My “Why”

At a young age I understood the power of perseverance and finances. I grew up watching my perseverant hard-working mom (and single parent), struggle with her finances.  As much as I wanted to help, the greatest help was to get an education. As I was good at math and had a deep interest in learning about finances, it made sense to go into business school and study finance. My goal has always been to empower others with financial tools to help them make money work for them. 

During my college years I worked for a Financial Advisor. He taught me about investments, retirement and how to help clients with their financial goals. During this time, I was studying and working full time; but work did not feel like work. I enjoyed talking to clients and helping them as much as I could. I also had an immense interest in helping low income individuals.  During tax season, I volunteered at the IRS (Internal Revenue Services) and helped low income individuals file their taxes. 

After I graduated from college, my boss offered me to partner with him as a Financial Advisor. Even though the proposition was tempting, I knew there was more for me to learn and explore.  At that time, I had an interest in banking and wanted to explore this avenue. I became a banker and even though the job itself was not as challenging, I enjoyed interacting with clients and helping them whenever possible. I cared about them and took the time to listen to their needs; this was reflected as they did not want to see anyone else.

My interest has always been in strategy and financial analytics, I wanted to learn how large companies were doing things. I got an offer to work abroad at the Headquarters of one of the largest banks in the world - as a Strategic Planning Analyst. I moved to Amsterdam and got to work and learn from some of the smartest people I have known. 

During my career I have worked with privately and publicly held companies in a range of different industries, such as; Technology, Transportation, Consumer Goods, Education & Banking. 

After 20 years in Corporate Finance, I felt like something was missing. At some point I thought my interest in Finance had vanished. After doing some soul searching, it became clear to me that I got lost in the corporate world and forgot about my “why.”

My “why” is to have a direct impact and help business owners manage their finances, not the other way around. My “why” is to be of service to others and share my knowledge to help businesses with purpose grow. My “why” is to contribute in my community and use my knowledge to help those in need.