Your financial advisor told you to diversify. You nodded — and did nothing. And every year the stock went up, that inertia felt more justified. But "hold and hope" isn't a strategy, and neither is "just sell it." If you're sitting on a large position in your company's stock, this is the conversation your advisor should be having with you. This is Episode 5 of our series: 10 Ways Your Advisor Is Losing You Thousands.

Your advisor keeps telling you to skip your ESPP plan at open enrollment… Which can be a costly mistake. In episode four of our series, Matt admits he spent years steering clients away from Employee Stock Purchase Plans, until he did the math. Between the 15% discount and the look-back provision, a flat or falling stock can still hand you a near-17% built in rate or return.  Learn the buy-and-sell-immediately strategy that erases concentration risk, the tax traps that quietly eat your gains, and why this might be the best asset you’re not using.

Take the 2-minute quiz at ChooseBalance.com to find the blind spots in your stock plans.

You've been overpaying the IRS for years, and your advisor and accountant both missed it. If you’re paid in RSUs, the same reporting error could be quietly taxing your income twice. In episode three of our series, host Matt Daugherty shows you exactly where to look on your own return to see if this has been happening to you, and what you should do if it has.

You’re making more than ever, so why does it feel like you’re treading water? Episode two in our series exposes lifestyle creep: the invisible force that raises your spending to match every raise, bonus, and RSU vest while your finish line quietly slides further away. We run the brutal math on two high earners who look identical from the outside but only one is actually getting wealthy.  

The question that changes everything: do you want to look wealthy, or be wealthy?

The first episode in this ten-part series is an introduction to the tremendous value that financial advisors can bring to the lives of busy professionals. Not working with an advisor or working with the wrong advisor may be costing you thousands in missed opportunities every year. Listen along to find out how!

He spent 28 years climbing to CFO of a publicly tradedcompany, and nearly 20 of them quietly planning his exit. At 51, Mike Pettit iswalking away. Not because he hit a magic number, but because he finally is prioritizing the one thing executives never put first… their time. In this conversation, Mike reveals why his original retirement projections were wrong, the overlooked account that makes leaving in your 50s actually possible, and the "buffet trap" that keeps high earners clocking in long after their house payment stops mattering. If you've ever wondered whether you could afford to walk away, and what it takes, don’t miss this episode.

Have you been dreaming about leaving corporate Americabefore 55? You're not alone, and it's more doable than you might think. But before you talk to your boss, there are a few things you'll want to have figured out. Listen to this week's teaser episode to get a glimpse into Matt’s conversation with Mike Pettit, former CFO of Wabash, who just made his own early exit. Ready to start planning yours? Head to choosebalance.com to schedule a call with our team!

62% of women leave meetings with their financial advisor more confused than when they walked in.  80% of high-net-worth women either don’t have an advisor or don’t like the one they’ve got. Matt sits down with Heather Ettinger — 37-year industry veteran, founder of Luma Thrive, and author of Lumination, to expose why the industry keeps failing smart, successful women and exactly what to demand instead: an advisor who helps you manage your life, not just your money.If you’ve ever nodded through a jargon-filled meeting and left with more questions than answers, this episode hands you the playbook, including the questions to ask before you ever hire (or fire) an advisor.

Most people never fire their financial advisor — even when that advisor has never once asked what they actually want out of life. In this episode, we break down three questions almost nobody thinks to ask when choosing (or vetting) a financial advisor, why “are you a fiduciary?” is the wrong question if you don’t already work in finance, and why executives with equity compensation need someone who’s actually handled RSUs and stock options before — not someone learning on your dime. Plus: a preview of our next conversation with author and advisor Heather Ettinger, and a statistic about advisor relationships that may change how you think about your own.

The classes your kid picks this spring — right now — will shape which colleges say yes senior year. College counselor Rhett Rybarczyk returns to reveal what actually moves the needle on a transcript, why “just take all the APs” can backfire, and the one document (the school profile) that quietly frames how colleges read your child’s entire record.