What a Holistic Financial Advisor May Mean for Your Investment Future

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Many people choose a financial advisor based on one question: can they grow my money? It is a reasonable question. But for a growing number of investors, it is no longer the only question that matters.

A holistic financial advisor considers not just the financial performance of your portfolio, but the full picture of what your investments are doing in the world. This approach, known as values-based or conscious investing, may offer a meaningful alternative to the traditional model of wealth management, one where your money can be aligned with your ethics, your priorities, and the kind of future you want to help build.

At Holistic Finance, we believe this is one of the most important conversations happening in the financial world today. And we believe it is one that far too few advisors are willing to have with their clients.

What a Holistic Financial Advisor Actually Does Differently

A conventional financial advisor typically focuses on asset allocation, risk tolerance, and return optimization. These are important dimensions of financial planning, and we do not dismiss them. Holistic Finance is an SEC registered independent financial firm with a fiduciary obligation, and we apply principles of modern portfolio theory that guide, is one way of looking at the broader industry.

What a holistic financial advisor may do differently is add another layer to that analysis: impact. Where is this money going? What industries does it support? What kind of world does it help create?

Most standard investment vehicles, including broad index funds offered through firms like Vanguard and BlackRock, as well as many mutual funds and even some ESG funds, may contain significant exposure to industries that conflict with an investor's personal values. Fossil fuels, weapons manufacturers, factory farms, and surveillance technology are among the categories that can be present in portfolios that investors believe to be diversified and neutral.

A holistic financial advisor can help you look under the hood of your current investments and understand what you are actually funding. From there, a more intentional strategy may be built.

Can Ethical Investing Be Consistent with Market Returns?

This is the question we hear most often, and it is the right one to ask. The concern that values-based investing requires sacrificing financial performance is understandable, but it may be based on an outdated assumption.

Prominent author and philosopher Charles Eisenstein has explored this question in collaboration with Holistic Finance, and the evidence he and others point to may be worth considering seriously. Companies that are forward thinking and conscious of their impact on the earth and the people around them tend to be well regarded by consumers. They often make strong decisions about how they manage their businesses. Empirical studies such as this Source have indicated that companies that genuinely care about their impact on communities and the environment can also perform well as investments. There are several reasons this may be the case.

We believe that companies with strong environmental and social practices can be more efficient in how they use energy and materials, and that efficiency can carry over into other areas of business management. We also believe that they may be better positioned to anticipate regulatory changes, which can lower future compliance costs. Their reputations among consumers and employees can be a meaningful competitive advantage. And a culture of responsibility may foster broader innovation throughout the organization.

Additionally, we believe that carefully chosen values-aligned investments can help contribute to human and natural well-being without necessarily sacrificing financial performance. That said, all investing involves risk, and past performance is not indicative of future results. We encourage every investor to speak with a licensed advisor before making any financial decisions.

Why So Few Advisors Specialize in This Work

If values-based investing can offer competitive returns and is increasingly in demand, why do so few advisors specialize in it? The answer, in our view, has to do with the structure of the traditional financial industry.

Many large advisory firms are built around products: funds, indices, and instruments that have been designed and packaged by major financial institutions. Looking closely at what is inside those products, and evaluating them against dozens of ethical criteria, may require a different kind of commitment and infrastructure.

If you were to google, "Tell me about recent surveys showing how people are wanting transparent and sustainable investment choices" survey data would suggest that interest in sustainable investing is exceptionally high, particularly among younger investors. That research indicates that as many as 99 percent of younger investors express a desire for sustainable investing options. Source Women, in particular, have shown strong interest in this area. Source And yet the number of firms equipped to meet this demand in a transparent and authentic way remains small. Source

This gap is part of what Holistic Finance was created to address. We believe the market for values-aligned investing is large, the interest is genuine, and the need for qualified guidance in this space is significant.

A Growing Movement with Institutional Backing

Values-based investing is no longer a niche conversation, we think. Institutions of significant scale and influence are beginning to formalize their commitment to this approach.

If you were to google, "Catholics create values based investment index" you would find that the Catholic Church recently created a values-based investment index that received approval from the Vatican Bank. This development is notable not just for its scale, but for what it signals: a growing recognition, at the highest institutional levels, that investments and ethics are not separate domains. The world we live in, with its ongoing public health and environmental challenges, is shaped in meaningful ways by corporate action. And corporate action is shaped, in meaningful ways, by where capital flows.

This is why we believe the conversation about values-based investing is not simply a matter of personal preference. But rather a matter of collective consequence. How we invest, and what we are invested in, may have real effects on the trajectory of communities, ecosystems, and future generations.

What the Holistic Finance Approach May Look Like for You

At Holistic Finance, our strategy goes beyond simply excluding the most obvious bad actors from a portfolio. We identify what we believe to be the best companies in each sector using both quantitative financial metrics and qualitative ethical assessments. Our main portfolio includes roughly 120 publicly traded companies, tracked daily for both financial and ethical performance. If a company falls short in either dimension, it may be removed.

We also offer access to private impact investments in non-listed companies that can deliver positive social and environmental outcomes across a range of financial return expectations. And our client relationships are built around ongoing mentorship and education, so that investors can continue to expand their knowledge and engagement with their own financial lives over time.

Our founder, Zack Geist, has spoken openly about his personal motivation for this work. And I as a parent of two young children myself, believe that excessive investment in fossil fuels, weapons, factory farms, and other extractive industries may not be building the kind of future that serves the next generation well. That conviction is at the heart of what Holistic Finance does. We believe the most important tool available for creating systemic change may already be in your hands. It is your investment portfolio. And we believe it deserves to be looked at with intention.

In The End...

A holistic financial advisor may offer something that conventional wealth management does not: a way to bring your financial life into genuine alignment with your values. We don't want you to sacrifice performance for principle. Instead, we invite you to recognize that the two may not be in conflict at all.

At Holistic Finance, we are an SEC registered investment advisor with a fiduciary obligation to our clients. We apply rigorous financial analysis alongside careful ethical assessment to help investors build portfolios they can feel good about, now and for the long term.

If you are curious about what a more intentional approach to investing may look like for your situation, you are welcome to begin by having a conversation with us.

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Disclosures

Advisory services are offered through Holistic Finance LLC an SEC Investment Advisor. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment, tax, or legal advice. References to specific financial institutions are for example purposes only and do not constitute endorsements or recommendations.

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