While absorbing the recent news, we can be forgiven for thinking that the world is going off the rails.

There’s a global pandemic, worrying inflation, atrocities in Ukraine, and “unprecedented” developments everywhere.

A fear arises that it’s all getting worse, somehow.

If we feel that way, we’re not alone. A lot of people feel that way.¹

So, let’s ask the big question: Is the world getting worse? Or is it actually getting better?

Honestly, I’m not sure that question can really be answered.

Why?

I imagine that you’ve heard the statistics of how far the world has come in terms of measurable progress (it’s pretty amazing).

But, though it might be nice to know that global poverty is down or that the rate of people killing people is historically low, that’s not really helpful when you’re getting gouged at the pump, your kid is home sick, and you’re seeing images of ruined lives on the news.

For the first time in human history, we can instantly communicate with folks thousands of miles away and see what they’re doing.

We have access to real-time news from everywhere in the world, and because of how the news is constructed, it’s nearly always the bad stuff that gets our attention.

Most of us spend hours each day consuming media of one kind or another.²

The question we ask each other has changed from “how are things in your neck of the woods” to “have you heard about {crisis of the moment}?”

We’re human. We live our lives one day at a time inside a fairly small bubble. And that bubble is easily influenced by daily hassles, media filters, and our own outlook on the world.

So, what do we do? How do we combat the existential dread and pessimism?

I think this is a serious and important question, by the way.

We need to know how to put things into perspective, for ourselves, for the children and young people who look to us for guidance, and for our loved ones who might need a boost.

A few ideas:

Invest time in relationships with the people we love.

Be selective in the news and media we consume.

Follow our faith if we have one.

Look for beautiful moments and treat them with awe (like that little girl at the fair in the photo above).

Make art, make music, and build something beautiful.

Volunteer, donate, and be the change we want to see.

What do you think? Any advice for keeping it positive?

I’ll close by asking you: How are you doing?

What’s going on in your neck of the woods?

Positively,
Dr. Chris

P.S. Why is a practice of positivity so important? Well, it keeps us from making fear-based decisions, for one. I also think it helps us make our little corner of the world better. Johns Hopkins University thinks it might be a big deal for our health.³

¹_{https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/03/21/looking-ahead-to-2050-americans-are-pessimistic-about-many-aspects-of-life-in-u-s/}

²_{https://www.statista.com/topics/1536/media-use/}

³_{https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/the-power-of-positive-thinking}

Chris Mullis, Ph.D., CDFA® NorthStar Capital Advisors 704-350-5028 ext 7 chrismullis@nstarcapital.com 521 East Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28203 RetireNorth.com Celebrating 16 Years • 2006-2022

(I’m still optimistic, though; I’ll explain why at the end.)

People are dying, running for their lives, and watching everything they’ve worked for go up in literal flames.

And, because of technology, we’ve got a front-row seat in real time.

Energy prices are spiking, markets are gyrating.

Oh yeah, there’s still a pandemic.

Sometimes, it’s just one thing after another and everything all at once.

What do we do? How do we deal with it?

I think it depends on the day.

Some days, we’re overwhelmed and struggle to make progress.

Other days we press on and focus on putting one foot in front of the other.

Some of us look to our faith for guidance.

We also remember that humans are resilient creatures who have survived and thrived through some terrible times.

We remember that we’re not alone.

You’re not alone. I’m not alone. They’re not alone.

We reach out for help on our bad days and offer support on our good days.

We volunteer, donate, speak up, and take action.

I was a big Mr. Rogers fan growing up.  He had me from the moment I saw “Trolley” because I lived and breathed trains as a child.

There’s a quote by Mr. Rogers that often shows up during crises:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’”

As adults, we’ve got a greater burden to carry—we must become the helpers.

I think the secret to getting through is kindness and love.

If we look closely, we can find it happening right now.

Volunteers leaving strollers for Ukrainian families who will need them when they arrive in Poland and Slovakia.¹

Residents of a refugee camp throwing a birthday party for a 7-year-old girl.²

Berliners welcoming refugees in train stations and opening their homes.³

Groups greeting Afghan refugees with open arms and housewarming gifts in Detroit.⁴

In the midst of everything, we can offer each other kindness, encouragement, and support.

Hoping for peace,
Dr. Chris

P.S. Looking for ways to help Ukrainians? Here are a few.

P.P.S. Markets are reacting to energy prices, economic concerns, and uncertainty as we’d expect: with extreme volatility.  Remember the stock market is like yo-yoing while climbing Mount Everest — lots of ups and downs in the short term, overlaid on a relentless uptrend. If you have questions about what you should or should not be doing around your portfolio, let’s talk about that!

