So, I'm stuck with "
piercefinancial" as the name of my firm, though maybe I should have called it "Pierce Wealth Management". Which do you like better? Before you answer, you should know that I did wrestle with the naming. Since it became clear that abbreviating it helped me incorporate my passion for music, it's become nearly impossible to change. Because people don't work with me based on the name of my practice, I'm content with it. It seemed so critical at the time...
A few years after its inception, the logo came to me, not like a lighting bolt, but a passing glance in the mirror that helped illuminate my practice in a way I found both simple and elegant. When shortened to "pf" it evokes the musical dynamic markings piano and forte, and is a metaphor for the shared goal I have with clients – to make their investment grow from soft to loud, from small to large, or from less to more relevant in their lives.
I grew up in Ann Arbor and the birthing of my business let me share the torch carried by my grandfather, who started his first of three businesses in 1923, my father-in-law-who started his business with two children in college, and with my brother-in-law who started his own business a number of years ago. It seemed almost a birthright that I be successful. Think of it as: "Ann Arbor's native son returns from Wall Street to Main Street to help local individuals with investments."
Community involvement, which was once a blind leap of faith, has become my modus operandi. So, I was a sommelier for the Ann Arbor Art Center, where I sponsored an evening with local and world-renowned composer William Bolcom in the Art Center’s 2nd Floor Loft. I've been a table captain for Ele's Place (for bereaved children) for two consecutive years. I'm in the Rotary Club of Ann Arbor, the St. Paul School Board, and recently joined the Ann Arbor Symphony Board.
Once I found that it resulted in business, I determined that it was good and right that it should. When you give you get. When you're active in causes that are dear to you, you become acquainted with others you can help, and with whom you have things in common. Business also comes from the "law of attraction," that says people do business with people they like. It makes the business of business more enjoyable. When combined with community involvement and an optimistic attitude it lends confidence to the prospect of working with you.
Another thing that I'm passionate about is Ann Arbor. It's my hometown. Combine it with my passion for music and my growing confidence and you might find a lesson, be who you are and follow your passions and success will follow – like the saying goes, "do what you love, and you won't work a day in your life."