The Truth About Wealth

It may be tempting to get into the world of private equity investing, but it’s important to get the basics under your belt first.

In this episode, John and Michael Parise bring on Christopher Graham, the founder, CEO, and CIO of Crown Capital Investments, to teach you how private equity works, what investors should look at, and how it’s structured.

Chris discusses:

Connect with Christopher Graham:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Christopher Graham founded Crown Capital in 2014. He leads investment and capital-raising activities and provides strategic and operational support to management teams across the portfolio. 

Prior to Crown, he founded The Private Client Law Group, which focused on tax, business, and asset protection for ultra-high-net-worth family offices. As a Family Office Advisor, Chris advised and directed billions of dollars in the alternative investments space globally. Chris was named to the Georgia Super Lawyers Listing for over a decade and rated as a Five Star Wealth Manager. 

Chris holds a BBA in Accounting from the University of Michigan and a JD from Wake Forest University. He is a member of the American Mensa IQ Society, Beta Alpha Psi national honor accounting society, and the Georgia and North Carolina state bars.

You can protect your business against risks while also leveraging them as opportunities for growth.

In this episode, John and Michael Parise are joined by Kyle Hanson, the director of business development at Madison Insurance Group, to talk about enterprise risk management.  

Kyle unveils the firm’s application of SWOT analysis to enterprise risk management while sharing client case studies, highlighting the various risk coverages available.

John, Michael, and Kyle discuss:

Connect with Kyle Hanson:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Kyle Hanson is a Director of Business Development who works in close collaboration with the Director and President, Mark Sims, to strategize, organize, and execute new business development and public relations activities. 

With over a decade of public speaking experience and an accomplished academic background, Kyle is a sought-after conference presenter and a former column editor for the American Choral Directors Association’s national journal. 

Before joining MIG, Kyle honed his skills in non-profit development through an internship at the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and a clinical workshop in artistic development at the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra. 

Kyle holds a High Distinction degree from Indiana University Jacobs School of Music and two additional Masters degrees from Bowling Green State University and Indiana University.

Today’s topic is pertinent to business owners. If you’re grappling with unique financial challenges related to entrepreneurship and business ownership, this episode is for you.

This week, John and Michael Parise explore a case study about a client who owns a business. They provide a detailed walkthrough of their process from start to finish while detailing how they helped the client gain a generational wealth mindset by emphasizing education around how he thought about his finances.

John and Michael discuss:

Resources:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

It’s no secret that the hybrid working environment has evolved.

So, how can companies make sure their employees are bringing their A-game and representing their values without scheduling yet another Zoom meeting? 

In this episode, John and Michael Parise continue their conversation with Joe Mechlinski, the CEO of SHIFT.

This time, Joe unveils the challenges that business leaders are facing in today’s work environment. Listen in and learn more about what SHIFT does and its role in helping executives improve their team’s communication, work culture, and employee engagement.

Joe discusses:

Resources:

Connect with Joe Mechlinski:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Joe Mechlinski is a bestselling author, speaker, and social entrepreneur who helps organizations build engaged, mission-driven cultures. He challenges business leaders to strategically approach talent acquisition, development, and retention. Joe founded four businesses, each with varying degrees of success, which provided him with valuable insights and hands-on experience. At 23, Joe established SHIFT, a collective of businesses that revolutionized workforce engagement.

John and Michael Parise have made it to 100 episodes!

And this week’s release is all about celebrating this achievement with you! Listen in as John and Michael celebrate their 100th episode by reflecting on their podcasting experiences. Together, they share some stories, reminisce about past episodes, and reveal their favorite moments as podcasters.

John and Michael discuss:

Resources:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

Change starts by shifting our working environment.

Would you agree?

In this episode, John and Michael Parise explore how transforming the way we work can have a profound impact on the real world with Joe Mechlinski, the CEO of SHIFT. 

Joe unpacks how SHIFT helps companies effectively manage their resources and create engaged employees. He also talks about the core values of his entrepreneurial success and the changes in the workplace ever since going virtual.

