Ok, I get it. The title may be a little cheesy. But let me explain what I’m getting at before you judge me too much.
Over the last decade and a half, I have been lucky enough to meet hundreds upon hundreds of people through my job along with the various activities and organizations I’ve been involved with. These people have come from all walks of life, with unique interests and perceptions. Throughout all of these interactions, I have constantly been amazed at how we are all more connected with each other than it might seem at first. These connections have led to everything from a funny story to a mutually beneficial, long-term relationship.
Now, I am not originally from Des Moines, but my wife Kate is. When she was growing up, her family attended a smaller, very close-knit church. There is a gentleman that was a long-time attendee of the church and was good friends with Kate’s parents, and subsequently had known Kate since she was born. Let’s call this man Dave, mainly because that is his name and there is no need to protect identities at this point. My first year in Des Moines, I met Dave many times, both at the church as well as at various family get-togethers. We had gotten along very well, especially with our similar senses of humor, but had only talked casually about our careers.
To digress a little, when I started my job as a financial advisor, I was with a large firm, but always knew that I wanted to end up with a small, independent firm where I could truly work for my clients and be in charge of my own destiny. After a year with the larger firm, to be honest, I was struggling. Things were overwhelming, there was not a lot of support, and I hadn’t had much success building my network the way I had wanted yet. I realized I needed a change, a big change, sooner than later. However, with only one year of experience in the financial industry, it was tough finding another firm that would seriously consider me.
I started to verbalize my wishes for change more and more, to anyone that would listen, which at that point wasn’t many unfortunately. After weeks of searching, I got a phone call. I remember the day very clearly. It was my wife Kate. She had heard from her parents that a friend of theirs was the IT consultant for a small financial planning firm in town, and they were possibly looking to expand. It was someone I had only known socially and hadn’t necessarily talked a lot about my job to. I’m sure you’ve guessed it by now, so let’s all say who it was together: it was Dave! I called him immediately and after talking, he put me in touch with Brian, the owner of Legacy Financial Group. After a couple of interviews, I was hired on and the rest is, as they say, history.
At this point I have been with Legacy for almost 8 years. Almost every day I remember how I got here, and it makes me respect and cherish every connection I make. You never know when that person is going to be the key to unlocking a new door for you. One, like mine, that has allowed me not only the chance to help make peoples’ lives better, but the freedom to be involved in so many exciting opportunities and organizations. So find a new person to meet today and make the connection a memorable one!
