Meet the Team: Austin Sanchez
Austin Sanchez, YeskeBuie‘s newest Client Support Specialist, has amassed deep life experiences from travels far and wide: from the vast quiet of Alaska, to a Navy post in Japan, the shores of Bahrain, and eventually landing in San Francisco, a place he expected to visit only briefly and has now called home since 2022. This journey, from the Navy to environmental studies to financial planning, might look like an unlikely path, but it has given him a grounded appreciation for structure, systems, and the people those systems are meant to serve.
In today’s edition of Meet the Team, we sit down with Austin to talk about the humility of being new, the confidence of showing up authentically, and why Learn Big feels like the value he was always meant to live. We hope you enjoy learning about Austin – he looks forward to connecting with you soon! Welcome to the team, Austin!
YeskeBuie: Hi, Austin! Thank you for talking with us – we’re excited to get to learn more about you. We’ll start off simply: tell us a little bit about yourself and how you discovered the financial planning profession.
Austin: Hi, I’m glad to be here! So to start off, I’m a veteran. I joined the Navy in 2017. Home base was in Texas, though I was in Alaska when I actually went to the military recruiter (funnily enough, I worked for a CPA for a short time while in Alaska). I moved to Japan on orders in 2017, moved to Bahrain in 2020, and towards the end of my contract, I felt like I had gotten so much exposure to the “outside world.” I knew that Texas, where I came from, would always be there if I needed to return, and it felt like it was time for something new. That’s how I landed in San Francisco.
I have lived in San Francisco since January 2022, and although it was supposed to be a temporary look around, I’m still here in 2026. In my time post-military, I started school at City College of San Francisco, and later transferred over to San Francisco State University. My background in the military was a lot of accounting and systems – financial asset management – but my degree at San Francisco State was environmental studies and social sustainability. Going into financial planning was quite a shift for me in terms of more recent exposure, but I think I’ll be able to apply lessons from my previous experiences to this current role.
YeskeBuie: We so appreciate you sharing your story, and we thank you for your service. As somebody who had a career before your time at YeskeBuie, how do you think your experiences will shape the way you approach your work with our Clients?
Austin: Thank you for your support. It’s been a few weeks on the job and I’ve noticed there’s a lot of processing and that things are really by the book. One thing I enjoy about working – especially with things that require a lot of processing – is having foundations and guidelines to abide by in order to get the work done. There isn’t too much wiggle room when you’re dealing with banks and paperwork, and I like the certainty about that. The perspective I gained from working with the teams and all my prior time learning my system stacks and relying on them allows me to execute priorities and complete the missions we set out to accomplish. I think that informs what we do here, too.
YeskeBuie: We are big on systems, that’s for sure. Diving a little bit deeper, what motivates you and how did that bring you here? What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Austin: There are a lot of things that get me out of bed in the morning. I’d say, on a literal level, my dog gets me out of bed. But in terms of my overall values and outlook in life, I’ve come to appreciate the different perspectives I’ve gained from all I’ve done, and I have found that I’m able to pass along a lot of the lessons I’ve learned even while I’m still learning. When I’ve shown up academically or professionally in the past, I knew I was bringing my authentic self into the space. That includes the humility to learn, but also the confidence to know that I have something to offer, no matter the environment. So my motivation to get out of bed is rooted in the expectation for myself that, at the very end of the day, I will have learned something and I will have taught something.
YeskeBuie: Showing up authentically is so important and it takes courage. Is there anything that stands out to you as pivotal for feeling comfortable with that?
Austin: I think, for me, it’s about courage. I’ve always had a kind of courage to approach problem solving authentically and an acceptance that I might not always get it right. When I boil it down, I put my ego aside and get into that learning mindset. If I have a question – and even if it doesn’t make the most sense – I’m confident that, when I show up and ask, I can work with others to add clarity into the mix. There’s a sense of security in knowing the answer will always be respectful and collaborative.
YeskeBuie: It sounds like you’re living Learn Big. To follow that train of thought, of YeskeBuie‘s six core values, would you say that one aligns most with you?
Austin: I think my favorite is definitely Learn Big. Learning is essential for everyone, which is why it feels so important to me. And the beauty of our values is that each one can’t necessarily exist without the next.
YeskeBuie: Absolutely, they’re in circle for a reason! What’s one thing you’ve learned about Client care during your time so far and how do you think it sets us apart?
Austin: You know, when I think about the places where I’ve been and then I think about here, I haven’t seen many similarities in terms of the Client being treated holistically. The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far is that our Client relationships are based on the foundation that Clients should be seen and heard as people and not as numbers. There aren’t many places I can name where I feel like the person is the true priority.
The values we hold are reflected back by each Client as well. We live these values, and the Client is therefore empowered to live the values. We offer that to them, but we model it first. I didn’t realize that could be so foundational to a business.
YeskeBuie: Those relationships are really special, and we love that you’ve engaged with them right off the bat. What’s something new that you’ve brought to the team that you’re really proud of?
Austin: I’m showing up as someone who hadn’t laid eyes on a lot of these processes, and I believe I can bring a fresh set of eyes to the table. It feels good to know that, when people are training me, they lean into learning their own processes even more deeply through those trainings. I’m grateful that it feels like I’m allowing them to become more well-versed as they train me, too.
YeskeBuie: It’s a very collaborative environment and we’re happy you’re a part of it. With this fresh perspective – this newness to the profession – what skills do you see yourself developing during your training that you hope will make a difference for Clients in the future? And how has this experience influenced how you want to continue to serve people in your career?
Austin: As far as developing skills, I do feel better about becoming more efficient in how our processes work and being able to see the Client’s big picture. Because I’m new, I feel as though I can relate to Clients and can meet them with an empathetic mindset. It’s a really great place to start, because learning helps me meet Clients where they’re at and understand their situation. I definitely want to continue that as I move forward.
YeskeBuie: What an awesome perspective. Is there a piece of advice you’ve received that you think about frequently or that guides your work?
Austin: It’s something that my mom told me when I was — I don’t even know how old: you never get a second chance for a first impression. That has stuck with me my entire life. I’m committed to being authentic, whether in my best moment or my worst. I want to show up as my best self so other people have confidence in knowing what I can provide on my best day. It’s the best advice I’ve ever heard. I still carry it and think about it quite often.
YeskeBuie: Thank you for sharing that. And now, to end on a lighthearted note, if you could instantly master any new skill, what would it be and why?
Austin: Master? Oh, wow… so there’s playing the bass guitar because I just love songs and I have to live vicariously through air guitar when I’m listening to music. However, getting better at swimming seems more useful. And, to be even more specific, I would say treading water. I’d just like to turn my brain off and go for a swim sometimes, but when I get in the water, my brain turns up the volume. I know it sounds crazy coming from a sailor in the Navy, but I see these people swimming for exercise or even swimming the English Channel and I’d want to get to that level.
YeskeBuie: That’s wonderful! Funny and fitting for a sailor.
Austin, thank you so much for sitting down to talk with us! We’re so excited that you’ve joined the YeskeBuie team and we look forward to seeing you thrive in your new role.