Um...What I do all day.

So, lots of people ask what I do, and, because I don't really know how to explain in a short sentence what it is I actually do all day, I usually tell them "I'm an administrative assistant at a financial planning firm" (which sounds so boring). But, as I'm sure is the case with MANY administrative assistants, my job is much more than that. I'm actually fairly proud of what our company does, and pretty satisfied with my job. Being the multi-functioning do-everythinger at the office is pretty great compared to a lot of other jobs because I have a pretty good amount of variety and challenge in my work.

I've really wanted my family to know what I do for a long time, and since you all love me enough to read my blog--you can learn about it too :)



The basics: The company I work for is called Velocity Financial. We're called that because we believe in the concept of "velocities of money," or rather, getting more than one use out of your money, to say it in the most concise way possible. We used to be called Velocity Philosophy, but that's just REALLY hard to say. My boss started doing this thing called LEAP a few years back. I'm not even going to try to explain what LEAP is in my own words, so here's what their website says:

"For over 30 years, The LEAP SYSTEM has helped people to achieve happier, wealthier, and more successful financial lives. This is accomplished by focusing on the strategic positioning and flow of your money. Through the use of a proprietary financial "power tool" called the PS&G Model , you will have a more holistic way to analyze your financial situation and develop a very dynamic approach to achieving an effective and efficient financial life for you and your family."

My boss is an agent of The LEAP SYSTEM and helps people be happier because their finances are happier. I'm not the one who teaches our clients financial strategies, so I don't think I'll go into much more than that.

So THEN, a year or so ago, my boss started thinking up this even BETTER process to give our clients an even MORE expanded and complete financial analysis, and created our own unique process called Thrive.

I really enjoyed being a part of the team while we were developing Thrive. I feel like what my employer does is something I can be proud of. Our website says this:

"Each life is individual, with different opportunities, different dreams, different obstacles. But one desire is universal: to know that your life is everything it can be.
This is what it means to Thrive.
It's a process through which you learn how to maximize your growth while minimizing your risk. It's a pattern of effective personal and financial steps that activate all the energy and resources in your life. It's a plan that gains velocity as you see uncertainty turn into confidence.
It's making the most of you.
Thrive. More than just living."

So basically, we take our clients through a financial process, and I'm the one who does a lot of the background work, like preparing handouts, letters, reminder cards, etc. And also, preparing our software scenarios. We use software that allows our clients to see everything about their financial world at once--and how those decisions integrate, and how they can be coordinated to save the most money, and get the most return. In the last year or so, I've been doing a lot of training to get better at the software so our advisors don't have to spend so much time inputting details. Sounds boring, I know. And sometimes it is--but I learn A LOT about finances.

Lately I've been able to incorporate a lot of my interest in creativity--like crafty or visual things. The owner had professionals work on getting the initial design, but I've been able to help with all the little things. I got to design and make up packages to give to clients, as well as help design our agreements and extra handouts. It's been so satisfying seeing everything we've been working on come together in a visually pleasing way that matches and coordinates with everything.



I also do underwriting for life insurance. A part of what we do helps people protect themselves, their families, their business, whatever, with life insurance. I'm licensed to sell insurance, even though I don't, and I'm the one who takes their application and helps get the underwriter what they need to make a decision. There's a lot of paperwork and rules--and I LOVE IT :) I like checklists and systems, and underwriting just fits my fancy.

I get to interact with our clients a lot, and be the one who helps them follow up on all the things they need to do. So I really get to see them succeed at becoming more secure. Over the last two years, I feel like my role at the business has become a pretty important part. So even though there are hard days and may be slow times or my boss might be having a bad day or something, overall, I like what we do for people.

I hope that doesn't sound like a plug for my work :) Really, I just wanted to say a little bit about what I do all day every day. It's weird, I'm at work as much as I'm at home, but I rarely talk about it anywhere but at work. I wonder how many people are like that...