Podcasts about wealth advisors

Craig Bolanos, Co-founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to discuss the latest market numbers. Craig breaks down why September is not a good month for the markets. For more information, go to GetRetiredStayRetired.com.

Are index funds still enough for today's investor? Index funds have long been popular for their simplicity, low costs, and broad diversification. But today's investing landscape looks different. Major indexes can be more concentrated than many investors realize, and there are more investment options available than ever before. In this episode of Clear Money Talk, Tim Clairmont, MSFS™, LACP™, Wealth Advisor, and Tyler Andrews, CFP®, NSSA®, Wealth Advisor, discuss how index funds work, where concentration can show up, what alternatives investors may consider, and why chasing the latest investment trend can create its own risks. The bigger question isn't whether index funds are good or bad. It's whether your portfolio is intentionally built around your goals, time horizon, risk tolerance, and financial plan. Watch the full episode and subscribe to Clear Money Talk for more conversations about investing, retirement, taxes, and personal finance.

Are index funds still enough for today's investor? Index funds have long been popular for their simplicity, low costs, and broad diversification. But today's investing landscape looks different. Major indexes can be more concentrated than many investors realize, and there are more investment options available than ever before. In this episode of Clear Money Talk, Tim Clairmont, MSFS™, LACP™, Wealth Advisor, and Tyler Andrews, CFP®, NSSA®, Wealth Advisor, discuss how index funds work, where concentration can show up, what alternatives investors may consider, and why chasing the latest investment trend can create its own risks. The bigger question isn't whether index funds are good or bad. It's whether your portfolio is intentionally built around your goals, time horizon, risk tolerance, and financial plan. Watch the full episode and subscribe to Clear Money Talk for more conversations about investing, retirement, taxes, and personal finance.

Gary Pattengale, Advanced Planning Specialist and Wealth Advisor at Mesirow, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to talk about required minimum distributions for taxes. Plus, Roth conversion opportunities and deadlines you should have to avoid penalties. For more information, visit www.mesirow.com or call 877 Mesirow.

In this episode of the Income Flip Podcast, Mark Miller, CEO of Hilton Tax and Wealth Advisors and director of the Hilton family office, shares his path from selling wholesale goods door to door as a Boy Scout and running painting companies through college, to building an international financial newsletter, founding multiple advisory firms, and eventually partnering with Bradley Hilton to lead the Hilton family's financial arm. Mark breaks down the moment that changed everything, getting hit with a multimillion-dollar tax bill and hiring a $2,000-an-hour advisor who saved him half a million dollars in year one alone. That experience pushed him to master advanced tax mitigation himself, and within a few years he reached the zero tax bracket and never paid taxes again. He now helps business owners apply the same family-office-level strategies the Hiltons use to build and protect generational wealth.

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the stock market rallying today, his thoughts on Meta’s Muse AI, how AI is changing the global economy, the overall resiliency of the market, why he supports the Fed decision to raise interest rates, and the importance of having a […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the stock market rallying today, his thoughts on Meta’s Muse AI, how AI is changing the global economy, the overall resiliency of the market, why he supports the Fed decision to raise interest rates, and the importance of having a […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the stock market rallying today, his thoughts on Meta’s Muse AI, how AI is changing the global economy, the overall resiliency of the market, why he supports the Fed decision to raise interest rates, and the importance of having a […]

Segment 1: Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the stock market rallying today, his thoughts on Meta’s Muse AI, how AI is changing the global economy, the overall resiliency of the market, why he supports the Fed decision to raise interest rates, and the importance of […]

Episode Summary: A business can be profitable. It can be busy. It can have loyal customers, pay your team, and support your lifestyle - and still not be as valuable as you think it is. In the second installment of the Women Behind the Cash-Rich Exit series, host Colleen O'Connell-Campbell sits with an idea that came up in her conversation with Krystyn and Matt Harrison of Horizon Advisors: profit pays the bills, value gives you options. She traces that distinction through this curated group of episodes - Krystyn's hard-won lesson about running her own sale process, Matt's buyer-side view of what happens when founders come to market in crisis, Jennifer Stewart's decision to walk away one week before closing, Bobbie Racette's already-built data room, and Julie Cole's warning about where money disappears during due diligence. Along the way, Colleen talks about something she wants women founders in particular to hear: the instinct to hold everything together personally is a genuine strength that can become a risk at exit. And she makes a case for replacing the confidence conversation with a leverage conversation. Key Takeaways: The core distinction: profit says the business works today. Value says the business can keep working tomorrow without being entirely dependent on the founder. Those are different standards, and confusing them is where the wealth gap hides in plain sight. The founders who have options are rarely the ones who wait until the last minute. They are the ones who understand the difference between income and enterprise value, between revenue and readiness, between being needed and being transferable, between owning a job and owning an asset. Krystyn Harrison built Prosper into a coaching platform with tens of thousands of users and major brand clients, then faced the question many founders eventually face: keep going, raise more, compete against deeper pockets, or find a strategic home. Her lesson was direct - do not run your own process. She ran it herself, lost competitive tension, watched a significant letter of intent fall apart, and exited on weaker terms than she could have had. Her second lesson: the exit was not just a transaction, it was a personal transition, and she had not fully planned for the calendar suddenly emptying. Matt Harrison brought the buyer-side M&A lens: founders often come to market because of crisis - illness, divorce, death, burnout, sudden pressure, a sudden offer. In those moments the founder is not in a position of power. Books may not be clean, tax planning may be late, the business may still depend too heavily on the owner, the leadership team may not be ready. When buyers see risk, they discount, add conditions, stretch out due diligence, and chip away at the offer. Preparation is not administrative. Preparation is leverage, and leverage is what gives you options. Jennifer Stewart was not preparing for a sale in a long, intentional way when a legitimate buyer appeared and a broker helped her see her service-based business was worth more than she had assumed. She moved into due diligence and negotiation - then said no, one week before closing. That no made her a better business owner. She now reads her balance sheet, P&L, adjusted EBITDA, margins, and multiples differently, and sees her firm as an asset rather than a company she works inside. Value gives you options: the option to sell, the option not to sell, the option to grow, restructure, remove yourself from every decision point, or say "not yet, I'm worth more, and I am not done". A warning for founders facing a first serious buyer: the interest can feel enormously validating - someone wants what you built, someone will write you a cheque. That excitement can pull you out of your own centre. Jennifer's lesson was about taking back control: not being flattered into a transaction, not second-guessing her worth, not jumping at the first offer, and not confusing buyer interest with readiness to sell. That is the difference between reacting and choosing. The strength that becomes a risk: many women founders are extraordinary at making things work - remembering the details, knowing the client history, noticing the tension on the team, stepping into the gap, smoothing the cracks, carrying the invisible load. Those are real strengths. But if the business only works because you are personally holding it together, that strength becomes a liability at exit. A buyer does not want to buy your exhaustion or your heroic effort. A buyer wants a system, a team, a rhythm, a brand, financials they can trust, a sales engine, a leadership structure, and a future that does not depend on you being the only reason it works. Bobbie Racette's most important exit detail was not the sale - it was the readiness. She and her team were already preparing a Series B raise when acquisition offers arrived, so the data room was built, financials organized, contracts in place, and the story clear. Diligence moved faster because the discipline already existed. The work that makes you fundable is the same work that makes you sellable. A clean data room is a power move. A leadership team that can answer questions is a power move. A business that can survive due diligence is a power move. On confidence vs. leverage: we tell women to pitch, negotiate, ask, and lead with confidence. All true - but confidence without preparation is fragile. Preparation creates earned confidence. You walk into a buyer conversation differently when you know your numbers, evaluate an offer differently when you know your wealth gap, and say no differently when you have options. Julie Cole's warning: due diligence is where money disappears. The LOI comes in at one number, everyone is excited, the founder starts imagining the finish line - and then the buyer looks under the hood at financials, contracts, customer concentration, legal issues, employment arrangements, systems, margins, inventory. Every messy piece becomes a reason to reduce the price, delay, or create doubt. Keep your housekeeping in order from the start, not when the buyer appears. By the time you are in diligence, it is too late to pretend you were organized all along. The business will tell the truth. It always does. "Acquisition curious" - a phrase from the archive worth adopting. It does not mean you are selling tomorrow, checking out, or abandoning your mission. It means you are mature enough to ask: if someone came knocking, would I be ready? Would I know what the business is worth and what I need personally? Would my structure support a deal? Could my team step up? Would my business be understandable to someone who is not inside my head? Being acquisition curious is not about leaving - it is about controlling your options. Impressive is not the same as sufficient. A $5 million, $10 million, or $20 million exit may sound impressive, but what matters is what the number means after tax, debt, deal structure, earnouts, family obligations, lifestyle needs, inflation, philanthropy, and the next business idea. That is the wealth gap question: what does the business need to produce to fund the future you actually want? The closing questions: Is my business profitable? Good. Now - is it valuable? Could someone else run it, understand it, buy it, fund it, trust the numbers, see the future? And could I step into my next chapter without wondering whether I waited too long to prepare? If this episode has you wondering whether your business is creating enterprise value or simply generating income, connect with Colleen O'Connell-Campbell on LinkedIn to start a one-on-one Wealth Gap Analysis - and begin mapping the gap between where you are today and what your future exit needs to fund.  Please leave a five-star rating and review - it helps more CEOs, founders, and business owners find the show. *** The Cash Rich Exit Podcast is brought to you by O'Connell-Campbell Wealth Management at RBC Dominion Securities. All opinions expressed by the host, Colleen O'Connell-Campbell, and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of RBC Dominion Securities. This podcast is for informational purposes only before taking any action based on information in this podcast you should consult with a qualified professional. Colleen O'Connell-Campbell is a Wealth Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities, a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

In this episode of the Global Investors Podcast, Charles Carillo sits down with Mark Miller, Managing Director of the Hilton Family Office and CEO of Hilton Tax and Wealth Advisors, to discuss the strategies family offices use to approach investing, risk management, taxes, business exits, and long-term wealth building. Mark explains what a family office actually is, the difference between single-family, multi-family, and virtual family offices, and why the approach used by wealthy families can look very different from traditional retail wealth management. In this episode, you'll learn: What a family office is and how it works When a family office may make sense based on net worth Family office investing vs. traditional wealth management Why Mark challenges the traditional 60/40 portfolio How wealthy investors think about risk and capital preservation Why investment discipline and systems matter How business owners can prepare years in advance for an exit The relationship between expected returns and investment risk How advanced tax planning fits into long-term wealth building Lessons Mark has learned during nearly 40 years in financial services Mark also discusses the philosophy behind his book, Hilton Wealth: How to Invest Like an American Dynasty, and the idea of bringing institutional-style wealth strategies to a broader group of investors. Learn More About Mark Here: https://www.hiltonwealth.com/   Connect with the Global Investors Show, Charles Carillo and Harborside Partners: ◾ Setup a FREE 30 Minute Strategy Call with Charles: http://ScheduleCharles.com ◾ Learn How To Invest In Real Estate: https://www.SyndicationSuperstars.com/  ◾ FREE Passive Investing Guide: http://www.HSPguide.com ◾ Join Our Weekly Email Newsletter: http://www.HSPsignup.com ◾ Passively Invest in Real Estate: http://www.InvestHSP.com ◾ Global Investors Web Page: http://GlobalInvestorsPodcast.com/

It’s not too early to talk about tax season. Gary Pattengale, Advanced Planning Specialist and Wealth Advisor at Mesirow, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to talk about tax loss harvesting and offsetting realized gains. Gary shares tips and reminders to help you be as prepared as possible for tax season. For more information, […]

What does it really mean to be rich? And why do so many people with extraordinary financial resources still feel anxious, vulnerable, or even poor?This week, Pauline sits down with longtime friend and fellow Wharton classmate Mimi Drake to explore the complicated relationship between money, identity, power, and happiness.Mimi is a Partner and Practice Leader at Cerity Partners, one of the nation's leading wealth management firms. Drawing on her decades of experience advising ultra-high-net-worth families, she shares insights into what wealth reveals about human nature; why money so often becomes a source of power and tension in relationships; and how families can prepare children for privilege without robbing them of purpose.Together, Pauline and Mimi also explore how the aesthetics of wealth are changing, as traditional status symbols give way to less visible forms of luxury, including health, time, access, and ease.But ultimately, their conversation raises a question that goes much deeper than money: What does it mean to live richly?

