You make good money. You have a plan somewhere. What you are not sure about is whether anyone is actually watching the whole thing. Right now, you probably have an advisor for investments, a CPA for taxes, and maybe an attorney for estate documents. None of them talk to each other. You are the one in the middle, repeating your situation to three people who each see one slice of it. I build the financial plan, and I prepare and file your tax return myself. Same person, same conversation. The tax decision and the planning decision get made together, by someone who can see how one moves the other. Most advisors hand you off to a CPA who has never seen your plan. I do not hand you off. I work with dual-income parents, director level and up, two demanding careers, kids at home, and a financial life that has gotten more complicated than you have time for. Equity comp you have not fully sorted out. College creeping up. Estate documents written before your last job change. All of it in motion at once, and no one holding it together. What I give you back is time. One relationship instead of many. One person who knows the whole story, so you stop being the project manager of your own financial life. None of these pieces is that hard on its own. The coordination is what you do not have the hours for. That is the part I take off your plate. I am raising four kids of my own, including a set of triplets, so I plan from inside this life stage, not from a brochure. I know what it costs, in money and in attention, to do this well. If you are tired of being the one who holds it all together, reach out. I will tell you honestly whether I am the right fit.

Sean R. Sparkman, AIF®, is the founder of Pathfinders Wealth and an investment adviser representative with Foundations Investment Advisors, LLC. Based in Commerce Township, Michigan, he works with families, retirees, and business owners nationwide by phone and video and throughout Southeast Michigan in person by appointment. His work focuses on retirement income planning, investment management, Social Security, Roth conversions and other tax-aware planning decisions, life insurance, annuities, survivor planning, and long-term family and legacy goals. Sean's approach is simple: every dollar should have a job. Depending on the client, that job may be growth, income, liquidity, tax efficiency, protection, or legacy. The job comes first; the product comes after. Investment advisory services are offered through Foundations Investment Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment adviser. Insurance products are offered separately through appropriately licensed insurance professionals. Estate-planning matters may be coordinated with a client's independent attorney; Sean does not provide legal services.

Eldin Foco is a financial advisor at Sterling Advisory Group LLC with 18 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked at several firms including CIG Capital Advisors and Cco Investment Services Corp. since 2012. Sterling Advisory Group provides portfolio management, financial planning, and retirement-plan consulting to individuals, families, trusts, foundations, businesses, and employer-sponsored plans. The firm manages client accounts on a tailored basis and also serves institutional clients, offering a range of strategic investment models that emphasize asset allocation, diversification, and Shariah-compliant selection.

Daniel Shub is a financial advisor at Octo Capital, LLC with 12 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has been managing Octo Capital since 2015. In addition to his advisory role, he is the managing member of Shub & Company LLC, a life and health insurance agency, and Gold Star Insurance Group LLC, a property and casualty insurance agency. Octo Capital provides investment advisory, portfolio management, financial planning, and consulting services to individuals, families, retirement plans, trusts, foundations, and charitable organizations. The firm’s investment approach is long-term and based on Modern Portfolio Theory, utilizing diversified allocations primarily through mutual funds and ETFs, with discretionary portfolio management and regular monitoring.

Lawrence Zimbler is the sole advisor at 4Square Advisory Services, Inc. in Fenton, MI, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with 16 years of industry experience. He has worked at Ridgeway Conger Advisory Services Inc. and has maintained a long-standing role with the National Association of Tax Professionals since 2005. In addition to his advisory work, he owns a tax preparation and education business that provides tax return preparation, advice, representation, and continuing education for tax professionals. 4Square Advisory Services primarily serves individual and high-net-worth clients with portfolio management and financial planning, utilizing written Investment Policy Statements tailored to client goals. The firm employs a model-driven investment process covering mutual funds, fixed income, REITs, ETFs, annuities, TIPS, and international securities, often with discretionary trading authority, and offers fiduciary advice for retirement accounts and services to tax-exempt organizations.

Bassam Salem is a financial advisor at Objective Investments, LLC with 39 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 designations and has been with Objective Investments since 2018. Prior to that, he worked at InvestShares Advisor Group Inc. and InvestShares from 2016 to 2018. Objective Investments provides fee-based investment management services to individuals, high-net-worth clients, corporations, and qualified retirement plans. The firm offers both discretionary and non-discretionary portfolio management, employs a variety of investment strategies, and provides specialized services to employer-sponsored retirement plans as a limited-scope ERISA 3(21) fiduciary.

