Darrin J. Shallcross, CFP®, ChFC, CRPC

My perspective on financial planning was shaped early on when my mother became our family's sole provider following my father’s passing. I watched her step into that role with incredible resilience, returning to work almost immediately to ensure our stability. Witnessing her take on that responsibility independently instilled in me a deep appreciation for the importance of long-term security. That foundational experience now drives my commitment to helping others build the same kind of reliability and peace of mind for their own futures.

Fast forward a few decades. I was working in IT, building a career and eventually a company. My wife and I had started our family, and we knew we needed help planning for the future. As I prepared to sell my business, I started meeting with financial advisors. What I found was disappointing. Most of them were focused on selling products rather than actually planning. The conversations felt transactional, not collaborative.

Then in 2004, I met with a firm that did things differently. Their process was thorough, thoughtful, and centered on understanding what people actually needed. It struck me that if I were going to work in this industry, that's the kind of practice I'd want to be part of. So in 2005, I made the shift. I earned my CFP^® and CRPC^® designations, passed my Series 7 and 63 exams, and started building the firm I wished I'd found when I was the one looking for help.

What keeps me engaged after more than 20 years isn't the technical side of finance, though that matters. It's sitting down with families and learning what drives them. What are they working toward? What concerns them? What would make their lives easier or better? Those conversations are what the work is really about. When clients leave our meetings with clarity about their decisions and confidence about their direction, that's when I know we're doing something worthwhile.

I graduated from DePaul with a degree in finance back in 1989. These days, I live and work in Glen Ellyn with my wife and our three adult children. When I'm not working, you'll find me on the golf course or tending to our rather ambitious garden at home.