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Finding Overlooked Opportunities in a High-valuation Market

By Contributor
Wealth Management

A Change Underway

By Jeffrey Liguori

 

Human behavior is to become less cautious as markets trend higher. That tendency is fraught with risk, especially as the complexion of the market changes, as it has in the past six months. There is a reason why “past performance is not an indicator of future results” is the most commonly used disclosure in the investment industry.

A shift in market leadership seems to be underway as investor focus branches out from the ‘Magnificent Seven.’ Within this group of primarily technology stocks that helped drive gains in the S&P 500, only Google and Nvidia outperformed the broader market last year, rising 66% and 39%, respectively. Shares of Amazon, Apple, Meta, and Microsoft all lagged, with Amazon the weakest performer, gaining about 5% in 2025.

Sectors that have trailed the market for several years, including healthcare, energy, and financials, may now be emerging as new leaders, potentially overtaking large-cap technology. It is a good time to dig for quality bargains with well-managed cash flow and strong balance sheets.

 

In Small Cap Doses

In the final quarter of 2025, small cap stocks staged a notable advance. From January through the third week of November, the Russell 2000, an index tracking smaller companies, gained just 4.5%, significantly lagging the S&P 500’s 12.3% return. At that point forward, however, small caps began to outperform the broader market by a wide margin.

That strength continued into the first month of 2026, with the Russell 2000 once again significantly outperforming the S&P 500. While this is still a relatively short time frame, the pattern shares similarities with the late 1990s and the subsequent tech boom and bust. Following the bursting of the internet bubble, small cap stocks experienced a substantial run, rising 66% from January 2000 through December 2007, while the market, represented by the S&P 500, returned just 4.4% over the same period.

Jeffrey Liguori

Jeffrey Liguori

“Sectors that have trailed the market for several years, including healthcare, energy, and financials, may now be emerging as new leaders, potentially overtaking large-cap technology.”

Opportunistic Large Cap Plays

As the market enters a phase in which leadership may broaden, there may be opportunities in high-quality companies that have struggled recently, not because their businesses are broken, but because expectations got ahead of reality. When sentiment resets faster than fundamentals, that can be a signal to lean in.

Fiserv Inc. is a classic example of a strong franchise that the market temporarily lost patience with. The company provides mission-critical technology to financial institutions, everything from loan processing and digital banking to payments and commerce. These systems are deeply embedded, which creates high switching costs and very sticky customer relationships.

Last year, the stock was hit hard after an earnings miss and a meaningful reduction in forward guidance in the third quarter. That single event triggered a roughly 45% drop in the share price on top of an already weak year for the stock.

The valuation changed dramatically, while the long-term business outlook didn’t. At around $60 per share, investors are paying a very modest multiple for a company that continues to grow revenue in the mid-single digits and generates substantial free cash flow. As execution improves and confidence returns, the stock could trade back toward $90-$100, which would simply bring it in line with its historical valuation, not an aggressive assumption.

Another company in the opportunistic category is Netflix Inc., which remains the global leader in streaming. Subscriber growth has been steady and substantial from about 220 million five years ago to roughly 325 million today.

The stock has been under pressure amid concerns about strategic expansion in buying Warner Bros. and the potential cost of acquiring premium film and television assets. Large media deals have a mixed history, so it’s understandable that investors are cautious.

“As the market enters a phase in which leadership may broaden, there may be opportunities in high-quality companies that have struggled recently, not because their businesses are broken, but because expectations got ahead of reality. When sentiment resets faster than fundamentals, that can be a signal to lean in.”

Netflix has consistently shown an ability to adapt. The company has reinvented itself multiple times. Management has navigated industry disruption since the company’s founding in 1997.

The current uncertainty creates an opportunity to own a category-defining platform with global scale, strong execution, and strategic optionality at a more reasonable valuation than we’ve seen in recent years.

 

Identifying Upside Amid All-time Highs

A company like Oshkosh Corp., which has performed well recently, may still be undervalued by the market. The company designs and manufactures specialty vehicles for defense, emergency response, and commercial uses, markets with high barriers to entry and long product cycles.

There are two major growth drivers here — first, sustained U.S. defense spending; and second, increased infrastructure and data center buildout, which drives demand for specialized vehicles and equipment.

Valuation is a big part of the appeal here. Oshkosh trades at a significant discount to large industrial peers like Caterpillar and Deere. While they’re not direct competitors, the comparison highlights how inexpensively OSK is valued relative to its fundamentals.

