Robert H Moore, CPM®

My path to finance was atypical. I didn’t move from college to graduate school to Wall Street. Instead, I decided to begin my career by serving my country. I joined the Marine Corps as an Infantry Officer after graduating from San Diego State University. At the age of 23 I found myself leading a platoon of 43 Marines, most of whom were older than me. This was one of the most challenging and rewarding roles I have ever taken on. Over the next 14 years I was promoted to Major, and served multiple combat deployments in some of the most dangerous places on Earth. Leading my Marines, and watching as some of them never returned home, taught me life lessons and skills that I have taken from the battlefield to the financial advisory field.

Helping business owners and their families navigate the ever changing landscape of today’s “financial battlefield” takes discipline, clear communication, and adaptability. All of those skills were forged in me as a combat officer.

Ask any veteran to name one thing they learned in the military and I bet they will tell you “discipline”. Combat stresses you to the point of physical and mental exhaustion, and there were many times that I questioned my own ability to press on. But the Marine Corps trained me to never give up. Success often meant pushing myself no matter the physical pain or impossible odds. Even now, years later, this discipline is still engrained in me. It’s this type of grit I bring to my clients every day – always pushing myself to help them accomplish their goals.

Communicating clear and concise objectives is crucial to the success of any combat mission. My Marines knew what their goals were even in the storm of battle, and believe me, even the best laid plans can vanish in the blink of an eye. The same principle holds true in your financial life. Continuous communication of financial goals between me and my clients is the only way to create consistent outcomes, no matter what life throws our way.

When situations changed on the battlefield, we were trained to adapt our tactics to the new scenario in front of us. Our goals never wavered, but we were always ready to change methods to reach our target.
After years in the financial markets, I know that change is constant. For my clients, it could be the sale of a business, retirement, divorce, birth of a child or an unexpected illness. As your life changes, my team is able to alter our strategy to achieve the same goal: financial success.

Marine Corps officers operate within a bond of trust among their Marines. Regardless of personal differences, Marines fight knowing that their comrades will die defending them. I think about my experience in the military every time a client trusts me to protect their financial future. It is my job to help guide them through the turmoil of the market and life, and never abandon them on the “financial battlefield.”