Let’s take a break from sarcastic financial commentary on the internet for a personal announcement.
This week, after almost nine years since the journey began, including over a thousand hours of study time for three exams, plus subsequent years of gaining required work experience, I now hold the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst® designation.
It feels good to type it out: I am a CFA® charterholder.
I have so many people to thank for their support and I would never have made it without them. A special shout-out to my wife, who over the final two exams (and for months at a time) dealt with not only long periods of daily isolated study time, but put up no objections to surrendering an entire wall that contained hundreds of yellow post-it notes. I wish I had pictures — only a huge grid of tiny holes remain from the thumb tacks I used to hold them on the wall. No joke, I’d stand there with a guitar on my shoulder, spacing out, while trying to absorb the contents of each yellow square, one-by-one. I guess it worked.
Now, it’s time to update the business cards.