Glen Golish on 36 Years of Helping Families Build, Protect, and Transfer Wealth
For more than three decades, Glen Golish has helped families, business owners, and philanthropists navigate complex financial decisions — from retirement and estate planning to multi-generational wealth and cross-border transitions. Born and raised in New Jersey, Golish’s journey into finance began at Drexel University in Philadelphia, where he enrolled in the school’s distinctive five-year co-op program.
Unlike traditional college programs, Drexel’s co-op model is designed to immerse students in the real world long before graduation. After a foundational first year on campus, students alternate between six months of full-time coursework and six months of full-time paid professional work. By the time they graduate, they have accumulated years of hands-on experience in their chosen field.
“You went to school for six months and then worked for six months. By the time you graduated, you didn’t just have a degree — you had real-world experience.”
For Golish, the co-op program became a turning point. Each placement exposed him to a different discipline, allowing him to test not only what he was good at, but what he truly enjoyed. That process of experimentation — rarely available in a traditional academic track — ultimately led him away from engineering and toward finance and economics, where he discovered both passion and purpose.
While playing on the Drexel soccer team, Golish completed four co-op placements — more than required — starting in engineering before discovering his true calling.
“I was good at engineering, but I hated it. Finance and economics is where I shined.”
He graduated number one in his class receiving the financial management and honor society award and entered the financial world in 1989 — beginning what has now become a 36-year career.
The Mentor Who Shaped His Career
Early on, Golish worked under Sid Friedman, a legendary figure in the insurance and financial planning world.
“Sid was the Michael Jordan of the insurance business. Forbes once ranked him the number one life-insurance/financial planner in the world. He taught me to focus on my unique ability — do what you do best and give away the rest.”
One of the most enduring lessons Friedman passed on was the importance of efficiency, particularly when it comes to estate planning and taxes.
“Estate tax is a bill no one wants to pay, but it’s real. Our job is to reduce waste, promote efficiency and create strategies so families keep more of what they’ve built.”
“He also told me people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care, once they know how much you care they don’t care how much you know”
From Philadelphia to Florida
Golish built his early practice in the Philadelphia area, but family life eventually brought him south. After marrying in 1992 and raising three children in Pennsylvania, he and his wife purchased a home in Florida in 1999 and gradually made the transition.Their fourth child was born in Florida.
“The move meant re-licensing and rebuilding relationships, but one introduction led to another, and the Florida practice took off.”
Today, Golish maintains clients across the country.
“I’m licensed in most states and work with clients nationwide. Face-to-face is great, but geography no longer limits great creative planning.”
What Makes His Approach Different
In an industry crowded with “financial coaches” and product-driven advisors, Golish draws a clear distinction.
“Most people think wealth is money, times rate of return, times time. That ignores efficiency — and that’s where most money is lost.”
His firm evaluates every component of a client’s financial life: investments, insurance, estate documents, taxes, real estate, business interests, and even full monthly budgets. Using advanced, independent financial-planning software — not tied to any single product provider — the team integrates everything into one coordinated strategy.
“We don’t sell products. We organize your entire financial world and make sure your accountant, attorney, and advisors are all working together.”
Golish describes his role as both a micro- and macro-manager.
“We find the broken window — the leak you didn’t even know existed — and seal it.”
Finding Hidden Inefficiencies
That level of detail has uncovered major savings for clients. In one case, a client with approximately $100 million in assets was paying 1.5% in fees.
“We reduced that to 0.6%. Over decades and across generations, that difference is an enormous lost opportunity that we were able to recapture.”
In another case, Golish’s firm identified a $17 million estate-tax exposure caused by advisors failing to coordinate with one another.
“Everyone did their job well — but they weren’t communicating. That kind of gap can devastate a family if it goes unnoticed.”
Multi-Generational Planning, Aliyah, and Snowbirds
A core focus of Golish’s work is preserving wealth across generations.
“By the third generation, most wealth is gone — lost to taxes, fees, efficiency and terrible planning. Our goal is to make it last.”
The firm also specializes in sophisticated planning for clients making aliyah.
“If you don’t plan before moving to Israel, your options shrink. We structure income, insurance, and tax strategies in advance so clients arrive secure and confident.”
Snowbirds — part-time Florida residents — are another growing segment of his practice.
“Most people don’t think they have a problem. Ninety percent of the time, we still find something — and we fix it.”
A Message to the Next Generation
Recognized by Forbes as a top-100 advisor for four consecutive years — including a recent ranking at number twenty nine — Golish views success as both a blessing and a responsibility.
“Start early. Save aggressively. Don’t assume TikTok, Instagram, or AI has all the answers. Technology is powerful, but wisdom still matters. If the younger generation combines innovation with experience, there’s no stopping them.”
