the past four to five years. Kolin Kriitmaa joins the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast to talk about what a Performance Coach does, and how his business has transitioned from largely helping athletes, to assisting other professionals such as first responders and business owners.

Canada has a hiring problem. The statistics back it up, and that's certainly the sense I get after talking to many local business owners. For a plethora of reasons (which we get to on today's episode), it seems like businesses of all shapes and sizes are struggling to attract and retain quality employees. So, in order to get some insight on recent hiring problems of Canada, we wanted to get a guest on the podcast who deals with hiring issues on a daily basis. On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by Tina Burke, founder of Burke Recruiting in Vancouver. Tina joins us to talk about why it's so tough for businesses to find quality employees right now. She also touches on what you can expect if you work with a recruiter (including how they get paid), while also discussing her journey as an entrepreneur.

The health care system benefits many individuals, but navigating between different professionals (such as family doctors, oncologists and more) is increasingly complex. Why? It's because they don't communicate with each other, according to Lorraine Bosha. That's why Lorraine has seen increased demand in her business as a Health Care Advocate for British Columbian residents. On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, we're joined by Lorraine Bosha, owner and founder of Shield Health Advocates. Lorraine tells us her first hand experience in dealing with our local medical system, and why it inspired her to create her own practice as a Health Care Advocate. She also touches on current issues with the British Columbian medical system, while telling you about the wide range of services she provides for clients.

On this episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by Cara Lawson, who is the owner of Cara Interiors Inc. (and also, my wife!) Cara was candid about her journey through the world of interior design, talking about how to grow as a business owner, and whether or not it's worthwhile to work with a business coach. She also touches on her ideal clients as an interior designer, and provides a peek at current trends in the industry.

The year 2022 will be remembered as one of the worst ever in terms of market performance. Since the Great Depression began in 1929, there were only six years where the S&P 500 performed worse than this year. Three of those years were prior to World War II. So, while it would be nice to turn the page and forget about last year, we do need to be held accountable. Returning to the podcast is one of our favourite guests, Drummond Brodeur (Senior VP & Global Strategist, CI Global Asset Management). We hold Drummond's feet to the fire and review his predictions for the last calendar year. More importantly, we talked to Drummond about what lies ahead in terms of inflation, a recession, and the markets.

For the most part, investors choose fixed income products (such as bonds) primarily to protect from market downside. Of course, that downside protection aspect of fixed income was flipped on its head this year. Due to unforeseen circumstances such as the Russia/Ukraine war and China effectively halting production across the country, we've endured the highest inflation seen in 40 years. The interest rate increases that have ensued have hammered bond returns in the process. However, there could be some intriguing investment opportunities in fixed income on the horizon. To talk about this and more, I'm joined by Sean Rosas, our CI Assante Private Client Investment Counsellor, who should be a familiar face to some of you. Sean briefly touches on his international resume before talking about opportunities in fixed income, private equity, private infrastructure and more.

Giving back is good for the heart, but are you giving back in a way that's best for your wallet? Because generally speaking, Canadians aren't donating to charities in the most efficient way possible. On this episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by my fellow co-founding member of Sana Family Office, Josh Dyck (BA, CFP, Senior Wealth Advisor, Assante Capital Management Ltd.), to help touch on five tips and tricks for effective charitable giving.

Have we hit the bottom already? What does Peter mean by eliminating the behaviour gap? And why does he keep talking about marshmallows? We were pleased to be joined by first-time guest Peter Hofstra (Senior VP and Senior Portfolio Manager, CI GAM) to talk about what his team is seeing in terms of market outlooks for the rest of 2022 and heading into 2023. Peter did a fantastic job of simplifying the complexity of our economy in this 20-minute episode.

To borrow a phrase from our last podcast guest Cecilia Mannella, an entrepreneur's greatest strength can sometimes be a weakness too.   In this context, a business owner's work ethic can often cloud the bigger picture.   We've seen it time and time again, but it's an easy trap for entrepreneurs to get caught up working in the business instead of working on the business.   If you're a business owner caught up working in the business, this podcast will be a crucial refresher to focus on the long-term plan.   On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by Bob Lawrence from VEER Business Advisors. Bob's area of expertise is exit readiness and value enhancement for business owners, and he walks us through his “VEER Assessment” of 5 things you need to do before selling your business.

When was the last time you took action to take care of your mental health? The stigma surrounding mental health has slowly dissipated over the past few years. In fact, the acceleration of mental health stigmas ending might be one of the only positives to come from the pandemic. From social isolation to being overworked in a blurred work from home environment, the pandemic brought mental health into focus more than ever. However, now that the pandemic is (hopefully) in the rear-view mirror, that doesn't mean we should stop talking about the impact that deteriorating mental health can have on your everyday life. On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by therapist Cecilia Mannella (Eterna Counselling) to break down some common refrains about mental health that just aren't true. She talks about some things she's been seeing with clients over the past few years, which includes a heavy dose of overworked, stressed out entrepreneurs.