The company has a long operating history, disciplined capital allocation, and a strong commitment to shareholders, including a dividend that has grown 50% over the past five years. Even after recently reaching an all-time high, the stock likely still has meaningful upside.

I am not suggesting that today’s environment represents a technology bubble. However, evidence suggests that a meaningful rotation into areas of the market that investors have overlooked in recent years is unfolding. It is time for small pivots to avoid chasing momentum when the increased volatility can cause crowded trades to unwind fast. A sustained reversal of the technology trend could have important implications for multi-year portfolio returns.

 

Jeffrey Liguori is executive vice president and senior portfolio manager at Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc.

 

The Practice of Gifting Assets Is Moving to the Forefront

By Contributor
Wealth Management

Why Wait?

By Patricia M. Matty, AIF

 

For decades, inheritance was a term associated with the end of a life — a final transfer of assets triggered by a legal will. However, as we move through 2026, a profound shift is occurring. The Great Wealth Transfer, globally, is no longer just a future projection; it is a living phenomenon.

Today’s benefactors are increasingly choosing to give while living, driven by a mix of record-high tax exemptions, economic volatility, and a desire to see their legacy in action.

 

The 2026 Tax Landscape: A ‘Use It or Lose It’ Mentality

The primary driver behind the current heightened awareness is the federal tax environment. Under recent legislative updates, 2026 has introduced historically high exemption limits that have caught the attention of every major wealth manager.

• Lifetime exemptions: As of Jan. 1, 2026, the federal estate and gift tax lifetime exemption has climbed to $15 million per individual (and $30 million for married couples).

• Annual exclusions: The annual gift tax exclusion stays at $19,000 per recipient, allowing individuals to chip away at their taxable estate without even touching their lifetime limit.

• Future uncertainty: While these levels are currently permanent under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025, there is a lingering ‘use it or lose it’ sentiment. Families are rushing to lock in these high exemptions before potential future shifts in the political or economic climate.

Patricia M. Matty

Patricia M. Matty

“Today’s benefactors are increasingly choosing to give while living, driven by a mix of record-high tax exemptions, economic volatility, and a desire to see their legacy in action.”

The Shift to Living Legacies

Beyond the math of tax brackets, there is a growing psychological trend toward early inheritance. Rather than waiting for a death to trigger a windfall, parents and grandparents are gifting assets now to help the next generation navigate a challenging economic landscape.

• The ‘cushion’ effect: With housing prices and education costs at all-time highs, early gifts are being used to fund first-home down payments, superfund 529 education plans, seed-fund new business ventures, or fund Roth IRAs for children who have earned income and qualify for contributions.

• Test run: Many families are using early gifting as a test run. By transferring smaller portions of wealth now, they can see how the next generation manages assets and provide mentorship before the full transfer occurs.

• Emotional satisfaction: There is an undeniable joy in seeing a grandchild graduate debt-free or a child start a successful company because of a timely gift or helping your children with home cost, so they don’t struggle with so much debt.

 

Strategic Gifting Beyond Cash

The modern awareness of gifting has evolved beyond simple bank transfers. Sophisticated strategies are now common practice. Some ways families are taking advantage of wealth transfers include:

• Making direct medical or tuition payments, which don’t count against the $19,000 annual limits;

• Charitable gifting of appreciated stock now, shifting the appreciated stock from the donor’s estate;

• Utilizing irrevocable trusts to transfer wealth out of one’s estate while being able to control the distributions to heirs; and

• Creating donor-advised funds, also known as DAFs, which provide a way to involve the next generation in philanthropic gifting, making gifts that transfer wealth out of one’s estate.

 

Navigating the Conversation

Despite the financial benefits, not all families address this form of wealth transfer. Some people are aware of the benefits, but a significant portion still avoids the wealth talk. Key considerations for a successful transfer include:

• Transparency: Openly discussing the intent of a gift can prevent sibling rivalry and mismanagement.

• Financial modeling: Before gifting, donors are encouraged to perform rigorous financial modeling to ensure they don’t compromise their own retirement or medical needs.

 

Bottom Line

Estate planning is moving from a legal chore to a family mission to transfer wealth. It’s about what you can build together while you are alive.

The heightened awareness of gifting in 2026 is creating a massive generational transfer of wealth, favorable tax laws, and a cultural shift towards active living philanthropy and building family wealth.

