I was raised with little knowledge of the stock market. I knew when it was up and when it was down at an early age. Not the stock market I watch today though, the stock market I knew about was what prices cattle and sheep were selling for in a given year.
I grew up on a small ranch in the town of Malta about 300 miles east of where I live now in Kalispell Montana. We didn’t ride horses to school (although we could have) but it was still very remote compared to the way most Americans grow up. Malta is a town of about 1500 people. It was a great place to grow up and I am thankful of the values that were instilled in me from my unique upbringing.
The topic of money wasn’t discussed much in my family and when it was talked about it wasn’t typically a positive discussion. My parents didn’t have a savings account much less retirement accounts and what we used to operate each year was usually borrowed from the local bank. My parents worked hard, but hard work itself wasn’t enough to give us the life we dreamed and talked about having one day. Poor money management and the lack of planning kept us in a constant deficit and at odds with the local lending institutions.
By the time my younger sister and I entered high school, my dad started working in the oil fields and things got easier for my family for a while. Even though we had much more income during this time it wouldn’t last. No one was helping them make smart financial decisions with their increased income and with nothing being saved when the income dried up when the oil slowed down so did all the money.
During my final year in college, I was encouraged by my business professors to apply for an internship at a local brokerage firm. It was an introduction to the finance industry and provided the training to take the general securities exam. I was one of a few selected for the internship and I was able to get my start in the finance industry.
In a short amount of time, I realized how much I had to learn and started seeing some of the mistakes that had been made by my family throughout the years. Investing wasn’t only for rich people! Investing and saving should be for everyone. Small changes can make a huge difference in one’s financial picture and sometimes all people need is someone to show them what is possible.
People need a trusted person to go to help them navigate complex financial decisions and to help avoid pitfalls. I believe that through proper planning and by making informed decisions we can change our current course and live the life we imagine for ourselves and our loved ones. This is what I hope to help my clients accomplish.