The Unconventional Path to Financial Planning with Barry Mulholland

Diversity in Action™

Welcome to the fourth episode of the Diversity in Action™ podcast Season 2!

In today's episode, our guest Dr. Barry Mulholland is the Director of the Financial Planning Program and Associate Professor of Practice at The University of Akron. He also has a Ph.D. in personal financial planning from Texas Tech University. Barry is the founder of the Diversitas and he has won teaching awards for his work in the classroom and has received awards for his work with Diversitas, including a ThinkAdvisor LUMINARIES 2021 award, Investment News Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Diversity Champions Award finalist in 2018 and 2022, and RIA Intel Industry Advocate of the Year finalist in both 2022 and 2023.

In this episode, Barry shares his journey of transitioning from management to human resources. He describes how he met a recruiter who invited him to join their business, specializing in recruiting engineers. While their partnership didn't work out, the business thrived. Barry also highlights his advice to students who transition from engineering to financial planning, emphasizing the concept of "financial engineering" where risk management and finding optimal solutions play a key role. He encourages them to apply an engineering approach to their financial endeavors. Also, Barry said that he always looks at every experience as positive, even if it means you're changing at the end of the experience, because you learn something about yourself in every experience you will have.

Listening to this episode will give you knowledge about financial planning and how experiences can shape you in your career path.

Episode Highlights:

>> About Barry Mulholland

>> Barry’s transition from management into human resources

>> Engineering approach to finances

>> About looking at every experience as positive in every internship

>> What Diversitas does it’s origin

>> Twelve Tribes methodology for career paths

>> The traditional side of the industry

>> About programming

>> UCLA's Extension program

Episode Sponsor:

This episode is brought to you by Diversitas. Diversitas aims to make the financial planning profession and the wealth management industry more inclusive through education, mentorship and human connection. Diversitas seeks to expand the participation of underrepresented groups in the profession and the industry by mitigating the leading barriers to entry, a lack of education, understanding and awareness. For more information, visit diversitasfp.org.

Connect with Barry:

>> Website: diversitasfp.org

>> LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/diversitasfp

>> Twitter: @DiversitasFP

>> Facebook: www.facebook.com

>> Instagram: @diversitasfp

Resources Mentioned in the Episode:

>> 12 Tribes of Financial Planning

>> CFP Board® Women's Initiative

Diversity in Action™ is all about showcasing real stories of individuals who are making an impact in the financial planning industry. You will learn how they got started in the industry, how they built their foundation, where they are headed in their careers, and their passion for making the financial industry more diverse.

It’s time to be inspired by those working to make a positive difference in the financial planning industry. It’s time to be part of this radical change!

Diversity in Action™ is a project of BLX Internship - a program for aspiring Black and Latinx financial planners. Visit our website at blxinternship.org