The information included here is intended for educational purposes only. This information should not be considered tax or legal advice. You should discuss your goals and circumstances with a qualified tax planner before making any decisions.

 

Patricia Matty leverages her 25 years of financial industry experience as director of Business Development to foster firm growth and advisor success at St. Germain Investment Management. Her career combines expertise in financial planning, business management, and relationship development. She holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Westfield State College, an associate degree from Holyoke Community College, and the Accredited Investment Fiduciary designation.

Recessions, Market Crashes, and What Those Terms Really Mean

By Contributor
Wealth Management

Behind the Scary Words

By Zach Bass

 

When was the last time you heard about the term ‘recession?’ How about ‘market crash?’ Often, folks think of these as one and the same, and understandably so. These are posted all over the news. They can make you feel like you’re at your favorite amusement park, and you know that big drop is feet ahead. While both can cause fear and anxiety, understanding the difference between the two is crucial for making informed decisions and helping you sleep at night.

The good news is that, not only do these two terms not always go hand-in-hand, sometimes they can be exact opposites. That won’t have us glued to the news, though. It won’t make us feel like all of our hard-earned money is going to be gone tomorrow. And over the last decade, as Google has become a verb, more people fear losing money — or losing it all — than they fear death.

Zach Bass

Zach Bass

“A dip is a small decline in the market. We normally experience these three to four times a year, where the market will fall roughly 5% from its most recent high. However, they are generally short-lived, lasting only a few days or weeks.”

 

What Is a Recession?

A recession is a decline in economic activity spread across the economy for two quarters in a row (six months). It is characterized by a decrease in real gross domestic product, rising unemployment, and reduced consumer spending. These events typically also last longer than market declines. The most important thing you should take away from this is that you cannot calculate if a country or economy is in a recession until six months after key events have already unfolded. This is like looking in your rear-view mirror.

 

What Is a Market Crash?

This is an interesting question because everyone has their own definition of a crash. However, there are three terms that we refer to in the financial industry: a dip, a correction, and a bear market. Now, these are normal activities, and if viewed correctly, could actually be positive. However, I would like to take a moment to tell you about the historic bear and bull symbols of Wall Street. They were chosen for the way these strong animals attack. The bull will thrust its horns up, while the bear swipes its paw down.

How are the three terms different?

• A dip is a small decline in the market. We normally experience these three to four times a year, where the market will fall roughly 5% from its most recent high. However, they are generally short-lived, lasting only a few days or weeks.

• A correction is 10% off the most recent high and occurs roughly every two years, generally lasting around four months on average.

• A bear market is a drop of 20% or more. These are much harder to determine the length and severity. I believe we all remember that thing called COVID? As the world shut down in March 2020, the market fell more than 30%. In July of that same year, we had returned to the previous all-time high.

Here is how rarely these events occur. Since Black Monday in 1987, when the U.S. stock market fell roughly 20% in one day, we have only seen four of these events:

• 2000-02: Y2K had passed, the dot-com bubble burst, 9/11 tossed us into a full-blown recession, and 2002 was the worst of the three years.

• 2007-09: Subprime mortgage and banking crisis.

• 2020: We have already discussed the arrival of COVID.

• 2022: A brief bear market driven by rising interest rates to combat inflation.

The stock market is driven by expectations. It is the front window to your car. When a company or an economy act as expected, everything is fine. When you do not meet your expectations, you are disciplined. When a company is disciplined, its stock price goes down.

 

Conclusion

I promised a for how you can benefit from these types of events. I want to remind you of the term ‘buy low, sell high.’ The financial markets are the only ‘store’ where, when there is a ‘sale’ sign, people run away. Yet, every year, people stampede into Black Friday sales. If gas was a $1 a gallon, the lines would be crazy. But in the markets, when everyone is panicking, it might be the right time to say, what should I be buying?

It is always a great idea to periodically review what you actually own and make sure you’re comfortable with it. Some folks love having a financial or investment advisor as a partner, while some love to do research and make all the decisions themselves. Having the appropriate amount of cash on the side, and a plan for when these events occur, is so important.

 

Zach Bass is a chartered retirement planning counselor (CRPC), a fee-only financial advisor and fiduciary. Securities offered through Osaic Wealth Inc., member FINRA/SIPC. Osaic Wealth is separately owned, and other entities and/or marketing names, products, or services referenced here are independent of Osaic Wealth. Wealth Management Resource Group is independently owned and operated.

