I went to college wanting to make an impact on the world around me. Majoring in Political Science with a minor in Economics was the route I chose. Because of my love of sports, I wanted to find a way to combine my passion for helping people with sports. My initial thought was to become a sports agent. I wanted to be Jerry Maquire… before Jerry Maquire. I thought that by serving professional athletes and helping them gain financial success, it would trickle down to everyone having the ability to enjoy seeing their favorite athletes. Over time I realized that wasn’t the best way to impact people’s lives, rather, helping people gain financial success was a better aspiration.
I spent the first five years out of college as a financial advisor, learning the business. At the time I didn’t really understand the value of marketing or networking. Rather, I did things the old fashion way, cold calling on businesses and people who just purchased homes. It was a brutal way to start but it helped me build a strong work ethic and a belief structure in the value that someone should bring to their clients.
After some brief success as an advisor, I was recruited into a corporate position with a large mutual life insurance company. With my growing family, it was nice to gain a position that allowed me to continue to build a business while also receiving a salary for the work I did in the corporate setting. Over time, as I moved up the ranks into leadership roles, I had to give up my clients to focus more on corporate business. While I no longer worked directly with clients—my influence on recruiting, training and developing advisors and frontline leaders gave me a greater reach at helping more people. While I personally could only help maybe fifty people a year as an advisor, by influencing two to three thousand advisors and leaders I could expand that reach to over one hundred and fifty thousand people.
During this time, I was given the opportunity to excel at various roles. I developed and adopted best practices for helping individual and business clients and gained tremendous insight on running a business. I also found that I really enjoyed helping others gain success. Whether it be a new advisor that I helped develop or a business owner where we were able to formulate a strategy that contributed to their financial success, I learned that to better serve people you need to have an effective process. Something that would bring consistency to your efforts while allowing you to customize solutions based on the individual goals and desires of each client.
After spending over thirty years in various leadership roles with two Fortune 500 organizations and a smaller international firm, which I ultimately helped divest their US businesses, I decided to semi-retire. I was offered a leadership position with another large Fortune 500 firm just prior to COVID in 2019. While a fantastic opportunity, the new role meant moving from our home in New York to the Midwest, and it wasn’t something me or my family wanted to do. I thought I had enough and would just relax, enjoy my free time, maybe even do some consulting. After a short time, I found that I missed the energy and excitement of the business world. I really missed having an impact on other people’s lives.
After speaking with longtime friend and colleague, Nash Subotic, CEO and Founder of WestPac Wealth Partners, I realized that getting back to doing what I started doing out of college was what I needed to do to feed my soul. I always loved sitting across from someone, listening to their goals, concerns, fears and challenges; and helping them come up with solutions. I loved helping businesses and business owners succeed and grow.
Aligning with WestPac Wealth Partners has been a dream come true. Over my career I have worked with, and for, some of the best financial firms in the world. I have been part of industry organizations and study groups to help develop best practices in planning as well as organizational development, and I have found no other firm like WestPac. They provide unparalleled support, structure and resources for me to be able to do what I love – help people make smart financial decisions.
Unlike many other advisors and firms who push products or investments, Westpac takes a more consultative approach. Really getting to know their clients, what they want and ultimately working together with them, and their other advisors, to reach their goals. Many advisors use the buzz words ‘holistic planning’ but we truly do take an integrated and holistic approach to planning. We discuss all aspects of someone’s beliefs, values and goals as well as their finances to help them achieve optimal results, no matter what economic fluctuations occur. It’s not a one and done event, but rather ongoing consultation, helping clients make progress towards reaching their goals. We not only help people get financially organized, but we help them mitigate risks, reduce debt and taxes, save more, and become efficient wealth managers. Our plans are stress tested to make sure that they are optimal in all economic conditions.
Moving to Scottsdale has always been a dream of ours. So, when the opportunity and location came together, my wife and I jumped in with two feet! We moved here almost four years ago and wish we had twenty years sooner. We love the weather, entertainment and recreational activities available. We love to hike, work out and stay fit. I enjoy the great golf courses in the valley. I’m starting to get into pickleball. While I have spent much of my time networking and getting to know people and businesses to build my business, we have filled our free time with exploring, meeting new people, checking out the art scene, and trying a variety of great restaurants throughout the valley. It’s funny that we hear so many people talk about their ‘fifteen-minute bubble,’ where they primarily stay within fifteen minutes of their home. We haven’t adopted that approach. We like to see all that the valley has to offer.
My wife Marie and I have been married for thirty-seven years. We have two dogs, Abbey and Stella, three children and six grandchildren. I am so proud of my family. They are all in professions that serve others. My wife is a retired registered nurse, teacher and administrator; my oldest son is in law enforcement and is a Chaplain in the Army Reserves. My other son is Army Special Forces, and my daughter is a Special Education teacher.
Six months ago, our oldest son, daughter-in-law and his four children made the move west. It is nice having family here now, and my wife is slowly dripping on my other two children and their families to make the move. We will see what the future brings, but even if they don’t—we have become the vacation destination for our family to visit.
Registered Representative and Financial Advisor of Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS). OSJ: 5280 CARROLL CANYON ROAD, SUITE 300, SAN DIEGO
CA, 92121, 619-6846400. Securities products and advisory services offered through PAS, member FINRA, SIPC. Financial Representative of The
Guardian Life Insurance Company of America® (Guardian), New York, NY. PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Guardian. WestPac Wealth
Partners LLC is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. Insurance products offered through WestPac Wealth Partners and Insurance
Services, LLC, a DBA of WestPac Wealth Partners, LLC. CA Insurance License Number - 4130762. | 7866487.1 Exp. 04/27
I really take a very simple approach; I help people make smart financial decisions. It has become more than just my tag line— it has become my passion, my mission.
They provide unparalleled support, structure and resources for me to be able to do what I love.
Our oldest son, daughter-in-law and his four children made the move west. It is nice having family here now.