How do advisors help clients navigate market volatility without disrupting their long-term financial plans?In Part 1 of Industry Spotlight, Gary Preisser of Stonebriar Wealth Advisors joins Eric Alvarado and Tedd Hikes of CBS Brokerage to discuss the importance of liquidity planning and risk management.A key theme of the conversation is the need for a dedicated cash flow strategy during periods of market volatility. Gary explains why maintaining a "cushion" of liquid assets can help clients meet income needs without being forced to sell long-term investments during market downturns.This episode highlights an important reality of retirement planning: success isn't just about investment performance. It's about ensuring clients have access to the resources they need when they need them most.Stay tuned for Part 2.#IndustrySpotlight #FinancialPlanning #RetirementPlanning #WealthManagement #RiskManagement #RetirementIncome #FinancialAdvisor #CBSBrokerage

Segment 1: Tom Gimbel, job expert and founder of LaSalle Network, joins John to talk about the one question you should ask if you want to have a caring company. Segment 2: Philippe Weiss, President, Seyfarth at Work, joins John to talk about how companies can turn a crisis into a business advantage. Segment 3: Phillip Shaw, Wealth Advisor and […]

Gary Pattengale, Advanced Planning Specialist and Wealth Advisor at Mesirow, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to talk about changes you should be aware of for the upcoming tax season. From new deductions for non-itemizers and more. Gary shares tips and reminders so you are best prepared. For more information, visit www.mesirow.com or call 877 Mesirow.

Adam Yofan, a wealth advisor and consultant with Focus Partners, joins Bilal Little on ETF Central to discuss how wealthy families approach investment and estate planning. Yofan shares his path from CPA to Smith Barney broker to building a planning-focused practice now part of Focus Partners, where he coaches roughly 800 advisors full-time. He argues that an advisor's real value lies not in the plan itself, which AI can now approximate, but in the trust and emotional intelligence needed to ask clients hard questions about family, legacy, and desired outcomes. He also touches on shifts toward tax-aware SMAs and ETFs, AI's growing role in advisor workflows, and offers candid thoughts on estate planning basics and his own legacy.

In this episode of For Advisors By Advisors, host Evan J. Mayer and co-host Scott Brown sit down with Bob Milligan, owner of 1792 Wealth Advisors, for an unfiltered conversation about twenty-two years in the wirehouses before building a branch of his own, why he walked away as a founding partner of Concurrent once the private equity conversation started, the phone call that kept him at Raymond James with all of his advisors intact, and why enterprise value is the North Star for an advisor's practice.Bob Milligan and Scott Brown's participation in the For Advisors By Advisors podcast is independent of their activity as a financial advisor with Raymond James.

Gary Pattengale, Advanced Planning Specialist and Wealth Advisor at Mesirow, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to talk about the five tax moves you should make before December 31st. From making charitable donations, revisiting SALT deductions, and catching up ok 401(k) contributions. Gary shares tips and reminders to help you with your taxes for […]

"Obviously that question of women, money, and wealth changed over time….We don't talk about women wanting money all that much…Women were excited to become gradually big earners, but they treated money very differently. They treated money as a way to create protection for themselves and their family, as a way to create a legacy that would continue. They were not into big spending as much…. What I hadn't realized was to what extent these early women…were saying, "I was the only woman in the room," and they had tremendous ramifications for how they had to function on Wall Street because they were the only woman in the room." Paulina Bren on Electric Ladies Podcast Women are embracing their financial and professional power today more than ever, which began decades ago with the women who were first to break into the male-dominated Wall Street financial sector.  That power is about to expand exponentially as women are poised to control over 50% of global wealth for the first time ever soon - with a huge portion of the great wealth transfer's $124 trillion. So, it's a great time to see how women's Wall Street power began and where it's going. Listen to Paulina Bren, Author of "She Wolves: The Untold History of Women on Wall Street," in this enlightening conversation with Electric Ladies Podcast host Joan Michelson. You'll hear about: ●        How women broke through the all-male bastion of the early days of Wall Street. ●        Who the women were who had the moxie, thick skin and resourcefulness to break down the walls of Wall Street and pave the way for more women to benefit financially there. ●        How these women coped with the sexism, discrimination, even not having a ladies' room accessible. ●        What "financial feminism" is and how to leverage it. ●        Plus, career advice, such as:   "I would say don't be afraid, really. By the time you hit a certain age, you've built up skills whether you realize it or not, and they can be used for other. You have powers, can be used for other good and evil, but you have that there. You have a toolbox… We think of finance as being all about numbers, but actually it's also about a lot of storytelling. You have to be a good storyteller to sell things, and women are better storytellers…that's a skill. Finance is not just numbers. There are a lot of things, if you have a talent for something, it can work there to your advantage." Paulina Bren on Electric Ladies Podcast  Subscribe to our newsletter to receive our podcasts, blog, events and special coaching offers.  You'll also like: ·       Impact Investing In New Hands - with Jolyne Caruso, Financial Executive, Investor, Wealth Advisor ·       New Business Models For Philanthropy - Amy Dornbusch, AtlasDaughters, Entrepreneur, Investor, Philanthropist ·       Women's Trillions Drive New Economic Values - with Silvia Bastante de Unverhau, LGT Private Bankers International ·       New Venture Capital Models For Women and CleanTech - Cecile Blilious, Veteran Venture Investor, Venture ESG, European Women in VC ·       Creativity & Relationships Secure Grants - with Megan Pater, CEO/Founder of Fund Nation and ECE Solutions ·       Investing in Companies For Social Impact - with Meredith Shields, CEO of Citi Impact Fund   Subscribe to our newsletter to receive our podcasts, blog, events and special coaching offers.   Thanks for subscribing on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio and leaving us a review! Follow us on Twitter @joanmichelson

The conversation about women and wealth almost always starts in the same place: the great wealth transfer, inheritance, women outliving their spouses, women becoming financial decision-makers later in life. That conversation matters. But host Colleen O'Connell-Campbell argues it is not the whole story - and it is not the story that has been most alive in the guest chair of this podcast.  In this solo episode, she launches a new series called The Women Behind the Cash-Rich Exit, drawing together the threads from a remarkable run of conversations with women who are not receiving wealth but creating it: founding, scaling, buying, selling, raising capital, protecting teams, choosing buyers, walking away from deals, and reinvesting after the exit.  We'll hear from Bobbie Racette, Julie Cole, Elizabeth Kilvert, Jennifer Stewart, Joanna Track, and Liz MacRae, Colleen highlights what each of them teaches about turning a business into a transferable asset - and makes a direct case for founders to get comfortable talking about valuation, liquidity, deal structure, and freedom, not just impact and purpose.   Key Takeaways: The traditional women and wealth conversation needs to move upstream. Inheritance, divorce, and widowhood are real and important - but they should not be the starting point. The starting point is women building the asset, scaling it, protecting it, selling it, choosing not to sell it yet, and buying the next one. Wealth follows ownership. The quality of your future wealth is directly connected to the quality of the business you are building today - which is precisely where the wealth gap hides. Revenue can be strong, the brand can be known, the team can be busy, and still none of it may be translating into personal wealth, options, or freedom. Bobbie Racette teaches that readiness creates optionality. She started with $300 at her kitchen table, bootstrapped to serious revenue before raising, heard more than 170 no's before her first yes, and became the first Indigenous queer woman in Canada to close a Series A - and then to build, scale, and sell a tech startup. The exit was not the end. It was a capital event that became fuel: retiring her parents, angel investing in underserved founders, and launching Tapwe. Julie Cole teaches that brand and community become transferable value. Four moms built Mabel's Labels out of a Hamilton basement from a simple frustration - kids losing their stuff. Avery Labels came calling, and the business sold in a reported $12 million transaction. Julie stayed on, continuing as the brand voice and community connection - what she calls the Mabel magic. That is brand wealth, community wealth, reputation wealth, and trust that outlives the founder's original role. Elizabeth Kilvert teaches that purpose and profit belong in the same sentence. She built The Unrefined Olive on quality, sustainability, education, and community - customers came for the experience, not just the olive oil. Her exit question was not "can I sell this?" but "can I let go in a way that protects what made this business matter?" Purpose does not make a business unsellable. Purpose makes a business more valuable - but only if the purpose becomes transferable: values reflected in process, a team that can carry the story, a customer experience that does not depend on the founder being in the room. Jennifer Stewart teaches that exit ready and ready to exit are not the same thing. She got to one week from closing the sale of the firm she had built over 17 years, and walked away. The process changed how she saw the business: not a company she works inside, but a valuable asset. If she approaches a sale again, she will be more methodical, more intentional, and far less likely to second-guess her own worth. Sometimes the cash-rich move is a clear, confident no. Joanna Track teaches us to be the owner, not the renter. Having launched and exited multiple digital-first businesses, she emphasizes building assets you actually own - your email list, website, brand voice, intellectual property, customer relationships, and community - rather than rented platforms and visibility that vanishes when algorithms shift. The principle extends well beyond marketing: to your business, your brand, your real estate, your financial life, and your exit. Liz MacRae reminds us that every exit is someone else's entrance into ownership. Working the buy side through Village Wellth, she helps people acquire established businesses rather than starting from scratch. Women are not only sellers - women can be buyers, funders, advisors, and governors too. If we want women shaping the future of wealth, they need to be on every side of the capital table. Profit is not a bad word. Wealth is not a bad word. Ambition is not a bad word. Wanting the business to pay you back is a good thing. Many founders - women founders in particular - are comfortable talking about impact, community, service, and legacy, but uncomfortable talking about value, valuation, liquidity, deal structure, tax planning, retirement income, and freedom. Both conversations need to happen. The numbers matter for a practical reason: if you do not know what you need, you cannot know whether an exit works. If you do not know your wealth gap, you cannot know whether an offer is good enough. A cash-rich exit is not built in the final year of the business. It is built in the years before - in decisions about systems, people, brand, contracts, financials, real estate, leadership, governance, customer relationships, and personal wealth. The exit does not create wealth out of nowhere. The exit reveals what you have been building all along. Questions to sit with: What am I building? What is transferable? What is too dependent on me? What does my business need to become? What would a buyer see? What would my family need? What would freedom look like - and what would it cost? What will this wealth make possible? If this episode has you wondering where your wealth gap may be hiding, connect with Colleen O'Connell-Campbell on LinkedIn and start a free one-on-one Wealth Gap Analysis. Let's begin mapping what a cash-rich exit could look like for you.    Leave a five-star rating and review - it helps more founders, educators, mid-market CEOs and business owners find the show. *** The Cash Rich Exit Podcast is brought to you by O'Connell-Campbell Wealth Management at RBC Dominion Securities.   All opinions expressed by the host, Colleen O'Connell-Campbell, and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of RBC Dominion Securities.   This podcast is for informational purposes only before taking any action based on information in this podcast you should consult with a qualified professional.   Colleen O'Connell-Campbell is a Wealth Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities, a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.  

