July 25, 2025
WEEKLY TOUCHPOINT
Very Bad Advice
Morgan Housel, the author of best selling books on finance, has said many things which ring a bell of truth. But in a recent June blog article, Housel provides wisdom which can applied to many areas of life, specifically in matters of wealth planning. We thought it worth sharing. Enjoy!
June 12, 2025
A boy once asked Charlie Munger, “What advice do you have for someone like me to succeed in life?” Munger replied: “Don’t do cocaine. Don’t race trains to the track. And avoid all AIDS situations.”
It’s often hard to know what will bring joy but easy to spot what will bring misery. Building a house is complex; destroying one is simple, and I think you’ll find a similar analogy in most areas of life. When trying to get ahead it can be helpful to flip things around, focusing on how to not fall back.
Here are a few pieces of very bad advice:
- Allow your expectations to grow faster than your income
- Envy others’ success without having a full picture of their lives.
- Pursue status at the expense of independence.
- Associate net worth with self-worth (for you and others).
- Mimic the strategy of people who want something different than you do.
- Choose who to trust based on follower count.
- Associate engagement with insight.
- Let envy guide your goals.
- Automatically associate wealth with wisdom.
- Assume a new dopamine hit is a good indication of long-term joy.
- View every conversation as a competition to win.
- Assume people care where you went to school after age 25.
- Assume the solution to all your problems is more money.
- Maximize efficiency in a way that leaves no room for error.
- Be transactional vs. relationship driven.
- Prioritize defending what you already believe over learning something new.
- Assume that what people can communicate is 100% of what they know or believe.
- Believe that the past was golden, the present is crazy, and the future is destined for decline.
- Assume that all your success is due to hard work and all your failure is due to bad luck.
- Forecast with precision, certainty, and confidence.
- Maximize for immediate applause over long-term reputation.
- Value the appearance of looking busy.
- Never doubt your tribe but be skeptical of everyone else’s.
- Assume effort is rewarded more than results.
- Believe that your nostalgia is accurate.
- Compare your behind-the-scenes life to others’ curated highlight reel.
- Discount adaptation, assuming every problem will persist and every advantage will remain
- Use uncertainty as an excuse for inaction.
- Judge other people at their worst and yourself at your best.
- Assume learning is complete upon your last day of school.
- View patience as laziness.
- Use money as a scorecard instead of a tool.
- View loyalty (to those who deserve it) as servitude.
- Adjust your willingness to believe something by how much you want and need it to be true.
- Be tribal, view everything as a battle for social hierarchy.
- Have no sense of your own tendency to regret.
- Only learn from your own experiences.
- Make friends with people whose morals you know are beneath your own.
NEWS
Wealth Mechanics™
New Student Loan Cap Creates Planning Challenges
A quiet provision tucked into the July 4th legislation could pack a major punch for families eyeing advanced degrees. Starting mid-2026, federal student loan borrowing will be capped—for good. Gone are the days of borrowing whatever it takes through Grad PLUS. Now, future doctors, lawyers, and other professionals could hit a wall at $200K, with parents facing even tighter limits for their kids. That means financial advisors need to shift gears. Strategic borrowing just became a puzzle: Should families front-load loans now? Use private debt earlier? Rethink the dream school for a better financial fit? This isn’t just about dollars and interest rates—it’s about helping clients make deeply personal choices with long-term impact. If ever there was a moment for smart planning and honest conversations, it’s now.
DOWNLOAD ARTICLE
Source: Financial-Planning.com
MARKET COMMENTARY
Equities
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The S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit record highs again, backed by strong corporate earnings and improving trade dynamics.
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So far, 80% of S&P 500 companies reporting have beaten EPS estimates—above both the 5- and 10-year averages.
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Earnings growth is blended at 5.8%, with communication services and financials pulling the most weight.
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Large and mid-caps outpaced small-caps; value stocks outshone growth.
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All S&P 500 sectors ended the week higher, with health care, materials, and industrials leading the way—though consumer staples struggled on worsening expectations.
Bonds
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A mixed-yield week, but still positive for fixed income: 10-year yields dipped, 2-year yields rose slightly.
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The yield curve narrowed with a 0.49% spread between 2s and 10s.
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Longer-duration and corporate bonds outperformed as credit spreads tightened.
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Investment-grade and high-yield corporate yields fell to 5.07% and 7.33%, respectively.
Macroeconomic Data
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The Leading Economic Index (LEI) dropped again, led by weak manufacturing and shaky consumer sentiment.
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Jobless claims fell for the sixth straight week, hitting a low not seen since April—though continuing claims rose, pointing to slower rehiring.
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Housing data was soft: Existing home sales fell -2.7%, and new home sales dipped -6.6% year-over-year despite a slight monthly uptick.
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Durable goods orders (ex-transportation) posted their third straight gain, hinting at resilience.
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U.S. business activity expanded, with the services sector buoying the PMI to a 7-month high, while manufacturing remained in contraction.
INDEX RETURNS
(as of Monday’s Market Opening)
| Total Return
(1D) |
Total Return
(1W) |
Total Return
(MTD) |
Total Return
(QTD) |
Total Return
(YTD) |
|
| S&P 500 | 0.40% | 1.32% | 2.96% | 2.96% | 8.62% |
| Dow Jones Industrial Average | 0.47% | 1.31% | 1.83% | 1.83% | 5.54% |
| NASDAQ | 0.24% | 0.64% | 3.63% | 3.63% | 9.31% |
| NASDAQ 100 | 0.23% | 0.40% | 2.62% | 2.62% | 10.76% |
| Russell 1000 | 0.44% | 1.42% | 3.05% | 3.05% | 9.35% |
| Russell 2000 | 0.36% | 1.34% | 3.96% | 3.96% | 1.39% |
| Russell 3000 | 0.38% | 1.39% | 3.15% | 3.15% | 8.88% |
| ACWI | 0.19% | 1.63% | 2.55% | 2.55% | 13.11% |
Source: MorningStar
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- Wealth Mechanics™ is a registered trademark of Cestia Wealth Management. Unauthorized use of the trademark, including but not limited to commercial use, reproduction, or imitation without explicit written permission from Cestia Wealth Management, is strictly prohibited.
- Market commentary provided by NewEdge Advisors
- Charts concerning market data are provided by Exhibit A.
- Guides and other downloadable firm material respective to financial planning processes and data are provided and powered by fpPathfinder.
- Advisory services offered through NewEdge Advisors, LLC, a registered investment adviser. Securities offered through NewEdge Securities, LLC. Member FINRA/SIPC. NewEdge Advisors, LLC and NewEdge Securities, LLC are wholly owned subsidiaries of NewEdge Capital Group, LLC.
- Cestia Wealth Management is not a legal tax professional. We offer tax gap analysis for clients who desire to have a comprehensive financial plan, which requires in-depth tax strategy and planning as a distinct part of the overall customized solution. Please consult your tax professional on all matters addressed in this report.
- Information about annuities are not to be considered a recommendation. The information provided should not considered a recommendation to purchase or sell any particular security.
- Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Please note that individual situations can vary. Therefore, the information presented here should only be relied upon when coordinated with individual professional advice.