Settling an Estate Can Be Unsettling

By Contributor
Wealth Management

Why the Assignment Is Best Left to a Professional

By Linda Dagilus, Steve Hamlin, and Janice Ward

 

Linda Dagilus

Linda Dagilus

Steve Hamlin

Steve Hamlin

Janice Ward

Janice Ward

Years ago, they might have been known as an executor or, in the case of a woman, an executrix. And you still hear those terms occasionally.

But today, the phrase commonly used in reference to an individual handling someone else’s estate is ‘personal representative.’ And while the title may have changed, the responsibilities haven’t. They are significant, and there may actually be more of them today — a list that includes everything from the administration of a will to the handling of funeral arrangements; from preparing a final accounting and tax return to selling an estate; from investigating all claims against an estate and handling them accordingly to, yes, finding a home, or homes, for the pets of the deceased.

This broad and imposing range of responsibilities explains why those with estates, and especially large estates or those with complex assets, should think carefully about whom they choose to be their personal representative to administer their estate after they pass.

While family members have historically handled these duties, increasingly individuals are leaving these matters to third-party professionals, specifically trust officers — and for very good reasons. The most basic is the often-uncomfortable reality that settling an estate can be an unsettling experience, one that can potentially damage and destroy personal family relationships and result in mistakes that a professional might otherwise avoid.

But there are many reasons why individuals are increasingly looking to professionals to be personal representatives. First, they may not have family to turn to, or family they would consider qualified. Indeed, this is a considerable amount of work, some of it complex in nature, to put on someone who is not an expert in this area and has never done it before.

“Those with estates, and especially large estates or those with complex assets, should think carefully about whom they choose to be their personal representative to administer their estate after they pass.”

Also, many people simply don’t want to saddle a loved one with all that responsibility, especially at what will likely be a difficult time for them emotionally and when they are also likely juggling many other aspects of life and work. Additionally, choosing one family member over another to be your personal representative can often lead to conflict with the family member(s) not chosen.

Many of those turning to professionals, such as the Estate Settlement team within Greenfield Savings Bank Wealth Management and Trust Services, are recently divorced or surviving spouses who have found themselves suddenly in charge of their household’s financial savings and investments that had previously been handled primarily by their spouse.

The full list of responsibilities handled by a personal representative helps explain why it is best left to a professional and not a family member. It starts with pets, especially when there is no one else living with the recently deceased individual, but also includes everything from getting mail stopped and forwarded to a new address to securing the property to changing the locks and shutting off the water.

But it quickly proceeds to other, more complex financial matters that include:

• Entering the will into probate and assuring that all legal requirements of the settlement process are completed;

• Accounting for all personal property and arranging for the support of the family;

• Collecting all life insurance, rents, and other amounts due;

• Obtaining appraisals of the property for required tax purposes;

• Preparing a final accounting of the estate; and

• Distributing the estate as directed by the will.

While choosing a family member may seem logical and respectful, and some family members may actually volunteer for this work, most individuals are not fully qualified to handle such duties, and even if they are, they would often be placed in a difficult situation where relationships can become strained and matters can be delayed.

There is often a perception of unfairness if one family member is making all the decisions that affect the personal finances and tax consequences of each beneficiary. For example, is this individual liquidating all the assets — which might cause significant capital gains to family members who pay high tax rates — and are those decisions equally fair and appropriate for all affected parties?

It is a fact: estate administration is complicated and time-consuming. Money can, and often does, complicate relationships. Money can make people do things they wouldn’t ordinarily do. Money can breed distrust — and worse.

And that’s why the work of a personal representative is best left to a professional.

 

Linda M. Dagilus, vice president and trust officer, has more than 25 years of experience in the financial-services industry. Stephen B. Hamlin, CTFA, senior vice president and senior trust officer, is a certified trust and fiduciary advisor with more than 35 years of experience in trust banking and investment management. Janice E. Ward, Esq., CFP, first vice president and trust officer, is an attorney and certified financial planner with more than 20 years of experience in trust banking and wealth management.

 

Wealth Technology Group Takes a Holistic View of Financial Planning

By
Gary Thomas
Banking and Financial Services

Life Goals

Gary Thomas

Gary Thomas says a diversified portfolio of investments is always a good idea, with a mix of high growth potential and stable returns.

In an ever-changing world — one in which career trends, technology, and, yes, financial markets have a way of shifting — it can be daunting to craft an investment strategy. Gary Thomas, president of the Wealth Technology Group, relishes the chance to help clients do just that, by focusing on the big picture. His job isn’t just financial planning, he says, but life planning — at least, as much as one can plan for the unexpected turns of life.