June 2022 will not be remembered as a stellar month for your portfolio. With the current calendar year already being a challenging one for the markets, the US Federal Reserve added to the chaos by hiking interest rates to 75 basis points, which was above previous expectations. Interest rates are up. Inflation is up. Returns in both the stock markets and bond markets are down. So, what the heck is going on? To help decipher the current investment landscape, I'm joined by returning guest Drummond Brodeur (Senior VP & Global Strategist, CI GAM) to touch on what happened in June. We also talk about what Drummond and his specialized teams see moving forward in the weeks and months ahead. Here are some noteworthy timestamps from the episode. Market Outlook: Despite some surprises, this downturn wasn't unexpected (1:00) Inflation Summary (8:00) The Fed panics and “loses the plot” (12:30) Housing & mortgage discussion (18:00) Why this is a manmade recession (25:00) Canadian Dollar/currency outlook (34:00)

Are you prepared to handle hard times within your business? Human Resources has been thrust into the spotlight since the pandemic hit. Whether it's failing to successfully retain younger employees, or navigating through staff challenges in a post-COVID world, it's abundantly clear that every small business owner should have some sort of HR plan in place. To gain insight on some of the biggest HR challenges facing small business owners today, we're joined on this episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast by Pierre Bourbonnais (Employment Relations Consultant, Peninsula Canada). Here are some of the episode highlights: - Why is it so challenging for business owners to find good workers? (4:00) - #1 question from employers about HR (7:00) - Update on sick days legislation and issues (17:00) - Why you need to be transparent with employees (21:00)

Throughout history, we tend to have longer periods of moderate normalcy in the markets. That hasn't been the case so far in the 2020s. To make sense of the chaos, we're joined by Alfred Lam, Senior VP and Chief Investment Officer at CI Global Asset Management. Alfred and his team oversee over $40 billion worth of investments among Assante clients. I consider him a good friend, and a trusted source of information pertaining to investments and the markets. Here are some key moments from the episode. The problem with Zoom and Moderna (5:30) Thoughts on interest rate hikes moving forward (10:30) Thoughts on the effect of the war on the markets (12:00) The problem with sanctions (14:00) Why markets want to go up (18:30) The main reason why a recession likely won't happen this year (24:00) How we've reacted to current events in our portfolios (35:45)

As the pandemic (hopefully) moves to an endemic, a slew of families will likely be booking trips for 2022.   That is, if they haven't done so already.   To prep you for your next vacation, we're joined on the Wealth Wisdom Podcast by Claire Newell, owner of Travel Best Bets and frequent guests on Global TV and CKNW radio, among other platforms.   We touch on what you need to know about COVID and traveling, trending destinations, cruise ship intel, and more.

After above-average returns for the equity markets in 2021, what's in store for 2022?   And, how will the presence of Omicron affect the 2022 outlook?   To help answer these questions, we bring back Drummond Brodeur (Senior VP and Global Strategist at CI Global Asset Management) to the Wealth Wisdom Podcast.   We also reflect on his 2021 predictions and whether they came true.

It could be one of the most important transactions of your life. So, who are you trusting to help you out? Increasingly, people are turning to Independent Mortgage Brokers when they buy a home. To "demystify" their role, we're joined by Independent Mortgage Broker Vik Sahi on the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast to talk about what exactly he does for his clients. Vik also gives an overview of the mortgage landscape in Canada heading into 2022.

Although the concept of Private Equity is simple enough to understand, there are still a lot of unknowns about this increasingly popular category of investments.   To get a better understanding of Private Equity, we welcome Scott White (Principal, Investor Relations) from Adams Street Partners, a firm that solely deals with Private Equity.   White touches on what exactly Private Equity is, how Adams Street unearths firms to invest in, and how much Private Equity you could consider adding to your portfolio.

One of the questions that gets the most insightful response from our clients is: what keeps you up at night?   After having a countless number of deep discussions with families over the years, we narrowed down the most common responses into five pain points.   On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom podcast, I chat with my co-founding partner of Sana Family Office, Josh Dyck (Wealth Advisor, CFP®, BA) to discuss the five most common stressors we hear about from clients. We also talk about how we work with these current and prospective clients to overcome these conflicts.  

ESG investing has been growing in popularity over the last number of years. However, there still tend to be a number of misconceptions about this trend.   To break down what ESG investing is all about, we invited Jeff Chan, CI Global Asset Management's Director of ESG, to join us on this latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast. Jeff was incredibly thoughtful in his explanations related to ESG, touching on a number of topics, including...   The impacts of ESG investing Difference between ethical and ESG investing How CI works with other companies to improve their ESG

The world of cryptocurrencies is relatively new for most investors, which leads to many questions and uncertainties regarding this new world of investments.   To break down exactly what's going on with two of the most popular cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin and Ethereum, we were joined by Galaxy Digital Portfolio Manager Paul Cappelli on the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast.    In this episode we discuss: What exactly are these assets? What are their ESG concerns? Have investors missed out on Bitcoin and Ethereum's growth? What are the new CI Bitcoin and Ethereum Funds all about? How much exposure should investors have?