Natalie Miller is the principal advisor and owner of Grit and Lavender Financial Planning, an independent firm based in Brighton, Michigan. She holds Series 63 and Series 66 designations and has 14 years of industry experience, including roles at Merrill Lynch, PNC Investments, and Mass Mutual Life Insurance Company. Outside of her advisory work, she provides non-securities related consulting, coaching, and virtual instruction for securities licensing exams. Grit and Lavender Financial Planning serves individual clients with services ranging from ongoing investment management to one-time financial plans and hands-on financial coaching. The firm primarily employs a passive investment approach using index mutual funds and ETFs, supplemented by fundamental and technical analysis, and offers a subscription-style billing model with educational seminars and fee-based courses.

Robert Laura is a financial advisor with Wealth & Wellness Group, LLC in Brighton, MI, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and bringing 16 years of industry experience. He has been involved with Synergos Financial Group, L.L.C. dba Osborn Wealth Management since 2009 and is also active in educational content development and workshops through Retirement Project LLC. Wealth & Wellness Group provides investment advisory and planning services primarily to high-net-worth individuals, trusts, estates, charitable organizations, and retirement plans. The firm employs a tailored portfolio management approach that emphasizes diversification, asset allocation, Modern Portfolio Theory, and fundamental analysis, managing both discretionary and directed client relationships.

Kevin Barry is a financial advisor at KB Wealth Management, LLC in Bloomfield Hills, MI, holding a Series 66 designation with 18 years of industry experience. He worked at Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. for 10 years before founding KB Wealth Management in 2019. KB Wealth Management serves individuals, high-net-worth clients, and business entities with tailored financial planning, portfolio management, and qualified retirement plan consulting. The firm employs asset allocation, fundamental analysis, and modern portfolio theory to construct portfolios and offers retirement plan consulting and ERISA 3(21) fiduciary services uncommon among firms of its size.

Scott Heath is the founder and sole advisor of Heath Capital Management, Inc. in Bloomfield Hills, MI. He holds the CFP® designation along with Series 63 and 65 licenses and has 26 years of industry experience. Heath has managed his firm since its inception in 1996. Heath Capital Management provides discretionary investment supervisory services to individuals, corporations, and pension and profit-sharing plans. The firm employs risk-sensitive active bond and equity strategies with a focus on bottom-up stock selection and manages a broad range of taxable and tax-exempt portfolios, including municipal and mortgage-backed securities as well as various international and small-cap equity strategies.

Michael Cho is a financial advisor at Armor Wealth Strategies, LLC with 29 years of industry experience. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and has worked previously at Cutter & Company, Inc and Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC. Outside of advising, Cho serves as a fencing referee and volunteers as treasurer for the Disability Network of Oakland and Macomb Counties. Armor Wealth Strategies is a small advisory firm serving individual and high-net-worth clients with discretionary asset management, comprehensive financial planning, and ERISA 3(21) retirement-plan advisory services. The firm tailors portfolios to client goals and risk tolerances, employing a range of investment strategies and providing ongoing monitoring and quarterly reviews.

Daniel Ryan is the principal advisor at Daniel Ryan Financial LLC in Holly, MI, with 12 years of industry experience. He holds a Series 65 designation and previously worked at Jackson Financial for eight years before founding his independent firm. Outside of advisory work, he assists in family-related land management and works part-time as a sales associate in a lumber and hardware business. Daniel Ryan Financial LLC serves individual investors and a small number of institutional clients, including pension and profit-sharing plan sponsors. The firm provides portfolio management and financial planning, with a focus on employer-sponsored retirement plans, using an investment approach that combines cyclical and fundamental analysis with modern portfolio theory.

Thomas Horton is a CFP® professional with 16 years of industry experience. He has operated Horton Financial Planning LLC since 2004, serving clients from Farmington Hills, MI. Horton Financial Planning LLC is an independent, fee-only advisory firm that offers hourly, as-needed financial planning and investment advice primarily to individual clients. The firm emphasizes comprehensive planning and a long-term, buy-and-hold investment approach focused on passive, low-cost index funds with periodic rebalancing.

