September 2022
My first job was working for a car wash. It was the early 2000s and I lived in a small town with all four seasons – Lake Tahoe. You would think that my favorite season to work at the car wash was in the summer – after all, who minds a little fresh, cold mist to counteract the summer sun? But there was a problem: most people don’t mind washing their own cars in the summer. This meant that tips were low, boredom set in, and it was an overall unmotivating experience. The real challenge came every winter, when it was 15° outside and cars were filthy with mud, snow, and ice. The work was hard, but time flew by, and the tips were incredible (especially for a 15-year-old!). It was in those moments, when the wind was howling, mud was flying, and I was freezing that I started to realize that hard work pays off and the effort I put into something was directly correlated to the reward.
I took these lessons with me throughout the rest of my jobs – food service, campground receptionist, restaurant server, marketing associate, catering manager, wedding planner, barista, and fitness instructor – and into my career at Morton Wealth, an investment and financial planning firm. But through the years, I realized that working hard and making an effort are not the only tools for success. To build your career, you also have to be dependable, trustworthy, collaborative, a good teammate, accountable, an excellent communicator, and productive as well as achieve results. These competencies are easier said than done, but it is possible to be and do all of these things. You just have to have the right mindset, mentors, colleagues, support, training, and strategies to curate your dream career.
Early into my working years, I learned one very valuable lesson – it wasn’t someone else’s fault. Even when it potentially was. I learned that blaming and finger-pointing got me nowhere, and it won’t get you anywhere either. To truly own your career, you can’t get distracted by other people. You have to own your decisions.
When planning a wedding, pretty much everything can go wrong. The florist might run late, someone might spill a beverage on the bride, a surprise windstorm could show up, or the in-laws could start a family feud. When I say anything could happen, I mean anything. My job as a wedding planner was to plan and prepare for whatever may come. How did I do that? By building the best possible team around me, setting clear expectations with the bride/groom, building contingency plans, and owning the result. If something went wrong, it was up to me to fix it or be part of the solution. It was not helpful in those moments to point out the flaws of one of my partners, the client, or the guests. The only solution was to fix the problem, admit when I made a mistake, and learn the lesson for the future.
I owned the role I played to either succeed or, sometimes, fail. Establishing this ownership mindset set me up with a stronger foundation for my future career and it is the first step in building a career you love. Understand that you won’t always do it perfectly, but if you own your decisions, treat other people well, and focus on learning, you will likely excel faster and more quickly achieve your goals.
When you were young, your parents may have insisted you align yourself with “the right crowd.” I didn’t get the message then, but I do now. The people you surround yourself with make the difference between a fulfilled and thriving career vs. a job where you may eventually burn out. And it starts at home, not at work.
I met my husband when I was five years old. We grew up racing each other on skis, enjoyed mountain living, and were married by the time we were 25. He is the most important person in my life and no amount of determination, drive, or smarts could have helped me in my career more than he has through his support. But it hasn’t been easy. We had to proactively talk about our dreams, the life we wanted together, and how we were going to balance our ambitions and live a full life. Through these discussions, we decided I was going to pursue opportunities that would (financially) support our family and that he would take the heavier lift at home while also pursuing work that is fulfilling for him. We approach life as one unit, and that affords us the ability to have more ownership over our future. Being on the same page as your family is vital to growing a career – if you haven’t sat down and had the hard conversations, it’s time. Whether these conversations are with a spouse, partner, parent, child, or friend, do it from a place of love and openness and with good intentions.
When you are in alignment with the people in your personal life, it will make it that much easier to pursue your “work family.” I realize that term can be controversial. I don’t necessarily mean that you have to work somewhere with a family-like culture –what I mean is that you need people in your work sphere whom you value like family. These people are going to be your mentors/coaches, admired leaders, and colleagues who support your growth and provide you with a network for advice and encouragement.
Most of us can remember the people we worked for throughout our lives. Some of them were inspirational, others were mediocre, and then there were the ones that we promised to never be like if we were ever in their position. If you are currently in the last situation, either talk to people of influence to find a solution . . . or leave. There are amazing leaders out there – you just have to be brave enough to find them. I almost wasn’t, but my closest friend forced me to make a bet on myself and I found myself at Morton, where the possibilities are endless.
