Boston, MA

Boston Advisor Managing $3 Billion Says The Key Is Being Paranoid

Published

1 year ago

July 26, 2023

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Boston Advisor Managing Billion Says The Key Is Being Paranoid

Courtesy of Northwestern Mutual

Name: Tom Mitchell

Firm: Sconset Wealth Management / Northwestern
NWE
Mutual

Location: Boston, MA

AUM: $3.2 billion

Forbes Rankings: America’s Top Financial Security Professionals, Top Financial Security Professionals Best-In-State

Background: Tom Mitchell grew-up in Glastonbury, Connecticut with parents who were living paycheck to paycheck, he recalls. The family eventually moved to Boston before he attended Central Connecticut State University. During his senior year, Mitchell took a course designed to help figure out what profession would best suit him. The result: He would be a great financial advisor. Shortly after speaking to some advisors that his professor put him in touch with, Mitchell knew it was his calling. He joined Northwestern Mutual as a wealth management advisor in 1994, shortly after graduation, and immediately started studying to get all of his designations. “That also helped me gain a lot of confidence as well,” he recalls. Mitchell has been with the firm since: Many of his clients work in finance and he is now part of a team of six full time advisors.

Competitive Edge: “My team pays incredible attention to detail and we treat each client as an individual,” says Mitchell. “To us, it’s not a job but more something we just love to do.” He credits his high retention rate to the fact that he tries to befriend all of his clients. “I’ll send a picture of a cool car that I see if there’s one client who really likes cars, for example.”

Lessons Learned: “It’s important to have a plan for any possible risk and that gives clients confidence,” says Mitchell. “I’m paranoid and that keeps me sharp for my clients.”

Biggest Challenge: “Meeting the right client can be challenging,” says Mitchell. “We have to be selective about who we bring in because we dedicate so much time to each client.”

Investment Philosophy/Strategy: “Overall, the stock market is efficient,” Mitchell says. A big chunk of each of his client portfolios is devoted to exchange-traded funds, with a smaller portion focused on active strategies in areas such as emerging markets. More recently, he has also blended in alternatives like private credit and hedge funds, while also a big fan of direct indexing. “We like to control what we can control—and that’s taxes, not investments.”

Investment Outlook: Mitchell is bullish on the market in the long term: “Setbacks are always temporary,” he says. “It’s important to always have a plan for down markets—create a buffer portfolio for clients with safe dollars that they can turn to as needed.” With clients who are worried about inflation, Mitchell recommends weighting more toward equities as a long-term hedge.

Best Advice: “Be an advisor, don’t be a salesperson,” Mitchell suggests. “Financial planning cannot be rushed.”

Favorite Book: His favorite book to recommend to clients is Morgan Housel’s The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness.

Forbes

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Boston, MA

Arthur the Aardvark lookalike contest coming to Boston

Published

3 hours ago

December 18, 2024

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Arthur the Aardvark lookalike contest coming to Boston

Neighborhoods

Dust off your yellow sweater, blue jeans, and wide circle glasses. Oh, don’t forget your ears.

Beloved (and locally produced) cartoon aardvark Arthur Read celebrated his 20th birthday in 2018. Produced by WGBH, the series holds the title of TV’s longest-running children’s animated series. PBS Kids

Missed the viral Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest in New York? Couldn’t make it to the Tom Holland lookalike contest on Boston Common? GBH Kids and Boston Children’s Museum has the event for you.

The two groups are joining forces to host an Arthur the Aardvark lookalike contest on Dec. 20 in honor of the longtime PBS Kids show produced by GBH. The contest is set to take place at noon, rain or shine, in front of the Hood Milk Bottle, a representative from GBH said.

The representative said fans of “all ages” are encouraged to dress up as Arthur to compete in the contest. Participants may win prizes like Boston Children’s Museum tickets and the opportunity to have a photo of them dressed as the aardvark featured as Arthur’s official TikTok and Instagram profile picture.

GBH said attendees will have the chance to pick up some Arthur-themed swag at the event, and Arthur himself may even be around to snap some selfies.

Why a lookalike contest? Why Arthur?

The show, aptly named Arthur, was created in Boston for GBH in 1996 based on books by author Mike Brown. The anthropomorphic aardvark is known for his “signature look,” GBH said, which consists of a yellow sweater, blue jeans, and big, round glasses.

The Boston’s Children’s Museum even has an exhibit dedicated to the cartoon called “Arthur and Friends,” intended to encourage skills like “reading, understanding feelings, creative problem solving, and connecting with friends and family,” the museum’s website said. According to the GBH spokesperson, their “longstanding partnership” with the museum, and the exhibit, made the perfect recipe for a lookalike contest.

Doppelganger face-offs have had their share of viral moments lately, starting off with the Timothee Chalamet lookalike contest in November. Since then, multiple similar contests have sprung up around the country, including a Jeremy Allen White lookalike contest in Chicago, and yes, even a JFK lookalike contest here in Boston.

Eva Levin is a general assignment co-op for Boston.com. She covers breaking and local news in Boston and beyond.

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Boston, MA

Red Sox Blockbuster Trade Idea Brings $19 Million Astros 2-Time All-Star To Boston

Published

10 hours ago

December 18, 2024

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Red Sox Blockbuster Trade Idea Brings Million Astros 2-Time All-Star To Boston

The Boston Red Sox still have a long way to go before they can consider themselves World Series contenders.

It may be a harsh dose of reality, but it needs to be said. The Red Sox made a big-time trade last week, bringing in Garrett Crochet to be their new ace, but behind Crochet, the rest of the rotation still looks a bit iffy.

Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, Kutter Crawford, and Lucas Giolito could all give the Red Sox strong seasons if things break right. But in today’s game, things almost never break right, especially with the constant injury risks pitchers are facing.

Should the Red Sox, then, make one more blockbuster trade?

Drew Koch of FanSided recently named the Red Sox as a possible trade destination for Houston Astros two-time All-Star Framber Valdez, who is entering his walk year at age 31. Houston already traded Kyle Tucker this winter, signaling that Valdez is likely available.

“The Boston Red Sox already emptied the farm system to land Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox, but the cupboard is not bare,” Koch said.

“Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer are probably off limits, but a young shortstop prospect like Franklin Arias —ranked in the top 100 according to MLB Pipeline— could be the headliner of a trade package heading back to Houston. The Astros need to beef up their farm system, and Boston could help facilitate that.”

Valdez is projected to make $18.8 million in arbitration this season (via Spotrac) thanks to his excellent career to this point. He’ll likely command even more than that in free agency for several years to come, so this will be the cheapest opportunity Boston has to get him, even for one year.

This could be Boston’s opportunity to go all-in on the 2025 season. If Houston commands a reasonable price, which they should, considering there’s only one year of control left on Valdez’s deal, they should look at this situation as a true rental.

Sure, there’s potential for an extension if Valdez truly loves pitching in Boston. But why not put some chips on the table for the short term in a wide-open American League?

More MLB: Why Red Sox Insider ‘Would Be Shocked’ If Boston Doesn’t Sign Another Star Free Agent

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