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Hi there, thank you for reading! this is my first post and Im excited to find a new forum full of information. I actually have a boat load of questions because I am fairly new to the financial planner/advisor world, but in time Im sure ill have the chance to ask them all.
My Background:
21 years old, full time student, not a lot of cash to play around with in investments yet ($2000-ish), no student loans
-Primerica: I was picked up in 2011. I joined a year ago to learn everything I could about finance, not to be a salesman (yet). I feel like I got a steal, because the education I learned was priceless and cheaper than any college class at my state school. Today I hold a life, health, and accident insurance license, a series 6, and I'm just about at the finish line to take the examination for my series 63 this month
-Rich Dad Poor Dad: I went to a 3-day seminar and was greatly turned on to options trading. The way my speaker presented options seemed to me like the aggressive-no-wussies-allowed attitude of trading, and I kinda like that. I was not going to pay 20-80K for classes though. I figure if Im resourceful enough I can find that information/mentorship elsewhere.
-Various books: Jim Crammer, The little book that beats the market, rich dad poor dad, Trading in the shadow of smart money (tradeguider.com), various articles and guides, think and grow rich, EnterpriseCorruption(dot)com, etc etc. (any suggestions to read??)***
The finish line for me is this, let me paint the picture:
-Have a CFP, or CFA
-Have a real estate license to buy, hold, accumulate, and rent-out real estate homes
-Options trading experience and knowledge for personal gain
-Work for a quality company and build passive income with AUM
This is the game plan I have for now. After I finish my series 63, I was hoping to go door to door to IAs around town and ask for mentorship (like fidelity, charles schwab, UBS) and get a direction from them (same thing Im asking you).
To get to my finish line, what things would you suggest for me? What are good books/authors to buy from? What scams and disinformation should I stay away from that you ran into? Who are big player names that I should watch and study? If you're familiar with Primerica, what are good reasons to leave and work for a company (like fidelity)?
I appreciate the time everyone takes to read my life's story. Any feedback is greatly appreciated and I hope to give back as I surf through this forum.
I like your gut check to see if finance is the place for me to be in.
I've felt a passion towards this for quite some time (I used to envision myself doing this work since a young age), the persistence is in me to walk the long road. Interviews can be challenging, but thankfully I have the help of a CFO next door to help me get over those nervous speed bumps. Couldn't be more grateful to have him next door and actually like me. One thing he recommended is to understand accounting like it was a 2nd language, that was his 'specialty move' growing up. Do you have any opinions on developing accounting skills, or is that something I should wait for in upper division college?
haha
I didn't know about this resource, thank you for the heads up
I was thinking of investing some time later into web design and computer science. good idea/bad idea?
It's strange though, I've google'd a few of the IA leaders here in my city for their qualifications and they all have the 6, 7, 63 & 65, with a CFP as a kicker. Since I'm not coming out of a big name university (I go to a state college), would it benefit me more if made the time and effort to accomplish these licenses before that interview? Does that separate me from a good chunk of the rest?
How much would this kind of experience help me in a job interview?
Say I take the company I have now and I sell some finance products and make a buck as an IAR (get a year or two of sales experience under my belt). Eventually I build up a customer list, and I gather AUM for mutual funds. Would it be impressive to say I have $1, $5, $10 mil AUM in an interview? I also have a pretty solid reputation in my community knowing a good amount of people who would trust me. How much value would someone in the big chair put on traits like AUM and large prospect lists? This kind of stuff doesn't do much with knowing what stocks to pick, but I'm wondering how much value can be placed on things like these.
I think my father will enjoy that line, for he too has a similar opinion on this company. The day I signed up for it, he told me to 'Just ride the company for their discounted education costs, get your practice in for the licenses, and get out'. At best I'm an IAR/agent at this company, but I want to be a CFP/IA. Spending a year with this company, I actually exploded my beginners knowledge about finance, so it wasn't all bad. Before this I had no idea what an IRA, Pension, or even what a SRO was (and now I know them all in detail). I do loose all my licenses as soon as I sign the U5, but getting them back will be a lot easier because I retained a lot of the info I studied. But I take no offense, because calling it a mary kate system is actually a great way to put it.
I will look into Zions Bank, but it will take me a day to get a good research in on the company.
Very welcome, but give all the credit to Artesmio for making this thread what it is. I plan on printing out this thread to show others
thats all I have for now, let me order some books, research Zions bank, and ill come back later with another question
Hoorah55, you definitely sound like a very ambitious person! My one piece of advise would be to not advertise the Rich Dad course and books. From what I gather, the industry doesn't have much respect for the Rich Dad series. And the philosophy of 'don't diversify' would go against the beliefs of the vast majority of IAs. Good luck
Good advise, though what I take away from him is the idea of what he describes as having 6 intelligences to be a better individual in finances. Plus his idea of 4 green houses 1 red hotel (monopoly) interests me to build a vehicle of wealth that can pay dividends (rent) for the remainder of my life :] Rich Dad Poor Dad also goes strongly against mutual fund investing which I don't agree with 100%
As for diversification, right now Im studying the philosophy of John Templeton for long term investment. He's got some really good ideas for diversifying.