Everyone knows the expression “if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.” My experience has been that you can substitute the word “always” for probably. There seems to be no shortage of hidden…
Thought Leadership Archive
Listen to the full episode, here. Key Points John and Sam assert that the fear of AI-driven job loss was not new, but a recurring theme throughout history during major technological shifts. They pointed out that…
Last Thursday, I spoke at a breakfast presentation on the economy during a conference for business leaders here in town. After more than 500 public speaking engagements in the past two+ decades, many here in the…
Listen to the full podcast, here. Key Points A significant generational divide existed in the belief in the American dream, with individuals under 50 being far more skeptical than those over 50. This skepticism was argued…
Traditionally, our office is swamped after Halloween with all the candy that our associates didn’t give away. Despite all appearances to the contrary, I don’t eat a lot of the stuff throughout the remainder of the…
Listen to the full episode, here. Key Points There was a massive, consistent decline in U.S. manufacturing jobs as a percentage of the total workforce over the past 50 years, falling from 22% in 1975 to…
This past Wednesday, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) at the Federal Reserve cut the target overnight lending rate 25 basis points (0.25%). This was as everyone expected. However, Chairman Jay Powell gave investors a jolt…
Listen to the full episode, here. Key Points The S&P 500 exhibited an extreme level of concentration, with technology and related sectors making up nearly half of the index’s weight. [01:09] A small handful of companies (approximately…
On Friday, despite the continued Federal government shutdown, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for September 2025. Although the report was over a week past due, it was “better late…
As featured in the Charlotte Business Journal. Whenever I make public speeches, I like to start things off with an old, tired joke. I tell the audience that the conference organizers asked me “to say a…