High FIVE for Ryan Kelly
Ryan Kelly, a Financial Planner in our Vienna, VA office, is celebrating five years with Yeske Buie this year! Ryan joined the team in 2019 after graduating from the University of Georgia with a Master of Science in Financial Planning. From the start, Ryan has shown up as a thoughtful, skilled, and dedicated team member, and he’s continued to grow into a leader and a financial planner who displays these skills and more day-in and day-out. It’s an honor to watch Ryan serve our Clients to our standard of excellence, and to have his care and sense of humor on our team.
Thank you for your dedication to our values and to serving our Clients, Ryan! We look forward to all that lies ahead in your career with us. Let’s explore Ryan’s journey thus far at Yeske Buie via the brief timeline below.
In one of Ryan’s earliest conversations with us, he shared the following about the impact he hoped to have at Yeske Buie and in the financial planning profession:
I hope to continually challenge myself to learn and master all the responsibilities of a financial planner and to build the skills and confidence to lead Client relationships. I also hope to build a reputation both at Yeske Buie and in the profession as someone who leaves no job undone. I’d like to be known as somebody who is always on top of things and takes care of business, not letting anything fall through the cracks.
September 2021: Ryan Earned the CFP® Certification
Ryan passed the CFP® Exam in July 2021 and satisfied all the certification requirements to become a CERTIFIED FINANIAL PLANNER Professional later that year. When reflecting on this milestone and where he derives motivation, Ryan said:
I’ve just loved the relationships I’ve been able to build during my time as a professional, and I’m grateful that the CFP® marks enable me to do that at a higher level. I look forward to being freer to answer questions, make recommendations, and take responsibility for the trust that my clients place in me.
March 2022: Ryan Became a Permanent Member of Our Team
Ryan’s journey at Yeske Buie began as a Financial Planning Resident, a three-year program designed to contribute to the pipeline of competent and ethical financial planners in the profession. However, Ryan’s brilliance on our team was something that the leadership team decided we couldn’t lose, and we offered Ryan the opportunity to join the team full-time as a Financial Planner – and he said yes! At the time of the transition, here are a few goals Ryan outlined for himself in the coming years.
The first is to dive deep into Discovery with my current and future Clients. It is imperative for us as financial planners to identify our Clients’ values and motivations and to connect the plans that we create to our Clients’ core values, and there are opportunities for us to do that throughout the relationship – not just at the onset. And second, I intend to build deeper, more authentic relationships with the Yeske Buie team by more intentionally setting aside time to connect with each person, especially my colleagues on the East Coast.
August 2023: Ryan Relocated to Our Virginia Office
Our team is an adaptable group and given Ryan’s personal life goals and opportunities within the firm, he and the leadership team agreed for Ryan to relocate from our San Francisco office to our Virginia office. He’d built such strong relationships with many of our San Francisco Clients that Ryan travels to the city a few times each year to connect with them in person, though he’s also building new relationships with Clients local to our Virginia office. The opportunity to work directly with leaders and team members from both offices is a unique privilege for Ryan, for our Clients, and for our team.
JUNE 2024: Ryan Celebrates Five Years at Yeske Buie
In light of Ryan’s special work anniversary, we asked him to reflect on his professional growth, his relationships with Clients, and the impact that his work has had on his personal life. Always so thoughtful, we think you’ll find Ryan’s replies to be particularly meaningful.
Yeske Buie: How have you grown professionally over the past five years?
Ryan: I joined the firm not even certain I could be a financial planner. I was grateful for the Financial Planning Resident program because it allowed me a structured space to learn what a financial planner actually does. I was exposed to supportive and welcoming teammates, generous and fascinating Clients, and knowledgeable and diverse strategic partners and allied professionals. Through my first three years, I learned that financial planners come in all shapes and sizes and that there is value in someone a bit more soft-spoken and reserved, like me. Over my first five years at Yeske Buie, I learned that I can be a financial planner and have made great strides toward increasing my confidence as a person. Through countless hours of practice and through the kindness and compassion of my Clients and teammates, I am now in a place where I can see myself for the rest of my life. I know I have a long way to go, but I’m grateful for how much I’ve grown in my first five years, and I can’t wait to see what comes next.
Yeske Buie: How do you approach building trust with Clients, and why is this important to you?
Ryan: I find that a lot of things allow me to build trust with my Clients, though more than anything, I look for the little moments to bond with Clients. A phone call about a recent trip or a move, a casual conversation about the grandkids’ first day at school. I feel that it’s the moments in between the talk about spending or transfers or investing where the real relationship is built. And our Clients make it easy. I’m so grateful to so many of my Clients who will ask me about my family or recent trips I’ve taken. I am so grateful for the relationships I’ve built with so many people through the work I do at Yeske Buie, and it makes me that much more eager to do this kind of work day in and day out.
Yeske Buie: How has your role at the firm influenced your life outside of work?
Ryan: I could talk about this for ages. I feel like being a financial planner defines who I am outside of the office. Not just because of the knowledge I’ve gained, but because of the emphasis that Yeske Buie places on our core values, our communication style, and the purpose of what we do. The values system that Yeske Buie embodies aligns so closely with my own personal values system that I find it hard to separate who I am in the office from who I am at home. This young team has also allowed me to build confidence and develop my leadership skills, which have both translated to being a more confident version of myself at home. I feel secure in my role at Yeske Buie and know how valued I am, and that gives me great confidence to pour my whole heart into everything I do, both personally and professionally.
Yeske Buie: As you celebrate this milestone, what are you most excited about in the future with the firm?
Ryan: More than anything I think I’m excited for this young team. We talk often about building something that will allow us to serve our Clients’ families unto the fifth generation and beyond, and with this talented team of young professionals, I think we are doing exactly that. Everyone on the team has shown their ability to build authentic, personal relationships with our Clients, and that type of genuine enthusiasm for helping people gives me so much confidence in the future of this firm. It has also allowed me to step further into more leadership roles, both internally and with my Clients. I am excited to see how my relationships with Clients will evolve as I take on more responsibilities thanks to the support I receive from the rest of the team.