Andy Schwartz CEO, OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners  |  Kevin Spahn Founder, Spahn Financial (now OnePoint BFG) Two former Northwestern Mutual advisors, two very different paths. Andy Schwartz and Kevin Spahn share what it takes to build, grow, merge, and create lasting enterprise value. In Summary What separates a successful advisory practice from an enterprise with the ability to grow well beyond its founders? Andy Schwartz and Kevin Spahn offer two different perspectives on that question. Both spent decades at Northwestern Mutual, but their paths eventually diverged. Andy left to help build what is now OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, an $18B+ firm expected to surpass $20B by year-end. Kevin built one of Northwestern Mutual's top practices before deciding to merge his business into OnePoint and become an equity partner. Louis talks with Andy and Kevin about the decisions behind both journeys: creating a true firm rather than an aggregation of practices, transitioning advisors from 1099 to W-2, using outside capital without relinquishing control, rethinking succession, and determining when equity in a larger enterprise can offer greater opportunity than continuing to build alone. Underlying it all is a factor that's much harder to quantify: trust. The Storyline Andy Schwartz and Kevin Spahn have known each other for roughly 30 years. They met while both were building careers at Northwestern Mutual, where Andy became an important mentor to Kevin as Kevin transitioned from practicing law and estate planning into wealth management. After roughly 30 years at Northwestern Mutual, Andy and his partners left in 2015 with approximately $3B in assets to launch independently. What began as Bleakley Financial eventually became OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, an $18B+ enterprise that Andy expects will surpass $20B by the end of 2026. That kind of growth required more than attracting assets. Andy describes the evolution from a predominantly 1099 structure into a firm where more than 85% of advisors and AUM are now W-2. The shift created a more cohesive enterprise, gave advisors access to equity, and ultimately positioned OnePoint to bring in minority capital from Joe Duran's Rise Growth Partners. Andy makes an important distinction about that relationship: OnePoint is “private equity invested,” not “private equity owned.” The structure gave the firm capital and expertise while allowing its partners to retain control. Kevin faced a different decision. After more than 30 years at Northwestern Mutual, his practice had grown to 18 people and approximately $2B in assets. He was happy at the firm, but his clients had evolved, his business had become increasingly complex, and the internal succession plan he once envisioned carried risks he could no longer ignore. He could have built an independent firm himself. Instead, he chose to merge with OnePoint. The decision wasn't driven by the largest possible check. Kevin saw the opportunity to become an equity partner in a larger enterprise, give his team and clients a more durable future, and leverage infrastructure he didn't want to recreate himself. For both men, the story ultimately comes back to the same principle: The right economics matter, but sustainable partnerships require trust, shared philosophy, and the belief that everyone involved can create more value together than separately. Topics Covered Building an enterprise versus building a practice Northwestern Mutual and the path to independence OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners' growth from ~$3B to $18B+ Organic growth versus M&A Creating a growth-oriented advisor culture Moving from a 1099 model to a predominantly W-2 structure Equity ownership and advisor alignment Minority private equity investment Rise Growth Partners and Joe Duran Internal succession versus an external merger Selling versus merging an advisory business Merging versus teaming versus going it alone Evaluating equity versus cash in a transaction The economics of leaving a captive firm Centralization versus advisor autonomy Trust as a factor in partnerships and transactions > Download a transcript of this episode… Listen and Learn Highlights for Advisors How did Andy and Kevin's 30-year relationship ultimately lead to a transaction? (04:11)Kevin explains how Andy helped him transition from attorney and estate planner into wealth management, beginning a professional relationship that would eventually make their partnership possible decades later. Why did Andy leave Northwestern Mutual after roughly 30 years? (08:45)Andy describes wanting greater flexibility, a multi-custodial platform, and more optionality for clients and the business—a decision that ultimately led to the creation of OnePoint BFG. Why did Kevin decide his longtime Northwestern Mutual practice needed something different? (15:49)Kevin explains how his clients, service needs, and business evolved over time, while concerns about his original internal succession plan led him to consider a different path. What has driven OnePoint's growth from approximately $3B to $18B+? (21:41)Andy outlines the firm's emphasis on client experience, advisor experience, organic growth, and carefully selected inorganic growth—and why helping advisors grow is fundamental to the model. Why does Andy say OnePoint is a firm rather than an aggregator? (23:54)The distinction comes down to alignment, shared responsibility, centralized resources, equity, and a partnership structure in which advisors are accountable to one another. How did OnePoint convert a predominantly 1099 advisor base into a W-2 enterprise? (29:26)Andy explains why capital and equity became necessary to build the next stage of the business and why trust was essential to bringing advisors into a more integrated structure. Why did OnePoint choose minority private equity investment? (33:13)Andy shares why Rise Growth Partners offered something previous potential buyers had not: a structure designed to benefit the broader advisor partnership while preserving control. Why did Kevin merge with OnePoint rather than shop his practice broadly? (36:43)For Kevin, maximizing price wasn't the objective. His decision centered on trust in Andy, confidence in OnePoint's infrastructure, and creating a strong future for clients and employees. Why did Kevin choose equity in the larger firm instead of simply cashing out? (40:57)Kevin explains why he believes participating in the future growth of a larger enterprise offers a compelling alternative to relying solely on the future growth of his own practice. How should advisors evaluate the “golden handcuffs” that can make leaving difficult? (46:42)Andy argues that the analysis needs to compare what an advisor gives up with the potential growth, economics, equity, and leverage available on the other side. How much conformity does a true enterprise require? (49:06)Andy explains why OnePoint sits somewhere between complete advisor autonomy and complete centralization, seeking enough consistency to create enterprise value without eliminating entrepreneurial flexibility. What would Andy and Kevin tell their younger selves? (52:06)Kevin emphasizes surrounding yourself with the best people possible, while Andy reflects on having the courage to make a difficult change after a successful 30-year run. Key Takeaways Building enterprise value requires more than asset growth. OnePoint's evolution included changing its ownership structure, integrating advisor practices, creating equity opportunities, and investing in centralized capabilities. Organic growth remains central even in an M&A-driven market. OnePoint targets approximately 10% organic growth and evaluates prospective partners partly on whether they are growth-oriented and whether the firm can meaningfully help them grow. A collection of successful advisors does not automatically make a firm. Andy sees shared ownership, alignment, accountability, infrastructure, and centralized services as critical distinctions between an enterprise and an aggregator. Outside capital does not have to mean giving up control. OnePoint chose a minority investment from Rise Growth Partners that provided capital and strategic support while leaving control with its operating partners. Succession can expose risks that growth may obscure. Kevin began reconsidering his internal succession strategy when he recognized its dependence on his continued production, key employees, and the future economics of an aging client base. The highest purchase price isn't always the most valuable transaction. Kevin prioritized equity participation, infrastructure, continuity for his employees and clients, and confidence in his future partners over broadly shopping his business for the highest bid. Trust can determine whether structural change is possible. From OnePoint's 1099-to-W-2 conversion to Kevin's decision to merge, both guests repeatedly point to established trust as the foundation that allowed significant business decisions to happen. https://youtu.be/jkIoynpZj6Y Quotable Moments “The biggest mistake advisors make is they buy their own bullshit.”— Andy Schwartz “We're not an aggregator, we're a firm.”— Andy Schwartz “The biggest issue is trust. Either they trust you or they don't.”— Andy Schwartz “I wasn't looking to sell my business. I was looking to merge it.”— Kevin Spahn “You have to trust them. You have to see that they provide value. And you need to be on the same page philosophically.”— Kevin Spahn “Associate yourselves with the best people you can… It accelerates your trajectory in ways that you can't do on your own.”— Kevin Spahn FAQs Why did Andy Schwartz leave Northwestern Mutual? After approximately 30 years at Northwestern Mutual, Andy and his partners wanted greater flexibility, the ability to operate on a multi-custodial basis, and more optionality for clients and the business. They left in 2015 with approximately $3B in assets and launched the independent firm that ultimately became OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners. How large is OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners? At the time of the interview, Andy says OnePoint manages more than $18B and expects to exceed $20B by the end of 2026, even without additional organic growth. What has driven OnePoint's growth? Andy points to three priorities: client experience, advisor experience, and growth. The firm targets approximately 10% organic growth while also expanding through acquisitions and partnerships with advisors it believes fit the OnePoint model. Why did OnePoint move advisors from 1099 to W-2? The firm wanted to evolve from a platform supporting individual practices into a more integrated enterprise. That required creating firm-level economics and equity that could be used to attract, retain, and align advisors. Today, Andy says more than 85% of OnePoint's advisors and AUM are W-2. What does “private equity invested, not private equity owned” mean? Rise Growth Partners holds a minority, non-controlling interest in OnePoint. The investment provides capital, expertise, and strategic support while the operating partners retain majority ownership and control of the business. Why did Kevin Spahn leave Northwestern Mutual? Kevin says he remained happy at Northwestern Mutual, but his practice and clients had evolved. His work had shifted increasingly toward investments and complex high-net-worth planning, while he also began identifying risks in his intended internal succession plan. Why did Kevin merge with OnePoint rather than launch his own independent RIA? OnePoint already had the infrastructure, people, and capabilities Kevin would have needed to build himself. The merger allowed him to focus on clients while becoming an equity partner in a larger enterprise he believed could grow faster than his standalone practice. Why didn't Kevin shop his practice to multiple buyers? Kevin says his decision was driven primarily by trust. He had known Andy and other OnePoint partners for decades and believed the firm offered the right future for his clients and employees. His choice ultimately came down to staying at Northwestern Mutual or joining OnePoint. How do Andy and Kevin suggest advisors evaluate a potential partner? Their discussion points to three fundamental considerations: trust, demonstrable value, and philosophical alignment. Economics matter, but both argue that a sustainable partnership depends on confidence in the people and business on the other side of the transaction. After approximately 30 years at Northwestern Mutual, Andy and his partners wanted greater flexibility, the ability to operate on a multi-custodial basis, and more optionality for clients and the business. They left in 2015 with approximately $3B in assets and launched the independent firm that ultimately became OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners. At the time of the interview, Andy says OnePoint manages more than $18B and expects to exceed $20B by the end of 2026, even without additional organic growth. Andy points to three priorities: client experience, advisor experience, and growth. The firm targets approximately 10% organic growth while also expanding through acquisitions and partnerships with advisors it believes fit the OnePoint model. The firm wanted to evolve from a platform supporting individual practices into a more integrated enterprise. That required creating firm-level economics and equity that could be used to attract, retain, and align advisors. Today, Andy says more than 85% of OnePoint's advisors and AUM are W-2. Rise Growth Partners holds a minority, non-controlling interest in OnePoint. The investment provides capital, expertise, and strategic support while the operating partners retain majority ownership and control of the business. Kevin says he remained happy at Northwestern Mutual, but his practice and clients had evolved. His work had shifted increasingly toward investments and complex high-net-worth planning, while he also began identifying risks in his intended internal succession plan. OnePoint already had the infrastructure, people, and capabilities Kevin would have needed to build himself. The merger allowed him to focus on clients while becoming an equity partner in a larger enterprise he believed could grow faster than his standalone practice. Kevin says his decision was driven primarily by trust. He had known Andy and other OnePoint partners for decades and believed the firm offered the right future for his clients and employees. His choice ultimately came down to staying at Northwestern Mutual or joining OnePoint. Their discussion points to three fundamental considerations: trust, demonstrable value, and philosophical alignment. Economics matter, but both argue that a sustainable partnership depends on confidence in the people and business on the other side of the transaction. Related Resources Rise and Reinvent: Joe Duran on Building and Rebuilding World-Class Firms From Insurance Sales to $8B RIA: A Northwestern Mutual Breakaway Story The 4th Annual Advisor Transition Report Andy SchwartzCo-Founder, Managing Partner, and Chief Executive Officer Andy Schwartz is the Co-Founder, Managing Partner, and Chief Executive Officer of OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, where he also serves as a Wealth Management Advisor. A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® with more than 40 years of experience, Andy has built his career around helping clients make confident, well-informed financial decisions at every stage of life. He works extensively with physicians and business owners on wealth building, retirement planning, and tax-efficient asset transfer across generations. A 2026 finalist for Wealth Management Awards CEO of the Year (under $25B AUM), Andy brings the same discipline to leading the firm that he brings to client relationships: comprehensive planning, long-term thinking, and an unwavering commitment to independence and integrity. Beyond his client work, Andy is deeply invested in the advisory profession itself. He co-hosts The Advisor’s Compass podcast, offering candid, practical guidance on the business and responsibilities of being an advisor. His mentorship philosophy is straightforward: pass the ladder back down. His industry recognition spans more than a decade, including Top 1,200 Advisor by Barron’s (2018–2024), Top 250 Wealth Advisor and Best-In-State Wealth Advisor by Forbes (2018–2024), Top 400 Financial Advisor by the Financial Times (2018–2020), and Top 100 Independent Advisor (2020–2023). He was named Executive of the Year by NJBIZ in 2019 and was a finalist for the Invest in Others Lifetime Achievement Award for more than 20 years of service with NJ SEEDS. Andy holds a B.S. in Finance and Marketing from Rowan University and is actively involved with Nourish NJ, the Navy SEAL Foundation, the Jewish Federation of Greater MetroWest NJ, and JSDD. Outside the office, he enjoys golf, reading, and time with his family at the beach.   