What's in store for you:

1. Photo From My Life
2. Life Thought: Everyone Needs a Hype Man
3. Financial Thought: Target Date Funds
4. Good Sh*t:

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Photo From My Life:

Life Thought:

Everyone Needs a Hype Man: A good friend of mine just closed on a deal to buy a home health agency. It might be one of the biggest professional moments of his life. So what did I do? Dropped off a bottle of champagne at his house. Nothing fancy. No card. Just a "you did it" moment, left it in his mailbox.

I wish I could say I always do things like that. I don’t. Life moves fast—there are diapers to change, emails to reply to, businesses to focus on. But this time, I slowed down just enough to acknowledge a major win in someone else’s life. And you know what? It felt great. For both of us.

We all need a hype man. Not just when we hit milestones like buying a company, but in everyday life too. Like when your friend gets promoted and suddenly doubts whether they’re ready for the role. When your sister takes a solo trip with her two kids and no one’s keeping track. When a buddy runs his first marathon in record time. These are the kinds of things worth celebrating.

It doesn’t take much. A short text. A voice memo. A ridiculous GIF. A quick coffee drop-off. A nice handwritten note. It's really the thought.

I feel like somewhere along the way, we all got a little too good at acting cool and detached. We downplay our wins because we’re worried they’ll sound like bragging. And we sometimes ignore other people’s because we assume they already know they’ve done something great.

I'm starting to realize this thought process is dumb. What if we took 90 seconds to actually say, “Hey, I saw what you did—and it’s awesome.”

You don’t have to be over-the-top. No need for confetti cannons or parade floats. But, my hunch is that life’s better with a few more cheerleaders in it.

Financial Thought:

Target Date Funds: I get asked about target date funds all the time. And while they seem like a simple set-it-and-forget-it investment, the truth—as with most things in personal finance—is a bit more nuanced. So here’s a quick breakdown.

At a basic level, you pick a target date fund tied to the year you plan to retire (say, 2065), and it automatically adjusts over time. Early on, it’s heavier on stocks for growth. As you approach retirement, it shifts toward bonds and cash to reduce risk. Easy enough.

For people who don’t want to think much about investing—or who are just getting started—this simplicity can be a great thing. Most employer 401(k) plans even make them the default option. That’s not a bad setup, especially compared to letting your savings sit in cash or trying to pick stocks based on headlines.

But here’s the issue: these funds are built for the “average” investor. And no one is actually average. If you’re sitting on a big chunk of cash from a business sale, planning to work longer than most, or simply more comfortable with risk, then the glide path inside a target date fund probably doesn’t match your reality. It’s a one-size-fits-all approach to something that really should be customized.

One thing I’ve always found odd: even the super long-term funds—like Vanguard’s 2065 fund—hold about 10% in bonds. That means someone in their 20s or 30s, with a 40-year runway ahead of them, is already being dialed down on risk. Why? If you’re investing for decades, short-term volatility shouldn’t matter. It feels like unnecessary “safety” baked in too early. That 10% in bonds could be costing you meaningful growth when you need it most.

The last thing I’ll say—because someone always asks—is that fees on target date funds vary. Some (like the ones from Vanguard or Fidelity) are very low cost. Others, especially those with more active management, can be a bit higher. It’s not always a deal-breaker, but it’s worth knowing what you’re paying and making sure it lines up with the value you’re getting.

Personally, I lean toward a goals-based investing approach. Everyone’s situation is different, and I’ve found it usually makes more sense to build portfolios around your specific goals rather than relying on a preset timeline.

Good Sh*t:

Graeter's Ice Cream: For those who don’t know, Graeter’s is a Cincinnati-based company that’s been around since 1870. That’s right — they’ve been perfecting ice cream since the end of the Civil War. And it shows. Their secret? They use a small-batch French Pot process that produces just two gallons at a time. It’s wildly inefficient, wonderfully old-school, and it makes the creamiest ice cream I’ve ever had.

But let’s talk about the chocolate chips. Calling them "chips" is offensive. These are slabs. Chunks. Boulders of bittersweet joy. I found one that needed two bites. No joke.

My mom gifted me a 6-pack for my birthday and I’ve been eating a few spoonfuls after lunch, after dinner, and sometimes at 10am on a hard day. Each bite is a reminder that joy can come in pint-sized packages.

You can order some online here.

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