Meet Rick VALENZI

fOUNDER

From investment banker to tech sales to financial planner. It's all led to helping you get out of the rat race...

In the beginning…

Like everyone else, my career has had ups and downs. I started out by earning my finance degree in 1998 from The University of Texas at Austin. I initially became an investment banker, but quickly discovered the reason why so many investment bankers burn out young: humans are not made for 100 hour work weeks. I did a complete 180 and enjoyed a brief stint as a DJ (Yes, really!) before becoming the regional sales manager for a tech company. Under my leadership, my sales team crushed their goals, but after a while I realized that office politics were just as awful as investment banking. So I did some serious soul-searching.

And then…

After 6 months of intense soul-searching, I realized I needed 3 things. I needed to help others, I needed to work for myself and I needed to get back into finance. And the light bulb went off - financial planning. So I studied like crazy for the CFP® exam and then landed a job as a financial advisor at a big Wall St. firm. You would think I had achieved my dreams, right? Well, there was a problem. I discovered quickly that financial advisors at brokerage firms are just glorified salespeople whose only measure of success if how much revenue they produce through client fees. I wanted to help people, not be an investment salesperson. So I became determined to open my own shop to do things the right way.

My breakthrough…

After 7 years of building my client base and honing my financial planning acumen, the time was right - I left Wall St. behind and Financial Zen was born. I was hell-bent on fixing all the problems I saw in my industry. So I designed Financial Zen around working with younger generations who needed help, but couldn't get it because they hadn't saved their millions yet. I structured our fees, so "gathering assets" was not our sole focus. And then I threw away my suit and tie to make money fun for the people we help. When I opened the doors of Financial Zen in 2016, I felt like I was finally on the right track and I was doing what I was supposed to do with my life.

But then…

During the first few years in business, Financial Zen was on a roll. We were helping people get their financial house in order, and we were doing it better, faster, and more efficiently than the other firms out there. But I still felt like there was a missing piece to the puzzle. So I meditated on the question - what do our members REALLY want? Adulting with your finances is important, but what's the point? I asked myself and I asked our members and after a few months of focusing on this question, it happened...

My AHA Moment…

Then I finally saw it. I realized the clues had been left for me all along the way. I just hadn't pieced them together. And like a flashback scene in a movie, I saw all of the conversations I'd had about getting out of the rat race. "I like what I do, but I'd quit tomorrow if I could. "My 10 year plan is to NOT be working." "What I REALLY want to do is play music all day." Every single person we work with is a high achiever, but they're chained to their paycheck. If we could help them achieve financial freedom, they wouldn't NEED their paycheck and they could live the lives they always imagined. Since that lightbulb moment, we’ve refocused on helping people retire much, much earlier than they ever thought possible. When you achieve Financial Zen, you can quit the 9 to 5 grind and pursue your true passions in life.

My Straight-Shooting Beliefs

I believe that…

Money is a resource that should fuel your passions.

If your financial plan isn’t life-changing, it isn’t enough.

You deserve to wake up every day absolutely stoked about the path you're on.

“But Don’t Only Super Wealthy People Have Financial Planners?”

It’s commonly thought that only super wealthy people need financial planning services. Or that only people with a bunch of money saved can invest. But that’s not true. In fact, it’s the people who DON’T have a ton of money saved that need financial planning services the most. Let’s break it down. Financial Zen is like a GPS system. You’re at Point A. You want to be at Point B—an early retirement that allows you to live your dream. We provide the roadmap to get you there. No matter how much you have in savings, we want to work with you because we believe there ought to be more to life than punching a timecard and trading hours for dollars.

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