Kevin SpahnPartner and Wealth Advisor Kevin Spahn is a Partner and Wealth Advisor at OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, bringing more than three decades of experience in comprehensive financial planning to his clients and the firm. Kevin’s path to wealth management is rooted in the law. After earning degrees from the University of Notre Dame and the University of Wisconsin, he began his career as a practicing attorney before making a deliberate pivot toward financial planning in 1993. He joined Northwestern Mutual, then founded Spahn Financial, building a practice centered on thoughtful, holistic planning for families and business owners. That practice joined OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners in 2025. His approach has remained consistent throughout: help clients build and protect wealth not just for themselves, but for the generations that follow. Kevin works with clients on comprehensive financial plans that account for the full picture, understanding that the impact of good planning extends well beyond an individual portfolio to families, businesses, employees, and the broader community. Kevin is based in the greater Chicago area.   NOTE: The views and opinions expressed by the guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Diamond Consultants. Neither Diamond Consultants nor the guests on this podcast are compensated in any way for their participation. View the transcript of this episode… Build, Grow & Transact: Making the Leap from Northwestern Mutual to a $20B Enterprise A conversation between Louis Diamond, Andy Schwartz, CEO of OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners and Kevin Spahn, Founder of Spahn Financial (now OnePoint BFG). Louis Diamond: Welcome to the latest episode of our podcast series for financial advisors. Today’s episode is Build, Grow & Transact: Making the Leap from Northwestern Mutual to a $20B Enterprise. It’s a conversation with Andy Schwartz, CEO of OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, and Kevin Spahn, founder of Spahn Financial, now OnePoint BFG. I’m Louis Diamond, and this is The Diamond Podcast for Financial Advisors. Mindy Diamond: At Diamond Consultants, we help elite advisors identify the right environment for their businesses to thrive, whether that’s at a wirehouse, boutique, or independent firm. With nearly three decades of experience, we’ve guided thousands of advisors and represented more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in assets transitioned. Each year, one in four advisors managing a billion dollars or more who change firms are our clients. Our process is education-driven and based on building relationships, starting as your strategic partner well before you’re even thinking of a move. To schedule a confidential conversation, call us at 908-879-1002. Wondering why advisors change firms and where they’re headed? Are transition deals going up or down? Those very questions, and more, inspired us to create our annual Advisor Transition Report. It’s the award-winning data-driven resource designed for advisors that connects the dots between the motivations around movement and the firm’s appetite for top talent. Arm yourself with the knowledge you need to make smart decisions. Download your copy at diamond-consultants.com/transitionreport. Louis Diamond: There’s a big difference between building a successful practice and building an enterprise. I think Andy Schwartz and Kevin Spahn offer a unique perspective on that distinction from two very different sides. Both spent decades in the Northwestern Mutual system. Andy ultimately left to build what became OnePoint BFG Wealth Partners, taking the firm from roughly three billion to nearly 20 billion and transforming just about every aspect of the business along the way. Kevin built one of Northwestern Mutual’s top practices before reaching a different inflection point, deciding what he wanted the next phase of his career and business to look like. Rather than go independent on his own or simply monetize what he had built, he chose to become part of Andy’s growing enterprise. That makes their story particularly relevant for our Build, Grow, and Transact series. Andy can speak to what it takes to build a firm capable of becoming an acquirer, from converting advisors from 1099s to W-2s, to creating equity opportunities, to bringing in outside capital while remaining very deliberate about being private equity-invested rather than private equity-owned. And Kevin brings the seller’s perspective, how you evaluate the economics, the trade-offs, and ultimately the people you’re trusting with the business you spent more than 30 years building. Because whether you’re building, buying, or considering a transaction of any kind, the numbers are only part of the equation. As you hear from both Andy and Kevin, trust may be the most important currency of all. So let’s get to it. Andy and Kevin, thank you so much for both joining us today. Andy Schwartz: Great to see you again, Lewis. Thank you for having us. Louis Diamond: I’ve been excited about this interview for a bunch of reasons. One, our Build, Grow, Transact series has become a real staple of our show and we got lots to talk about there. But also, the friendship, the relationship that you two have had for over 30 years really stood out to me. So before we get into the nuts and bolts, talk about your relationship. How’d you guys meet, and how did your career stay so intertwined together when you’re in different geographies and at different firms, and have each been very successful in your own rights? Andy Schwartz: Sure. Kevin, do you want to start with that? Kevin Spahn: Sure. I started in this career in 1994 and met Andy sometime after that. He was a more advanced financial planner. I was an attorney, and then I transitioned into this business. So when I first joined Northwestern Mutual, which is my first broker dealer, I didn’t really have a background in investments. At the time, a lot of Northwestern Mutual reps were learning the investment business because they maybe originally started with Northwestern Mutual focusing more on insurance planning. My background was more estate planning. At the time, if you think early ’90s, if you did estate planning, insurance often went hand in hand with that. The estate exemption in early 1990s was about $600,000. So if you pass more than $600,000 to your children, there was a 55% tax. One way around it was to put insurance in an irrevocable trust, help cover the tax that way. So it really was a popular common strategy back then, and it’s really what got me into the business. But I quickly realized that I didn’t want my future to be insurance and estate planning. And there was a conflict if you acted as someone’s attorney and sold insurance. So I had to pick one way or the other. I decided long-term it would be better for me to move into the wealth management space. But with that little background in that, I had a lot of work to do. So took a lot of tests, became a certified financial planner. But the person that helped me the most along the way was Andy. We became friends, we sat on committees together. That’s really how we met, I would say. So we worked side by side interacting with our home office and representing the field, bringing issues to the home office that we thought were beneficial to the field. As we did that together, I got to know Andy. And then separately, I learned from him how he built his business and how they would review clients’ portfolios and come up with solutions. So I really credit Andy with helping me more than anyone else to transition from attorney, financial planner doing more estate planning insurance to wealth management. Louis Diamond: Very cool. Hey, I would say, maybe I’m a little biased, that, Kevin, you picked the right path in hanging up the law shingle and coming into wealth management. Kevin Spahn: I tell a lot of people I’m a reformed attorney. Andy Schwartz: Great. Louis Diamond: Exactly. My dad would say the exact same thing. Very common at dinner tables in the Diamond households. Andy Schwartz: I was always grateful that I wasn’t smart enough to be an attorney. Louis Diamond: There we go. Andy Schwartz: That’s where my gratitude lies. Yeah. Louis Diamond: There we go. Andy Schwartz: Some would say he’s too smart. Louis Diamond: There we go. Andy, question for you. I mean, anyone who is at or was at Northwestern Mutual, I mean, you’re like Elvis to them. It’s absolutely crazy the amount of fanfare and brand recognition that you and your brother Scott have. But for those who maybe missed your first podcast appearance with us a number of years ago, or aren’t or weren’t within the Northwestern Mutual system, or haven’t been familiar with Bleakley and now OnePoint BFG, just give us the cliff notes, the origin story, how you got into the business, and how’d you get from here to there? Andy Schwartz: Yeah. So the origin is probably pretty common, probably by accident. Going into my senior year in college, I was working in a restaurant, had a falling out with my boss. I happened to be dating a woman who was living with a general agent with Fidelity Union Life. No one will have ever heard of Fidelity Union Life, but their secret sauce was they sold life insurance to college seniors on a note. So if you can get a $10 money order, because where I went to school, nobody had a checking account, then you could basically get a note signed and they would buy insurance. And then when they graduate, hopefully they’d pay for it. I started selling life insurance my senior year in college. And then my twin brother Scott, who is my partner, and has been for over 40 years, he took an interview with what was the nucleus of our present firm actually. I just went up to Northern New Jersey in May of 1984 because I was an expert. I had been selling life insurance to college kids for six months, so I knew everything you had to know. We met with these guys, and we both ended up joining them. So that was a Northwestern Mutual district agency, and that was 1984. We got licensed right away. I got my CFP in ’86. We always knew that it was going to be about planning. So I think we had the right idea. We were a little ahead of the curve because there weren’t a lot of CFPs in ’86. We got securities license immediately. So before Northwestern had securities license, we got securities license with US Life actually. And then it was really a volume business, a client-building business. We always tried to act as a firm and share resources. We were small, but like a lot of people, we started out selling A shares and B shares and C shares, doing financial planning, selling insurance, and then we made a lot of really good hires along the way. And then after 30 years at Northwestern Mutual, which was a great experience for me, and I have nothing but respect for the institution and certainly the advisors that are there, Kevin certainly was one of them, and I know he feels the same way, but we just wanted to have a little more flexibility. We went independent about 11, almost 12 years ago. We wanted to be able to be multi-custodial. We wanted to have a little bit more optionality for our clients and for ourselves. We left Northwestern at three billion or so in assets, and that was in 2015. It’s in March of 2024, I get introduced to this guy with a crazy accent named Joe Duran. Funny, probably the only person in the industry that had no idea who Joe Duran was me. I’d never heard of Joe Duran. I don’t pay attention. I worry about our firm. I don’t worry about what’s going on outside. So I get introduced to Joe by a mutual friend, and we had an interesting conversation, and it took us probably about four or five months to figure out what we wanted to do. And then in August of ’24, myself and my three partners, we rolled in. And then in ’85, the rest of the firm rolled in. And we can talk a little bit more about that. Today we’re 18-plus billion, growing quite a bit. We’ve been very lucky that we’ve made some very good decisions along the way. We’ve made some bad ones too. But most of the decisions had to do with the people that we hired, the people that we brought on to help us, because I think it’s really important. I always say that the biggest mistake advisors make is they buy their own bullshit, and I try not to, and I realize that I’m smart enough, but I’m certainly not the smartest guy. I’m rarely the smartest guy in the room. So what we try to do is hire lots and lots of really smart people. And we’ve done that. They’ve been loyal to us, we’ve been loyal to them. Yeah, so we’re blessed to have a really great team and lots of good partners. Yeah. Louis Diamond: Yeah, we’ll definitely get into more of the nuts and bolts of the decision to take on capital, partner with Joe Duran’s Rise, but that’s an amazing background. Andy, I have to give you credit because your style, and I think I’m sure there’s business benefits, but it comes from a good place, I’m sure. But the coaching and consulting and just assistance that I’ve heard you provide to so many past and current Northwestern Mutual advisors through sports camps is absolutely incredible. It’s very near and dear to my heart because we always try to lead with education and helping people. So I just wanted to call that out, that your reputation for just providing amazing guidance and coaching to advisors is unparalleled. Andy Schwartz: And it’s been the best part of our journey. We’ve been able to help so many people. We get way too much credit by the way. So everybody gives us way too much credit. But the way I look at it is, I’ve been able to leverage my life because I’ve been able to build a great life for myself and my family, but we’ve been able to leverage that, and that’s where the real gift is. So yeah, it’s been a joyful journey for us. Louis Diamond: Amazing. Kevin, question for you. You walked through your little bit unorthodox background to get into Northwestern. Can you talk about where your personal practice is today? And then I want to ask you about the decision to leave Northwestern and sell and team up with Andy and team. Kevin Spahn: Well, I have to go back to the beginning. What was attractive to me about this business is I went from a career which was confrontational adversarial. I was a trial attorney for six years, and every day I would fight with people over things