08/21/2026
Last year, I walked into my first LPL Financial conference just two months after transitioning my practice to LPL. I remember feeling like I was drinking through a fire hose. 12,000+ advisors, more information than I could process, and I didn't know a single face in the crowd.
Last week, I went back for my second one. Completely different experience. I couldn't get through a hallway without running into someone I recognized.
Amanda Bateman, CFP®, a woman I'd prayed with at the Prayer Breakfast the year before, found me and remembered my name. Conversations picked back up with amazing leaders like Jen Roche and Beth Csengody like no time had passed.
Jesse Cole, founder of the Savannah Bananas, gave the keynote, and it stuck with me more than I expected. His framework came down to four things: entertain always, engage deeply, empower your team, experiment often. The part I keep replaying is what he said about failure. 🎯 It's only fatal if you stop.
The Kingdom Advisors Prayer Breakfast was transformative. The message centered on money as a tool, and our platforms as a ministry. A purpose. A calling. Being a good steward of your treasure and your talent. I left with new resources, but what stuck with me is how fast this experience stopped feeling like a room full of strangers and started feeling like a community I actually belong to.