Ditch the Weekly Scorecard and Focus on What Matters with Sara Baker, Allworth Financial

Are you beating yourself up over work-life balance every single week?On this episode of Don't Do That, Kelly Waltrich sits down with Sara Baker, Head of M&A at Allworth, for a candid conversation about leadership, career pivots, and redefining balance. With a background that spans corporate law, financial services, and M&A, Sara shares her unique perspective on navigating growth, both professional and personal.Kelly and Sara cover:00:00 Introductions and Sara’s new role at Allworth01:00 How a career in law led to a passion for solving business problems03:00 The explosion of M&A activity and what’s changed in the advisory space06:30 The future of advisory firms: Integration, tech, and client segmentation08:50 AI’s potential and its actual role in wealth management12:00 The lonely reality of leadership and why community matters14:00 How Sara connects with founders making their biggest business decision17:50 Why client experience is still the ultimate differentiator20:15 Sara’s personal “Don’t Do That” — stop judging your success in short-term increments23:00 Making peace with trade-offs and the myth of daily balance30:00 How AI is making Sara both a better leader and more efficient33:00 Being a working mom: hard conversations, real lessons, and giving yourself grace41:00 The power of knowing your gifts, your heroes, and giving yourself space to growConnect with Sara BakerLinkedIn: Sara BakerLinkedIn: Allworth FinancialAllworth FinancialAbout Our Guest:Sara Baker is the Executive Vice President of Mergers & Acquisitions for Allworth Financial. With deep expertise in advisor growth strategies, practice management, and mergers and acquisitions, she leads the firm’s partnership strategy—driving scalable, sustainable growth with a focus on cultural alignment and operational excellence.Prior to Allworth, Sara served as president of Triad Wealth where she was responsible for setting the firm’s long-term vision. She also previously held high-ranking roles at Edleman Financial Engines, most recently serving as the VP of Advanced Planning where she built out the firm’s tax preparation and planning offering. Prior to that, she served as Senior Vice President, Wealth Management and Strategy Counsel at Mariner Wealth Advisors and was responsible for national partnership growth. Given this extensive background, Sara is also a recognized thought leader in the wealth management space and a frequent speaker at leading industry conferences nationwide.Sara started her career as an attorney at Bryan Cave Leighten Paisner, a global Am Law 100 law firm. With a Master of Law in taxation from the University of Washington in St. Louis and a JD from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, she also earned a bachelor’s degree from Wichita State University where she played Division I volleyball. Sara currently lives in Kansas City with her husband, four children, and two German Shorthaired Pointers.📩 Stay Informed – Join Our Newsletter!Stay ahead of industry trends and get exclusive updates straight to your inbox: Sign Up Now https://intention.ly/💬 Let’s Talk!Have questions or ready to start your next marketing campaign? Contact us: https://intention.ly/contact-us/