Office Hours with Kuldeep Madan

Bracelets, Backgammon, and the Bets of Gershon Distenfeld

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 13:50:12 GMT

On this episode of Office Hours, Kuldeep Madan sits down with Gershon Distenfeld — outgoing Co-Head of Fixed Income at AllianceBernstein, a regular on Bloomberg TV and CNBC, and a World Series of Poker bracelet winner who gave the winnings to charity. They open with the origin story: how a "difficult" client relationship with Vince D'Addona turned Gershon into one of Kuldeep's clients, and the running joke that came out of it. From there, Gershon traces the path from a modern Orthodox childhood in Teaneck, New Jersey, through a Y2K-era start at Alliance Bernstein to three decades running fixed income. The real thread of the conversation is probability — how he separates good decisions from good outcomes, the red-ball/blue-ball thought experiment he uses on clients and his own team, and how that same mindset drove him to chase a WSOP bracelet and now a shot at the World Backgammon Championship in Monte Carlo. Along the way: the on-air freeze that became trading-desk legend ("Are you there, Gershon?"), his philosophy on media training, becoming co-head of a 200-person department with the help of an executive "marriage counselor," and a candid rapid-fire round on books, advice, and what's next after retirement. References & links - No Rules Rules — Reed Hastings & Erin Meyer · his top recommendation for "philosophy" reading · No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention: Hastings, Reed, Meyer, Erin: 9781984877864: … - Thinking in Bets — Annie Duke · his other recommendation, ties directly to his decisions-vs-outcomes philosophy · https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Thinking+in+Bets+Annie+Duke - Frida McFadden (thriller author) — his one non-work reading this year; no specific title named, so link his author page rather than a single book · https://www.amazon.com/stores/Freida-McFadden/author/B08JQBLQXV - World Series of Poker — for the bracelet reference · WSOP | The Official Site for Poker News, Schedules & Stats | WSOP.com - AllianceBernstein — his firm · Our Firm | AllianceBernstein

Joe Gaglio on Hitting Full Send, Family Business & Scaling Shepherd Wealth

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 14 Sep 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Rick Hu on Fee-Based Planning, Business-Owner Mindset & Building Midas Wealth

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Rick Hu is known as "The Titan," a top 1% producer and founder/CEO of Midas Wealth. On this episode of Office Hours, he sits down with Kuldeep Madan to talk fee-based planning, the business-owner mindset every advisor needs, and why he walked away from the #1 practice in the country to start over. From food stamps and Medicaid in Brooklyn to Northwestern Mutual's youngest-ever managing director at 25 and back-to-back Forbes recognition, Rick's story is equal parts deeply personal and intensely practical. He opens up about the immigrant childhood that shaped him, buying his father's dream car, the moment his wife's ultimatum made him rethink everything, and coughing blood from overwork. Then he turns to the hard-won business lessons behind Midas Wealth: protecting your time, knowing your hourly rate, hiring people smarter than you, and treating yourself as a business owner first and an advisor second. He closes on the future of the profession — fee-for-advice, education over product, and why he believes AI will wipe out transactional advisors but never the ones who lead with people. In this episode:  • Growing up on food stamps and the "love is spelled T-I-M-E" philosophy  • Buying a Rolls-Royce Cullinan and why  • The wife's ultimatum that made him retire from a #1 practice  • Losing 70% of his revenue overnight and replenishing it in two years  • "You're a business owner first, not an advisor." • Fee-based planning vs. product-based selling, and the AI reckoning ahead  • Building a team from 3 to 27, and firing his own mom Referenced in this episode:  • Midas Wealth (Rick's firm) — https://www.midas-wealth.com/  • Northwestern Mutual — https://www.northwesternmutual.com  • Forum 400, the elite advisor community where Rick & Kuldeep met (now part of Finseca) — https://www.finseca.org/forum-400/  • Forbes Best-in-State / Top Financial Security Professionals — https://www.forbes.com/best-in-state-wealth-advisors/  • Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson (the ousted-then-returned story Rick references) — https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Steve+Jobs+Walter+Isaacson  • Rick's session at the M+ Masterclass (September) on fee-based planning — https://events.madanplus.com/registration Connect with Rick Hu: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamrickhu/ https://www.instagram.com/iamrickhu/?hl=en @Iamrickhu Subscribe to Office Hours for more conversations with the smartest people in financial services. #FinancialAdvisor #FeeBasedPlanning #FinancialPlanning #OfficeHours #MidasWealth #BusinessOwner #FinancialServices #Entrepreneurship

Billiards, BDITs, and the Brilliance of Vince D'Addona

Kuldeep Madan — Wed, 10 Jun 2026 14:03:45 GMT

On this episode of Office Hours, Kuldeep sits down with industry veteran Vince D'Addona for a candid, funny, and unfiltered conversation about what it really takes to build a career in financial services.

