About Derek

adventure-seeker | life-long learner | outdoor-lover

Hi, I'm Derek Hagen.
Welcome to Meaningful Money.

I write and think at the intersection of money, meaning, and motivation for people who want their finances to serve a life they've actually chosen.

The Real Bio

Derek "D-Rock" Hagen

Thank you for your interest in learning more about me. My name is Derek Hagen, but my friends call me "D" or "D-Rock," which means you can call me D-Rock. All my life I've been helping people to make their lives easier. I get out of bed every morning to help make sure people are better off today than they were yesterday so that their lives will be simpler. If there's a way for me to help someone save time, money, or emotional or physical energy, I'm going to find a way.

I am married and live in suburban Minneapolis in a neighborhood that is heavily wooded and looks like we are in the country. My top personal values are adventure, simplicity, curiosity, humor, and mindfulness. Money's purpose in my life is to help me live a simple, adventurous life and learn more about how the world works. My wife, Katie, and I travel a lot in our camping trailer. I am grateful to have been able to raft in Grand Canyon, rock climb in Alaska, skydive in Las Vegas, and run a marathon.

I didn't take the traditional path through life. I grew up the oldest of four and we were raised by a single mother. We moved a lot, living in many apartments. The thought of college never crossed my mind. It wasn't until I was 20 that I went to technical school, and then I transferred to the local university at age 22. I graduated at 25. During college, I was lucky enough to be able to present a research paper in New York City, and that paper was later published. Attending college later than most helped me gain an appreciation for education. Since graduating college I've earned a graduate certificate from Creighton University as well as five professional certifications. I continue to learn as much as I can, reading about 60 books per year.

For most of my career, I've worked at the intersection of money and human behavior, first on the technical side of investment management, then increasingly on the psychological side. I've come to believe that information alone rarely changes behavior.

What actually moves people is clarity about what their money is for and why it matters. My mission is to help people who want their financial lives to actually reflect the lives they want to live.

Today I work as a financial life planner at Root Financial, bringing together financial planning, investment knowledge, and an understanding of the psychology of money to help people get clear on what they are actually building towards.

The Professional Bio

Derek F. Hagen, CFA, CFP®, FBS®, CFT™, CIPM

Financial Life Planner, Speaker, Author, Stick-Figure Illustrator

Derek Hagen is a financial life planner and writer focused on the interior side of financial decisions: the meaning, values, and psychology that have to come before the spreadsheets can do their best work.

He works as a financial life planner at Root Financial, helping clients think through not just the numbers, but what the numbers are actually for.

He is the founder of Meaningful Money, where he has written and illustrated a weekly blog exploring money, meaning, and motivation since 2017. His writing uses personal stories and hand-drawn sketches to slow things down and make complex ideas easier to see.

Derek has worked in financial services for over 20 years, moving from investment management and performance analysis to wealth management and, eventually, to financial therapy and life planning as his interest in the psychology of money deepened.

In his spare time, Derek enjoys playing squash, playing the ukulele, and all things outdoors, especially camping, hiking, and biking, often in an Airstream with his wife Katie, dog Bingo, and cat Whiskers.

Education:

Graduate Certificate: Creighton University

Financial Psychology & Behavioral Finance

Bachelor of Arts: Minnesota State University Moorhead

Economics (summa cum laude)

Professional Certifications:

CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®)

Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA)

Certified Financial Behavior Specialist® (FBS®)

Certified Financial Therapist™ (CFT™)

Certificate in Investment Performance Measurement (CIPM)

Certified Meaning/Purpose Practitioner