When I decided to create Chessie Advisors, LLC in the spring of 2014, I decided I had enough of being like everyone else. I had been in the financial planning field for 12 years and worked at some of the top financial planning and investment firms in the nation, all based here in Michigan. I had worked with clients from all walks of life, from factory workers to engineers, teachers to attorneys, small business owners to high-level Fortune 500 executives.

Something was missing. Everyday was the same. Growing up, I heard the old mantra of “find a good paying job, work hard your whole life and retire with a nice pension.” That was the Post-World War II “American Dream”.

When I entered the workforce in 2003, many companies no longer offered pensions. Those trends have only accelerated. In fact, it’s becoming more common to find employers who don’t even offer any type of retirement savings for their employees such as a 401(k) or Simple IRA.

Is the American Dream dead?

It’s not to say that realizing the “American Dream” is no longer achievable. I believe it still is. Maybe it has a different meaning for everyone, or maybe we’re back to thinking of the “American Dream” like our ancestors who immigrated to America did. They believed that in coming here they were able to create their own destiny. Not the dream of being exorbitantly wealthy, like the media seems define it.

For me, the “American Dream” means having the freedom to be able go into business for yourself. It also means trying to provide my children the same or better opportunities that I had when I was growing up. But it doesn’t stop there. Like many in my own and subsequent generations, I don’t want to be beholden to a single employer for my well-being, on their terms of employment. I want to own my flexibility, own my destiny.

I want to be able to create my “American Dream,” not have it dictated to me by my employer.

a different breed of financial advisor™

My company, Chessie Advisors, LLC is all about being different and helping others define and reach their “American Dream”. Our tagline is “a different breed of financial advisor™”. We offer comprehensive fee-only financial planning and investment management services. No product sales. No minimum asset levels. No net worth requirements. We serve you as a trusted partner, not a salesperson. We look at your whole financial picture (taxes, investments, insurance, estate planning, etc.), not just your investments like many other “advisors” do.

Like a trusted guide dog leading you, we want to be your companion on your financial journey. Someone you feel comfortable picking up the phone and calling about a question, or sending an email to bounce an idea off of. We’re truly in the business of helping people.

We want to help you define your “American Dream” and work alongside you to help you reach it.

Collaborate with a partner

We believe that financial planning process should be like developing a relationship with your doctor. Through annual check-ups over various stages of your life, your doctor can help spot a disease in its early stages instead of waiting until you’re in tremendous pain. We believe the same of a good financial advisor. By working with someone who knows your intimate financial details, we hope to be able to spot any trouble areas before they get out of control.

We specialize in serving teachers, engineers, attorneys, and young professionals in their 30s through mid-60s and helping them realize their “American Dream”.

This blog will serve as a medium to opine on various financial planning topics, share life lessons, maybe add a bit of humor, and be informative.

I hope someday people can summarize our lives as Robert Frost wrote in “The Road Not Taken”, “Two roads diverged in a wood, And I-I took the one less travelled by, And that has made all the difference.”

Go out and “be a different breed™” and realize your “American Dream”.

About Chessie Advisors

Erik O. Klumpp, CFP®, EA, founder of Chessie Advisors, LLC and Chessie Tax, LLC, believes that teachers, engineers, and young professionals should have access to objective, fee-only financial planning and investment management to help them create and realize their American Dream. For more information on the services offered through Chessie Advisors, check out our website, contact Erik, or schedule an introductory call