Her Story
About Charmon
Charmon Baker serves as a financial advisor in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where she has built a practice focused on helping families and individuals meet their financial goals through retirement planning, education planning, and NIL planning. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Financial Management from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and launched her career in 1993 as a licensed financial specialist at Wachovia Bank before joining Edward Jones in 2010. Baker maintains Series 7 and 66 licenses, life and health insurance credentials, and a sports and entertainment asset advisor designation. She is an active member of the Association of African American Advisors (Quad A), Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, and the Junior League of Winston-Salem, and has held board roles with Delta Fine Arts, Incorporated, the YWCA, the YMCA in Kernersville, and a parent engagement board at Virginia Tech. Baker has received the Ted Jones Partnership Award and was named Volunteer of the Year by Hands On North Carolina. She attributes her success to a mindset of hard work, intentional service to others, resilience through career ups and downs, and a commitment to empathy and ethical practice.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Charmon
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to a mindset of working hard and doing my best for others, being intentional about helping people, and being resilient through ups and downs. I put myself in the position of the person I'm talking with and always give the very best of myself. There's going to be ups and downs with any career, but feeling it through it all and knowing God has me right where I need to be has been key. I give myself the VP title as the VP of my life.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
My advice would be to really educate yourself on the financial industry, know all the ins and outs of investing, retirement planning, financial planning, banking, insurance. You need good public speaking skills, interpersonal skills, and the ability to empathize with people. Align yourself with people in the industry that can mentor you, join organizations like MBA association or financial planning groups. Mentorship is huge. Doing internships would be huge as well. And then the third thing is just take a chance on yourself. Don't let it be so intimidating that you say you're not good enough. Let them tell you you're not good enough, but don't you tell yourself you're not good enough.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenges are navigating the DEI setbacks, where it feels like people think you're not worthy because of misconceptions, and the competitive nature where you have to prove you're the best option. Opportunities are enormous in finding a niche like NIL planning for athletes who are vulnerable to financial abuse, and helping women investors who are projected to inherit major dollars but may not be equipped with financial literacy, especially for long-term care planning.
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