Sheldon Sweeney
Wealth Advisor
Snider Financial GroupSheldon’s transition after many years of working in the maritime industrial marketplace to financial services was largely sparked by a combination of three factors: the desire to have more time to spend with his wife and children, the opportunity to be more engaged in others’ lives, and a recurring suggestion from his own insurance agent that he’d be good at the profession. Says Sheldon, “Financial services wasn’t something I ever thought I’d do, but I came into the industry through the life insurance side, as opposed to the investing side. I liked that entry-point as it immediately correlated to families and the protection aspect of the industry. From there, I just kept progressing, adding one thing after another – financial planning, security licensing, and the other things I needed to effectively service the niche I’ve established”. Though no longer a part of the maritime industry, Sheldon is still an avid water enthusiast. While he grew up surfing and swimming competitively in Australia, Colorado, and California (on the move as part of a military family), since moving to the Pacific Northwest over thirty years ago Sheldon now frequently participates in year-round open water swims. He says, “It’s a great passion of mine, swimming through open waters with other swimmers – it’s a whole subculture. Psychologically it calms you down – mentally, it toughens you up. I’ve told my kids, ‘If you can make yourself swim in really cold water, other challenges in your life will seem easy'”. The two niches where Sheldon places his focus extend directly from his own experiences. When asked what motivates him, Sheldon says, “It’s always my passion for the family, so I’ve gravitated toward these two niches of 1) retirement planning, and 2) planning for families who have a person with special needs. When retiring you’re worried about leaving what you’ve been so invested in – what will happen to my friends circle, what will I do when I’m not getting a paycheck, where is money coming from? These are super emotional questions”. “I have five adult children myself, and my youngest daughter, who is 18, has Down syndrome. There are so many planning questions involved when one has a special needs child. There is also overlap with many of the emotional questions faced by those planning for retirement – when clients invite me in to be a part of these conversations, that’s what gets me going every day. If you disregard the emotional aspects of the relationship, you don’t get to have deeper relationships with clients”. Outside of Rotary, Sheldon surrounds himself with a network of people that complement the goals he is trying to accomplish. He indicates that a lack of self-confidence was one of his greatest challenges early on in this industry, because what one needs to know can seem so comprehensive. “Initially, there is a confidence battle – you have to come to an understanding you can’t do it all yourself. Surround yourself with people in different disciplines who are go-tos in addition to our team at Snider Financial Group. On the retirement side, with all the iterations of planning such as Medicare, Medicare Supplements, Social Security, Taxes, Insurance, – I have a team of professionals I am able to introduce to my clients. And, on the special needs side, issues like future housing, independent living, variations of health insurance available that are not normally on the retail side that come up, but I have a special needs network of about twenty professionals. We meet monthly, talk about what’s going on in our disciplines. Speech pathologists, life skills coaches, you name it. It was initially built around parents with special needs kids and was group therapy for all of us. It can be stressful at times, but we learn from and rely upon each other”.
