Good Mornin’

I hope everyone enjoyed a meaningful Father’s Day yesterday....a moment to pause, connect, and reflect on what really matters. In times of uncertainty, these moments of presence are more than sentiment, they’re strategy.

As we look at the markets this morning, they’ve continued to trade near all-time highs, supported by stable economic data and “relatively” quiet trade conditions these days, but recent tensions in the Middle East, particularly between Israel and Iran, have introduced renewed volatility. While it’s too early to determine the full implications, we’re watching closely to assess whether further escalation could risk broader instability.

Markets do seem to be leaning into resilience over recession. While risks remain elevated, especially with geopolitical developments and fragile sentiment, economic activity hasn’t meaningfully broken down…..the next few months will be key in revealing whether consumer strength and business adaptability continue to hold, which we are watching closely and carefully.

From Markets to Meaning

This weekend, as we reflected on Father’s Day and the importance of presence, we also said goodbye to a musical father figure of sorts...Brian Wilson, the legendary co-founder of The Beach Boys.

His music was more than a soundtrack. For many of us, it was a compass, pointing to joy, simplicity, harmony, and something deeper beneath the surface.

Brian passed away this week, but his influence endures far beyond the studio. He showed us that creativity doesn’t come from chasing noise, but from listening closely, to the moment, to what matters, and to the rhythm within.

As someone who grew up with a stack of Beach Boys records, this loss hits home. It also reminds me how much we can learn from a life like his....not just about music, but about meaning, resilience, and the invisible architecture of wealth.

What Brian Wilson Taught Me About Life, Wealth, and Well-Being

I grew up listening to The Beach Boys. Their harmonies were the soundtrack to early mornings, long drives, and summers that felt like they might never end. That surf-soaked sound meant freedom to me, sun, salt, rhythm, and possibility. What I didn’t know then was how much of it came from one man’s quiet genius....and invisible struggle.

Brian Wilson wasn’t just the sound of the beach, he was the soul behind it.

He composed like an architect, layering sounds no one had thought to blend. He didn’t follow the charts. He built his own. And while the music was radiant, his life wasn’t always sunny.

The Composer of Complexity

Brian was a prodigy. By his early twenties, he had already written dozens of hit songs, but as the band rose to fame, he stepped off the stage and into the studio, where he felt safe enough to experiment.

What he built there changed music forever.

Pet Sounds (1966) broke the rules....symphonic, emotional, intimate. Paul McCartney once called God Only Knows the greatest song ever written.

But behind the brilliance, Brian was battling. He experienced auditory hallucinations, crippling anxiety, and deep depression, likely intensified by childhood trauma and substance abuse. For years, he lived in isolation, heavily medicated and manipulated by those around him.

And yet… he came back.

Slowly. Carefully. Creatively.

And through it all, he never stopped listening—for meaning, for beauty, for harmony.

Surfing, Stillness, and the Rhythm of Intentional Living

I’ve always been long drawn to surf culture, the simplicity, the stillness between waves, the discipline of alignment, Brian’s story hits different.

Behind the beach songs was a man who knew turbulence intimately.

He reminds us: peace isn’t a default. It’s a discipline.....and that discipline begins with how we manage not just our money, but our most precious internal capital

• Time
• Energy
• Attention

This matters in wealth management. Because spreadsheets may show performance, but they rarely reflect fulfillment. They can measure assets, but not alignment.

Investing Lessons from a Musical Visionary

I thought I’d share some of my morning thoughts on what Brian Wilson teaches, about money, about life, about the pursuit of something that lasts:

Patience Is a Strategy

Pet Sounds wasn’t an instant success. It took time to be understood, longer to be revered. In both markets and life, we’re often rewarded not for rushing, but for remaining. Through doubt. Through downturns. Through silence. Long-term thinking often sounds off-key at first.

Mental Health Is a Wealth Conversation

You can’t build anything sustainable if you’re burning out. Brian’s journey is a reminder: care—therapy, rest, support—isn’t optional. It’s essential. A thriving portfolio means nothing if the person managing it is depleted.

Time, Energy, and Attention Are the Real Capital

Brian was intentional. Every note had purpose. Every silence had weight. That’s what great planning is too....not about filling the calendar, but composing your days with care. We can’t do everything, but we can invest in what matters.

The Returns That Matter Most Aren’t on the Page

You won’t find Pet Sounds on a balance sheet. But its resonance is immeasurable. Real wealth is like that. Not just accumulation, but amplification. The feeling you leave behind. The life you lived fully. The people you loved well.

Brian once wrote, “I just wasn’t made for these times”

But that’s what made him timeless. He wasn’t chasing attention. He was seeking alignment, and in the noise of modern life, that’s what we all need a little more of.

To live with intention.

To allocate with care.

To trade the temporary… for the timeless.

As we head into the week, take a moment - between meetings, headlines, and routines - to ask yourself:

What am I really investing in?

Not just financially, but emotionally, energetically, and intentionally.

Brian Wilson reminded us that a life well-lived isn’t measured by how much you accumulate, but by how deeply you resonate. Let’s carry that forward. In our planning. In our presence. In the quiet spaces where meaning is built.

Be well and enjoy the moments,

Derek Henderson