Steve Higgins
Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I’m a proud Broomfield native. I grew up here and went to Broomfield High School where I actually met my wife Pauline – we were high school sweet hearts. I attended North Dakota State, where I played football. After college, Pauline and I made a list of locations we would like to start our lives and Broomfield was at the top of our lists. We stayed here on purpose.
What are a few of your hobbies?
Right now, I’m a proud father of three incredible little girls and spend most of my weekend time at the pool watching my daughters swim competitively. When I get a chance, I love to spend some time on the guitar or piano. I can also be found on the links, but my desire to be good at golf greatly outweighs my talent (laughs). Exploration is important to me – I love to test and try new things.
What inspired the creation of HD Wealth Strategies?
Both Allie and I feel that our calling is to help other people. For us, that calling manifested itself in the financial services industry. Allie and I both worked for large financial firms in the past and realized that in many cases, these firms were just too big and rigid to meet the needs of all of their clients. We realized that to truly express innovation, the element that we believe was absolutely necessary to help meet the needs of clients, we needed to be entrepreneurial at heart – which required leaving the big firms and starting HD Wealth Strategies.
What is your favorite aspect of the business / work life?
For me, the best part of work is having the ability to create ideas and solutions that are tailor-made for each client. Watching these solutions help clients realize their financial goals is amazing to me.
Describe your investment philosophy.
First, it’s imperative that an investor understands the relationship between the risk and the expected rewards of an investment program. Then we start with buying quality investments and diversifying according to modern portfolio theory. From there it is fundamentally necessary to be prepared for challenges, both expected and unexpected, and to give credence to economic realities. What I mean is that it is very important to not ignore the climate of the markets. Of course, minimizing risk and maximizing opportunity using a tactical spirit is important.
How are you involved in the community?
Anyone that knows me understands that I am extremely passionate about Broomfield. I am currently the president of the Broomfield Rotary Club. My other involvement includes The Broomfield Youth Advisory Committee, the Broomfield Community Foundation, and Young Life of Broomfield / Adams counties.
What changes do you see in the financial services industry?
Through my almost 15 year career in finance I have witnessed some major changes in how investors are affected by their own emotions. Two separate stock market corrections of over 50% have tested the trust of everyday investors. While technology has increased the speed by which investors receive hoards of conflicting information everyday, I’ve found that people’s understanding of all of that information hasn’t increased at the same rate. That void has been filled with emotions – mostly fear. I’ve seen people seemingly paralyzed by fear over events that historically would not have registered on the headlines such as Ebola and the Greece financial crisis. I believe it is critical for clients to use tools to prepare themselves to protect against their own emotions. We created The MyStrategy Personal Investment Policy to meet this challenge.
How is HD Wealth Strategies different?
Without question, MyStrategy, our crafted approach to financial planning is completely unique. We developed MyStrategy to better communicate our client’s goals and exceptions. Too often financial plans read like lengthy legal documents. MyStrategy, consolidates the most important information and communicates in real world terms. Also we are small by design, some might say boutique. I think that sounds expensive, but we just know who our clients are. We know not everybody is a perfect fit, but for those who are, are treated like gold. This setup allows us to have real in-depth relationships with our clients. I believe that to truly be a concierge financial services firm, one must be small enough to allow itself to be nimble – a precious resource many large financial firms lack.
What are a couple of your weekly “must reads?”
Wall Street Journal is definitely up there. I actually bounce around a lot. Topics are more important to me than any specific column, which leads me to read blogs and watch a lot of Ted Talks and videos. You can literally find and learn about anything online – I call it Youtube University.
What’s playing on your phone during a workout?
That’s a wide range (laughs). If I had to pick one or two things, I would say Aerosmith – I love classic rock, or Rage Against the Machine. Maybe some dance music – on a recommendation from a buddy. I’ve added some Mitas and Chain Smokers. It really depends on the day (smiles). Honesty, I listen to a lot more podcasts than music when I’m on the road or in the gym.
What are two personality traits that allow you to deliver results for clients?
Communication and a calm nature.
Something you can’t live without in the office?
Coffee.
Ski or snowboard?
Snowboard.
Run or bike?
I run more but I’d rather bike.
*Diversification and asset allocation do not ensure a profit or protect against a loss.
