ThinkAdvisor: “How I Became a Financial Advisor: Advisors’ Advice”
ThinkAdvisor, Dec. 29, 2022 — In today’s article, reporter Jeff Berman explains, “For the latest Advisors’ Advice, ThinkAdvisor asked advisors to tell us how they became financial advisors; what college degrees, training and certifications they have; and what their first job title was. We also asked them what kind of training or certifications they would recommend to a new advisor to set them up for success, along with 12 takeaways for wannabe financial advisors.”
Here’s what we learned from Blue Ocean Global Wealth CEO Marguerita Cheng, CFP® Pro:
Know your ‘why’: I earned double undergraduate degrees: B.A. in East Asian language and literature and B.S. in finance. My first formal position in finance involved writing a newsletter for English speaker investors. I worked at Towa Securities in Tokyo, Japan. I was a MEXT scholar. We have the opportunity to live, study and work in Japan. While the job allowed me to apply my skills, I felt something was missing. I wanted to take the concepts I learned in corporate finance and apply them to individuals and families.
As an undergraduate: I wasn’t aware of the separate and distinct discipline of financial planning. I planned my transition to become a financial advisor. I started with Series 63, 65, and life & health. I am proud to say that I passed all 4 of these tests in less than eight weeks — with a 6-month-old baby and a 3-year-old daughter. I became a pre-appointed financial advisor with Ameriprise. The first designation I earned was CRPC. Then I earned CFP certification, RICP, and CSRIC and am now pursuing the CAP.
My advice:
- Join professional associations, and take advantage of mentors/sponsors/advocates.
- Invest in yourself.
- Attend conferences, read and peer-to-peer mentoring.
The key to me: Embrace lifelong learning and always go back to your “why.” My “why” for being a planner is to change conversations about money and wealth. I believe financial planning transforms lives and that everyone deserves access to competent ethical financial planning advice.