Wealth Artisan
Hi There,
I’m Kris. I’m glad that you wanted to learn a bit more about me and Wealth Artisan. Here is some information so you can get to know me (including credentials):
Who I’m Not:
I’m not a suit wearer
Suits aren’t comfortable, and if someone doesn’t find value in me because I’m not wearing a suit, then I have no interest in knowing them. Read: Professional, Boring!
I’m not an all-knowing expert
I have a passion for entrepreneurship, and I’m always learning new things. I’ve found that people who claim to be all-knowing experts are too busy trying to convince people they are experts that they don’t have time to re-educate.
What good is an all-knowing expert if the knowledge they have is from 1980. I’m constantly retooling and re-evaluating my stances on things as technology changes.
If you want an all-knowing, suit-wearing expert, then they’re a dime a dozen. You can find them bantering on your television, regurgitating the same sterilized, legal department-approved “opinions” that were force-fed to them in business school during 1982, and just before the show by the writers.
My opinions are my own, and while I may not always be right, at least I’m exploring the territories that most “experts” aren’t even aware of until the majority have put their stamp of approval on it. I was telling people to not buy the Facebook IPO and I was right. The Facebook IPO was a disaster.
I’m not “normal”
I do things differently. If you want the standard, pre-packaged lives that most people end up with, then you do things the way they do them.
You work an ordinary job that you are indifferent about or hate, you save up a bunch of money during the best years of your life, and you hope that a bunch of guys running the stock market don’t mess things up before you jump ship and finally get the life you’ve always dreamed of- except you are now too old and tired to actually do any of it. If you want something, you have to do things differently- OR:
“Insanity is doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.”
― Albert Einstein
I can’t live like that. I can’t just numb myself into sitting in a desk for the next 40 years and cross my fingers hoping the current way that everyone does everything will work out in my favor.
At that rate, why not just play the lottery? I see little value in the traditional idea of retirement, and choose to do things differently. Some people will tell me I’m wrong, others will say I’m crazy, but the “safe” alternative looks far worse to me.
I’m not normal, I joke around a lot, I have differing opinions from the majority, and I’m happy with that. The most successful people on this earth weren’t normal. Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and Mother Theresa were not normal people. If they lived life normally, then they would have never made their mark.
Love them or not, they marched to their drum, they did what they thought was right, and they made their mark. I will either leave a mark, or die knowing that I tried my best. Giving up, and doing the “normal” thing just isn’t in the cards for me. We are called to not conform, and I don’t plan to.
For more information on my stance about “normal”, read my “Weird” book review by Craig Groeschel.
Who I Am:
I’m young, married and mortgaged
I’m 25, as of this writing, I work a full-time job, I own a mortgage which I’m trading for a house in installment payments, and I’ve been married since December of 2008 to Humble Laura, Mayor of Humbleville (she is super awesome!).
I’m Christian
I’m a Christian and I’m proud of my faith. I didn’t grow up in my faith, it was earned through lots of reading, research and consideration. I do believe that many Christians are more like Pharisees than true followers of Christ, but that is between them and God. I don’t have everything down, I’m not perfect and I just strive to be as good as I can be. All Christians should be required to memorize this:
Matthew 7:3-5
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
I’m blunt
I try to be eloquent, but sometimes I can’t avoid being extremely blunt. I try hard not to offend anyone, and I think I succeed for the most part, but I’m a blunt person. I hate sugar-coating things too much because it really is a waste of time.
My musical tastes
I probably have the strangest musical tastes out of anyone I know. My wife and I can attend a classical music concert or pops in the park, but then listen to Electronica or metal on the way home.
My credentials
For the credential obsessed, you’ll be happy to know that I’m terribly unqualified as far as sheets of paper are concerned. If you need more information about my inventory of paper, then continue reading: I currently hold an Associate degree, and I’m also attending a University working towards a piece of paper in Finance (aka Bachelors of Finance).
I consume entrepreneurship and business information daily. What separates me from most others is that I’m not only learning in school, I’m actively reading material outside of school because this is what I love. I love entrepreneurship. I grew up in small businesses, and it’s what I’m passionate about.
Why I Started Wealth Artisan
- To help friends and family.
- To help anyone else who would read.
- To fulfill my insatiable hunger for knowledge about entrepreneurship and finance.
- To interact with people in the business and finance community.
- To build up ideas, and technology for business.
- To build a sustainable business.
I really enjoy helping people, and that is what spurred me to start this website. I originally wanted to help my family, but the blog just continued growing. I try to provide well thought out, well backed up information, but if you’re looking for a pedigreed financier to give you a complex investment strategy to take advantage of a falling knife, you probably won’t find it here.
I do provide some stock information, feel free to browse around, but I tend to stick with more time-tested investment strategies. I definitely have an interest in many of the complex topics, but I just don’t have the experience to guide people through things like that. Theory is one thing, experience is a whole different ball game.
Mission
I believe in being frugal while maintaining an enjoyable standard of living. I also believe in risk taking if it is done intelligently. No penny stock information will be found here, but I’m very supportive of starting a business. Here are some things that you will not find at The Wealth Artisan:
- Get Rich Quick Schemes
- Business “opportunities” with hidden upstart costs
- The best deals on the biggest, newest flat screen TV
- I don’t believe in “Uber-Consumerism“
- The best ways to use debt to leverage your investments
- I have an anti-debt ideology. Yes, some people can use debt as a tool, but the majority get financially ruined by it, thus our current economy. For the sake of my readers I will discourage unnecessary debt.
FTC Disclosure
This policy is valid from 15 February 2013
This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me. For questions about this blog, please contact Kris, by using the contact form.
This blog accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation.
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The owner(s) of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner(s) of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the bloggers’ own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.
This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.
We’ve posted this information as an attempt to be more transparent. If you have any questions regarding this, then please contact us so we might be able to help. Thanks!