It can be daunting, Gary Thomas said, to plan for the future when no one knows what the future will look like.

“As long as there are innovators in this country, there’s going to be change, and that change is going to create disruption. And we’ve seen it already in the jobs that aren’t there that were there 20 years ago,” he said.

That’s not a new trend, of course. “We don’t even know what we want until we see it,” Thomas went on. “Henry Ford once said that, if he’d asked his consumers what they wanted, they would have said ‘faster horses.’ You just don’t know what you want until you get introduced to an idea. You always think things will be the same as they are in this little snapshot of life. You want to hang on to the past, but technology is going to be changing. And we can’t stop that.”

That’s the definition of progress, and that’s good for investment markets, which — despite their short-term fluctuations — have always grown over the long term, said Thomas, president of the Wealth Technology Group. “When the economy grows, everybody benefits sooner or later, but it doesn’t always go in a straight line.”

“Henry Ford once said that, if he’d asked his consumers what they wanted, they would have said ‘faster horses.'”

He shared these thoughts by way of explaining why it’s important for individuals planning for retirement — or just looking to save for college and other expenses — to diversify their investment portfolios. And, indeed, Wealth Technology Group helps clients preserve assets, lower their tax burden, and pass legacies to the next generation through a broad mix of tools, including mutual funds, managed accounts, real-estate investment trusts, energy shares, annuities, and life-insurance options — with the goal of creating financial stability in what can be a volatile world.

That means trusting the long-term record of the stock market, he went on, but also making sure to place money in vehicles with a more predictable return.

“You have to have a philosophy where you basically pay yourself first,” he said. “I almost don’t care where you put it, as long as you put it away. If you’re far enough away from retirement, you should have a pretty diversified approach in equities, but as you get close to retirement, you need to make sure you have some secure money, for when markets go down.”

In other words, investors have to be both educated and flexible — especially at a time when Americans are living longer, meaning they have to make their money last longer.

“We’re in a different situation than our parents or grandparents were. It takes a more creative approach, it takes education, and it takes some hand holding, too,” Thomas said, bringing the conversation back to the role his firm plays. He cited studies suggesting that individuals with a consistent financial advisor tend to do as much as 2% better per year than those that don’t, even accounting for fees.

“Part of it is behavioral science — and having somebody to call,” he explained. “Typically, people make mistakes by moving around too much. You’ve got to have a balanced approach, where you have some secure money and some growth-oriented money for your older years.”

Thomas doesn’t only help his clients navigate this landscape in his Westfield office. He’s been active over the years delivering workshops, seminars, and classroom lectures on financial topics, so he knows the value of educating people.

“In some ways, people are more torn these days, because trying to sort out all that information on the internet is like trying to take a sip through a firehose,” he told BusinessWest. “Everybody’s got an agenda — the posts you see on websites are often promoted content, and it’s hard to distinguish. Even if they’re not, they still represent one person’s philosophy.”

The goal, he added, is for clients to develop their own philosophy.

“Money and financial security mean different things to different people, and it plays a big role in our life whether we want to admit it or not,” he said. “At the same time, there’s just too much information out there — we’re bombarded with it — and there’s a big difference between information and knowledge, or between information and wisdom.”

So, while some investors get wrapped up in “the latest shiny thing,” like Bitcoin or gold, he said, it’s more important to save consistently.

“You can make a lot of money from being average if you don’t switch things around too much, because the market’s averages are pretty darn good,” he said. “But you also have to have that nest egg because when things go down.”

Growing Need

When Thomas launched his business around 1991, financial planning was a field on the cusp of significant evolution.

“Before that, everybody just had a stockbroker, they had an insurance agent, they had an accountant, but there wasn’t much in the financial-planning world. So, basically, we started the company, and it was more estate planning to begin with, but it just sort of evolved over time into money management and financial planning, because that’s where the need was.”

For years, he built the company’s reputation through a number of call-in radio programs around Western Mass., an approach that appealed to listeners hungry for information about financial strategies. “People were looking for straight information and not a sales job. That’s been our philosophy ever since.”

It’s a philosophy that’s also middle-of-the-road when it comes to investment risk, he added.