In Soo Suh is the sole advisor at FITSHA Consulting and holds a Series 65 designation. Suh has approximately one year of experience in financial advisory services, following prior roles at Scout Motors, Freudenburg EPS, Stoneridge, Aptiv, and GM. Outside of advisory work, Suh is a licensed real estate professional and occasionally provides engineering consulting. FITSHA Consulting serves both institutional and individual clients, offering financial planning, discretionary portfolio management, and retirement plan consulting. The firm’s investment approach focuses on asset allocation and model portfolios with ongoing monitoring, and it provides participant education, seminars, and hourly planning engagements.

Bernard Shinkel is the sole advisor at Alpha Investment Management, Inc. in Novi, MI, holding Series 63 and Series 65 licenses with 16 years of industry experience. He has been with Alpha Investment Management since 2010. Alpha Investment Management is a Michigan-registered advisory firm providing discretionary portfolio management and wealth management services to high-net-worth individuals, family limited partnerships, corporate pension and profit-sharing plans, and charitable organizations. The firm employs a top-down, macro-oriented investment process that emphasizes diversified global portfolios with a focus on low-cost ETFs and index funds, aiming to manage risk and deliver steady returns.

Merid Amde is the sole advisor at M.A. Global Investment Advisor, LLC and holds Series 63 and Series 66 designations with 35 years of industry experience. He founded M.A. Global Investment Advisor, LLC, where he has worked since 2014, and previously worked at Investshares Advisor Group, LLC and InvestShares. Outside of advising, he is also actively involved as an insurance agent, dedicating approximately half of his professional time to this activity. M.A. Global Investment Advisor, LLC provides non-discretionary asset management and referrals to third-party managers for individuals and business entities. The firm offers tailored investment recommendations based on clients’ goals and risk tolerance and supplements its advisory services with educational seminars, workshops, and an affiliated insurance business.

Kristian Kalaj is the principal advisor at Kalaj Capital in Novi, Michigan, holding a Series 65 designation with two years of industry experience. He has worked as an independent contractor in general contracting since 2014, dedicating about 10 hours per week to this activity. Kalaj Capital provides asset management and financial planning services, offering continuous supervision of custodial accounts and comprehensive financial plans that cover tax planning, retirement, insurance, and other personal financial matters. The firm employs a combination of fundamental and technical analysis across various investment strategies, managing accounts on a separate-account basis with discretionary authority granted by clients.

David Kubicek is a CFP® professional with 16 years of industry experience and has been associated with the Institute of Trade Management since 1997. He holds Series 63 and Series 65 licenses and operates out of Farmington Hills, MI. The Institute of Trade Management serves individuals, corporate pension and profit-sharing plans, charitable and nonprofit institutions, and corporations, providing financial consulting, investment advice, litigation support, treasury and cash-management consulting, and broader management consulting services. The firm customizes advice to client goals, employs fundamental analysis and occasional technical analysis for timing, and does not take custody of assets or charge fees based on assets under management.

Sevag Vartanian is the sole advisor at Vartanian Capital Management in Novi, MI, holding Series 63 and Series 66 licenses with 26 years of industry experience. Prior to founding his firm in 2019, he worked at Cambridge Investment Research Inc for five years. He is also involved with DGC Leasing, LLC, an equipment leasing business. Vartanian Capital Management provides discretionary and non-discretionary investment management to individuals, families, family offices, trusts, estates, private foundations, and qualified retirement plans. The firm employs fundamental analysis with a long-term strategy tailored to each client’s financial and tax situation, and is notable for its focus on servicing charitable and private foundations.

Devin Bone is the principal and sole advisor at Forsythia Financial in Bloomfield Hills, MI, with three years of experience in financial advising and a Series 65 credential. He is also a partner and 20% owner of the business law firm Paesano Akkashian, PC, where he specializes in commercial litigation, mergers and acquisitions, and securities law matters. Forsythia Financial provides customized investment management, financial planning, and consulting services to individuals, families, trusts, estates, and small businesses. The firm employs a discretionary approach based on proprietary timing, research, and asset allocation methods, and offers a range of services including portfolio management, standalone planning, and educational workshops.