𝐏𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐧𝐬𝐰𝐞𝐫 A lot of leadership advice assumes stability, clear plans, steady execution, predictable inputs. But March has been a good reminder that the world doesn’t really care about our plans. So I want to put a simple question to the group: Is anti-fragility still necessary to be successful, or is it optional? If you think it’s necessary, say why. If you think it’s not, tell us what replaces it. 1. Where did volatility show up for you in the last 10 days, and did you get stronger, stay steady, or take a hit? 2. What part of your leadership or business is most fragile right now (the smallest disruption causes the biggest damage)? 3. Where are you playing it “safe” but actually sitting in the dangerous middle, too much downside, not enough upside? 4. What’s one thing you could remove this month that would make you more resilient immediately (a commitment, dependency, or complexity)?

March 10 You are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Galatians 3:26 NLT To be poor in spirit is to recognize our spiritual poverty and our constant dependence on God. Children rely on their parents for protection, care, and provision. Because of that relationship, they do not live as if they are abandoned or without help. But apart from their parents, they would be helpless and in great need. Dependent children do not spend their days consumed with worry over food, clothing, or shelter. They trust that what they need will be provided. In the same way, when we come to Christ, we become children of God and can trust our heavenly Father to care for us. Jesus said, “What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? … How much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:9, 11 NKJV). Before we can be filled, we must first admit our need. Before we can be made rich in Him, we must first acknowledge that without Him, we are poor. Application: Antifragility starts with surrender, not self-reliance. When I admit my dependence on God, I stop building my life on fragile confidence and start developing a deeper strength that can endure pressure, uncertainty, and disruption.

This is the bridge to Anti-Fragile. We’re not trying to be perfect, we’re trying to become harder to knock off 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝟏 — 𝐅𝐑𝐀𝐌𝐄: 𝐀 𝐋𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐅𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐒𝐞𝐥𝐟 Write 8–10 lines from you, 12 weeks ahead, to you today. Include these sentences (finish them honestly): - “The biggest shift wasn’t my strategy. It was my standard around ______.” - “I stopped calling ______ ‘my personality’ and started seeing it as a pattern.” - “The moment I began changing was when I finally admitted ______.” - “If you want what I have now, protect your attention by ______.” - “The one thing you need to stop negotiating with is ______.” Don’t be harsh. Be clear. Future-you isn’t judging you — they’re rescuing you. 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝟐 — 𝐅𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐑: 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐩 (𝐍𝐨 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐦𝐞, 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚) Complete these lines like you’re collecting facts: - “I feel most fragile when ______.” - “When that happens, my default move is ______ (control / withdraw / numb / overwork / perform / people-please).” - “That default protects me from feeling ______.” - “But it costs me ______.” - “A real Floor would protect me by keeping ______ true, even when I’m stressed.” This isn’t a character flaw. It’s a nervous-system habit. Habits can be retrained. 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝟑 — 𝐅𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐒: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐘𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐏𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 Answer as calmly and specifically as you can: - “If someone watched how I spend my attention, they’d say I’m becoming ______.” - “The identity I say I’m building is ______.” - “The gap exists because I keep choosing the ‘false win’ of ______.”(planning instead of shipping, staying liked instead of being direct, consuming instead of creating, comfort instead of proof) - “The truth I don’t want to admit (but I’m ready to) is ______.” - “If I were sturdier under pressure, I would ______.”

You don’t have to stay the entire 30 minutes.

As I mentioned on the call and in a post a few days ago, I sent out a text to the clients that attended my client appreciation dinner. When I read it, I felt a bit uncomfortable because I see positive feedback about myself. I'm posting it here to force myself to recognize the value I bring to clients and to step out of my comfort zone and let this positive message affirm my value. Hi Michael, You were reading my mind! I have been planning to reach out to you... We enjoyed the evening immensely, thank you. The food, service & atmosphere were lovely. I had a delightful time visiting with your wife... I don't think we've really had a chance to do so in the past--she's very easy to talk to! In terms of the presentation... I really liked how you alternated between dinner courses and slideshow. It kept the evening flowing, gave us a chance to eat leisurely, and removed the distraction that passing dishes usually does. The presentation was a great balance of information and brevity. Very effective. If you were looking for additional content, I would suggest: - Go over the Allianz Tax Summary pages briefly: The income tax brackets, the cap gains tax brackets, the RMD table, and the Medicare table... make the point that managing taxable income AFTER retirement has a huge impact, so tax strategies matter as much as investment strategies. And yes, you can help with that. - Offer more insight to remove the mystery of ATS. I know you've been burned when you shared too much of your strategy, so go with less data and more of your relationship with your clients. 1) Time segments matter for each stage of life: Leading up to retirement / reaching retirement / medicare vs medical insurance / social security start date strategies / legacies & trusts / long-term care. Everyone has different needs at different stages. So how can you build a flexible plan? 2) Time segments ALSO matter for keeping the nest egg growing through market trends. The strategy is NOT unique enough to sell itself. However, you have an advantage over traditional financial advisors. We're all coming to your for our taxes, so point that out. YOU are the key here. YOU are a guru at blending the financial concerns with the tax implications to plan a long-term strategy. Don't underestimate your dual role. The ATS is a solid tool that you've used for many clients, but in the end, it's YOU that we are trusting. This is a strategy that you rely upon, so it's part of the package.