“If you come from an insurance background, you tend to be very conservative. If you come from a stock background, you tend to be maybe more aggressive. Well, I come from a legal background, and lawyers like to question everything. So it also made me a little skeptical about some of the products. So, basically, we took a more conservative approach to money management — not ultra-conservative, but middle of the road.”

One key message, which has become a company motto of sorts, is “it’s not what you make, it’s what you keep” — which is why he helps clients navigate tax-related pitfalls as well.

“I take more of a holistic approach because of my background; I have a master’s in tax law. And what good is it if you make a ton of money but you have to pay 40% of it back in taxes? So we try to use strategies to avoid that. It’s a total approach of, where are you going to be down the road? If you take money out, is it going to be taxable? Are you going to have some tax-free money?”

While taking a conservative approach, he remains confident in the stock market, but understands that it can be scary to obsess over its fluctuations on a day-to-day basis — and that investors need to rely on other sources for guaranteed returns.

“I take more of a holistic approach because of my background; I have a master’s in tax law. And what good is it if you make a ton of money but you have to pay 40% of it back in taxes? So we try to use strategies to avoid that. It’s a total approach of, where are you going to be down the road? If you take money out, is it going to be taxable? Are you going to have some tax-free money?”

“I’ve been around long enough to see that markets don’t always go up,” he explained, “and when the markets are down, you need a conservative piece someplace to take money from when you need it.”

That said, Thomas added, “this country’s always going to grow. No matter what happens, no matter what financial crisis there is, we’re always looking for new ideas and new ways to grow. And that’s what the market does. You think of the major companies today that are big names, which were not in existence 25 years ago, like Amazon and Google. And Apple was almost out of business.”

He shares these strategies of diversified investment with mainly clients approaching their retirement years, but also many young families that are trying to figure out how they’ll pay for college for their kids, at a time when the average sticker price for four years of education is around $200,000. “It’s a real challenge today,” he noted.

In short, there are many reasons why people walk through his door.

“We do some estate planning, too, but it’s primarily holistic, complete financial planning — helping to find the right portfolio and the right financial tools for each individual, and then we actively manage that,” he explained. “It’s not just about picking an investment. It’s got to be right for you.”

As an independent financial-services firm, the Wealth Technology Group isn’t tied to any single product, and as an accredited investment fiduciary, he’s required to keep the client’s interests at the fore.

“If someone goes into a store, and the owner says, ‘that suit looks good on you,’ maybe it does — but maybe that’s just the suit they want to push that day,” he explained by way of analogy. Fiduciary responsibility simply means the firm considers more than what’s suitable for a client, but what would best meet his or her needs. “It’s not just going to benefit me as a financial advisor, but benefit you as the owner of it.”

Getting the Word Out

Long after his radio talk-show days, Thomas still enjoys conducting seminars and workshops that promote his work in more effective ways than a short radio or TV ad. They’re a means not only to help people understand the compexities of financial planning, but to get the word out that the Wealth Technology Group helps clients from all walks of life, not just high-net-worth individuals, as some firms do.

And when he shares his perspectives, both through seminars and one-on-one, he emphasizes that financial planning is really about life planning — and people are not always emotionally prepared for the changes that retirement will bring.

“Retirement brings a change in lifestyle,” he said. “It’s like you’re going 60 miles an hour, then you retire — and it can be hard to adjust when you don’t have eight hours a day filled up. If your purpose in life was to be a journalist and you were a journalist for 35 years and all of a sudden someone told you you weren’t valued as a journalist anymore, you’d better have a purpose beyond that. So we encourage people to have interests that really excite them beyond work.”

In fact, people don’t expect to be impacted by that lifestyle change, as well as the social withdrawal that sometimes comes with it, as much as they worry about money.

“I’ve had clients in the past that have come in and said, ‘I’m only 200 more Mondays away from retirement,’ and the next time I see them, they say, ‘only 150 more Mondays.’ And I say, ‘you know, what are you going to do the day you walk out the door?’”

Sometimes, the sudden change brings about problems with drinking or eating or their marriage, he went on, noting that some of the first astronauts who went to the moon came back and ran into personal issues once they were past that exciting, challenging phase of their lives.

But you don’t have to go to the moon to feel loss, he went on, and Thomas continues to help people plan for all stages of life — not just financially, but holistically. Because money matters, but it’s not everything.

“There’s got to be something beyond that ‘200 more Mondays.’ So that’s what we encourage people to think about,” he said. “Join a senior center, do something, get involved. And don’t concentrate too much on money. That’s our job.”

Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]