Joe discusses:

Resources:

Connect with Joe Mechlinski:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Joe Mechlinski is a bestselling author, speaker, and social entrepreneur who helps organizations build engaged mission-driven cultures. He challenges business leaders to strategically approach talent acquisition, development, and retention. Joe founded four businesses, each with varying degrees of success, which provided him with valuable insights and hands-on experience. At 23, Joe established SHIFT, a collective of businesses that revolutionized workforce engagement.

Many investors have cold feet and want to pull out of the market for 2023, but sometimes the best option is to take a deep breath, put your emotions aside, and wait a little longer.

In this episode, John and Michael Parise talk to Christian Hyldahl from Varium Investment Partners about investing in 2023. Christian shares his approach to investing, what he believes 2023 has to offer, and some advice for nervous investors who want to pull their money out of the market completely.

Christian discusses:

Resources:

Connect with Christian Hyldahl:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Christian Hyldahl, CFA®, is the founder and president of Varium Investment Partners. He has 27 years of portfolio management, investment strategy, and research experience across multiple investment styles and products under his belt. Christian is consistently a top portfolio manager in multiple equity categories. Christian is a chartered financial analyst and obtained his master’s of business administration from the Fuqua School of Business, Duke University. Before that, he attended the London School of Economics for their specialized program in international economics and asset management and obtained his Bachelor of Arts in English and History from Bucknell University.

Many people have been questioning oil and gas with regard to America’s current politics. Luckily, Don Hosmer from Royale Energy, Inc., is here to provide us with some insight!

In this episode, John and Michael Parise speak with Don Hosmer from Royale Energy, Inc. Don talks about investing in oil and gas. He highlights the benefits of the industry from an investment standpoint, its tax benefits, and opportunities based on its peak demand.

Don discusses:

Connect with Don Hosmer:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Don Hosmer resides in California and is Royale Energy, Inc’s CEO,  an oil and natural gas company. 

Don started the company with his father in 1986. They started with a team of geologists and engineers and started the company primarily as a natural gas producer. 

Approximately three years ago, Royale Energy, Inc. merged with a team of petroleum engineers to form the oil and gas company that is today.

If your traditional insurance provider won’t cover specific risks for you or your business, you have additional options to protect yourself, your business, and your family.

In this episode, John and Michael Parise interview Sean McNiff from Exceptional Risk Advisors about some alternative insurance the firm provides. Sean shares a variety of case studies, from examples of when his work made a significant impact on his clients to some interesting insurance stories. He also talks about the creativity and customization that goes into protecting businesses and families.

Sean discusses:

Connect with Sean McNiff:

Connect with John and Michael Parise:

About Our Guest: 

Sean McNiff is the Vice President of Business Development & Marketing at Exceptional Risk Advisors. He is passionate about developing new business relationships and educating the marketplace. Sean has been with Exceptional Risk Advisors from the day it was founded. His focus lies in working with sophisticated life, executive benefit, and disability insurance advisors whose clients can benefit from partnering with Exceptional Risk Advisors.

Sean received a BA in Communications and graduated Magna Cum Laude from the University of Rhode Island. When he’s not advising clients, he’s outside playing tennis, hiking, skiing, and spending time with his wife and their two children.

Every business owner wants to save on taxes, and there’s a variety of tax planning strategies available in the US.

In this episode, John and Michael Parise speak with Matthew Kirk from Holland & Knight about an esoteric tax planning strategy that not many American businesses know about. Matthew gives an overview of the tax benefits in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, explains the rationale behind them, and unpacks some of the finer details, cautioning businesses to speak with a proactive financial professional about using this strategy.

Matthew discusses:

Connect with Matthew Kirk:

Connect with John and Michael:

About Our Guest: 

Matthew Kirk is a private wealth services attorney in the Holland & Knight’s Atlanta office. Matthew focuses his practice on designing and implementing sophisticated wealth planning and transfer strategies for high-net-worth individuals that often combine objectives of tax minimization, wealth preservation, succession planning, and business planning.