Meet SOPHIA

For the last couple of years we have been cultivating this persona, “SOPHIA”, we could not think of a better time to bring “her” to life as we gear up to watch the women of Team USA dominate in Paris. We are bearing witness to something special. Caitlin Clark and her massive shoe contract with Nike is packing the houses at WNBA games, the Nebraska’s volleyball team set a world record for attendance at women’s sporting event with 92,000 people on hand and the NIL has shifted power to the athletes who “own” their brand. Our time has come… More eyeballs, more sponsorships and a real seat at the table, finally. I get goose bumps as I listen to Allyson Felix discuss her running success and proudly watch her hold up that bronze medal in the 4X400 meter with her daughter Camryn. The athletic feat itself is impressive, but to hear her talk about the challenges she faced with finding childcare and how motherhood has affected her journey, leaves me feeling emboldened, excited and above anything else, motivated to get SOPHIA out.

Even though everyday may feel like a marathon, just not Olympic ones, I am proud to wear a different uniform to work every day as a financial advisor. I’ve worked hard to get here and bring my best every day. My clients are for the most part high net worth individuals who are extremely successful. They have hired me because they value my expertise, my experience and dedication. We are always looking to get better and make our clients more successful in whatever it is they are looking to achieve. Much of this is about trust and a really good relationship is based on open lines of communication. After talking to my female clients specifically about their backgrounds and stories, what I hear most often is something that sounds like “I wish I had started saving or investing sooner and I should have done X or Y”.

What they are really saying is “I wish financial literacy was as important to teach as algebra”. I hear you, and I could not agree more. A personal lack of financial knowledge costs American’s $1,819 annually. Grab a calculator, see what that adds up to over the course of your lifetime. Unfortunately for women, they are often even more disadvantaged as they earn just 82 cents on the dollar versus their male counterparts performing the same job. But that’s just the average. You could be the highest paid WNBA player, Jackie Young, who makes $252K a year. Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors makes $51.9 million. That’s 252X more, wow…

Women making less than men for the same job described as the compensation sacrifice. There are also personal tradeoffs like motherhood, where they often leave the workforce in their early or peak earnings years, and then again later in life when aging parents or other family members need care. Losing the time or the money can wreak havoc on your financial plans. This can be disheartening, but there are things we can do now and in the future to blunt their impact and make sure we close the gaps from the hand we are dealt as women.

Personal finance, building wealth, managing debt and savings may not be the most inviting topics. When you Google them, you’ll see these cold images of charts and spread sheets, men in suits, piggy banks or money bags. It’s often said that “success is the combination of hard work and luck intersecting.” I admit those two forces collided for me with really positive outcomes both personally and professionally. A career in the world of finance allowed me the opportunity to serve others while exposing me to some really critical concepts early on. When I graduated college, I couldn’t rub two nickels together after paying for rent and my $600 monthly student loan payment. Many a month went by when I would just pray that I wouldn’t max out my credit card before the end of the month.

Slowly but surely, I earned the gift of financial freedom and the sense of empowerment that came with using my money to do the things that brought me the most joy. No more worrying about getting everyone Christmas gifts in December, being able to say yes to the girl’s trip to SF, and best of all, moving those Zillow “dreams” into the “I might actually be able to afford this in my favorite city” reality.

But what should we call these often younger, intelligent, motivated people… the establishment opted for HENRY…

High

Earner

Not Rich

Yet

You can appreciate my disappointment when now the marketing is HENRY this, or HENRY that. No disrespect to the actual HENRYs (or Henrys) out there.... But the fact that the financial services marketing industry opted for a male persona was a missed opportunity. We know men aren’t the only high income earners so why neglect half of the population, especially those on the rise? I’m not sure and, honestly, I don’t care.... After working with super successful, highly intelligent and wealthy clients for the many years, my partners and I sat down to reflect on what makes us unique, what we bring to the table and who it is we serve with a real sense of purpose. The takeaway: Our clients are actually pretty boss, many of whom are women. There are too many to name, or whose identity we would respectfully like to keep confidential, so instead meet SOPHIA , who embodies their excellence and perseverance. These successful individuals share three common themes:

Save – Often

Plan – Holistically

Invest – Aggressively & Always (and not like crypto or zero-day options “aggressive”, more like I want my money to work as hard as I do type “aggressive”).

Follow us to learn more about how all those SOPHIAs out there can live their best lives. Just because you are a high earner doesn’t tell me anything, it’s what you do with that potential.

Can’t wait to see those athletes on the podium who turned potential into greatness.

P.S. HENRY don’t be embarrassed when SOPHIA picks up the tab...