I joined the investment industry at the age of 25 as a Girl Friday. After 19 years in the industry and 2 firm changes, I had been a Portfolio Manager for over 10 years and was now an equity owner, but I realized something wasn’t right….where are the women owners? We were two of very few that were equity owners and even we couldn’t make decisions firm-wide. It was at that moment I knew I had to step into the role I had always wanted, it was not going to be given. Hannah Giesbrecht was my business partner from 2007 to 2019. She is the reason I was able to become a Portfolio Manager. At our second firm we would have tea and talk investment strategy in the afternoons. She is my moral compass and my sober second thought but also my greatest champion. In losing my business partner I got my mom back.

I had to recognize and let go of the scarcity mentality. Operating with a scarcity mentality means only solving the immediate problems, it's like driving on a highway and only looking 30 feet ahead of your front bumper. It's a boat anchor. The scarcity mentality is what makes people hoard, forces them to plan for the day instead of the week and forces the constant barrage of the exact same decisions over and over and over again. What I realize now is that you do not need to lose in order for me to win.

So often I would think there needs to be more of US. I was recently at a conference where the CEO of a mutual fund company was being heralded as a great egalitarian for saying to a room full of women that there needs to be more women in financial services because women outlast men and they would get the money on the end. We are not technically business partners anymore but my mom came out of retirement to help me launch Doyenne Financial Ltd. which is, as far as I know the only female-founded Portfolio Management business in Manitoba but also one of the few in Canada.

Once I had worn out my usefullness in setting up an entirely new silo of business, I could feel the tone change around me. I was being herded into the pen with the other cows for milking and those that don't produce enough in my business get a bolt through the head. As a financial services business gets to be more successful, it tends to raise its minimums for clients and advisors. The house keeps a minimum of 50% which is why so many advisors move from one place to another so often, to get a better deal. I found myself having to explain things to clients that didn't make sense to me.

I want to create more Portfolio Managers and more women business owners, in particular. We want them to be successful and under our banner for as long as they like. In the meantime, advisors can come to work in peace and not have to worry about high pressure head office tactics and intimidation.

That nagging tugging feeling is there for a reason, and I hadn't been listening to it as it related to business or personal relationships. Every time I made a decision because it was easier to not argue for the principle I had that UGH feeling in the pit of my stomach. I have great instincts and a wonderfully honed BS filter and when I trust my gut I can feel good about my decisions.

When you run your own company, it all falls on you, the good and the bad which means that it isn’t for everyone.

In my career, I have learned that someone’s profession isn’t a measure of their character but how they work in their profession is. It comes down to respect.