ABOUT USWe built the firm we wished existed.
ByMethod is a small, women-led financial planning firm in Phoenix for ambitious, busy people who have been overlooked by an industry built solely around retirement planning. We are your partners for the building years too, and we make sophisticated advice feel refreshingly human.
OUR STORYYour life, ByMethod.
After nearly a decade in financial services, Emily Stead continues to run into the same problems: Outdated advice from financial professionals who aren’t in tune with the needs of the modern day professional. Times have changed and so has the landscape of personal finance. The traditional approach of these advisors wasn’t keeping up with the rising costs of living day to day, higher complexity within the investment and tax world, or more expensive weddings & college expenses for you and your family.
The financial advice industry was built entirely for one client, someone near retirement with a lump sum of money they need help with. Everyone else, the founders, the high earning professionals, those families still in the thick of building their lives, were either overlooked entirely or handed generic advice that didn’t fit.
Emily founded ByMethod to close that gap. The idea was simple, give ambitious people the kind of thoughtful, sophisticated planning usually reserved for the already-wealthy who had already achieved all of their goals, and deliver it in plain language with real warmth.
As a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER®, Emily holds the most rigorous credential in the profession. But what that really means for you is simpler: a plan built around your actual life, and someone who treats your money with the same care you do.
WHAT WE BELIEVEA few things we hold to.
Your life comes first.
We start every relationship by listening: to your goals, your worries, and what a good life actually feels like to you. The strategy follows from that, never the other way around.
Small on purpose.
We keep our practice intentionally small so every client gets real attention and quick answers. Say goodbye to the days of calling an 800-number and waiting on hold. You'll never be a number, and you'll never wonder who's looking after you.
Plain language, always.
No jargon, no condescension, no making you feel behind. If we can't explain a recommendation clearly enough that it makes sense to you, it isn't finished.
A method, not guesswork.
Everything we do is deliberate and built to grow with you. Your plan and portfolio are reviewed and adjusted as your life changes, because it will.
THE TEAMSmall team. Big attention.
Emily Stead, CFP®, CPFA®
FOUNDER & FINANCIAL ADVISOR
Emily leads every client relationship at ByMethod, bringing over a decade of experience and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® certification to the table, along with a refreshingly down-to-earth way of explaining things. She built this practice for the clients she loves working with most: ambitious people who want a real plan, and busy people who want it handled well.
Paige Jaeger
CLIENT SERVICES ASSOCIATE
Paige is the one who makes your whole experience feel effortless. Scheduling, paperwork, the questions that come up between meetings: she keeps the details from ever falling through the cracks, so working with us feels as smooth as it should.