Earlier this week the Federal Reserve voted to keep short term interest rates unchanged from their current target range of (0.25% to 0.50%).  The market reaction to the “hold” was positive as stocks, bonds, real estate and commodities all rallied after the Fed’s announcement on Wednesday and continued to rally on Thursday.  The market clearly likes the idea of low interest rates continuing to stimulate the economy – the Fed is not taking away the punch bowl yet.

Located in Ventura, California, Barna Group has been considered to be a leading research organization focused on the intersection of faith and culture since its start in 1984. President David Kinnaman, also a best-selling author, recently taught at a conference workshop where he shared five ways you’ll be defined in your lifetime. In attendance was our friend John Scroggins, Executive Director of The Baton Exhange, a young professional leadership development and mentoring organization. What five things do you think positively impact the legacy we leave?

Earlier today, a voting member of the U.S. Federal Reserve (Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren) made statements which created a strong market reaction.  According to Rosengren, the Fed believes continuing to keep interest rates low may present “longer-term risks from significantly overshooting the economy’s growth.”  As a result he stated “a reasonable case can be made for continuing to pursue a gradual normalization in monetary policy.” Members of the Fed seem to always speak in confusing sentences and big words, but to the financial markets, Rosengren’s words meant one thing…

With stock indexes hitting new highs this week, it is worth taking a closer look at what areas are leading the U.S. stock market.  The stocks leading the market during the last six to seven months are very different than the stocks which led the market last year. It may take an increase in interest rates for market leadership to shift again, but when it comes to valuations, there is risk that FANG may bite back against the RUST.

If you have been tuning into the Olympics, chances are you cheered on David Boudia a few days ago as he earned silver in synchronized diving with partner Steele Johnson. While this was Steele’s first appearance at the Olympic games, David competed in Beijing in 2008, though leaving empty-handed. It was during those games he realized no matter what goal he accomplished, fulfillment always seemed just beyond his grasp. David pursued the dream of Olympic glory for what he though it could deliver: fame, adoration, acceptance, happiness; he was misplacing hope and looking for joy in the wrong places. During the 2012 games in London, David brought bronze and gold back to the USA due to a new perspective on life and his sport.. one “greater than gold.”

When asked the secret to happiness and health, Harvest psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Robert Waldinger says it has nothing to do with fame, money, or success. In fact, he believes that good relationships keep us happier and healthier. His evidence? The Harvard Study of Adult Development. Under Robert’s direction, his team and their predecessors have tracked the lives of 724 men to study their work, home lives, and health. Over the past 75 years, 60 of the original group of men are still living and participating in the study while the team begins to look into the lives of more than 2,000 Baby Boomer sons and daughters of the original 724 men. The biggest takeaways from their findings? 

Tonight marks the opening ceremony for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games and for the next two weeks, the world’s focus will be on the games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  While people are flipping around their TVs trying to see if Michael Phelps or the U.S. men’s basketball team will win a gold medal, they are likely to see more “green” as they flip past the financial news.  That’s because history shows the stock market tends to go up during the summer Olympics.

While politics have been the spotlight in news headlines, we can now expect competition to bring us together as coverage of the much anticipated 2016 Olympic Games in Rio begins.  As we cheer on our country and favorite athletes we are sure to witness many victorious celebrations, but at the same time learn from moments of struggle and defeat. Four-time United States National Champion Heather (Dorniden) Kampf once used a setback to propel herself into making a powerful comeback to win gold at a Big Ten Championship.  Today, author Michael Hyatt shares with us three reasons we should stay in the game when the going gets tough. 

Yesterday we held our monthly “Portfolios at Panera” event – a time for clients and friends to have a casual discussion about what is happening in markets.  Our focus yesterday was going through different strategies and looking at the performance leaders and laggards to identify common themes.  If there was one major theme which might summarize the whole discussion it was “the search for income.”

Helen Walton was once quoted saying “It’s not what you gather but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived.” Married to the founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, she certainly knew a thing or two about wealth but more importantly, the significance of living a life of influence and positively impacting others. Writer Gail Rodgers shares a similar message reminding us our words and actions touch lives far beyond the boundaries we think they go.