Forgive me for getting a little personal, but I (Joe Jr.) am in Utah this week, delivering Joseph III to the Missionary Training Center in Provo so he can begin missionary service, as well as taking advantage of the chance to see some clients in the area.

We often talk about the different transitions our clients face, and sending a child to college, or in this case on a 2-year mission, is the most challenging one I have personally faced. Don’t worry- I’ll be okay! But it did remind me of an important truth.

Even something that we have expected (or looked forward to) can affect us more profoundly than we imagined. This is true of the birth of child, the death of a loved one, marriage, or even retirement. Many people retire without realizing that there can be a sense of loss that accompanies that freedom. One important aspect of financial planning is thinking about the non-financial aspects of our life transitions.

We are grateful that you have chosen to work with us through your life’s various transitions. It is our privilege to smooth out complex moments as much as possible, whether calculating an appropriate withdrawal rate or helping you map out the next chapter in your life.

• Our office has a mix of UF and BYU graduates. According to the Wall Street Journal, the University of Florida is the #1 ranked public school and #15 overall. BYU came in at #20 overall. Among other factors, they looked at how long students took to graduate and post-university salaries.



• Arthur Brooks is one of our favorite thinkers and this interview with Tim Ferriss is full of great insights about finding happiness and satisfaction in our lives.

• Groucho Marx’s home on Long Island recently sold for $2.3 million. Groucho purchased it in 1926 for $27,000. That seems like a hefty price increase, but using Robert Shiller’s historical data, if Groucho’s purchase price was invested in US stocks, that investment would be worth over $300 million today.

• Tenochtitlan was the capital of the Aztec empire. We thought this 3D depiction of the city at its apex shows its scale in a way we’ve never understood before.