The central character in the Bergland Wealth Management story is company president and founder John E. Bergland, Jr.
John is blessed to be able to live his Ideal Life on a daily basis. Meaning, he lives exactly where he wants. His daily sights, sounds, and environment testify to what is Ideal for him. That includes owning and operating his own business in which he does exactly what he loves to do. He functions according to his Ideal Day, Ideal Schedule, and takes Ideal Vacations.
But how did he find himself in this Ideal Position? Four watershed events played a pivotal role in his journey.
First, while in seminary, one of the most powerful verses in Scripture (among many) became firmly imbedded in his heart and mind: Colossians 3:23 – “And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” This verse remains a touchstone for John to this day.
Second, while living and raising a family in Clinton, MS, John encountered a neighbor who was stockbroker. John held this individual in high regard as he assumed a stockbroker must be an exceptionally bright, gifted, well trained, and an above average professional to be able to guide people with investing and money management matters. He would learn 15 years later how wrong he had been to assign such esteem to a stockbroker.
Third, John frequently visited his father who was retired and living on the coast in Biloxi, MS. Upon one such visit, he was met with consternation on his father’s part. The reason – his father’s government security bond fund was loosing value and his father could not understand how this could be happening. John’s inability to understand this or make sense out of it in order to help his father troubled him and the thoughts of others sharing a similar plight were equally disconcerting.
The fourth and final event occurred in 1982. He had spent several years searching for his “calling” in life. This search took him from being an ordained Presbyterian minister, to being active in the national/local political realm, and finally to being a very successful life insurance agent. And that’s when it happened. Though he was enjoying a prosperous career in insurance sales, he became disenchanted with the way the banks, broker-dealers and insurance companies worked. Simply put, they were in the business of making enormous sums of money by virtue of selling consumers “stuff.” There was little relationship between what the consumer was being sold, what they were buying, and what would be best for them. He had witnessed first hand the need consumers had for a professional who would listen to them, gather their personal data, and help them make the wisest, most prudent, financial/life decisions. That day he decided to do just that and set forth to become a Fee-Only, fiduciary, comprehensive financial planning practitioner.
So, he moved out of the “star producer’s office” with a picture postcard view from a high rise bank building in the capitol city of Jackson, MS and began pursuing his vision. He soon incorporated his practice to facilitate doing “Fee-Only, fiduciary, comprehensive financial planning” in 1985, became a Certified Financial Planner® practitioner in 1987, and dropped all of his hard earned securities licenses in 1990 since he was no longer selling insurance or investment products. And the rest is history.