True friendship is something that can never be replaced and should always be valued. A few months ago, one of my longest and closest friends and I were at odds. Nothing happened, but everything happened. We are all getting older and after 30 years of friendship, things changed, as they inevitably do. Both of us were feeling different ways about the relationship and how it should look going forward. So, I decided that it was probably time to simply move on and “end” the relationship. Well, my dear friend felt different. We had a few discussions, driven by his desire to keep […]

Last week at his Little League game, my son got hit in the face with a baseball. He was having a fantastic tournament. Game one: 2 for 2 with a double and a triple. The team lost the game, but as a pitcher, he struck out six players and threw three innings of no-hit baseball. Played flawless defense. Game two: leads off the game with a double. Playing great defense and the team is in the game. But his next at-bat, BAM! right in the face just below the helmet protection. Lying on the ground, the coaches tended to him. Made sure he did […]

30 years and still learning every day. There’s something new every single day! April first not only marked my birthday but also 30 years doing what I do. It’s hard to believe. After all, wasn’t I just 22? Weren’t my kids just born? But no, it’s been 30 full years in this wonderful career. There have been so many great memories. So many challenges. So many things I have learned and so many things still yet to learn. Good times come and go. The experiences we have with one another last a lifetime. Learning to embrace and cherish those has been […]

Enough already! All the noise does not help.  All the commentary does not help. Creating fear, DOES NOT HELP. Sometimes you need some pain before you can grow again. Whether in the gym, in sports or in life, pain is part of prosperity. Pain is part of the process. Look, I have no idea if the tariffs will work or not.  I am not an economist. What I do know, for certain, is that $36 trillion in debt does NOT work. Taxing people for goods and services where they struggle to pay their bills, educate their children, save money for […]

Where did 30 years go? Wasn’t I just 17 and starting in this career? This week marks my 30th year in practice – as well as my 48th birthday. So, I find myself reflecting upon where all the time went. Too many incredible experiences to count. Friends. Things I have done that I would never would have imagined. As I look back on the last 30 years, several lessons come to mind: Use things, not people. The friends you have, if genuine, will be there with you always. Family is not just those blood related, and you do get to choose. Never pass up […]

In business and in life, you don’t get to choose when you are there and when you are not. You don’t get to decide when you’re engaged or not. You either are…or you’re not. I’m going to share a very personal story. I have ALWAYS loved baseball. It’s been my passion and the love my entire life. For as long as I can remember, I have had a love affair with the sport. The Dodgers and Vin Scully. All my heroes growing up. When I was 12 years old, I was on a little league team. Like my son’s team today. I was in […]

People flee unpredictable environments. And the market has been anything but predictable these last weeks. A lack of certainty and clear vision of the future is what scares the average person. It’s that, “I just don’t know what is going to happen!?” feeling. Belief around the fact that everything will be okay gets challenged, when leads to the perception that seemingly everything is in flux. But rest assured, there is a plan. There is always a plan. Whether you agree with that plan or not is a whole different question, but there is a plan. Calm minds always prevail. ALWAYS. So, do […]

You MUST eat the frog. Do what you do not want to do when you don’t want to do it. It’s a funny and even peculiar saying but actually comes from the great American writer and humorist, Mark Twain. Twain said, “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.” I have re-learned this lesson recently. Delaying decisions that must be made because you simply do not want to deal with it is not […]

Time. How precious. As we get older, that time seems to get less and less. Is it that time is actually moving faster? or that our experiences are seemingly less and less in the here and now? I seem to see this more in the eyes of my dogs.  My kids.  My mother. I still feel 25 (and some would argue that I act that way, too!). But I am not. We are not. Time is so precious. Before you know it, it’s gone. Enjoy every day and every minute. Just like that it can be taken away from you. […]

“J.D., I’ve decided to retire. After 10 years here, it is time,” Sam said. “I thought the time might be now, so the team has done a bunch of work on your budget and where you are financially,” I said. “I am happy to report all the work we have done together these past 20-plus years has paid off. You are in great shape. You can plan on enjoying this time.” “I must tell you, J.D., that you have been instrumental in all of this and me getting to where I am.  The way you handled my mother. Then, when she passed away, […]