Ryan M Smith of Paragon Financial Services

Ryan M. Smith, CFP®

Principal, Financial Advisor and Head of Financial Planning

I am a financial advisor and principal here at Paragon Financial, and love the complexity and pace of my role. I’m passionate about innovation and improving what we do and how we do it, and take great pride in ensuring our firm stays at the very forefront of the financial field.

A typical day for me at the office is spent meeting and talking with clients and prospective clients, working on business direction, and financial planning. Within our close-knit team, we use our various individual expertise and skills to support each other and our clients. My primary role is handling all the advanced financial planning scenarios our clients face. I’m also highly involved with portfolio management for the group.

I have an unwavering passion for knowledge, and pursue new information like most people breathe air. I love nothing more than sitting down with a client and listening to their questions, and being able to help unravel their financial story with clarity and compassion. I go above and beyond in my quest to push the very limits of my professional know-how, and believe this quality helps set me apart from the typical financial advisor.

I graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2003 with a Bachelors of Science with a concentration in Finance. I interned both throughout my time in college and after graduating, and then worked as a junior analyst for a predominant Wall Street Research firm, Dorsey Wright & Associates. I started working for Welsh & Welsh, a private RIA, in 2004, before being recruited by one of the largest financial teams within SunTrust Private Wealth Management.

Following a very successful career trajectory, I became a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™, considered the gold standard in the finance industry. I then took the leap in 2010 to go back to being independent with LPL Financial, and in 2012 I partnered with Paragon Financial. The rest, as they say, is history!

My mission here at Paragon Financial is to add far more value to my client’s experience than they were expecting. It gives me such a sense of joy and happiness to help them unravel the complexity of their financial lives, and start to see them from a position of understanding and confidence. Empowering people to take control of their money with knowledge and direction is one of the best parts of my day.

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One of my greatest motivations is seeing other people be successful. This refers to both my clients, colleagues, friends and family. I truly love nothing more than to help people.

As much as I love my work, my greatest passion in life is my kids. My wife Carla and I have three children; Kinley, Baylor and Miles. They are my life’s joy. I just feel so lucky that Carla and I get to hang out with three of the coolest people in the world every single day.

I’m also a super crazy kiteboarder and I love golf, although I don’t get to play it as much as I would like. Three kids and a thriving career keeps me pretty busy! When we’re not working, we’re busy running around between gymnastics, taekwondo, baseball, golf, tutoring and dance.

One thing I make it a priority to always have time for, is teaching my kids all the fun things there are to do in the world. Watching them learn and discover new things about themselves and the world we live in is just about the most magical thing there is.

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