about brent
Mt. Adams from Goat Rocks Wilderness, WA
Hi, I'm Brent Lince. My mission is to help people from all walks of life gain purpose, clarity and peace of mind in their lives. You can learn more about how I do that in practice on my Financial Life Planning Process page.
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I grew up in the Seattle area (Kirkland). I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering Science from Seattle Pacific University. I enjoyed playing basketball for four years for the NCAA Division II Falcons. I then earned a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from Washington State University.
I moved to Hillsboro in 1989 to begin working at Intel. I worked there for 18 years as a member of six microprocessor design teams. I made many technical contributions and held several leadership roles. The leadership roles I held gave me valuable experience leading teams and coaching individuals.
I've long had an interest in personal finances. I have yearly personal budget information which covers the last 35+ years (OK, I'm a nerd, I know!). At Intel I took full advantage of the available retirement and stock benefit programs. This helped me start learning more about investing. I read many excellent investing books (see my recommendations here). Of course I made some mistakes along the way, thankfully nothing major. I often share my personal Washington Mutual stock story with my clients. I consider it tuition for the real life school of investing.
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In the early-mid 2000’s I first considered the idea of personal financial planning. In 2007, after 4 years of planning (lots of saving!), self reflection (what do I really want to do with my life?), self-evaluation (what am I really good at, what do I have to offer the world?), and learning more about the possibilities in financial planning, I made the decision to leave Intel and start a new career in financial planning. While the two professions may seem quite different, there are areas of commonality. Both rely on strong technical and analytical skills. And both rely on people skills such as coaching, persuading and leading through change.
I knew I would need more specialized training and knowledge to be able to best help my clients. So I determined to pursue the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® (CFP®) professional designation. I first completed the necessary educational coursework through the College for Financial Planning. Then I passed a rigorous two-day board exam. Then I met the experience requirements. The CFP® designation represents a high level of competency, ethics and professionalism. Only about 20% of financial advisors hold this designation. You can learn more about why this certification matters here.
I also completed 60 hours of life coaching training and the Money Quotient "Fundamentals of True Wealth™ Planning" training . I’ve found this training to be valuable in helping me better serve my clients. I think it has especially helped me to ask better questions and be a better listener.
I’m an investment advisor representative of CGN Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered firm with 45 advisors in offices around the country. They provide me with the support and technology I need to allow me to focus on serving my clients.
I’m a member of the Garrett Planning Network. This is an international network of 300+ independent fee-only financial planners. The goal of the network is to make objective financial advice accessible to everybody. I’m proud of my association with this group of like-minded financial professionals. One of the many benefits of the group is that they freely share with each other a wealth of expertise in many areas.
I’m also a Registered Financial Advisor with the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA). NAPFA is the country’s leading professional association of Fee-Only financial advisors. The use of the Fee-Only financial planning model is still small but it is growing. More and more consumers and planners are coming to see its clear advantages.
On a more personal note, my beautiful wife and I have been married since 1985. We enjoy the beach and the mountains. We like to explore the beauty of the great Northwest (and beyond). We like to engage in a variety of outdoor activities such as kayaking, cycling, backpacking, camping, fly fishing, boogie-boarding, kite-flying, snowboarding and skiing. The pictures throughout my website are pictures we've taken from some of our favorite places. We have three wonderful, grown daughters. We've been members of Harvest Community Church in Hillsboro since 1991. I’ve led several money management classes at Harvest and through Love INC, a local non-profit. I also serve as an elder at Harvest.