You may be asking, “How do I find a workplace with endless possibilities?” The answer is that you have to (a) work with good people and (b) be part of making it happen. Who are these good people? They are the ones who lead with curiosity, take self-accountability, believe that their organizations are great because of the collective whole, and are always in pursuit of helping people grow and be better. If the leadership of an organization abides by these principles, it is also likely that people within the organization hold a similar set of values. By surrounding yourself with these people, you are significantly more likely to have a successful career. But don’t stop there. Also pursue the people with these qualities outside of the four walls of your organization. Outside perspective is necessary so that you can be part of making your organization better through new ideas, strategies, and marketplace trends.
We live in a world where FOMO (fear of missing out) and job envy is rampant. Most people are questioning their careers, where they work, and how they work. As a by product, we tend to compare ourselves to everyone else around us and try to move as quickly upstream as possible, potentially before we are ready. Most things in life don’t come fast and easy — they take patience and hard work. I learned this lesson when my husband and I ran a circuit training and spin studio.
Fitness is a strange industry. While there are plenty of hard-working people who prioritize health and wellness, there are also plenty who have ignored it for decades and are looking for a quick fix to get back on track. We had a mixture of both at our studio, but it was the people looking for quick fixes who were the hardest to please. Especially because it is almost impossible to hit your goals with fitness alone. Diet matters equally as much (sometimes more) and that takes self-accountability, which is what makes fitness goals challenging to achieve. Similarly, there are rarely quick fixes to build a career – it takes self-accountability, patience, and time.
At the beginning of this paper, I mentioned the slew of titles I have held throughout my career. Most of them were stepping-stones towards career growth, not the endgame. Recently, I was interviewing a new team member for an operational role and as we were talking, I started to get the feeling they were meant for much more. Their communication skills were excellent, and I could see the future potential, both for them and the firm. I stopped them in the middle of the interview and told them that the job they were stepping into was not the best job for them, but the next one and the one after that would be perfect. I encouraged them to see this role as a solid foundation they could build upon and set themselves up to be more successful in the future. They were interviewing for an opportunity, not a title.
When pursuing a career, make “opportunity” a top priority. I wasn’t looking for a career in wealth management, but that is where opportunity presented itself. By committing to the long game, where self-accountability, patience, and hard work are required, I found myself growing faster than I ever thought was possible.
Sometimes we feel stuck and unable to move our careers forward. It happens to us all, but what I have realized is that those feelings will remain unless we do something about it. This is why it is so important to have an ownership mindset and surround yourself with the right people. They will be the ones to help lift you out of your funk and give you the direction you need to break that ceiling.
When I worked as a barista, I quickly hit a ceiling. Let’s be honest, getting up at 4 am and serving “pre-coffee” customers is less than enjoyable. But it was the job I was in, so I decided to make it a little more fun. The coffee shop was suffering from low pastry sales, so to solve for that, I suggested we do coffee and pastry pairings every weekend. If someone ordered the featured pastry after tasting it, we would offer a dollar off, and they would then know to order that pastry in the future! It was a hit and eventually we started bringing in other goodies for the weekend pairings –ice cream, nuts, fruit . . . the list goes on. Our coffee bean sales increased, and the job became engaging and fun. To re-engage in my job, I just had to get creative.
When I first started at Morton in 2014, I didn’t know much about finance. In fact, I was pretty convinced that I had signed up for a foreign language course during my first few weeks. But through empowering colleagues and leaders, I was eventually able to catch on and then pay it forward. During my first year at the company, I noticed the website needed some love, so I put together a 15-page PowerPoint presentation on all of the opportunities we had to make more of an impact through our website. When I went to leadership to offer suggestions, I did so without fear (see section above: your people matter) because I knew I was part of the solution. We’ve since changed the website three times in eight years, but that is because our team is open-minded to change and we are dedicated to learning, growing, and getting better.
I share this story because I believe that everyone has something to offer. Everyone is a unique contributor. Every single person should have the confidence to be part of making their experience (and the experience of those they serve) better. If you don’t know what your “secret sauce” is yet, I encourage you to proactively seek people to help you find it.
