William Huyler was born and raised in West Chester, Pennsylvania. From a young age, he was taught the value of money by his parents and his father, an investment banker, taught him the basics of investing in the stock market. This led William to have a deep-seated interest in the world of finance and investing.
Immediately after graduating high school, William Huyler attended Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) where he majored in Finance at the Penn State Smeal College of Business. Upon graduating with his degree, he worked at a large investment firm in West Chester. After two years of working as a personal investment advisor, he decided to continue his education and returned to Penn State, where he completed his MBA in Finance. After completing his master’s degree, William Huyler resumed his career, offering top quality services as a financial advisor at various large financial firms. Then, in 2011, William decided to venture out on his own.
After years of working in the financial industry at large firms, William noticed a need for more personalized service. While he had always been able to help his clients save, invest, and plan for their futures, the large-scale operations of most firms often made it difficult for clients to get the personalized attention they desired. As a result, William Huyler opened his own small firm in West Chester, focusing on one-on-one service and personalized financial advice.
Today, William continues to provide sound financial counsel to numerous clients throughout Pennsylvania. As a result of years of work experience and schooling, William Huyler is known as a leading name in his field and is often asked to speak about personal financial health and investing at seminars and conferences throughout the United States.
Have you always wanted to be a financial advisor? When and how did you know this was the career path you wanted to follow?
As a young man,my parents instilled the importance ofsaving and investing.My mother and father offered me the opportunity to choose some stocks to invest in when I was just a teenager. They set me up with $1,000 and helped me decide where to invest it. Following the stocks and watching my money increase and decrease became almost an obsession — it was like a game to me at that age. This was where my interest in finance first began. I started reading articles about investing and following the markets more closely. I’d take the money I had earned from my summer jobs in high school and invest in stocks, with the help of my parents. My father was an investment banker, so that was a factor as well. Knowing what he did for a living helped guide me in that direction — I knew I wanted to help other people manage their money in the same way my father helped his clients.
What surprised you the most when you started your career in finance, what lessons did you learn?
When I first started my career, even when I first started my schooling in finance, it shocked me that so few people were comfortable with investing their money on their own. I had grown up learning how to manage money and so I thought everyone had this interest like I did. Once I realized this, it drove me to want to help other people grow their wealth. In doing so, I’ve learned many lessons. Above all, I’ve learned that most people are quite hesitant toward the stock market — they can get turned off from it quite easily, especially in volatile markets. To me, that was always the most exciting part about it but for many people, the risk is concerning. As a financial advisor, I’ve learned to incorporate this into my service by helping people better understand the markets, how they work, where their money is going, and what they can expect leads them to be much more confident when investing their hard-earned money.
What is one piece of advice you would give someone starting in your industry?
I would advise newcomers to be willing to accept failures and to learn from them. Whether you’re a trained financial advisor or just someone who is trying to manage their money on their own, you are going to experience setbacks and failures. No matter how much you know about the stock market it is still unpredictable — and, in my opinion, that’s half the appeal of it. What’s most important is that you take failures and miscalculations and learn from them so that you don’t make the same mistake twice.
If you could change anything about your industry what would it be and why?
I would change a few things about this industry. First, I would include finance as part of the high school curriculum. I think knowing how to manage money and even knowing a little bit about the stock market is helpful to everyone as a life-long skill. As well, I would find a way to make finance more fun and exciting. While I find the field to be captivating, I’ve come to understand that most people don’t. I think exposing teens to the topic and presenting it in an exciting way would get more people interested in the subject. For example, if students had access to a fictitious bank account and trading account they could practice investing and managing money. I think this would be a great way to make the topic more engaging and in the end it would help them more effectively manage their finances as adults.
How do you maintain a solid work-life balance?
I make sure that I maintain a work-life balance by including personal and family time in my daily schedule. It can be difficult to manage work and life, but when you include time in your schedule for family, friends, and yourself, then it just becomes part of your everyday routine. This has helped me greatly, since working long hours comes easily to me. I would suggest that everyone give this method a try!
What is one piece of technology that helps you the most in your daily routine?
The news app that I have on my phone is wonderful. I can’t imagine having to run out to purchase the newspaper every morning. This is what my father would do to stay up-to-date on current events and possible market changes. I find it so much easier with the help of this app. I even get notifications about important events that concern specific business on my radar, as well as political news which can impact the world of finance significantly. I don’t know what I would do without it, honestly.
Who has been a role model to you and why?
This is going to sound cheesy, I know, but my father has been a huge role model for me throughout my life. He was an investment banker and the one who really got me interested in finance. I don’t believe I would be where I am today without his guidance and inspiration.
What is one piece of advice you would like to leave our readers with?
2021 is going to be a year of recovery when it comes to stock markets and economies around the world. For investors, this poses a great opportunity. If you’re comfortable investing on your own, look for stocks that have declined as a result of COVID-19 but that have the potential to recover as life returns to normal. If you’d prefer assistance with your finances, seek out a financial advisor to help you in this upcoming year, as it will provide great investment opportunities. That being said, full recovery is still a way off, so be prepared to invest for the long-term.