My Blog on
Money Smarts

Today was one of those days with my kids. The kind where every interaction feels like a negotiation—and I was losing every single one. By the afternoon, I was fried. And when I’m fried, I do what a lot of people do: I start thinking about food I don’t need. Specifically, salmon lover’s sushi. There’s a spot in Toronto I...

I was fifteen. Riding shotgun in a Chevy Astro. Pitch-black back roads. No streetlights. And the gas tank? Empty light on. Somewhere between ‘we might make it’ and ‘we’re going to die out here.’ Danny was driving — my cousin’s cousin. Eighteen. Built like a linebacker. This was my first big trip without Mom. Two weeks of relentless begging before...

I’ve seen this story play out hundreds of times. And I’ve lived it. (Just ask my wife.) Here’s how it goes: Your car’s service light came on two weeks ago. You’ll deal with it next week. Your kid’s sneakers are hanging on by a thread — he needs new ones before the weather turns. The Hulu subscription renewed again, even...

I’ve only seen it happen twice in 15 years. A client sits down. I show them the numbers. They look at the spreadsheet, make a decision, and execute. Cold. Logical. Done. One of those clients? He realized the math didn’t work. He was living in a country where taxes were too high, pay was too low, and his dream lifestyle...