I believe in financial planning.  I believe in the impact sound financial advice can make in a person’s life.  I believe everyone deserves to have access to great financial advice, advice that is free of conflict of interest. I believe financial advice should be transparent and easy to understand.  I believe in simplicity.

I’m a financial planner.  It’s all I’ve done.  It’s all I plan to do.  Immediately after college I moved to Minneapolis and began working in the corporate office of “America’s leader for financial planning”.  Shortly after my son, Carsten, was born, I transitioned to being a Financial Advisor in Edina.  The experience was great.  The opportunities were second-to-none.  It just wasn’t for me.

Somewhere along the way, what I truly believed in was straying further from what I could provide to my clients.  For large firms, there is continued focus on profitability and how profitable a client could be to the company.  This drove planners to pursue older demographics and to those with higher net worth.  Although I think this group of people deserves great advice, it’s not the only group who needs solid advice.

Throughout my career I’ve felt the pull to serve a rural community and a younger population.  I enjoy working with people who value the same things I do and are cut from the same cloth. My wife, Michelle, and I grew up in a rural community.  When our son was born, we started to have serious conversation about moving back home.  These conversations led to me exploring what it would take to begin serving clients in a rural community while staying connected with clients from a distance.  I quickly found the only way I could do this and stay true to my values was to leave the large Broker Dealer I had been working with and create a small firm focused on serving my clients..

NewLeaf Financial Guidance is a fee-only financial planning firm.  Unlike many Financial Advisors, I do not accept commission on product sales.  The only time I am compensated is when my clients agree to pay me.  I believe this allows me to give sound advice that is free of any conflict of interest.  My clients can trust my recommendations are based on their best interest, not mine.  It also allows me to serve clients in all walks of life.

I’m a financial planner for one reason, I have a passion for serving people.  The way I choose to serve is by helping people understand their finances.  And I can’t think of a group of people I’d rather serve. Michelle, Carsten and I are excited to be home.