I didn’t necessarily have a personal interest in and I didn’t really believe in always. But the adversarial confrontational nature wasn’t really my personality, and I would take it too personally. So sometimes I’d go home in a bad mood because I was fighting with somebody taking a deposition. At night, after so many years as a trial attorney, I started going to people’s houses and doing wills and trusts. And that’s where the dynamic of working with a client or a potential client, feeling that you helped them and walking out of the meeting where they would appreciate what you did for them, and you build a relationship and actually all of a sudden have a friend, that dynamic was attractive to me. That’s really what got me to transition into the business. So I think it was really helpful to me at the beginning of this career. As Andy said, we all grew our businesses one client at a time. There’s a lot of doors closed, phones hung up on. There’s many people that don’t want to talk to you. There’s many people that don’t call you back. There’s many people that you think you’re getting somewhere with and you don’t. And that’s difficult for people because people often, young reps take that as personal rejection. I had the benefit of comparing what I was dealing with as a young financial planner to what I had dealt with as an attorney in litigation. I think it just was perspective that I knew I didn’t want to do that anymore. So the negatives to this business didn’t seem that bad to me. I loved the independence. I loved all the relationships that I was building. And that part of it is to this day my favorite part of the business. When you ask about the present, what basically happens is you start out taking anybody and everybody as a potential client or as someone that you would be willing to work with. And then over time you work with more successful people. So where I’m at today is working with pretty successful people, but they’re all the same, meaning we like working with nice people. If people are nice, we work with them. I feel we can help anybody. Over the years, one client at a time. The thing that I probably, if I could go back, would change is I think Andy and I are both good at meeting people and building trust and providing value, so that’s why they work with us. So I think that’s just something we’ve both been able to do. He’s much better than I am at building an organization. So I built an organization basically hiring people, that whenever we got too busy, I hired another person. Drawback in terms of that is, anybody that I interview I think is great, and I think they’d be great to join the organization. I like them all. In spite of that, I’ve also brought in many good people that I love. At this point, my firm has 18 people. We’re a little subset of Andy’s larger firm. I think one of the most attractive things to me about joining Andy’s firm is what Andy mentioned before: the people. As opposed to me having to build this all out myself, going independent, Andy already did that. And he has the infrastructure that would allow me to just merge right into that and not have to go through the pain of figuring all that out, which I don’t even think I’m capable of, to be honest with you. Louis Diamond: You’re probably selling yourself short because the way I understood it, you had one of the top practices within the entire Northwestern Mutual systems, and it’s a firm filled with very successful advisors. For you, Kevin, what was the driving force to leaving NM after all these years? What was bothering you or frustrating you that indicated to you that it was time to do something different? Kevin Spahn: To be honest with you, I was pretty happy at Northwestern Mutual. I love the company and the people. I still have many good friends there that I truly miss. The big thing for me, I don’t know if it was any one thing, to be honest with you, is Andy said there’s optionality, especially on the investment side. I think one of the things that happened to me is, when I first started, I was 31 years old, and most of the potential clients that I would meet and work with, they weren’t what I would call today great investment clients. They didn’t have a lot of money. They had great futures. They might’ve been earning significant income or on the way to earning significant income. So what did they need at that point in their life? They needed planning. They needed protection. They didn’t really need investment management because most of their investments were going into their 401(k). But a lot of those clients that we would take on, and I think that’s the big advantage of Northwestern Mutual, you take on clients that a lot of the investor firms don’t want because they don’t have large investment portfolios. But at some point down the road, all of a sudden you wake up and they do have large investment portfolios. So you bring them in as clients that might buy life insurance from you or disability insurance or something like that. And then you help them, and you give them advice, and you build a relationship with them. Down the road, they make more and more money. They leave jobs, they roll 401(k)s, they have the ability to invest money, stock options, things like that. Next thing you’re doing more comprehensive planning that incorporates investments. As that progresses even further, you work with larger and larger clients, much more significant net worth, more complexity, bigger tax issues. Some of the strategies and opportunities that we now have at this independent RIA are very attractive for these high-net-worth clients. Along the same lines, less of what I do at this point in my career is insurance, mostly because a lot of the people that I meet are older, they already bought insurance, they’re looking more for investment advice as opposed to insurance. So one of the things that most attracted me to Northwest Mutual was their strong insurance products, which helped me for many years. As time went on, I was doing less of that. Louis Diamond: Makes complete sense. So it was a changing of what clients wanted and just the circumstances of your clients where you said, “What got me here when I was 31 was insurance planning, and that’s what my clients needed. But as my practice has evolved, I’ve aged, my clients are older, have more money, the focus shifted from insurance to investments.” And then the distinction was, am I at the best place to run investments in addition to insurance planning, et cetera? It’s a very interesting dynamic. Just the shift in basically your legacy clients was what drove you to consider change. Kevin Spahn: That was a big factor. I think the second big factor was I had my own firm with 18 people. My succession plan was that at some point I would shift ownership of the firm to people that worked with me. So as they owned more of the firm, they would have revenue that was currently at the time being paid to me. In my mind, as it shifted to them, they would buy me out using revenue from the clients that we already had. And I realized that there were some issues with that. In our business, as you get older, in your client’s age, they start taking money out of their portfolios. So everyone understands that in our business, the younger average age client you have makes your book more valuable. I was the biggest driver of new business at my firm, and I started to see that there were some problems with my succession plan. They included, if something happened to me during this succession, that would be a real problem for the people that were buying my business from me if I went that way. If something happened to some of my key people, that would’ve been a problem as well. So it was really attractive to me to… I wasn’t looking to sell my business, I was looking to merge it. So I merged it with Andy’s business. I believe that Andy and what he’s put together and the actual idea of having partners. So I never really had partners, but now I do. Having partners that we’re all on the same page, we all have similar backgrounds, we all bring something different to the table, and we can learn and benefit from working with each other. But also, owning a little piece of a much larger firm was, number one, it put me in a better position in terms of the potential risk of something happening to me or one of my key people. But secondly, I just think it’s more likely to grow at a greater pace than my firm would’ve as I aged from my 60s to my 70s. Louis Diamond: Very interesting. It’s a great realization. I think it’s one that probably every firm owner grapples with at some point, is the romanticism or the ease, some would say, of an internal succession plan. Rewarding those who have helped you build the firm is something I think everyone is interested in. But once that’s put into practice, whether it’s because of capital or sky-high valuations or right people on the bus or risk, et cetera, nowadays oftentimes leads to a firm owner looking at a transaction, whether it’s a merger, a sale, a private equity, capital infusion as a means to solve for succession. So it’s a very interesting way you framed it. Andy, I want to turn it over to you for a little bit. So you mentioned when you launched Bleakley Financial, which was the old name of your firm, out of Northwestern, you’re about three billion. I think I read that you’re about 10 billion or so when Joe Duran and Rise invested you in 2024. You just said you’re at 18 billion now in the middle of 2026. That is absolutely incredible and amazing. Andy Schwartz: We’ll be well over 20 by the end of the year without any additional organic growth. Louis Diamond: That’s absolutely incredible. Andy Schwartz: We’ve got a lot going on right now. Louis Diamond: What’s actually driven that? What’s been the playbook? Andy Schwartz: The three areas that are most important for us, and we had our town hall this morning, and we always talk about the things we focus on as a group, the first and most important is the client experience. I always say to people, if you are their advisor, then that means someone else isn’t. These people, they all deserve to be really well taken care of. They deserve the best service, they deserve the best advice. So that’s something we take really personally. So client experience first. Then we also understand that we don’t just work for clients, we work for our advisors. So I have two jobs. I have, I don’t know, 500 clients I service with my team, and I work for Kevin and 36 other partners and all of our employees. Because again, I recognize that the decision Kevin made… We’re in the middle of a transition out with another advisor, and we pretty much talk to her every day, and I know how hard this is. A transition is so difficult. When you come from a good place, because any of the Northwestern advisor who joins, they’re coming from a good place, it’s not like they have to go anywhere, it’s difficult. So we have the massive responsibility that three or four or five or 10 years from now, that there better be hugs around that this was the best decision ever made or otherwise. That’s the kind of thing that keeps me up at night. So we’ve got to take care of our client experience, we’ve got to take care of our advisor experience. And then obviously, we’ve got to grow the firm so the firm grows organically. So part of this whole idea of serving our advisors is we have to help our advisors grow. I talk to a lot of people on the acquisition side, and if I’m talking to an advisor, it doesn’t matter how big they are, we kind of think of it as a OnePoint way. There’s flexibility in the OnePoint way. But if I can’t help them grow, I don’t want them, because I say it all the time, I’m not the mafia. I’m not here to get a taste. Louis, if you weren’t interested in joining us, if I thought that we could help you grow by doing that, then I want you bad. If I don’t think I can help you grow because we’re so different, or because you’re not going to adapt what we do, or there’s no leverage in it, or you’re already better than we are, I don’t want it. So for us, organic growth, number one, and I think you know the industries well enough, that’s got to be the key. We shoot for 10% organic growth. We’re at a little over 5% so far halfway through the year. So assuming we have the similar second half of the year, we’ll hit our 10. Last year we’re at 7.5%. The second is the inorganic growth. If you truly build a platform, if you truly build a firm that advisors know that they’ll be supported, that they’ll be loved, and you’ll help them grow their businesses, it does make it easier for us. We’re not the highest bidder typically. We can’t. We respect our client’s capital, we respect their equity, so therefore we’re not going to go out there. We’re not an aggregator, we’re a firm. But I think that if we can get that message across, and I think we have, then advisors join us. So that’s been a big part of the growth. And then the market’s helped. Obviously, over the last two years, the market’s been helpful. So that’s how we’ve gone from 10 to 18 and on our way to 22 by year-end. Louis Diamond: This is absolutely incredible. Any advisor or firm owner would say organic growth is important, but just saying it’s important doesn’t mean it’s going to happen. So what are the ways in which you help your advisors or your own practice grow organically? What is it that OnePoint is doing for your advisors? Andy Schwartz: Starting with bringing on growth-oriented advisors. I mean, look, Kevin Spahn and I come from the same place. We learned how to sell. The great thing about coming out of whether they’re broker dealers or out of the different insurance BDs is, these are people that know how to sell. These are people that don’t think that selling is a bad word. A lot of times you go to the wirehouses and they’re not necessarily sales guys. They’re really smart. They think that they’re investment mavens and investment geniuses. I’m not interested in investment geniuses. I’m interested in people that want to take care of their clients, provide everything they can, clients first, do the proper planning, be good advisors, but they’re growth-oriented. So as long as we’re talking with the right advisors. Again, if I’m talking to advisor and they might have a big practice, if they’re not growers, we’re not interested. There’s a sense of responsibility for all the partners because we are a true partnership. It’s not an aggregation. This is a firm. I’m responsible for Kevin. Kevin’s responsible to me. All of our partners are responsible to each other, because if we’re going to do a 10% organic growth target, and if some partner is negative 3%, we don’t put them through the spanking machine, but everybody is very aware of where everybody is and nobody wants to let their partners down. I think either you’re a growth-oriented advisor or you’re a zoo-fed bear. There’s another expression that I got from another Rise Growth Partner or Rise Growth firm. We all kind of communicate and talk to each other. And I was talking about zoo-fed bears, and he said, we call them house cats that think they fight. So they’re house cats, but they have no claws. But I think if you’re careful about who you bring on as partners, and if they are workers, growers, they understand that their job in life is to serve the people. We talk about referrals, we do lots of training to help on referrals. We work on organic growth strategies from the firm, but a lot of it comes from the advisors themselves. Louis Diamond: Makes sense. So it sounds like, to boil it down, it’s being really selective and having a really clear sense of who’s the right fit for your firm. Not that there’s not amazing advisors out there, but just because you’re an amazing