Joel Greenberg - Prudential Advisors

09/01/2026

I’m excited to share that my first article has been published in The Times of Israel—just in time for Rosh Hashanah!

I’ve been posting short thoughts about money, family, values, and personal growth. This article goes deeper by exploring the spiritual side of financial planning through the familiar Rosh Hashanah themes of teshuvah (repentance and return), tefillah (prayer), and tzedakah (charitable giving).

Although these ideas are especially meaningful at Rosh Hashanah, they can help us rethink our finances—and almost any part of our lives—at any time of the year.

What do we want our money, our work, and our success to make possible?

“The Spiritual Side of Financial Planning”

From the blog of Joel M. Greenberg at The Times of Israel

08/13/2026

Mazel tov to Social Security.

Tomorrow is its 91st birthday.

Pretty amazing when you think about it. It has helped support our parents, grandparents, widows, retirees, and millions of families over the years.

I know plenty of people say Social Security is going away.

I don’t think that is happening anytime soon.

But Social Security, we love you — and we really need you to get healthy fast.

This also fits perfectly with my Rosh Hashanah theme.

We are about one month away, so here is one simple financial thing to do before the new year:

Log in and download your Social Security statement.

Part of financial planning is simply gathering the right documents and knowing where you stand. This is an important one.

It can show your estimated retirement benefits, survivor benefits, earnings history, and help you understand how Social Security fits into your retirement plan.

You do not need to solve everything today.

Just take the first step.

Download the statement.

Happy 91st, Social Security. We are counting on you. 😂

07/31/2026

Yesterday, as part of my Rosh Hashanah—or midyear—reset, I posted about choosing one expense to reduce, one place to save more, and one mitzvah or meaningful habit to begin.

That made me think about a book I listened to before canceling Audible: Ed Mylett’s The Power of One More.

Oh my goodness—it is awesome.

I am keeping it downloaded because this is one of those books I want to listen to again and again. The ideas are great, but even more importantly, the actions in the book are practical and powerful.

The message is simple: there is real power in doing one more.

So let’s apply The Power of One More to yesterday’s list:

What is one more expense I can cut or reduce?

What is one more step I can take to save or invest more?

What is one more mitzvah—or good deed—I can add?

And what is one more skill I can develop? That might be the thing that leads to a raise, creates a new opportunity, or helps my business and finances really take off.

One more may not feel significant in the moment. But repeated over time, it can change our finances, our careers, our spiritual lives—and who we become.

This is how we begin the new year already becoming a better version of ourselves.

07/29/2026

I don’t know where the summer went, but somehow we are already 44 days away from Rosh Hashanah.

Rather than waiting for the new year and trying to change everything at once, let’s get a head start with a few small improvements in both our financial and spiritual lives.

And everyone is welcome to join, even if you’re not Jewish. Anytime is a good time for a reset.

Here is the first challenge: one less, one more and one mitzvah.

Start by lowering or eliminating one expense. It could be a subscription you are not really using or a monthly bill you may be able to renegotiate.

For me, Audible was an easy one to cancel—especially since I still have hundreds of hours of books waiting for me. Apparently, buying the audiobook and listening to the audiobook are two different hobbies.

I also called Xfinity and was able to lower my monthly bill. Calling the internet company is exactly the kind of thing I might normally put off, but even for a quiet guy, it was surprisingly easy.

Next, increase the amount going into one place where you save or invest. It could be your workplace retirement plan, savings account, IRA or brokerage account. Ideally, save more than the amount you just cut, but at a minimum, redirect that money before it quietly disappears into something else.

Finally, choose one easy mitzvah or meaningful habit to add daily or weekly. It could be giving a small amount of tzedakah, reading one page from a spiritual or personal-growth book, or reaching out to someone who could use a little encouragement.

For an easy way to begin giving, check out daily giving, which makes it simple to give $1 each day. For daily mussar learning, check out Hachzek at https://www.hachzek.com/. They will even send you a free book to help you get started.

The goal is not to reinvent ourselves in one day. It is simply to start moving in the right direction.

Small changes build momentum, and momentum can help us enter the new year a little stronger financially, spiritually and personally.

Food for thought as we head toward the new year: What is one expense you can lower, one place you can save more and one mitzvah or meaningful habit you can begin?

04/29/2026

Your portfolio should not be built for someone else’s nerves.

That may sound obvious, but it happens all the time.

Someone hears what a friend is doing.

Or sees what worked recently.

Or stays in an old investment mix that no longer fits their actual life.

Asset allocation is really about deciding how much belongs in stocks, bonds, cash, and other investments based on your goals, timeline, and comfort with risk.

The wrong mix can create two problems:

Too much risk when you cannot afford it.

Or too little risk when your goals need growth.

A good portfolio is not just one that performs.

It is one you can live with.

Question to think about:

Does your current investment mix match your real life, or just your last account statement?

—

This post is part of a series on what full-service financial planning can look like — beyond investments, beyond products, and focused on helping people make clearer decisions about their financial lives.