How have your values and personal background uniquely positioned you to work with your clients?
I come from a family of entrepreneurs, representing our sixth generation in real estate development. My great-grandfather built airplane hangars in World War II, my grandfather built tens of thousands of houses, and my father builds senior living communities across the country. I grew up talking about projects at the dinner table and walking through models with my parents. I also saw the complexity that families can face around their wealth—questions about how to structure trusts, align on philanthropic priorities and teach the next generation to be good stewards of opportunity were top of mind. My exposure to multigenerational family businesses, entrepreneurship and charities has inspired me to focus on these areas where I can bring personal experience to the table. My clients trust me because they know I can relate to their questions.
What inspired you to join Bernstein?
When I was working in my family real estate firm after business school, I realized that I was more interested in helping families like mine sort through questions around their wealth than in financing and constructing senior living communities (as important as that is!). Bernstein is distinctly positioned to support our clients because it’s a big enough firm to have world-class resources and is structured intentionally to offer extraordinary service. Having had the opportunity to study at some of the world’s top universities, I was also excited to join one of Wall Street's premier research efforts, because we can invest with conviction for our clients. Finally, at Bernstein I get to focus on clients holistically, whatever their goals and priorities are, while always being held to a fiduciary standard. It’s the kind of excellence and care I would want for my own family.
Which book had the most profound impact on you and why?
Aristotle’s Ethics has been a source of clarity in my intellectual life since I first read it as a classics major in college and then as a theology graduate student. Aristotle invites the reader to reflect on the question, “What is a good life?” and suggests that the answer isn’t found in ontological or utilitarian perspectives, but rather in virtues, which are essentially habits. Every day, we can choose to have courage, to be generous, to prioritize friendship, and then those choices become our character. I try to keep this in mind with the decisions I make, and find it a useful perspective in advising clients. Being clear on the kind of people we want to be makes decisions about how to allocate our time and resources much clearer as well. Everything in alignment.