A few years ago, I realized that I had hit another ceiling. Not because I knew all things (the investment universe is literally an endless learning opportunity), but because the knowledge I brought into the organization had reached its peak. I needed to learn more from the people around me and seek support outside of the four walls of the organization to get to the next level.
I could name dozens of people who have personally impacted my learning and development – the ENTIRE Morton team, everyone in the Dimensional Fund Advisor study groups, HIFON, Schwab/Fidelity relationship managers, consultants, and my friends in leadership roles. But I want to give a special shout-out to the G2 Leadership Institute and Philip Palaveev. It was through this two-year program that I learned how to run an organization. It allowed me to step into my role as COO with more confidence, and it gave me the opportunity to discover in an environment with no stakes so that I would learn the lessons I needed to learn and be prepared when the stakes were high.
I’ve asked Philip to share why he has dedicated his career to elevating people and share his best advice for those wishing to take their career to the next level:
Philip Palaveev
It’s not that I did not have a plan for my life and my career – it’s just that no step ever went according to the plan. Entering college in post-communist Bulgaria, I would have never imagined living and working in the U.S. Entering my MBA program at the University of Oregon, I would have never imagined working with financial advisors – I did not even know they existed. Entering my first job at the big accounting firm of Moss Adams, I would have never thought I would own my own firm someday. Starting my own firm 10 years ago, I would have never thought that I would be spending most of my time working with other professionals on their leadership and management skills, and, most of all, I would have never imagined how much fun and how satisfying that would be.
My career did not follow a plan, but I always had a very strong sense that I wanted to have a career. Meaning that: I wanted to learn, I wanted to be challenged, I wanted to solve difficult problems, I wanted to be one of the best in my field, I wanted the recognition of my peers. Then later in life I also recognized that I wanted a connection with my peers, a sense of camaraderie, and the feeling that I belong to something. I wanted to be surrounded with people whose company I enjoy, who teach me and help me grow, and people to whom I can give back and watch them experience the same joy of achievement.
Career-wise, the most important realization I ever had was that my career is mine and only mine to develop. I box a bit and own a small boxing gym with a partner and I once asked my business partner and boxing coach Tricia Turton, “How do you, as a coach, motivate a boxer?” Her answer was: “A boxer must be motivated from within; it has to come from inside their heart and not from the coach in the corner, because when the punches start flying, that’s the only motivation that matters.”
The same is true for a career. Your career is your responsibility and that’s a great thing because that means your career will match your interests, passions, and intrinsic motivation, and will lead you to the people whom you can call your tribe. It also means that when you encounter challenges and even disappointments, your intrinsic drive will help you overcome them.
I read statements sometimes about how “your boss will hold you back” or “your boss will propel you forward.” I can’t accept those. You are in charge of your career and you should not allow yourself to be held back and nor should you seek a push in the back. No one will box for you and you shouldn’t ask for that.
The responsibility of your firm is to put you in the ring – to give you the opportunity. The responsibility of your coach is to give you the skills you need to succeed. But what happens in the ring – that’s up to you and that’s for the better.
Sometimes that also means you have to find the right firm and the right coach. Sometimes that means some trial and error and some learning from the punches that land on you. Still, if you are driven from inside to pursue this career, none of that will deter you. This also means that if you feel lost, look within rather than to your firm or your “boss,” and you will find better answers — answers that are meaningful for you.
Finally, at least for me, I spent a lot of time in the early days of my career focusing on what I could do and what I knew and what I could achieve. I got very proud of things I knew and had done. I treated my career as an individual sport. Then I realized that to feel joy in what I do, I also needed to be surrounded by others whom I respect and could share with. If you seek pride, you can focus on your achievement but if you seek fulfillment and joy, help others.
The G2 Leadership Program is focused on building the management and leadership skills of professionals from advisory firms throughout the industry. Each year it exposes me to about 100 very talented and ambitious individuals, many of whom are younger than I am but all of whom are tremendously knowledgeable and engaged. Spending time with them has been one of the most energizing experiences of my life.
Sharing my experience and stories with them has been a joy. Learning from them, because they know so much, has been a revelation. Connecting with them has been life-changing.
