Meet the Partners! An Interview with Nicholas Guido, CFP®

February 24, 2023

Meet the Partners! An Interview with Nicholas Guido, CFP®

Nicholas Guido joined Chicago Partners in the fall of 2013 after working for Ameriprise Financial Services. Before joining Ameriprise, Nicholas started his career as a Branch Services Associate in the Ultra High Net Worth sector of UBS Financial Services.

In 2018, Nicholas completed his Certified Financial Planner (CFP®) certification program and received his CFP® designation. As a licensed insurance agent, Nicholas also helps clients optimize their insurance plans by using his experience to review and make recommendations to help clients obtain insurance in a cost effective way, while eliminating unnecessary products.

We asked Nicholas a few questions about his background, wealth management philosophy, and advice he gives to investors.

How did you get into wealth management?

When I was younger, about 16 years old, I became highly interested in economics, the stock markets, and investing and decided that I should explore the industry further. Fortunately, my uncle was in the industry, and I interned with his company for four summers. During the internship I was able to explore the capital markets and do in-depth research on the markets, help transition and input data into their CRM system, and developed a full-scale training program for all of the advisors at their firm (random side note- that presentation, although altered, is still used today throughout the firm, and they charge $10K per advisor to attend). Seeing the work that he did to help his clients achieve their goals, get ready for retirement, transition into retirement, and be successful in retirement was inspiring. It was then that I realized I wanted to help people plan for their future and achieve all their goals, financial and personal.

What are you most passionate about when it comes to working with your clients?

My passion comes in helping clients achieve their financial and personal goals. I want to see all my clients build wealth, but also eliminate their financial stresses so that they can enjoy all the other great parts of life. A lot of other professionals out there are so focused on returns and amplifying those client returns that they miss the out on what their clients are truly trying to achieve. There are very few things that we can control in this industry but providing strong communication, having passion for helping clients, and delivering excellence are all things I try to bring to the table for clients.

How would you describe your wealth management philosophy?

My investment philosophy is centered around discovering the risk profile of clients and then determining what risks they need to take to achieve their goals. Every client is going to have a different risk tolerance and a different perspective on risk based on many varying factors. I think it is imperative that we learn about our clients and try to determine the risk that we feel they can handle in the market. Then, we can assess the risk they need to take to meet their goals and match that to a customized portfolio solution for them. Our goal is always to reduce the risk and volatility in our clients’ portfolios as much as possible while still generating the best after-tax return we can for them.

What is the number one question you receive from clients, and how do you usually respond?

What should we do now (when things are tough)?

I try to get them to look back at where we came from and where we are now in relation to their overall goals. When you are looking at the market daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or annually there is always going to be a large element of volatility out there. But when you can take a long-term approach to investing and TRULY KNOW that your portfolio matches up with those objectives, you will be more comfortable in periods of volatility.

What is the single most important thing for investors to keep in mind?

That you cannot time the market. One of our clients said it best, “it is time in the market, not timing the market, that is important.” Also, creating the proper portfolio allocation is imperative to meeting and exceeding your goals.

What do you like to do outside of being an investment advisor?

I enjoy spending time with my family (Anastasia, Luca, Mila, Micah, and Ollie), going on snowboarding trips, golfing, exercising, and running 5Ks.

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