With Sharon away for work this week, we invited Andrew Opdyke, CFA from First Trust to join us to address a concern that many people have this year: the future of the market. What's ​the ​Fed ​going ​to ​do? ​Where's ​this ​economy ​going? ​How's ​this ​election ​going ​to ​affect ​my ​portfolio ​and ​my ​financial ​future? We tackle all these pressing financial questions and get Andrew’s thoughts on the year ahead.   Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode: What will the Fed do with interest rates in 2024? What impact did COVID have with the shutdown and the government spending that followed? What is driving inflation right now? The issue that stems from consumer debt continuing to rise. How will the US service their massive debt and what problems is that causing? The impact AI will have on everything.   About our guest: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewopdyke    Visit us online: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/   Get the CE Certificate here: https://beyondthemaskpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Beyond-the-Mask-CE-Cert-FILLABLE.pdf   Help us grow by leaving a review: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beyond-the-mask-innovation-opportunities-for-crnas/id1440309246   Donate to Our Heart Your Hands here: https://www.ourheartsyourhands.org/donate