¹https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2022/03/07/strollers-ukraine-polish-train-station/9412895002/

²https://www.newsweek.com/refugee-camp-throws-birthday-celebration-7-year-old-ukrainian-girl-1685113

³https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-60611188

⁴https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/wayne-county/2022/03/05/resettled-afghan-refugees-given-housewarming-kits-faith-groups/9323799002/

Chris Mullis, Ph.D., CDFA® NorthStar Capital Advisors 704-350-5028 ext 7 chrismullis@nstarcapital.com 521 East Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28203 RetireNorth.com Celebrating 16 Years • 2006-2022

Do you like to plan your year that way or do you prefer to just wing it?

We made a quick video talking about three simple (but powerful) questions you can use to set the stage for an amazing 2022.

You can watch it here.

Transcription:

Hi, I’m Dr. Chris Mullis with NorthStar Capital Advisors, and I’m here to help you launch 2022 with a great mindset.

In this video, I’m going to talk about three simple (but powerful) questions you can ask yourself to set the stage for an amazing year, even when so much around us is unpredictable and up in the air.

One question before we start: why set goals or intentions at all?

Sure, you could just show up and wing it, but if you’re watching this video, I bet you’re someone who wants more out of life.

And starting your year with a focus on where you want to go, is a great way to be more mindful of what you take on and how you spend your time.

What do you want more of this year?
Is it time? Travel? Experiences?
Commit them to paper.

How do you want to show up for your family, your friends, and your community?

Who is most important to you and how can you invest in those relationships?

What do you want to get better at this year? Personally? Professionally? Mentally? It’s all fair game.

As we close the door on 2021 and set the stage for 2022, there’s a lot that is beyond our control.

That’s why setting a direction is so critical: we can achieve incredible things by paying attention to what’s most important to us and intentionally focusing on improvement.

To throw a sports analogy at you: a player can’t control whether their team makes it to the championship, but they can improve their odds by perfecting a skill, improving their mental game, and supporting their teammates.

Thanks for watching. If you have a question about what I’ve discussed with you or you’d like to speak personally about what’s going on, please send me a message. I’ll respond personally.

Whatever 2022 holds, I hope it brings you joy, excitement, and prosperity.

Every week it seems we’re confronted by death tolls, natural disasters, political shenanigans, business closures, viral variants, and more.

It’s so easy to become fixated on doom scrolling and negative headlines. The media makes that easy.

But what if things are getting better?

How would your life change if things were getting back to normal?

Are you ready for that?

Because I think we’re on the upswing.

Here’s why I think things are going to get better rapidly in 2021.

Vaccines are proving to be effective against COVID-19 and we’ve got several of them.¹

At least one (the newly approved Johnson & Johnson vaccine) is effective against the vicious new variants that have popped up.²

Vaccine rollouts are going (kinda) well and are accelerating. Once a large proportion of Charlotte and cities across America are vaccinated, we can expect to see community transmission rates plummet and normal life resume.

Imagine what that will feel like.

Economists think a tidal wave of growth is coming and the economy will roar back this year.³

That’s good news for businesses, workers, and markets.

The next round of stimulus looks like it’s going to get passed in the next couple of weeks, getting money into the pockets of the folks struggling to pay bills and keep their businesses open.

That’s a lot of good news.

What do you think, are you ready to start planning life after the pandemic?

What’s the first thing you will do when it’s safe?

Me? I’m going to give everyone I love a big hug.

I can’t wait.

Does that mean that everything’s going to be just peachy?

I wish it would, but I don’t think it will. We’ve lost too much and still have too much to do.

The 500,000+ folks we lost to the pandemic. Each one a vibrant member of our society and a loved one.

The millions of jobs that probably aren’t coming back.⁴

The medical staff, essential workers, and teachers who are burning out under the strain of a pandemic.

The divisions in our society that still remain.

Markets are frothy and volatile and will likely remain so. A temporary sell-off is quite possible.

But, I’m hopeful for 2021.

Are you?

Yours optimistically,

Chris Mullis, Ph.D., CDFA® Founding Partner Reduce Taxes. Invest Smarter. Optimize Income AskNorthStar.com       (704) 350-5028

P.S. Though the new stimulus bill has been passed by the House, it still has a ways to go before being passed into law.⁵ And it’s likely that the Senate will make modifications before passing it.

¹_{https://www.cbsnews.com/news/pfizer-covid-19-vaccine-effective-real-world-study-israel/}
²_{https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/26/health/johnson-and-johnson-vaccine-effective/index.html}
³_{https://www.businessinsider.com/economic-outlook-stimulus-vaccines-gdp-growth-strongest-decades-fed-williams-2021-2}
⁴_{https://www.washingtonpost.com/road-to-recovery/2021/02/17/unemployed-workers-retraining/}
⁵_{https://www.cnn.com/2021/02/26/politics/stimulus-package-covid-relief-house-vote/index.html}

The pandemic.

Vaccination rates.

Earnings.

Impeachment.