advisor, doesn’t mean you’re the right fit to join OnePoint. Andy Schwartz: I think the one big distinction and difference is other than the fact that we are minority-owned with private equity. So we own our business. I mean, I’m the CEO of the firm. I also have the biggest book in the firm. At least for right now, I mean, Kevin was transitioning, so I’m sure next year he’ll be the leading advisor. But I lead the firm, because as far as I’m concerned, you have to lead by example. We are completely aligned. I know exactly what Kevin does every day because I do the same thing. I’m not some attorney or accountant or private equity boss that’s saying, “Oh, I’ve got an idea for growth. We’ll just raise our fees by 5%.” Brilliant. Yeah, we are completely aligned, all of us. I think that makes us a little bit unique, and it really helps us, I think, in our growth trajectory. Louis Diamond: I would agree. The challenge that a lot of advisors-turned-firm-owners or turned-enterprise-builders have is the tug of war between the client work, which either is their ultimate passion and driving force, or it’s something they’re really good at minimum, versus being the owner, the operator, et cetera. I resonate very much, Andy, with the way you handle it. I do the same thing running a company, but also working with advisors. To me, I need to do both in order to do my job well. But that tug of war is tough. So I’m curious, your firm is very large now, you’re a steward of external capital, and you have a $3 billion book yourself. How do you do it? How do you balance the two? Andy Schwartz: Well, fortunately, my kids are grown, so I’m not coaching sports anymore. So I do have a little more time than most. Look, we have a great team. So the idea that I run the firm… I mean, I lead the firm, I don’t run the firm. We have great partners. We have great… Our manager team is fantastic. So I mean, they really run the firm. But this is where my passion is for now. So I don’t mind. Days are typically pretty long. I don’t play golf during the week. Mara and I don’t travel probably as much as we should. Vacations are always a little bit mixed. There’s always room for calls and meetings and whatever. But to me, I mean, I’m grateful to be in this situation. I’m enjoying it. This is such a privilege to be the person that people recognize as the leader of this bunch, of this group. I mean, it is the honor of my life. So I don’t think of it so much as work. It’s my advocation. It does get busy. There are some times where I have to remind myself, “Just enjoy the ride.” I get a little overwhelmed, but I get lots of help and that makes it possible. Louis Diamond: Yep. If you’re not doing the job of the folks that you’re encouraging and leading to do, how do you have fodder to train them, to teach them, to empathize with that? Andy Schwartz: Exactly, you don’t have the credibility. I can ask them to do almost anything because they know I do it myself, and I think that helps. Louis Diamond: Yep. So moving more into the decision to bring on private equity capital, what I thought was probably the most interesting component of your announcement that you took on PE investment was that you completely restructured or reoriented your firm prior to Joe Duran coming in 2024. Correct me if I’m wrong, but Bleakley Financial Group was almost all 1099 contractors. So everyone owned their own books of business, paid Bleakley a fee or an override for certain services. But now, today, over 85% of your advisors and your AUM are W-2 employees, meaning you converted them from 1099 to acquiring them or merging with them. To me, that’s the dream. It’s had to have been very, very, very hard and challenging because there’s so many aggregator firms or platforms that support independent advisors, but the value that they’ve created is fairly minimal relative to one cohesive firm. So can you just talk about that decision, a very big and brave decision to go down the path of acquiring or merging with the practices rather than letting them continue to operate independently? Andy Schwartz: Well, look, we had to… It’s funny because we had been having conversations for years with consultants, and they kept telling us what we had to do. Again, we’re not that smart, so we just kept thinking, “No, we don’t have to do that.” But we were told 10 years earlier that the only way that this thing has any value to the world is you’ve got to have EBITDA for the firm. We talked to all the smart people, we ignored all of them. But what happened was we needed capital and we needed equity in order to bring people on, because people aren’t just joining us just because we can help them grow a bigger business. So the reason we went in the direction we went initially was we just needed capital. We wanted to grow the firm, and the only way we were going to get to is… What’s the old saying? What got us here is not going to get us there. So we needed capital. But we also realized that I had to have something I could sell in the marketplace. And people want equity. So they want cash, but they also want equity, because we’re talking to entrepreneurs. Kevin owned his own firm. He has $2 billion of assets. He wasn’t interested in being someone’s employee, but he was interested in being able to get leverage and be a partner and share equity in a larger firm that had the chance to grow even more. So what the gift that Joe Duran, the Rise folks gave us was that gift of structure and understanding. So that was really helpful, and that’s been a big part of our success. Louis Diamond: Yeah, it’s an amazing journey. Again, I think you could probably write a book or a case study on how that happened. I’m sure there were some downfalls, some people that weren’t all that excited about it, but the results speak for itself. Andy Schwartz: I think people ask all the time because I do get phone calls. People are trying to do this, and they’re struggling. It took us 90 days to basically do it. People say, “I’ve been at this for two years.” And the biggest issue is trust. Either they trust you or they don’t. At the end of the day, I always went to the advisor here, we were a firm for 30-plus years prior, and these guys knew that we always did what we said we were going to do, and we always did. If your people trust you, then you can do it. If your people don’t trust you, it isn’t going to work. Louis Diamond: In other words, your firm added immense value to the advisors as well. Aside from trust, if you weren’t providing a service or services that they found a value that they couldn’t access on their own, it would’ve been 85/15 going the other way for sure. Andy Schwartz: Yeah, 100%. I know it’s not easy, but it wasn’t that hard for us. Louis Diamond: Good. It’s well-earned. So I believe you were Rise Growth Partners’ first investment. Andy Schwartz: We were. Louis Diamond: That’s cool. It’s exciting. You get to be someone’s first, but did it make you uncomfortable that you were the first investment or did you see that as a positive? Andy Schwartz: I actually saw it as a positive. Well, one, because I recognized immediately that Joe Duran and his team were way smarter than we were certainly, and certainly with what we were trying to do. And I figured that it’s almost like the first child. They were so excited to have somebody, and there was so much time and energy, so they just really doted on us. They were really able to help us. Now they’ve got four or five groups that they work with, and obviously we’ve been launched. So the younger babies are getting more time and attention, although we get everything that we need from them. But yeah, that never concerned me. I always thought that would be our advantage. It actually turned out that way. Louis Diamond: Interesting. In thinking through a sale or a minority sale, did you entertain other types of capital, whether it was a family office or a multitude of other private equity sponsors or selling the firm outright? Andy Schwartz: Yeah, we probably had four or five very, very serious conversations. Actually, some got pretty close to the end where we basically just made the decision not to do it. One was a much larger firm, good people. But the problem always was… I was always going to get rich out of the deal because it was going to be 100% sale, but there was really no lift or leverage from the advisors. So the principals, they were willing to pay me a big multiple and my partners a big multiple, and pay these guys basically an average multiple. So we had always told our guys, “Let’s stay together, and someday, this thing, whatever it’s going to turn into be, will benefit everyone.” So with the Duran situation and the deal with Rise did, it gave everybody a chance to benefit from what we were doing. But what was good about all of those false starts was, it taught me a lot because I had… I know you’re involved in this, so you know better than I do, but we’d start conversations, somebody would reach out to me, I would be very specific about what I needed. They would say, “Yep, we can do that.” And then you get to the finish line, and it’s almost like, I started out, I wanted a tomahawk steak and a baked potato, and I ended up getting a two-day-old hamburger with some cold French fries. It’s like, I know I’m not that smart and I know you’re the PE guys, but for God’s sakes, we’re not stupid. So it was funny because in January of ’24, I told my partners, “I don’t want to have any more of these conversations. It was a waste of time and energy. I’m sick of talking to these people. Let’s just put our heads down, and then let’s grow the firm a little bit more, and then we’ll see what the world looks like.” And then I get introduced to Duran. Louis Diamond: Perfect. Makes sense. Yeah, so you were well-educated on the market, the types of buyers, and I always say it’s almost more important to understand what you don’t want more than what you do want. The only way oftentimes to understand what you don’t want is to experience it and touch and feel it and really get into the weeds on it. I like too, Andy, I saw in an article, you said that “we’re private equity invested, we’re not private equity owned,” which is a very cool dynamic. I could imagine why that was important to you to retain majority control. Kevin, I want to bring you back into the conversation. Thank you for being patient here. But I mean, I would imagine you had some real choices. I mean, you could have stayed at Northwestern and been very successful, gone through with your internal succession plan. You could have gone to an independent BD, monetized, figured out succession later. You could have sold the business to a strategic acquirer. You were big enough to take on an investor in some capacity on your own. So options wasn’t your problem. Maybe just walk us through. Did you consider any other pathways? And what were the pros and cons in your mind that led you to doing a transaction with Andy? Kevin Spahn: I’m a little different, I think, than most people in this industry. Even as you grow your business at a certain percentage, none of that stuff has ever really meant anything to me. All I know is I like what I do. So when I came into the business, because I like it, I enjoy it, I spend time doing it, I’ve tried to get better at it. But it comes naturally because it’s something that I don’t look at Monday mornings as, “Oh, no, it’s Monday morning.” I’m excited to go to work. My entire career, once I left law, my business has just grown over the years naturally. But you said something before, Louis, and I think this applies to me. I love to work with the clients. I don’t like what I have to do in terms of running the firm. I never have. It’s never been my cup of tea, but you have to do it if you run a firm. So number one, the thought of all the due diligence that I would have to do to research all the firms out there, I wasn’t really all that interested in doing that. At the end of the day, it comes down to this word trust. I trust Andy. I trust the other partners here too, because I’ve known not just Andy, but I’ve known Scott and many of the other partners for years. So I knew what I was getting myself into. At the end of the day, I knew what they built. I was very comfortable with it, and I was either going to stay at Northwestern Mutual or I was going to come here, but I wasn’t going to go anywhere else. I will say, since I’ve gone, it’s been exactly like I thought. I thought I trusted Andy. And if something happened along the way with the transition, everything that he said has been true, thing that he promised is real. As you deal with more complexities with a bigger book and more and more employees, I knew that I was almost at the breaking point in terms of my own organization and to merge into this organization that, as I said before, he’s already built out. I don’t have to do it. And to benefit from these great people that he has as part of his organization, that’s all been a real blessing for me and my team. So I didn’t shop the marketplace really, but I knew what I was getting into, and it’s worked out clear as I thought it would. Louis Diamond: That’s amazing. I think that’s what most people would covet. But it is a decision in and of itself to not shop the marketplace. I mean, from representing buyers or prospective buyers, I know the pricing leverage or the negotiation leverage and the valuation lift that comes from having an open market, having multiple bids, et cetera. It sounds like that wasn’t the… Obviously you wanted to get fair value for your firm, but for you, it was more, it’s trust, “I’m either going to just stay at Northwestern, which is the devil I know or it’s what I’ve known where I’ve been successful, or I’m going to go to the individual that I trust and forget about all the other noise.” Kevin Spahn: Well, Andy says things, but I know they’re true because I’ve seen him at work. I’ve seen how he’s acted. I’ve seen how he interacts with people. But here’s an example. He cares about the people that are at his firm. He says that, but I know it’s true because I see it. I’m the same. I really care about the people in my firm. So as I think about, well, what about the future of two groups, my clients, but also the people that work in my firm? They’re going to be around long after I am. Well, I don’t want myself to retire someday, get a big check, because there’s all sorts of options to get a check. If I get a check and then my client’s scatter to the wind, and my employees don’t really have a future and they just have to go and find their own way, that wasn’t attractive at all to me. So one of the things that I really appreciate about this opportunity is that there is a plan for both my clients and my employees or the younger team members at formerly Spahn Financial, where I feel very good about the fact that they have a solid, secure future in an industry that they’ve all grown to love without them having to go out and make their own way. Louis Diamond: Makes sense to me. We noted a couple of times in this interview, you talked about equity, partnership, both of you have. So Kevin, for you, what did it mean differently for you to become a partner and get equity in a larger firm rather than, we’ll say, the less risky move of just taking everything in cash? Why was that an important distinction for you? Kevin Spahn: For many years, when I left law and came into this business, I didn’t have any money at the time. I was just starting to make money as a lawyer. It takes a while. I started low. I got trial experience working for the government, so they didn’t pay much. That was three years. Then I was at a firm, and I was just starting to make more money. Then I made this big shift into a career tha

