About
My name is Michelle Martinez with Rise Up Planning. I am a financial advisor and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and I am here to help you build wealth and protect wealth. Protect your wealth from taxes, from loss, and from inflation.
I started in the industry in 1997 working for a mutual fund company called Strong Funds in Menomonee Falls WI. I started in the call center and quickly moved to the Investor Center where clients would walk in to our beautiful building and ask where to invest their money. I loved working at Strong Funds, the culture was magnificent and filled with hard working, state of the art people.
I grew up in a suburb of Milwaukee Wisconsin and fell in love with Colorado my senior year of college when I visited my aunt and uncle for a lengthy stay the summer before graduation. My aunt had said that if there was one thing she would have done after college it was to have moved to a ski resort for a season before settling into a career. I didn’t think much of it until I wasn’t receiving the job offers I expected from insurance companies in claims and underwriting positions. Looking back I am so thankful that I didn’t get any job offers for those positions because I would have stayed in Wisconsin or Minnesota which are lovely states but I wanted SUNSHINE.
My husband and I have been in Colorado (the second time) for the last 16 years. He is my best friend and we’ve been married for 30 years and have two beautiful daughters. I met Tony when I was mountain biking in the summer of 1994 in Vail. He and his best friend came upon me as I sat bewildered that the guy I was biking with ditched me in the middle of the forest and I was lost and crying. I quickly pretended I wasn’t crying and acted as if I was just fine when they rode past me on the trail. Because I was lost, I followed them all the way down the mountain without them knowing I was following them seeking direction. At the bottom of Vail Mountain, Tony asked me if I’d like to join them for a drink at a local tavern and I gladly said yes. That was the beginning of our courtship and we were married 2 years later!
I love starting my day spending time with the Lord and studying His word, followed by coffee and scripture with my husband. I am then ready to start my day managing client’s money and planning for my wonderful clients.
Some of my favorite things to do are hiking with my dogs in the beautiful Rocky Mountains of Colorado. I try to do at least one new hike a month. I’d love to hear from you, what are your favorite hiking trails in Colorado? In the winter months, I love snowshoeing. Other favorite activities are listening to worship music, camping in isolated areas in the Rocky Mountains, stand up paddle boarding on the Colorado River, and traveling to see my family in Nashville, Tampa, Los Angeles, and Arizona, and watching the Green Bay Packers. My favorite worship bands are Elevation Worship with my favorite song being “Another One” although my favorite songs seem to change daily as there are so many good songs; Maverick City and Bethel.
It makes my day when my wonderful clients say that I’ve changed their lives or call me their amazing financial advisor. I don’t take my clients lightly, I am so thankful for each and every one of them. I am not transactional with my clients meaning that it is a relationship that we enter into and I take it very seriously that they are entrusting me with their money and with their retirement plan and I feel so honored to be given this opportunity.
Some of my favorite questions to ask during the first discovery meeting are:
What keeps you up at night?
What was it like in your household growing up in relation to money?
Would you describe yourself as a saver or spender? Do you have a mindset of abundance or scarcity?
The money mindsets we had as children often carry with us into adulthood. When I can empower women with a financial plan, it often gives them confidence and clarity and can override negative emotions they have about money giving them a positive outlook for their future and thinking positively about their financial situation.
I grew up with my mother being a saver and pinching pennies and not a risk taker whereas my father was an investor in real estate, a spender and a big risk taker. Whew, what a combination! I see myself with all of these qualities today. I certainly understand money anxieties especially when I see myself paying for something and it doesn’t appear that I receive the value that I expected.
I grew up in a suburb of Milwaukee, Wisconsin with my parents and one brother and one sister. My younger brother had a traumatic eye injury when he was 3 years old which impacted our entire family and still does in many respects to this day. It created major anxiety for him and has challenged him ever since. Thankfully, faith in God has gotten him and all of us through. I’ve always encouraged him to know that he is more than an overcomer.
I love my profession and helping people thrive financially and have financial peace. It truly has been such a blessing to be a financial advisor, I think it’s the greatest career that not many people know about. I thank God for Strong Funds and the path it put me on. I will forever have a grateful heart. I want to help many more people build financial wealth and pass it on to their future generations. I have the skill and ability to do that well. I hope you take this opportunity to call me or text me today to have a conversation.