Brittney Castro

Making the subject of money as simple and as much fun as possible is Brittney Castro’s goal. “If you understand money and don’t have to live in stress about it, you feel really empowered,” said the founder of a Los Angeles-based planning firm. Castro, 36, also specializes in providing educational content for other advisers.

The daughter of a police officer and a stay-at-home mother, Castro studied business economics at the University of California at Santa Barbara and landed a job at Ameriprise after a counselor said it would be a good fit. “I didn’t know anything about the business, but I soon learned I had to hustle for clients,” she said.

After almost five years there, a desire for more freedom led her to join an affiliate of LPL Financial, where she earned a CFP and built a business around serving professional women. In 2013, she created her own RIA firm. In addition to serving her expanding base of women clients and young couples “who just need some clarity,” Castro develops educational content for Mint and the adviser-oriented fintech firm Altruist. “I get fulfillment from spreading financial literacy,” she said.

– Evan Cooper