Sneakers, Strategy, and the Success of Sahand Elmtalab

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 09:00:00 GMT

On this episode of Office Hours, Kuldeep Madan sits down with Sahand Elmtalab, managing partner of Catalyst Group and MassMutual's 2020 National Advisor of the Year, for a wide-ranging, personal conversation about how great advisory practices are built.

Permission to Spend, Whole Life Wisdom, and Lie-UL’s with Tom Wall

Kuldeep Madan — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 18:01:42 GMT

On this episode of Office Hours, Kuldeep sits down with Tom Wall, founder of Whole Life Masterminds, host of the Fast Start Forum, and author of Permission to Spend. Tom traces his path from financial advisor at Northwestern Mutual to home office wholesaler to one of the industry's most trusted educators. They dive into the real mechanics of whole life versus IUL (which Tom calls "Lie-UL"), who should and shouldn't own whole life, the truth behind dividend interest rates, the history of mutual insurance companies (yes, they go surprisingly deep), and the risks hiding inside premium financing. Tom also shares the origin story behind Permission to Spend, why he's rewriting it, and a preview of his next book, built around the "2% Solution." The two also swap stories about risk-taking, mentorship, and the friendship that brought them together, before Tom closes out with what makes Whole Life Masterminds special and a look ahead to the 2027 Fast Start Forum at The Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona. Books featured: Permission to Spend: Maximize Your Retirement with the Best-Kept Secret in Personal Finance by Tom Wall https://www.amazon.com/dp/1959840215 Events referenced: Whole Life Masterminds — A Premier Mastermind for Financial Advisors https://whole-life-masterminds.mykajabi.com/ Fast Start Forum 2027, January 17–20, The Phoenician, Scottsdale, AZ — sign up at https://faststartforum.com/ Madan+ Masterclass Event, September 27–29, Miami https://madanplus.com/masterclass

Buses, Beginnings, and the Brains of Michael Book

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 17 Aug 2026 05:00:00 GMT

On this episode of Office Hours, Kuldeep Madan sits down with Michael Book, founding partner of Lenox Advisors, a 35-year industry veteran, a member of the Finseca Hall of Fame for leadership and mentorship, and a new grandfather. The two trace how they met, a chance encounter when their Jeeps got stuck in the Dubai desert, before Michael walks through his whole arc: a sports-obsessed Long Island and New Jersey childhood, a college career he admits was more fun than academic, three and a half years selling for his dad's plastics company, and the cousin's tip that pulled him into the life insurance business. From there, he unpacks how Lenox grew into one of the most productive firms in the country, the leadership lessons behind it, getting the right people "on the bus," delegating and empowering, reading people, and never being afraid of the hard conversation. He outlines his personal philosophies, which he's become known for, like "be where your feet are." Warm, funny, and full of hard-earned wisdom, Michael Book walks us through how he built a remarkably successful career, and how he learned to stay focused on what he cares about most along the way.

Pain, Presence, and Purpose with Joe Mallee

Kuldeep Madan — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 13:00:00 GMT

Live from the MassMutual Disney Leaders Conference, and after winning the 2025 Advisor of the Year award, Kuldeep sits down with Joe Mallee, Head of MassMutual Financial Advisors, for a wide-ranging conversation recorded on-site. They dig into Joe's "expensive book club" friendship with Kuldeep, the loss of his mother and the cause it inspired, what it takes to go from advisor to GA to home office leadership, and his rules for staying present under pressure. Books mentioned: - Principles: Life and Work — Ray Dalio: Principles: Life and Work: Dalio, Ray: 9781501124020: Amazon.com: Books - The Power of Now — Eckhart Tolle: The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment: Tolle, Eckhart: 9781577314806: Amazon.com: Books - 1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History — Andrew Ross Sorkin: 1929: Inside the Greatest Crash in Wall Street History-and How It Shattered a Nation: Sorkin, Andrew - Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why — Laurence Gonzales: Deep Survival: Who Lives, Who Dies, and Why: Gonzales, Laurence: 9780393353716: Amazon.com: Books - War — Sebastian Junger: War: Sebastian Junger: 9781455501588: Amazon.com: Books