Spain Won the World Cup as Tesla & Alphabet Face Their Biggest Week

Welcome to the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily. I'm Mike Milligan, Certified Financial Planner, founder of One Oak Financial, and host of the Ideas by Mike podcast. It is Monday, July 20th. Spain lifted the World Cup trophy yesterday in extra time. Lionel Messi walked off in tears thanking the Argentina faithful. England and France gave us a 10-goal classic on Saturday, and this morning we look at the biggest earnings week of the summer with a, uh, Very personal trend woven through the whole show. Educate, coach, plan. Never miss a moment.

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Let me set the scene from last night. New York, New Jersey Stadium. Spain versus Argentina. The defending champions versus the European champions. For the first 90 minutes, nothing. For the first, for, for the first 2 15-minute periods of extra time, Argentina played the last 30 minutes down a man when Enzo Fernandez was sent off with a red card. Spain had a goal disallowed. Nico Williams had a header saved. Then in the 116th minute, Pedro Porro sent a ball to the back post. Nico Williams headed it down, and Torres, a 62nd-minute substitute, Thumped at home, 1-0 Spain, world champions for the second time in 16 years. And here is the number that will stick with me: over 120 minutes, Argentina did not put a single shot on target. An offensive juggernaut, no shots on goal. After the whistle, Lionel Messi, 39 years old, playing what many think is his last World Cup match, stood in front of the Argentinian Supporters and cried. He thanked the fans. He put a hand on his heart, and Spain took the trophy home to the Iberian Peninsula. The day before, though, on Saturday, England and France played the match of the tournament in Miami, a 6-4 thriller. Saka scored a hat trick for England. Mbappé scored twice, taking the career World Cup total to 22 goals, the most in men's history. And Bellingham, a Substitute, a normal starter and star substitute toward the end of the match, sealed it in stoppage time. Here's the financial planning lesson from the weekend. Argentina had the greatest of all time on their team. Spain had a plan. Argentina had the emotional edge. Messi trying to end his career on top. Spain had the plan. Argentina got 12 of the last 30 minutes down a man. Spain had the plan. Talent will get you there. Story will get you there. But when the game goes to extra time, and life always goes to extra time, the plan is what puts you on the podium. In a market that has felt like a casino, according to Warren Buffett last week, in a summer where the biggest names get punished for a whole— for a light guide the way Netflix did last Thursday, you do not out-story the market. and you do not out-hustle the market, you out-plan the market. We're not chasing returns. We are building a one-of-a-kind financial plan for your one-of-a-kind life. And one more note, the next Men's World Cup in 2030 will be hosted jointly by Spain, Portugal, and Morocco with a special opening match in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay to mark the 100-year anniversary of the very first World Cup in 1930. If your plan has a trip to Iberia, Iberia, the Iberian Peninsula in the summer of 2030 on the wish list, start budgeting today. That is planning. Next to the week ahead, and it's a big one. Last week we had big bank earnings that beat expectations. We had Netflix Netflix guide light and drop about nine percent after hours. We had Warren Buffett on CNBC telling us. It's tough to find values when everybody is preferring gambling. This week, the tape gets tested even harder. Nearly 140 S&P 500 companies report 2nd quarter earnings. Let me flag 5 to watch. This is educational only, and it's not a recommendation to buy any of these. On Tuesday, General Motors opens or reports before the open. That is a read on the American auto market, new car prices, used car prices, the electric vehicle trends. position and much— and how much the consumer is willing to finance a car right now. And on Tuesday, also on Tuesday, 3M, Charles Schwab, Halliburton, Northrop Grumman, and Danaher. Wednesday is the marquee day of the week. Alphabet, the parent of Google, reports after the close. So does Tesla. So does IBM, even after warning that spooked the market last week. So do Texas Instruments, ServiceNow, and AT&T. And before the open, Philip Morris, GE, CME Group, and Moody's. That is a full picture of AI advertising, electric vehicles, industrials, and payments. Thursday, Intel reports after the earning. This is the read on the semiconductor cycle that hurt the last tape, the tape on Thursday. And Blackstone before the open, a read on private markets. Also that day, Union Pacific, Honeywell, T-Mobile, and Lockheed Martin. We close the week. We close this action-packed week. With American Express, Verizon, and SLB. Amex is the read on the higher-end consumer. Verizon is going to be the read on the phone bill that is in every American household. Here's the education. The market spent last week deciding who is investing and who is gambling. This week, the market decides whether the biggest names in America are actually delivering the growth their prices assume. That is not for us to trade. That's for us to watch and for us to plan around.

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I'm gonna take a minute this morning for a personal word because I promised you at the top of every show we would never miss a moment. My daughter left this weekend with her team from Grace Klein Community in Birmingham, Alabama, headed to South Africa. She will be there for the next couple weeks visiting and serving alongside partner ministries. Grace Klein's motto is to love, serve, share, repeat. That is exactly what she's going to do. If you're a person who prays, please pray for her and team for safe travel. For hearts that are ready to receive and for hands that are ready to serve. My youngest, Paige, is wrapping up her summer internship this week with Samaritan's Purse in North Carolina. That organization has served in some of the hardest places on earth. Watching her serve there this summer has been one of the highlights of my year so far. And Leon and I are on the road too, traveling in Utah and Colorado for most of this week, so if the show tomorrow sounds a little different, that's why. But we'll be here every day, 6 to 8 minutes, because that is the promise— never miss a moment. Then Friday, I fly back to Norfolk because Friday our One Oak Financial team is celebrating something we've been working toward for a very long time— B Corp certification.

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So what is B Corp certification? And what does that mean? And why is it worth celebrating? B Corp is a designation granted by a nonprofit called B Lab. To earn it, a company has to score above a minimum threshold on what is called the B Impact Assessment, a third-party audited review of the company's performance across 5 areas: governance, workers, community, environment, and customers. You do not check a box. You do not pay a fee and get a logo. B Lab audits your operations. B Lab verifies your practices, and every 3 years you have to recertify. A B Corp is a company that has legally committed to consider the impact of its decisions, not just on shareholders, but on all stakeholders— employees, clients, community, and the environment. There are a few— there are fewer than 10,000 certified B Corps in the entire world. Patagonia is one. Ben& Jerry's is one. King Arthur Baking is one. And on Friday, One Oak Financial celebrates becoming one. I want to hear why that matters. I want you to hear why that matters for a financial planning firm. If you're trusting somebody with your retirement, your legacy, and your one-of-a-kind life, you should know that they are governed. You should know that they treat their people well. You should know how they serve their community. And you should know that a third party has verified all of it. That is what B Corp does. That's why we chased it. And that is why Friday is a big day for our team.

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Spain lifted the trophy. Argentina wiped away tears. England and France gave us a classic. And this week the market takes its next test. My family is all over the world. And life is happening on every field this week. Because at the end of the week, we're gonna have a lot to discuss on what— on the earnings, and a lot to celebrate with B Corp. We're not chasing returns, folks. We're building a one-of-a-kind financial plan for a one-of-a-kind life. Estoy aprendiendo. So are you. Educate, coach, plan. Never miss a moment. We'll see you tomorrow. This program is for educational purposes only. It's not investment advice and not a recommendation to buy or sell any specific security or product. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Consult your own licensed financial professional before making any investment decision. I am a Certified Financial Planning Professional and the founder of One Oak Financial. I'm also an investment advisory representative with Advisory Alpha LLC. Ideas by Mike, doing business as One Oak Financial and Advisory LLC, are unaffiliated entities.

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