Craig Bolanos, Co-founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to discuss the latest market numbers. He breaks down why your grocery bill could rise next year and how the 10-year Treasury touched its highest level since 2023. For more information, go to GetRetiredStayRetired.com.

In this episode of Pillars of Wealth Creation, Todd sits down with Mark Miller of Hilton Tax & Wealth Advisors to explore how the wealthy approach taxes, investments, and the protection of their money. Mark explains why having a tax plan and long-term strategy can make a significant difference in how much wealth you ultimately keep, and why these strategies aren't limited to the ultra-wealthy. Todd and Mark discuss Hilton Wealth's “bucket” concept, including safe assets, income-producing assets, professionally managed investments, and private equity. They also talk about looking beyond traditional mutual funds, understanding the fees and structure behind investments, and why managing risk and protecting your wealth can be just as important as generating strong returns. Mark also shares how listeners can receive a complimentary copy of the Hilton Wealth book, which dives deeper into these wealth-building strategies. Get your complimentary book at www.hiltonwealth.com. Mark Miller is the President and CEO of Hilton Tax & Wealth Advisors and a Registered Financial Consultant® with more than 30 years of experience in the financial services industry. He specializes in helping families and business owners use strategic tax planning, wealth management, and asset protection strategies to build and preserve long-term wealth. Mark is also the author of Hilton Wealth, sharing strategies inspired by the way the ultra-wealthy approach building and protecting wealth. If you would like to connect with Mark, visit: www.hiltonwealth.com or through LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markmiller-hiltonfo YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/PillarsOfWealthCreation Interested in coaching? Schedule a call with Todd at www.coachwithdex.com Listen to the audio version on your favorite podcast host: SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-650270376 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/.../pillars-of.../id1296372835... Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/.../aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zb3VuZ... iHeart Radio: https://www.iheart.com/.../pillars-of-wealth-creation.../ CastBox: https://castbox.fm/.../Pillars-Of-Wealth-Creation... Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0FmGSJe9fzSOhQiFROc2O0 Pandora: https://pandora.app.link/YUP21NxF3kb Amazon/Audible: https://music.amazon.com/.../f6cf3e11-3ffa-450b-ac8c...

