Hopeful
By Joe Smalley, Accredited Investment Fiduciary®
I was talking with my mom the other day. She declared that 2024 for her is the year of being grateful. I thought that was nice. But grateful is her word. I needed to find my own, and it was easy to do. Hopeful. It is my absolute favorite adjective. Websters describes it as “feeling or inspiring optimism about a future event.” And at the beginning of a brand new year, I am feeling hopeful now more than ever.
As a sports nut, I am hopeful this playoff season that the Detroit Lions can finally make it to the Super Bowl. And to a lesser extent, I am hopeful for the Tigers and Spartans, too, although the best adjective for those teams right now might be rebuilding.
As a finance geek, I am hopeful for a soft landing and a healthy stock market. The Fed’s aggressive rate hikes may have kept inflation in check, but the Santa Claus rally is likely over and headwinds persist into the first quarter and beyond this year.
As a political nerd, I am hopeful for candidates who can rise to the level of statesmen and who can return us to an era of coming together for the common good of the republic.
As a global citizen, I am hopeful that peace will somehow find its way to all cities and lands around the corner and around the world.
And as a friend, family member and partner, I am hopeful to be able to show up and be supportive and kind and loving. The past few days and months, I’ve seen death and illness impact dear friends and clients. And it reminds me that none of us are unaffected by adversity. But I am hopeful that all of us can be the light in someone else’s darkness.
Hopeful. It is a good word. It is optimistic. But it must be paired with action. It takes more than hope, it takes someone doing something. Standing up. Making a change. Lending a hand. Changing the world.
A couple of weeks ago, the Smalley Investments Charitable Fund donated to two very worthy organizations on behalf of our clients: the Kids’ Food Basket and the Alzheimer’s Foundation. With your continued business and support, we were happy to be able to lend financial assistance to organizations in our communities who provide that kind of action to our friends and neighbors, to make our world a better place.
And on a different but no less hopeful note, I am happy to let you know that Team Smalley is growing again. Almost a year ago, Kendra Osowski joined Smalley Investments as Managing Partner of our retirement plan division. At that time, long-time advisor, Ryan Balks, was elevated to Managing Partner of our financial planning division. In the fall, Chelsea Forr joined the team as Manager of Special Projects. And in November, Hannah Pollak was hired as our Office Manager.
Please be on the lookout for a phone call or email from one of us soon to invite you to come into our office to personally greet our new team members. Individually, they are all smart and talented. Together, they make the team stronger and better able to do what we do best: serve you, our valued friends and clients.
I am hopeful this year is a good year for you. Please let us know how we can make it even better.
Securities & advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network®, member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser