Hi. If you're here, you probably want to know a bit about who I am, what I write about, and what you can expect from me.

Right?

Well, since you asked so nicely...

I'm Unique (just like everyone else)

I'm a consultant, scientist, instrument systems engineer, entrepreneur, financial strategist, professional writer, amateur photographer and artist, insanely avid reader (I've been known to finish 3 books a week), traveler (I've lived on 3 continents and at least set foot on each of the other 4, including Antarctica - that's me in the photo with the slopes of Mount Erebus in the background), and adopter of rescue dogs.

More details?

Sure...

I'm a PhD physicist by education, training, and over 20 years of research work. Then I became what I call an "accidental entrepreneur"...

Business #1

After leaving academia, and following a brief stint at a small engineering services company, I started my own consultancy practice.

I help NASA with technical management of their investments today in astrophysics technologies that will enable the Hubbles and James Webbs of the next several decades (and while I posed with the James Webb Space Telescope, below, I had nothing to do with its development; but I'm still incredibly delighted to follow its successful commissioning).

From time to time I support NASA projects as an instrument systems engineer. Occasionally, I help companies write grant and contract proposals for opportunities ranging from $75k to $0.5 billion.

Business #2

A while back I figured that buying our own office space would save a lot of rent money for my wife's practice and my own. Since it wasn't much more, we bought a larger suite than we needed and lease out the excess space to other professionals.

Business #3

Fast forward a few more years, and my wife asked me (again) to use what I'd learned building my businesses to help one of her colleagues analyze and decide on a business opportunity. I was happy to, and saved the colleague $18k/year.

My wife said I should do that as a business.

So I started another small practice, providing small-business finance coaching to solo professionals, which then expanded to address their personal finances too, encompassing what I call Financial Strategy.

Business #4

A few years ago, we moved from our lovely suburban home to our dream home. Instead of selling our previous house, we're renting it out. Moving from long-time renter to homeowner to landlord gives me a uniquely holistic perspective on the "rent-vs-own" controversy.

What I Write About

When I moved to the US 30 years ago, I owed more than I owned, and supporting a young family with two toddlers on a $31k salary was hard. My journey from that humble starting point to where I am today taught me many lessons that I'm happy to share. As part of my Financial Strategy business, I write incessantly about personal and small-business finance here on Medium as well as on my own blog, Wealthtender, TherapyNotes, BareMetrics, MSN, and more.

What You Can Expect from My Writing

Expect clear, easy-to-understand, no-nonsense, often contrarian, sometimes humorous viewpoints on financial matters that affect your everyday life and your plans for a better future.

If that sounds like something you can use (or at least find amusing), get notified each time I publish on Medium by entering your email address and hitting "Subscribe" below.