Editor's Note: Risks and Recovery

Some weeks, it just doesn’t pay to be sick or injured, as I learned recently while we were putting out this month’s edition. In early March, I found out that my step-mother in San Diego needed to sell my late father’s home quickly, so she could relocate and get the care she needs. So, I high-tailed it from Texas to California to help, which I’m glad I did. It gave me a chance to go through my dad’s family photos, read (or try to read) some of his scientific research papers and spend some time reflecting on his life.

But an incident in the garage left me with a sore head and a bruised ego. That, combined with a very late flight home Sunday night on a Boeing 737 Max 8, put me in no state to be productive.

As the saying goes, “There’s no rest for the weary.” Over the past week or so, news of the college-admissions bribery scandal broke; it turns out that a man under investigation by the SEC for securities fraud spilled the beans on that sad mess.

Then came the announcement that Envestnet was buying MoneyGuide (see page 4). And, of course, there were groundings worldwide of the Max 8 after the deadly crash in Ethiopia that left 157 people dead, not to mention the killing of 49 souls in New Zealand.

It’s hard to keep up with the details of these issues, which represent the unpredictability, risky and complex nature of life. And while he doesn’t speak directly to these news items, the subject of this month’s cover story — Larry Swedroe — does tie a number of technical, complicated and significant matters together in his thoughts on financial planning.

Swedroe, as nice a guy as he is intelligent, is constantly speaking, writing and sharing evidence-based lessons on investing with advisors and clients — which we can all benefit from. We appreciate him giving so generously of his time and talents over the past few weeks for our coverage.

Turning to other topics, Tim Welsh of Nexus Strategy gives his perspectives on two recent wealth-management events that have a tech focus in his Industry Insights column (on page 14). Washington Bureau Chief Melanie Waddell highlights the latest developments concerning the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Regulation Best Interest in her Playing Field contribution (on page 35). Plus, Mark Tibergien and Angie Herbers weigh in on the importance of organic growth for advisory firms (on pages 33 and 37, respectively).

As the pace of independent broker-dealer and advisor news continues to accelerate (or, at least, seems to be accelerating), we will strive to keep up and bring you the analysis you need to serve clients effectively. And, when we stumble, we will aim to recover quickly in order to meet those ever-present monthly deadlines.