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-retirement-income-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-retirement-income-blind-spot

Every Monday, Jon Hansen is joined by a specialist from Mesirow to discuss a different finance-related topic. In this episode, Andrew Mutlu, CFP, APMA, Vice President and Wealth Advisor, joins Jon to talk about a Roth 401(k) at work vs a pre-tax 401(k). From percentage matching to income limits, Andrew shares how to make the […]

Bitcoin has become more visible, more accessible, and more commonly discussed in financial conversations. But does greater acceptance mean it is becoming a mainstream investment, and more importantly, does that make it appropriate for your financial plan? In this episode of Clear Money Talk, Tim Clairmont, MSFS™, LACP™, Wealth Advisor, and Tyler Andrews, CFP®, NSSA®, Wealth Advisor, discuss Bitcoin's growing presence in the financial world, the role of cryptocurrency ETFs and easier access, and why increased adoption does not eliminate Bitcoin's significant volatility and speculative nature. They also explore how investors can think about Bitcoin within the context of diversification, risk tolerance, long-term financial goals, and the fear of missing out. Is Bitcoin here to stay? Is it truly mainstream yet? And how should you evaluate whether cryptocurrency has any place in your financial picture? Tune in to hear the full conversation. Subscribe to Clear Money Talk on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.

Bitcoin has become more visible, more accessible, and more commonly discussed in financial conversations. But does greater acceptance mean it is becoming a mainstream investment, and more importantly, does that make it appropriate for your financial plan? In this episode of Clear Money Talk, Tim Clairmont, MSFS™, LACP™, Wealth Advisor, and Tyler Andrews, CFP®, NSSA®, Wealth Advisor, discuss Bitcoin's growing presence in the financial world, the role of cryptocurrency ETFs and easier access, and why increased adoption does not eliminate Bitcoin's significant volatility and speculative nature. They also explore how investors can think about Bitcoin within the context of diversification, risk tolerance, long-term financial goals, and the fear of missing out. Is Bitcoin here to stay? Is it truly mainstream yet? And how should you evaluate whether cryptocurrency has any place in your financial picture? Tune in to hear the full conversation. Subscribe to Clear Money Talk on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners,, joins Jon Hansen to talk about Fed Chair Kevin Warsh sticking to his guns on getting inflation down to 2%, why the market is reacting negatively to Warsh’s comments, what the Fed will likely do with interest rates in September, the concern over the national debt, the […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners,, joins Jon Hansen to talk about Fed Chair Kevin Warsh sticking to his guns on getting inflation down to 2%, why the market is reacting negatively to Warsh’s comments, what the Fed will likely do with interest rates in September, the concern over the national debt, the […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners,, joins Jon Hansen to talk about Fed Chair Kevin Warsh sticking to his guns on getting inflation down to 2%, why the market is reacting negatively to Warsh’s comments, what the Fed will likely do with interest rates in September, the concern over the national debt, the […]

Segment 1: Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins Jon Hansen to talk about Fed Chair Kevin Warsh sticking to his guns on getting inflation down to 2%, why the market is reacting negatively to Warsh’s comments, what the Fed will likely do with interest rates in September, the concern over the national […]

Business owners preparing for a company sale are often focused entirely on the transaction itself. While maximizing the headline price is the intuitive goal, it means very little without a strategy to maximize the wealth that follows.   Fulton Private Bank's Michael Shore, a Senior Wealth Planner, and Jon Adams, a Wealth Advisor, dive into the critical mechanics of pre-sale planning. They discuss why waiting until the wire transfer hits to call a wealth adviser is a costly mistake, how to conduct a wealth gap analysis to ensure post-sale liquidity can actually sustain a seller's desired lifestyle, and how to evaluate complex deal terms like earn-outs and rollover equity from a risk-preservation standpoint.

Craig Bolanos, Co-founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins Jon Hansen on Your Money Matters to discuss the latest market numbers, including strong earnings from NVIDIA.  Craig also looks ahead to the upcoming midterms and talks about if Wall Street likes having a divided government. For more information, go to GetRetiredStayRetired.com.

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-tax-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-estate-planning-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-investment-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-investment-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-tax-blind-spot

WE Alliance Wealth Advisors if founded on the belief that an integrated Family Office style approach to wealth planning is the best way to protect and maximize the wealth client families work so hard to accumulate. Combine powerful proactive tax strategies, a powerful system of investing called Defined Outcome Investing, and a Family Centered approach to estate planning to deliver uncommon results while reducing risk for each client family. Founder Terry Wheeler's book “Laugh When the Market Crashes” is a must read book outlining this investment approach.The firm and its founder traces its roots back over 35 years with its origins beginning at Dean Witter Reynolds. In the 1990s the founder added a law degree focused on tax and estate planning advocacy. The integrated wealth, tax, and estate planning approach now truly sets them apart in a crowded financial planning space.Learn more: https://weriaadvisors.com/Buy the book at www.LaughWhenTheMarketCrashes.comAdvisor Coaching at www.StrategicWealthLegal.comAny opinions, projections, or forward-looking statements expressed herein are solely those of the author, may differ from the views or opinions expressed by WE Alliance Wealth Advisors, and are only for general informational purposes as of the date indicated.All investments involve risk; please consult with a financial advisor prior to investing.Influential Entrepreneurs with Mike Saundershttps://businessinnovatorsradio.com/influential-entrepreneurs-with-mike-saunders/Source: https://businessinnovatorsradio.com/interview-with-terry-wheeler-founder-ceo-of-we-alliance-wealth-advisors-discussing-the-estate-planning-blind-spot

Send us Fan MailJonny Pliszka, founder at High Knoll Wealth Advisors and lecturer at the University of Kentucky, shares how a corporate career in finance evolved into a purpose-driven business built around financial literacy, behavioral coaching, and intentional growth. He also talks about what makes Lexington special, why the firm's mural became part of its identity, and how AI is changing both financial advice and human connection.You can connect with Jonny and High Knoll at their website:https://www.highknollwealth.com/To connect with Dawson you can reach him at: Dawson@novainsurancegroup.com

This one is for every entrepreneur who has ever sat quietly with the loaded question: is it time? Jennifer Stewart got all the way to one week before closing the sale of the strategic communications and public affairs firm she'd spent 17 years building - and she walked away.    In this candid conversation, Jennifer traces how an unsolicited email from a New York brokerage led to a fast, unintentional trip to market, what the process taught her about the true value of a service-based business, and why saying no unlocked a wave of yeses: a Vancouver office, deeper government work, a restructured team, and a completely reset relationship with her own business. She also opens up about the seasons of entrepreneurship - the 4:30 a.m. couch shifts while raising two young kids, the recovery from micromanagement, getting over being liked, and why she now protects her mornings and treats her energy as expensive.    Host Colleen O'Connell-Campbell's takeaway frames the whole episode: being exit ready and being ready to exit are not the same thing.   Key Takeaways:   Jennifer started her firm at 25 as JS Communications and built it over 17 years into Syntax Strategic, a nationally recognized strategic communications and public affairs firm based in Ottawa. She is also founder of The Honest Talk, co-owner of Ottawa Valley Green Products, and a board director for organizations including Micropic Biosystems and the Ottawa Hospital Foundation.   The sale process began unintentionally. A New York brokerage had scanned the Canadian market for small-to-medium firms with strong retainers and government contracts, and shortlisted her company. She had been naive to the fact that a service-based business could be sold at all - a belief she now laughs at.   Once she agreed to a valuation, things moved fast: within two weeks of going to market she was in discussions with a buyer, had an NDA signed, and had begun due diligence. Several other interested parties surfaced within a week. She reached one week from closing before deciding not to proceed.   The process fundamentally changed how she runs her business. She now monitors her balance sheet, P&L, and adjusted EBITDA through the lens of enterprise value - not just margin. Agency multiples were roughly four to five at the time, and she notes that service-based businesses are becoming more valuable in investors' eyes.   Her biggest lesson: take control back. She had jumped at the first prospective buyer with a mindset of "they want to buy me, this is great". If she approaches a sale again, she will be far more methodical, far more intentional in negotiation, and far more confident in her value.   Saying no unlocked a series of yeses - adjustments to the team, expansion including a Vancouver office, bigger thinking on retainers and government work, and firm boundaries around her own time. She now protects her mornings until roughly 10 a.m., including a workout.   On scaling: you are failing as a business owner if you are in every decision point. Jennifer describes herself as a recovered micromanager. Her advice - hire the right people (hire slow, fire fast), be deliberate about not stepping in, and shift the team's mentality so decisions don't funnel upward.   On self-trust: there will be self-doubt and hard decisions. Getting over the need to be liked was a major unlock. With roughly 200 decisions a day, she doesn't spend energy second-guessing - she'll revisit a decision if it's genuinely wrong, but commitment to the path matters more than agonizing over whether it was perfect.   On persistence: she is convinced one of the main differences between a successful and unsuccessful business is the owner's ability to stick with it. The Honest Talk, founded during the pandemic with her business partner Catherine, was a slog before becoming a viable business with employees, a media site, a women's summit, and a retreat.   On managing three businesses: one dedicated day per week for Ottawa Valley Green Products, a carved-out morning for The Honest Talk, and roughly 75% of her time in Syntax. She's in the numbers and providing strategic advice, not in the weeds.   She has joined Capital Angel Network with a two-to-five-year plan to focus more on investing, and is candid that it isn't her priority right now - growth of Syntax and The Honest Talk comes first.   On seasons: raising two young kids while building the business meant 4:30 a.m. starts, working from the couch, dinner with family, then working again. She reframes it not as sacrificing herself but as a necessary season that got her to where she is now - working smarter, delegating, taking care of herself, and confident in her team.   Her mindset shift: from resenting the stress and burden of ownership to understanding it as the price of financial success, freedom, and growth. From resentful to proud.   Being exit ready and being ready to exit are not the same thing - and knowing the difference might be the most important thing you do for your financial future. Every business owner will exit; the question is whether you'll do it on purpose, on your terms, and with your own roadmap. If today's conversation has you thinking about your own path to a cash-rich exit, book a one-on-one Wealth Gap Analysis with Colleen O'Connell-Campbell. Reach out on LinkedIn or email.   Please leave a five-star rating and review - it helps more founders find the show. *** The Cash Rich Exit Podcast is brought to you by O'Connell-Campbell Wealth Management at RBC Dominion Securities.   All opinions expressed by the host, Colleen O'Connell-Campbell, and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of RBC Dominion Securities.   This podcast is for informational purposes only before taking any action based on information in this podcast you should consult with a qualified professional.   Colleen O'Connell-Campbell is a Wealth Advisor at RBC Dominion Securities, a member of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund.

Every Monday, Jon Hansen is joined by a specialist from Mesirow to discuss a different finance-related topic. In this episode, Andrew Mutlu, CFP, APMA, Vice President and Wealth Advisor, joins Jon to talk about roth account myths. High income earners can still contribute, Andrew explains how. To learn more, visit www.mesirow.com.

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John to talk about the market volatility this week, the bond market and national debt awareness, why treasury yields are higher, the concern about the job market, what he thinks about the future of wage growth, what’s driving the stock market right now, and what investors […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John to talk about the market volatility this week, the bond market and national debt awareness, why treasury yields are higher, the concern about the job market, what he thinks about the future of wage growth, what’s driving the stock market right now, and what investors […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John to talk about the market volatility this week, the bond market and national debt awareness, why treasury yields are higher, the concern about the job market, what he thinks about the future of wage growth, what’s driving the stock market right now, and what investors […]

Segment 1: Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the market volatility this week, the bond market and national debt awareness, why treasury yields are higher, the concern about the job market, why he doesn’t expect wage growth to happen, what’s driving the stock market right now, and what […]

Send us Fan MailChad Taylor of Seapoint Wealth Advisors joins todays episode to discuss the founding of his advisory firm and what topics and subjects are trending for his clients. Loving Internal Use Only? Sign up for our free newsletter for episode recaps, community benefits, and moreSupport the show

What does artificial intelligence mean for your financial life? AI is changing how people work, how businesses operate, and how information is accessed. But its impact on your money may extend well beyond the latest technology headlines. In this episode of Clear Money Talk, Tim Clairmont, MSFS™, LACP™, Wealth Advisor, and Tyler Andrews, CFP®, NSSA®, Wealth Advisor, explore how AI could influence your career, earning power, investments, and long-term financial planning. They discuss why adaptability and financial flexibility may become increasingly important, how businesses could benefit from greater efficiency, and why enthusiasm around AI should not be confused with an investment strategy. They also look at the growing role of AI in financial decision-making, including where these tools may be helpful and where professional judgment, context, and a personalized financial plan can still matter. Tune in for a practical conversation about navigating a rapidly changing technology without ignoring the opportunities, chasing the hype, or losing sight of your broader financial goals.