Navigating Certification and Early Career Growth

 

After more than a decade as a financial planner, Brenton Harrison of Nashville decided to earn his CFP® certification. Today he runs his own firm serving primarily mid-career professionals and has a popular podcast called “New Money, New Problems.”

Harrison got his CFP® certification in 2021 for two reasons. “It was a combination of me wanting to advance myself education wise and then also being able to lean on the certification to validate my expertise,” he says.

CFP® certification is unique, he says: “I think it is the most publicly recognized designation in financial services that also provides a strong education experience that will prepare you for the industry.”

As a minority in the profession, the credential has helped Harrison prove his credibility. He explains, “Whether you’re dealing with a Black client or a white client, as a Black advisor, there are often questions I’m asked where people are making me go a step further to validate my expertise, and CFP® [certification] helps me do that. Almost everybody that I am reaching out to asks if I have my CFP® [certification].”

Harrison earned his CFP® certification while also working toward becoming a Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU). The process took about two-and-a-half years. He took all his classes online while working his regular job, being married and having a new child at home.

Advice to Students

What would Harrison recommend to students? “I think CFP® [certification] is one of the rare designations where there's a combination of valuable education, but also public awareness that makes it worth it, no matter what… I would be looking for certifications that have that combination of information they want to learn and also public awareness.”

In addition to CFP® certification and his CLU, Brenton also holds the Certified Student Loan Professional (CSLP®) designation. “It is not a very well-known designation, but I got it because the information that I learned was very helpful to my clients, so I would encourage a student to have an idea of what portion of the industry they want to serve and then look for certifications that make them more valuable in that segment of the market,” he says.