A year ago, I lost my wife to cancer, and life turned darker and lonely. It was not easy to find motivation for work or even daily life. I was still teaching the G2 program, though, and then one evening in Austin, Texas, during the dinner after the classes, my G2 peeps gave me this wonderful booklet they had compiled. It was page after page of their kind thoughts on what the program meant for them. That booklet not only brought me to tears but also gave me the clear answer to “why am I doing what I do and what should I do next?” The booklet lives on my desk now and whenever I feel I am losing my way, I take a look at it.
- Philip Palaveev
I’ve shared the stories that have contributed to my career growth but there have also been bumps in the road. I am working in an industry that has historically valued experience above all else. That’s been a hurdle to jump over in the most challenging sense. On top of that, I am young, blonde, and female. While I want to live in a world where those things don’t matter, I am not naïve. My circumstances shape who I am and challenge me to approach life and work with the mindset that I will never be held back by my situation. Let me share a few examples of the hurdles I needed to jump over:
· When I became COO, I was 31 years old and 90% of our firm was older than I was.
· I had gained my CFP® marks two months prior and was managing advisors with decades of experience.
· Operations teams were not looked highly upon at that time. Most firms thought of COOs as glorified office managers.
· Only 22% of leadership roles were held by women across financial services.
Thankfully, I had an incredibly supportive leadership team, but that didn’t stop the self-doubt, the imposter syndrome, and the need to continually “prove” that I deserved a seat at the table. The combination of all of these things did not result in success, but in burnout and stress. I tried to be “Mrs. Fix It” and every time I fixed the hypothetical pipe, a new leak sprung. I was constantly putting out fires and it left me feeling unfulfilled and less effective in my career. It was only when I asked for help that I was able to get out of the hamster wheel.
The value of a team is glossed over way too often. We NEED people. We need their talents, their advice, their unique point of view, and we need to be around them to be positively influenced by them. I’ve had two major career lows – both came at times where I had forgotten (or lost) this concept. Ironically, trying to “hero” was the thing that made me crash. The first time this happened, we were in the awkward teenage phase of Morton Wealth. Do you remember being twelve years old and feeling like you could conquer the world, but still had to ask your parents for everything? That’s the phase I am talking about – a company with 30-40 team members that hasn’t quite graduated from “mom-and-pop” to an organization operated as an enterprise, so everyone goes to everyone about everything. I quickly became a jack-of-all-trades and a master of none and felt like I was on a merry-go-round all day long. After a few months of this not-so-fun ride, I went to the executive team and proposed we expand the leadership team.
I had to look around the organization and recognize the value others brought to the table, institute department leads, and give them both power and responsibility. When I did that, I found myself utilizing more of my unique skills and making a greater impact within the organization. By relinquishing control and depending on others, I was finally able to step out of myself-doubt and show up for them with the best I had to offer. It was actually giving up control that allowed me to have more control over my career. And more importantly, I have now created a career where I feel fulfilled and am proud of the impact I get to make.
You do not need to prove yourself. You need to be proud of yourself, have a desire to positively impact those around you, be unafraid to test out your ideas, and be willing to do the hard work to make those ideas a reality. While I sometimes use a 15-page PowerPoint to share a concept (see website example above), I don’t have to do that. I just need to come to the table with an idea (i.e., we need a website that has a better user journey and tells our story in a more impactful way) and then depend on the talents of those around me to make it happen. As you grow in your career, you’ll start to realize that you need to lead with your ideas and support those ideas with high-quality work. Only focusing on the work is a recipe to stay in the same place in your career. Why? Because to have a seat at the table, you can’t just be the “best at xyz thing” — you have to be driven to make the company or people better through your ideas, leadership, and determination.
It is through the experience of leading with your ideas that you will grow faster. Some ideas will be great, others will flop, but what is most important is that you have the confidence to try and the competence to back it up. Participate in every opportunity to learn, surround yourself with people who support you, always engage in proactive communication, and remember to have an ownership mindset. Your career is up to you.
Ready for a career change? Visit our careers page to learn more.
Read Stacey's other whitepapers here:
The Societal Duty of Businesses
5 Untold Truths of Acting in Your Clients' Best Interests