Markets.

Stimulus bills.

Instead, how about we talk about something nice?

What makes you happy?

What does “happiness” even mean?

Is it a temporary state? Is it a long-term thing?

I’ve heard happiness called being mindful of small moments of joy.

I like that definition because it implies that happiness is a practice that we can cultivate.

Is there a special recipe for achieving happiness?

Maybe.

I’ll start. My personal recipe for happiness might be:

MEDITATION + FAMILY + FRIENDS + FULFILLING WORK + BIRDWATCHING/HIKING/CAMPING/BIKING + GRATITUDE = happiness

If I can get some of that into each day, I can call it a happy one.

I’ve also found that simple things bring me joy, even when I’m stressed or not feeling my best.

Smiles and laughter of our children.

Sounds of the kids’ piano pieces wafting through the house.

Time spent in nature, breathing in the air and hearing the birds.

Losing myself in a book.

An invigorating walk with my wife.

What do you think?

What’s your personal recipe for happiness?

What simple things feed your soul?

Has it changed over time? Has it changed over the last year?

Please write me at chrismullis@nstarcapital.com and let me know. I’m excited to hear from you.

Be well,
Chris

Chris Mullis, Ph.D., CDFA® Founding Partner & Financial Planner Reduce Taxes. Invest Smarter. Optimize Income AskNorthStar.com      (704) 350-5028

P.S. The market boom times are here, and a lot of folks are looking for magic bullets. But there aren’t any. It’s easy to look brilliant in a rising market or feel like you’re missing out on a hot trend. But the tide will turn. It usually does. If FOMO is keeping you up at night, (or keeping your kids up at night because they’re experiencing their first big bull market) please reach out. We’ll talk about the difference between gambling and investing. And how building wealth takes consistent, incremental progress, not chasing fads.

Some of us might even feel shattered.

But often, when we put ourselves back together, we’re stronger for it.

We made a short video showing how you can reflect on this year and discover how you’ve grown (or are still growing) as you put the pieces of 2020 together and consider your next steps.

You can watch it here.

Click to watch it here.

Transcription:

Hello, I’m Dr. Chris Mullis with NorthStar Capital Advisors and I’m here to help put this year’s adversity into perspective and learn from it.

Recently I’ve been thinking about a Japanese art called Kintsugi. Have you heard of it? When a piece of pottery becomes broken, the artist puts the pieces back together using gold lacquer. This results in a unique work of art that’s far more striking than the original, unbroken version. At its core is the philosophy that scars and imperfections shouldn’t be hidden, they should be embraced and highlighted to create something more beautiful than before.

I think we can learn a lot from that philosophy. Especially this year.

I don’t know your circumstances as you watch this video. Maybe the life you thought you were living is in pieces around you. Maybe you’re just getting by. Maybe this year was your time to shine.
Wherever you are, I’d like you to take a few minutes to reflect on the lessons you can take from your experiences this year.
 
Why? Because hard times can teach us so much about ourselves if we take time to stop and think.

Here are five questions I’d like you to consider.

Question #1 — What “fell apart” for me this year? 

While for some of us it may be tempting to just say “everything,” really take a moment to list the plans that were canceled, opportunities that were lost, relationships that changed, and so on.

Question #2 — How did I adapt to the things outside my control? 

Maybe you planned a zoom wedding. Maybe you stopped working to stay home with kids or elderly parents. Maybe you re-examined your spending or decluttered your house. Or maybe you broke down. All answers are OK.

Question #3 — What did I learn that surprised me? 

Did you discover a new passion for cooking? Did you learn new things about your friends and family? Did you discover that you actually miss spending time in the office? Any surprise, good or bad, can make the list.

Question #4 — How have I grown from these experiences?

Maybe you’ve questioned some long-held beliefs or shifted your priorities. Or perhaps you found strength you didn’t know you had. Reflect on the many ways you’ve become more resilient this year.

Finally, Question #5 — What am I grateful for?

Gratitude and thankfulness are so important. Especially during the tough times. Research consistently shows that people who actively notice and express the things that make them grateful are much happier. So give it a shot. No matter how big or small, list the things you’re grateful for.

I’ll start. I’m so grateful for my family and particularly my wife Rita. I couldn’t have gotten through this year without them. I’m also grateful for my clients and my friends. And I’m grateful for you, taking the time to watch this video.

When a cup shatters on the floor, we can’t put it back together exactly as it was before. But we can accept and embrace its history — and make something better and stronger with the broken pieces.
Whether you’ve felt more like the shattered cup or the shining gold lacquer this year, consider the ways you’ve grown from the experience and how you’ll use them to become stronger.

You may be in the middle of a growing pain right now.  If there is anything I can do to help you make sense of your current situation or make a new plan for moving forward, please reach out anytime. I’m here to give you a hand if you need one.

Thank you and be well.