One of the great pleasures of being a financial planner comes from getting to know and engage with people. Having the pleasure of learning about an individual’s life goals, interests, activities, and hobbies is always an engrossing experience. Whether it’s a conversation about Italian cuisine, books, or perhaps my favorite topic, 1970s progressive rock, the pleasure derived from these conversations is unparalleled. In fact, my love of prog-rock runs so deep that I spent five years playing drums in a Jethro Tull tribute band. If you dig through YouTube or Facebook far enough, you’ll find me there somewhere.
My financial planning career began toward the end of 2009 after spending the prior year working as a substitute teacher in math. Suffice it to say that moving to a career in finance was much less noisy. The environment was certainly different, but I felt very comfortable with the change. I suppose you can say that numbers always spoke to me. Within a few years, I was promoted to analyst, and in February 2020, I completed the Accredited Investment Fiduciary® (AIF®) program. My career as an analyst was going quite smoothly, then the pandemic came…
At the start of the pandemic, my wife was four months pregnant. In August 2020, our little boy came into this world, a world that seemed so strange and confusing compared to the world we had known only six months prior.
One night, my wife and I found ourselves sitting together on the living room couch. It was around midnight, and we started to have a deep conversation about the future. If you can believe it, having a child changes what you want out of life. As we talked about what would be best for our new family, it was at that moment that I knew I wanted to take my career to the next level by becoming a financial planner.
Once the decision had been made, my goal to be the best advisor I could possibly be led to my pursuit of the Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®) designation. After a full year of rigorous study, some sleepless nights, and an overwhelming amount of Peet’s coffee, I passed the program and attained the designation in October 2023. The celebration was short-lived, though, as I immediately began to study for the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® exam. Cue the no sleep and constant influx of coffee. While challenging, it was all worth it as six months later, I was proud to call myself a CFP® practitioner. As an added bonus, I learned that having a three-year-old in the house doesn’t exactly foster an ideal studying environment.
Outside of my work, I enjoy reading a wide variety of subjects. During a period in which I found myself glued to books on psychology, I sat down to write my first published article, “An Alternative to the Risk Profile Questionnaire.” I also love early morning exercise, watching the Yankees and Rangers, making tomato sauce (fresh basil only and, if you really want to splurge, Mutti brand tomatoes), and, most of all, playing the drums. If you happen to call and want to talk drums, be prepared because we’re probably going to be talking for quite a while. And yes, Ringo was a great drummer.
This is my story. I look forward to meeting you and learning about yours.