The wealth management industry cuts across all demographics and age groups. This is no more evident than when attending Future Proof Festival, which is underway in Huntington Beach, California. Additionally, the trend is skewing younger, with more wealth management professionals in the early stages of their careers, and even some who are entrepreneurs, both serving younger clients. At this year’s Future Proof, two individuals — Julie Penwell, a financial advisor at Wealthspire, and Sofia Massie, founder of startup LionShares — shared their stories of entering the industry, finding their footing, building toward the future, and why Future Proof is a critically important event to attend. Though their paths are different, both highlight the importance of innovation, networking, and staying grounded.
For Penwell, the conference itself has been a vital part of her development.
“What I love the most about coming to Future Proof, and what brought me back from last year, is the people here,” she said. “The content is really innovative and forward-looking … but I think really, the people that are here too. I left with just so many great connections and interesting people.”
Penwell, InvestmentNews' 2024 Next Gen Advisor of the Year & Women to Watch Excellence Awardee, has leaned into her goal of connecting with the next generation of clients. “Last year, I started an initiative of utilizing social media to connect with clients’ children, really thinking about that next generation,” she said.
Additionally, Penwell sees education as central to her mission. “One area I’m passionately excited about is expanding access to financial literacy,” she said. By creating short, accessible content on social media — “What is a 401(k)? What is a mutual fund? Why should you care?”— she hopes to reach students, young professionals, and even clients’ parents. She has also launched a “Financial Foundations” webinar series to broaden access. “I think utilizing social media is a tool for that,” she said. “It makes information more accessible.”
For Massie, the path has been one of entrepreneurship. She launched LionShares in January 2025 after several years as a quant trader at Jane Street, where she specialized in ETF options. A week ago, she launched her first exchange traded fund: U.S. Equity Total Return ETF (TOT). In an unusual twist, she built the actively managed ETF to deliver no dividends.
“I noticed that there were a lot of ETFs that paid very high dividends, but there were no strategies doing the opposite — trying to minimize dividends,” she said. “Dividends can actually be pretty inefficient from a tax perspective. If you’re a long-term investor, you don’t actually need that income. Receiving a dividend creates tax drag.” Her fund aims to provide broad US equity exposure while minimizing distributions. “It’s a really new strategy, and not something that’s being done by other ETFs right now,” she said.
The leap from trader to founder required a leap of faith in her reading of the ETF market. “It really just sat in the back of my mind for a few months, and I just felt so passionate about the idea,” she recalled. “Eventually I said, I’ve got to make this a reality. I felt like I had the right skill set to do it, having that quantitative background, but also being able to communicate the value of the product to investors.”
Both professionals emphasized that the first years in business involved significant learning curves.
For Penwell, the challenge has been making financial knowledge approachable for a wide range of clients. “A lot of my content is geared toward younger individuals, but my parents are on social media too,” she said. “Certain concepts might be more important early in life, but understanding a budget or saving strategy is applicable throughout your life.”
Massie faces the task of educating investors about a new approach. “When I go and I start explaining this product to investors, a common initial response is, ‘Why wouldn’t I want to receive a dividend?’” she said. “That was one challenge I didn’t really anticipate — that there would be this fairly large education gap.” Her approach is to build awareness: “Step one is just mentioning that it exists, and reminding them to think about tax season — how much of that high dividend are you actually keeping?”
Mentorship has been a constant theme for Penwell. Early in her career, she connected with a senior advisor through her university’s alumni network. “That has helped lead me to connect with our team, joining as an intern and then officially a few years ago,” she said. Now she is committed to “always turning around” and helping others. “I really believe in the abundance mindset, and the more people we connect with, the more people we can help.”
Massie’s experience has been more solitary — she currently runs LionShares alone while outsourcing operations to stay lean. But she believes growth will come. “Once this fund becomes more stable, I think there’s a lot of potential growth for us to have other ETFs,” she said. For now, she is focused on awareness, conversations with investors, and listening to their pain points to guide future product development.
When asked what she tells students considering a career as a financial advisor, Penwell said, “I was probably 15 when I knew I wanted to be a financial advisor… I thought maybe I’d be a counselor, but I took a financial literacy class in high school and fell in love with finance. I knew I wanted to help people. That passion is still what drives me today.” Her advice: “Know your why. What’s driving you? Because that’s going to fuel all the goals you have.”
Massie echoed the importance of a learning mindset. “Most skills are something you can actually learn,” she said. For example, “when you see someone who’s a great public speaker, you think they must have been born with it. Actually, they probably have years of experience. Just knowing that you can build those skills yourself is a really helpful mindset shift.”
Both agreed nothing replaces a lived experience. “Nothing really beats experience,” Massie said. “There’s nothing like being faced with a challenge and trying to overcome it. You realize you’re able to handle it, and that builds confidence.”
For Penwell, the future lies in continuing to use technology and education to engage the next generation. “Every day I know I’m helping people,” she said. “That’s what gets me excited about the work I’m doing.”
For Massie, the next milestone is scaling her firm. “In the near future, building awareness about this first fund is the main priority,” she said. “But I think launching the second fund will be easier than the first. I just need to keep listening to investors, solving problems, and creating products that help them.”
Both women and their chosen career paths reflect a new energy in financial services — one rooted in innovation, education, and determination to make a lasting impact.
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