playing outside under 100 ft tall pine trees. My father is from the Blue Ridge Mountains and as a child he took me there often. Returning there again and again I found comfort and peace being guided by the deep green tree pathways on our drives and walks.
Utter, exquisite freedom.
At 18 I ventured west to Los Angeles for college and enjoyed the mix of creativity and tradition at USC. While there, I had an unexpected banking internship that transformed my perspective on numbers and money - subjects I had previously associated with being confusing, overwhelming, boring - to seeing them as creative tools to bring dreams to life.
I started my career in the corporate world, building a wealth management practice at a global bank for over a decade. It was world class training. It was also a gauntlet.
Every day I walked down long corridors of offices filled with “bull and bear” artwork. Men in blue blazers on headsets talked about interest rates while swinging a golf putter or a baseball bat.
Often clients left meetings overwhelmed, which was how I felt too. To empower myself, I became a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
For the next 12 years I built a thriving practice, and it was everything I thought I wanted.
But then I hit a wall of exhaustion.
One day, I drove to the forest in northern California. The redwoods reminded me of the 100 foot tall pine trees I used to play under as a child in Georgia. I finally remembered what freedom felt like.
I left the forest committed to filling my life with that same essence of freedom I felt in nature.
So, I did the obvious thing first: I bought a bright green electric guitar :)
Then I founded Created.
Created is a boutique wealth advisory dedicated to helping our clients and community clarify their personal vision of freedom and fulfillment, and design their finances to bring it to life.