Melissa Walsh

When Melissa Walsh grew up dreaming of changing the world, financial advice wasn’t really what she had in mind. She envisioned joining an organization like the Peace Corps or Teach for America, but like so many other people under 40, she had student loans to repay.

That drove her to an entry-level role at Commonwealth Financial Network, where Walsh feels she was “handed a golden ticket.”

“I was lucky enough to begin a career in finance having a boss and a mentor who was a woman,” she said. “That was so cool, and it changed the future of my career, certainly, and possibly my life.”

Her mentor encouraged her to get both her CFA and CFP designations and was open and honest about both the struggles of being a woman in a male-dominated industry — and Walsh’s chance to combine her love of behavioral psychology with her strengths in math and economic to craft a career that impacts the lives of other people.

In 2021, Walsh launched her own firm to focus on serving women who are starting, growing or selling businesses, as well as women going through transitional events such as retirement, divorce and widowhood.

“I focus on serving clients who need my help and mentoring other women in the way that I had been mentored,” she said.

—Ryan Neal