Alex Shahidi has over 15 years' experience as an investment consultant. He has worked for one of the largest financial firms in the world his entire career. Alex focuses on advising large pension funds, foundations, endowments, and ultrahigh-net-worth families. He currently advises on over $13 billion in assets, including several portfolios that are in excess of $1 billion. His average client portfolio is over $300 million.

Prior to beginning his career in investments, Alex graduated with honors from University of California, Santa Barbara, with degrees in business economics and law. He earned his JD from the University of California, Hastings Law School, and is a licensed attorney in California.

Alex is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) Charterholder, Certified Investment Management Analyst (CIMA), and a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). Alex was designated one of the 250 best financial advisors in America by Worth magazine in 2008. He was also ranked as one of the top 40 advisors in the country under the age of 40 by On Wall Street Magazine in 2008, 2009, and 2010. Barron's, a Dow Jones publication, designated him one of the top 1,000 financial advisors in America in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013. In 2014, Barron's listed him among the top 1,200 financial advisors in the country.

Alex has published articles on asset allocation and long-term equity market cycles in the Investments and Wealth Monitor, a national publication offered by the Investment Management Consultants Association (IMCA). Alex has also been published by Advisor Perspectives, a leading publisher for financial professionals. His piece on building balanced portfolios, which was the basis for this book, was recognized with the IMCA 2012 Stephen L. Kessler Writing Award. The article was also recognized by the Wall Street Journal, Market Watch, Moneynews, Fidelity Investments, and Wall Street Daily.