How I Manage My Own Money as a Financial Advisor
My childhood home wasn't one of excess. We were on the free lunch program at school, and I have clear memories of huddling around a space heater on cold mornings. This was pretty normal for my neighborhood, so it never felt strange. But we were lucky—our needs were always met, and my parents often gave what little we had to spare to families who had even less. They instilled in me the importance of caring for others, a value I admire more and more as I get older.
So much of how I handle our family's finances today is shaped by those early experiences. I’m a firm believer in keeping things simple, and that journey starts with defining what “enough” means to you. Society’s version of enough is a constantly moving target; there’s always a bigger house or a fancier car. But true enough is an internal measure. For me, it’s the line between satisfaction and excess. Thanks to my upbringing, I don't need a lot of material things to feel content. I’ve found that the common trappings of wealth often complicate life instead of enriching it. I never want my possessions to end up possessing me.
Expensive watches and high-end cars have never been my thing, which probably makes it easier for me to embrace this mindset. I actually think it’s healthy to have wants that go unfulfilled. We live comfortably, but anything beyond our definition of enough is either saved or given away. We keep it simple. Even as our household income has grown over the years, my wife and I have intentionally kept our lifestyle the same. People rarely talk about it, but I believe our spending habits will determine 80% or more of our financial destiny. Our success won't come from picking the right funds; it will come from our discipline to live well below our means. A key lesson in and families alike is that behavior is the biggest factor.
Our Financial Framework
I couldn't do this alone. My wife and I are completely aligned on our finances. We’re both savers who are passionate about giving back to causes we care about. We give not just to support the cause, but because it’s good for us, too. We’ve been fortunate, and we feel a responsibility to be good stewards of our resources.
We’re also not fans of debt. We pay cash for nearly everything, including our cars. The only debt we carry is our mortgage, and with its low interest rate, I follow the same advice I give my clients: I haven't paid an extra penny toward the principal in the ten years since we bought our home. Having the funds available to pay it off is, in my mind, the same as it being paid off. This system works for us.
We have three primary financial goals:
- Prepare for retirement.
- Pay for our two sons' college education.
- Be ready for life's “what ifs.”
Executing these goals is where simplicity is key. I see people spend way too much time trying to optimize every little detail, especially their portfolios. My approach is different: once something is good enough, I move on.
An Unconventional Investment Strategy
When it comes to investing for retirement and our kids' education, our portfolio is 100% equities. Some might call that foolish, arguing that we need fixed income to smooth out the ride. I disagree. We have no short-term goals for this money, and it’s a well-accepted fact that anything that reduces short-term volatility also tends to reduce long-term returns. Since we have the emotional fortitude to think in terms of decades, owning anything but stocks feels illogical. This is a crucial concept when considering for the long haul.
Part of my simple approach to and personal finances is avoiding things I can't control. I believe the quest to squeeze out a few extra basis points of return—to “beat the market”—is a waste of time for the average investor, myself included. It’s not that it can’t be done, but the pursuit of alpha is entirely out of my control and completely unnecessary for reaching our goals. If you don't need to beat the market, why introduce the risk of underperforming it? If your goals require outsized returns, it’s probably better to revise the goals.
For us, market returns are good enough. We invest in a diversified mix of index funds, and other than occasional rebalancing, we leave them alone. This strategy is one of the most effective for building wealth over time. The idea of constantly optimizing a portfolio is flawed because all optimization is based on past data. An “optimal” portfolio is already out of date the moment you build it because you’re investing for an unknown future. Why try to perfect something that is inherently un-optimizable? The closest thing to an investing superpower today is simply having the patience to stick with a diversified portfolio of index funds. This is a foundational principle of .
Our Accounts and Risk Management
We contribute monthly to my Roth 401(k) and a taxable account. Choosing the Roth might not be the most tax-efficient decision if our tax bracket is lower in retirement, but I don’t mind paying taxes now to eliminate that friction later. I’d rather pay taxes on the seed than on the tree, especially with 30-plus years of tax-free growth ahead.
Our taxable account is our largest and serves as an extension of our savings, even though it's all in equities. It’s set aside for both retirement and education. We don't use 529 plans because we value flexibility over tax benefits. If our sons get scholarships or choose a different path, we have options to support them in other ways.
Finally, to prepare for life’s “what ifs,” I am a big believer in insurance. I have enough life insurance to provide for my family forever, disability coverage in case I can't work, and ample liability insurance for everything else. Insuring ourselves against what can go wrong is precisely what gives us the confidence to invest for what can go right. This is a non-negotiable part of and anyone else building a financial plan.
Ultimately, there's no single right way to handle your money. The key is to understand what truly matters to you, build a plan around those values, and find a system that lets you sleep well at night.
