Tongan Morgan Stanley Financial Advisor, Kapono Faitau: "Surround yourself by peers you admire”
Kapono Faitau shares his experience as a first-generation college graduate navigating college resources and finding sources of educational and career motivation. After graduating from Brigham Young University - Hawaii with a Bachelors of Science for Business Management, he worked in the hospitality industry for nearly a decade — starting in high school — before making a career switch into finance. He now works as a Financial Advisor at Morgan Stanley and provides wealth management solutions to families, individuals and businesses. Kapono hopes to see more Pacific Islanders work in finance as well as empower Pacific Islander families to get educated on financial planning.
Tell me about your background and where you grew up.
I grew up on the mainland in California. In my family of 6 kids, I was number 5. My father was the only parent supporting us financially, while my mom raised us. We moved quite a lot during my childhood, because it was hard to find a place to house 8 people. I went to 4 different high schools, which made it difficult for us to settle down, have a routine and make friends. While it was challenging, it taught me good values.
How was your high school experience?
I was a knucklehead in high school, hanging out with the wrong crowd. Thankfully by Junior year, I thought more strategically about my future and decided to make better life decisions, like focusing on grades and extracurricular activities (volleyball, football and basketball). By Senior year, I was serious about college and worked closely with my college counselor.
You are the first in your family to attend and graduate from college. What advice do you have for first-generation college students?
Find resources: I have so much respect for Pacific Islanders who blaze their own path and are the first in their family to go to college. It’s so hard to discover what resources are available to you. A lot of these institutions have incredible resources, but it’s a matter of figuring out who to talk to. A good place to start is your counselor. The first meeting I had with my college counselor, I didn’t even know what a scholarships was. Thanks to my counselor, I applied to some - and was lucky to get a few!
Surround yourself by peers you admire: My first year was spent enjoying the freedom of college. By Sophomore year though, I changed my circle of friends and surrounded myself with people I admired. It inspired me to be a better version of myself. I started dressing more professionally, focusing on my work, applying to internships, and taking more responsibilities in student groups.
Tongan Morgan Stanley Financial Advisor, Kapono Faitau: "Surround yourself by peers you admire”
Tell us about your career change from hospitality to finance.
I made a big turn in my life when I did my two year LDS mission in Hawaii. I loved it there so much that I went to BYU Hawaii to focus on business management and marketing.
After almost 10 years in the hospitality industry, I realized that I wasn’t passionate enough to continue in the field. Eventually, a good friend shared a finance opportunity in investments. I learned about the stock market, how to invest, and educated families about investing. I felt much more passionate about this work and decided to make the career change into finance.
It was brutal preparing for the finance licenses. With a bit of discipline and good study habits though, I was able to get my finance licenses. I’ve been in the field for the past few years, and I’ve noticed that there aren’t many PIs in Finance as I’d hoped for. I would love to see more representation, because we need it. We need our people to understand how investments work.
Do you have any general finance tips for Pacific Islanders?
I encourage all Pacific Islanders to sit down with a financial advisor and learn about investment strategies. There are so many investment products out there that would be of great benefit to our community.