What was your first job?
Various farm jobs — walking beans, baling hay, detasseling corn
Who do you consider your local mentors?
Russ Nieland; managing partner, regional growth officer and wealth advisor, Carson Wealth; Chris Graw, managing partner and wealth advisor, Carson Wealth; Jason Miller; president, Modern
What do you consider your “big break” in your career, so far?
Changing careers to enter the financial services industry in May 2016. Prior to that, I practiced as a mechanical engineer for five years. Although engineering was certainly a great career, I always found myself gravitating towards financial topics, whether it was a project at work or reading books for leisure. Ultimately, after finishing my MBA in December 2015, I realized pursuing a financial career aligned with my passions of working with numbers and connecting with people.
What’s the biggest issue facing the Corridor, and why?
This isn’t isolated to the Corridor, but I believe an important issue is living a healthy lifestyle and increasing healthspan. Lifespan is the number of years we live, whereas healthspan is the number of years we are healthy and living a quality life free of disease, both physical and mental. Because of that, I believe we need to continue to focus on increasing the accessibility and affordability around three main areas connected with healthy living — exercise, healthy food, and mental health. I think we can do that by continuing to expand local trails, bike lanes, parks, and recreation areas. In addition, we can add to the number of urban farms, farm to table programs, and school & community gardens so everyone has access to fresh, clean, and healthy food. Finally, we can focus efforts on school & family support systems surrounding mental health so everyone has access to affordable and stigma-free mental health care.
What’s something people should know about your generation in the workplace?
My generation of millennials value a work-life balance and flexibility, which can sometimes get misinterpreted as entitlement or laziness. The reality is we are more than willing to put in the work, but we want it to be meaningful and purpose-driven.