Lauren Oschman, CFP®, CDFA®

Partner & Chief Executive Officer

How did you decide to become an advisor?

I had the opportunity to intern at a financial planning firm the summer before my senior year of college. It was a career I had not previously known anything about, but during my internship I realized that financial planning was the perfect marriage of my passion for people and relationships and my affinity for numbers and analytics.

I have learned a lot about the value an advisor can add by watching my parents. My father is a cardiologist and makes a great living, but the old adage “more money, more problems” is so true. My dad never really knew how much was “enough” to provide for his family and his goals, so, he would just put his head down to keep making more. Meanwhile, my mom was the one really taking care of the household finances - depositing the paychecks, transferring money to investments, paying the bills, etc. - but was raising four kids and didn’t have time to focus on more than the “day to day” of the finances.

Once a trusted advisor can step in and help a client understand the goals they are trying to achieve and a path to reach those goals, clients often experience a peace of mind about the future they never had before. They know that rather than spending their fringe hours trying to make more money, they can spend it with their families or enjoying hobbies, because the long term is well taken care of based on our plan. I love being able to do that for families.

Tell us about something special from your youth.

When I was in Junior High, we took our first big family vacation to St. John’s in the US Virgin Islands. We stayed in a concrete cottage on the beach with only the most basic amenities. That was before cell phones and there was no television. We spent our days snorkeling the gorgeous coral reefs and our nights playing charades, learning new card games, and telling stories. We laughed so much! That is one of my most special childhood memories.

What are you known for among your friends?

My friends and family know me for my enthusiasm. I was once described as the character Joy from the Pixar movie Inside Out, and many have since agreed with that characterization.

What is the most important thing you’ve learned about helping other people?

Financial planning is not transactional, it is very much a journey. In order to build a strong financial plan, we have to first have a conversation about values – what role does someone want money to play in their life and what do they want to accomplish with it? If I can take the time to understand that and build a plan oriented around someone’s values, then I am better equipped to guide them through life’s curveballs and chaos.

What is your favorite part of what you do at Vestia?

Growing up, I actually wanted to be a teacher. My favorite part of what I do at Vestia is getting to teach and invest in others. I enjoy helping my colleagues with planning and business concepts, and I love sitting down with a client and explaining a financial concept in a way that they understand and can remember it. Seeing a client gain their own financial confidence is so exciting to me!

How do you spend your time outside of work?

We enjoy a lot of family runs and hikes around Nashville. We are avid sports fans, and my husband and I both went to Vanderbilt, so we attend a lot of Vandy games.

What book do you always tell people they should read? Why?

When Breath Becomes Air. It is the story of a neurosurgeon who is diagnosed with fatal lung cancer. Few books have resonated with me beyond the last page as much as that book has – the writing is beautiful, and the lesson is so poignant. The doctor put off “real” life so that he could invest fully in becoming a neurosurgeon. When he got to the point where he was ready to start living his “real” life, he had to come to terms with the fact that he was going to die.

I think most of us have milestones in our heads where we think, “when I get there, then I will…” but we don’t know if we have enough time. That is why the mission of Vestia resonates with me. I don’t want anyone, myself included, to be so immersed in their work that they can’t spend their time doing what really matters. If I can play a small part in helping clients live in the present and BE present because they know that we are taking care of the other things, that gets me up in the morning.

One of Vestia’s values is to model “wealth that matters.” What does this mean to you?

Though it can feel like I’m on a hamster wheel with a business and two young kids, I do my best to be intentional and spend time away from technology and live fully in the moment with my family each day. I will always be able to work more or make more money, but I only get these years with my daughters once. So “wealth that matters” to me is having the luxury to choose how I spend my time; I have come to realize that how I spend my time is how I spend my life!