I’ve started working since 14 at McDonalds’, yes $5.50 per hour on the weekends.
It was not because my family needed money (we were average in terms of income), but because I wanted to be self-reliant and to be able to make my own purchases.

Since I started earning some income at a younger age, I was also more prudent with my spendings and made it a goal to save money, just like my family did, and thought that would be enough.

But I realised, after all these years of saving, we remained a middle-income family, my father still had to work on weekends and we still don’t have a car (though most families around me have one and I thought we would be able to get one eventually).

It then hit me that there must be something that most people are doing differently. These thoughts got left behind as I continued with the academic path laid out for me, until I got contacted to join the first Ascend internship by chance.

Through the internship, I saw how financial planning was imperative to achieving larger financial goals. The seniors set the standards for an advisory process that each client deserves and this inspired to learn from them and become a great consultant myself.

While most careers are task or project-focused, our biggest assets are people and our relations. Understanding my clients, gaining their trust and guiding them towards financial freedom was a process I found purpose in and thus made this career a meaningful one.

Although I love how my life panned out, I somehow wish for less children to only learn about financial planning the way I did.

This ripple will start with me.

I’m Yu Xuan, here to guide you through life’s adventure.