'Financial entrepreneur' Morris makes long-awaited return

When Bob Morris put Coeur d'Alene in his rear view mirror 30 years ago, he knew it was temporary. He was just going to tool over to Seattle, earn his Certified Financial Planner credential, and zip back to town as a newly minted "financial entrepreneur."

It was a simple plan, but it fell apart quickly as one thing after another kept him from making that quick U-turn back to Idaho.

First, there was the job offer from the bank. Then, there was all that new money in his pockets. And finally, there was that whole falling in love with a Seattle girl complication.

"Things definitely didn't go the way I expected," Bob said. "Life tore up my little plan and gave me something new."

His new course called for a 30-year banking career in Seattle (he retired from Washington Mutual in 2008) and a happy marriage to Jan, the vivacious, spontaneous antidote to focused, methodical Bob.

Coeur d'Alene was still in his thoughts, though. He visited frequently to see family and friends, and as luck would have it, Jan developed a liking for it as well.

"This town has soul," she announced one day.

Given that, Bob began thinking that perhaps, with patience, he might be able to piece his old plan back together someday.

"Quite a few years before retirement, I started preparing for a return to Coeur d'Alene," Bob said. "I had earned my Certified Financial Planner credential when I first got to Seattle, so there was no reason I couldn't return as the 'financial entrepreneur' I had imagined 30 years earlier."

Step one was retirement. Check. Step two was buying a home in Coeur d'Alene. Check. Step three was registering as an investment advisor in Idaho. Check.

Morris Asset Management, like Bob himself, now has two homes. Although his early clients reside in the Seattle area, now that he and Jan are settling into their Ridge Pointe condominium, Bob is happily expanding his business into Coeur d'Alene.

"The beauty of wealth management and financial planning for me is its flexibility," Bob said. "I can be in two markets at the same time, take a vacation with Jan, and still have a firm grasp on the needs of my clients.

"My Iphone, Ipad, laptop and PC keep me locked in and liberated at the same time."

Bob will continue to spend part of the year in the Seattle area, but he lights up when he talks about Coeur d'Alene.

"I love riding my bike along Lake Coeur d'Alene road out to Higgens Point and the Trails of the Coeur d'Alenes," Bob said. "And my daily 5-mile walk takes me along Sanders Beach, around Tubbs Hill, and then along the boardwalk of The Coeur d'Alene Resort."

Born in Kellogg, Bob's family moved to Coeur d'Alene during his high school years. His brother Jack, a sales rep for Odom Beverage, still lives in Coeur d'Alene, as does his sister Janet. After graduating from Boise State with a business degree, Bob found his way back to town as a loan officer for Idaho First National Bank.

That's the job he left when he headed to Seattle, but by then Coeur d'Alene was deeply embedded in his DNA.

"That's why I wanted to come back," Bob said. "I always loved it here. But it's more than affection. For some reason, even after all these years, I feel more at peace here. This still feels like home."

So why doesn't Bob glide into the comfortable retirement he's earned and enjoy the peace?

"Because I've always intended to have this second chapter of my life," Bob said. "My mother told me as a young teenager that you reap what you sow, so I've been planning this for a long time.

"Understanding the markets is something I've been passionate about for many years, and now that I've left banking, I have all the time in the world to do what I love. It's really a blessing. I wake up every morning to an intellectual challenge I thoroughly enjoy."

He's prepared for this moment, and enjoyed himself along the way, by adding to his education at every opportunity.

Among other things, he's taken a "Wealth Management in Practice" program provided by Wharton and the CFA Institute, audited economics classes at the University of Washington, attended a multitude of finance seminars, and driven himself through an ambitious reading list. His friends at the local coffee shop wouldn't recognize him without a folded copy of the Financial Times under his arm.

"I'd be doing this even if I didn't have a single client,"Bob said. "But working with people, and developing insights that will be helpful to them, makes it even more rewarding.

"In fact, someone asked me once what I enjoy most about this, and it all comes down to that moment of insight. Understanding the markets and economics well enough to have those moments is really satisfying."

A slim six-footer with a friendly demeanor, Bob's exercise habits and energy level give the impression that he'll probably live forever. Told that, Bob smiles and says his ambitions are actually quite modest.

"I just want to be older than Warren Buffett when I retire."

Information: www.morrisasset.com, or [email protected]