NAPFA Advisor, a publication of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, recently featured an article by WRP’s own Aaron Rubin about his experience as a mentor in a diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) program for financial advisors. DEI mentoring programs create partnerships with developing professionals who are underrepresented in a profession with an aim of enhancing opportunities and cultivating a culture of belonging across diverse groups.
In the article, he reflects on the valuable lessons he learned from working with mentees from different backgrounds and emphasizes the benefits of DEI initiatives—not only for those they seek to include but also for their mentors, their future clients, and their professions.
Aaron shares the commonality he found with his mentees, despite their various paths and experiences. The challenges they were facing in their careers were familiar to him, and he shared with them stories of his own experiences in the hope that his insight could save them from having to bear some of the self-doubt and frantic struggle that marked his early career.
Although he’s an experienced and accomplished financial planning professional, Aaron believed it was important to focus on listening to his mentees rather than simply offering advice. He knew that openness to their diverse experiences could provide valuable insight:
“I tried to approach the relationships from a place of listening and humility. As an experienced advisor, I am no doubt impressed with myself at times and had to resist the instinct to jump in and solve every problem that the mentees presented. However, when I dropped my ego and really let the mentees explore their world aloud, I realized how little I knew.”
Aaron expresses that he learned that there was a deeper pool of talent for the financial services industry than he had realized. He expressed the belief that underrepresented groups can bring much needed perspectives to financial planning teams. He acknowledges a need to do a better job nurturing many of these budding financial professionals, investing time and resources in helping them build successful careers.
“By making these efforts a top priority,” Aaron states, “we will help the future of financial services and our own businesses as well.”
Aaron is passionate about assisting his clients as they navigate complex and pivotal financial decisions, taking particular pride in helping startup employees make informed, tax-savvy decisions when managing their stock compensation packages. His dedication to advancing DEI at WRP is certain to enrich our understanding and the value we bring to our clientele.
Learn more about the team at WRP, or visit our blog for financial tips and insights.
.svg)
WRP is a team of tax and financial management professionals with expertise in company-issued stock options. We use research-based investment strategies to grow and protect our clients’ investments and a personalized, one-on-one approach to understand each individual’s goals and priorities. A proud Bay Area business, we are dedicated to local philanthropy and contribute time and resources to local charities to support our community’s long-term well-being.