Ep #109: Nine Months into a New Planner Career with Abby Bennett and Bret Tagg

Abby Bennett is the Director of Financial Planning and Bret Tagg is an Associate Advisor with Verum Partners based out of Charlotte, NC. They both join the show today to share their journeys and experiences through the financial planning industry. If you are looking to get out of a Big Four accounting firm and begin adding value to a financial planning firm right off the bat, this is an episode you won’t want to miss!

Listen in as Abby walks us through her career path, from leaving a great-fit firm early in her career to getting connected with her future partners and co-founders to start Verum four years ago. Bret shares his own career journey, including how he made the transition from tax to financial planning, what he did to get Abby to take a chance on hiring him, and the biggest hurdles in his career so far.

What You'll Learn In Today's Episode:

Abby’s journey through the industry. (2:30)
Bret's career track and his role at Verum. (8:50)
How Verum first acquired clients during startup. (13:05)
What Bret was looking for in a firm and a financial planning role. (17:55)
What excited him about the position at Verum and what his role currently entails. (19:05)
What made Abby take a chance on Bret. (21:15)
The biggest challenge Bret has faced changing careers. (24:45)
How he sets goals for his career. (35:40)
His advice for financial planners. (38:40)
Abby’s advice for firm owners. (39:50)

Ideas Worth Sharing:

“It's amazing how much personal growth you can have in a short period of time.” - Abby Bennett Share on X “It didn’t give me the meaning I was looking for.” - Bret Tagg Share on X “I really wanted to focus on where I could go to really learn the business and learn the space and get good experience.” - Bret Tagg Share on X

Resources In Today's Episode:

Abby Bennett: LinkedIn
Bret Tagg: LinkedIn
Verum Partners
Diamond Teams

Download your free copy of the New Planner Career Roadmap!

In this roadmap, you'll be guided through the details of various stages of your financial planner career, including position descriptions, licensing, skill and experience level requirements, and compensation ranges.