On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom podcast, we divert away from finance and focus on something we all need: a good night's sleep.   Even though you might think you're sleeping properly, often, that's not the case. I talk about my personal experience with that in this conversation with Dr. Glenn Landry, sleep expert from Elite Sleep.   Back in the pre-COVID days (remember those?) we hosted packed to capacity "Sleepy Dinners" with Glenn as the speaker. We always received rave reviews on these thanks to Glenn's innate ability to communicate information about the importance of sleep to his audience. Some of you can attest to this

Although never the sexiest topic, the federal budget is something that affects all Canadians. I was joined by Cheryl Norton, CI Assante Private Client's Regional Vice-President of Wealth Planning and Bryan Hubbell, Manning Elliott's tax specialist, to break down the most interesting and impactful announcements from the federal budget. Here are some of the highlights from the episode.  Notable "no-shows" in the budget, and why that's a good thing (2:30) Tax changes for business owners (5:00) A win for clean energy businesses (8:30) Is the spotlight on your business (14:30) Personal tax percolations: OAS, disability tax credit (16:00) Vacancy & Luxury Taxes (22:00)

I'm often asked by clients, "what's driving the real estate market right now?" Those questions have only escalated during a hectic 2021 in the Lower Mainland real estate market. To answer some of those questions, we welcome Vancouver real estate expert Steve Saretsky to the Wealth Wisdom Podcast. Here are some highlights from the episode. Who's to blame for the recent surge? (1:00) Is the work from home real estate driver overblown? (5:30) Should people be buying in this market? (9:00) Why emotions are driving certain market trends (16:00) Steve brings out his crystal ball (19:00)

Signature Global Asset Management Senior Vice President and Global Strategist Drummond Brodeur makes his return to the podcast. He talks about his most recent article titled "Break on Through to the Other Side," in which he talks about the market outlook for 2021 and the decade ahead.   Here are some key points from the episode.   Effects of the U.S. Presidential and Georgia Senate elections on the market (1:45) The big driver of the "break through" to the other side (8:00) "Japanification" and the imaginary fight against inflation (15:45) Modern Portfolio Theory: RIP (23:00) Why it's time to call John (26:00) Cautioning against the short-term bias (30:00) Market outlook and potential risks (33:00) If you have any questions, comments, or topics you'd like to hear about in the future, reach out to us by emailing sanafamilyoffice@assante.com.

On the latest episode of the Wealth Wisdom Podcast, I'm joined by my business partner Josh Dyck, to talk about the evolution of Family Offices, and what our practice offers today. You can learn more about their offerings by visiting sanafamilyoffice.com Disclaimer: Insurance products and services are provided by Assante Estate and Insurance Services Inc.

How will the economy, and your investments, be affected following the conclusion of the U.S. Election? John Lawson talks about that and more during his third-quarter investment review. Here's a rundown of the episode. Market Review (0:00) Market Speculation: Tesla and Apple (5:30) Recession or Depression? (8:10) U.S. Election: What Happens Next? (9:30) Our Asset Allocation (11:30)

Community Foundations have always been an integral part of neighbourhoods across Canada. Their importance was only escalated in the wake of COVID-19. So, what was the SurreyCares Community Foundation up to following the pandemic? We chat with SurreyCares Executive Director Christine Buttkus to learn more about their COVID response, what exactly Community Foundations do, and different ways that you can get involved with your community foundation.

Paul Nazareth (Senior VP of Education & Development, Canadian Association of Gift Planners) talks to host John Lawson (Senior Wealth Advisor, Assante Wealth Management) about the power of philanthropic giving, avenues for doing so, and some of the mistakes that business owners make when it comes to making charitable donations. 

Drummond Brodeur (Senior Vice President & Global Strategist, Signature Asset Management), joins host John Lawson (Senior Wealth Advisor, Assante Capital Management Ltd.) the inaugural edition of The Wealth Wisdom Podcast to give his insight on why he thinks we're "bungee jumping into a recession."  Any questions or comments based on the discussion? Email us at sanafamilyoffice@assante.com

Thanks for checking out our 2020 second-quarter investment review. Here's a rundown of the episode. Equity and fixed income market review (0:15) The best equity market sector (4:00) Bear market perspective (4:45) Where does the US market stand going into the 2020s? (5:45) The future of fixed income (7:00) Our investment allocation (8:00)

Worldwide market overview (0:00) What's unique about this bear market (3:30) Our Asset Allocation Strategy (5:30) How We're Investing (10:00)