Today we’d like to introduce you to Ontario D Dickey.
Hi Ontario D, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
We got into the industry at the suggestion of a good family friend by the great late Cedrick Burns, Sr., who became a good mentor to us and how taxes and finances work. Watching him navigate his financial business and other businesses inspired us to give it a try. In the beginning it was rocky because we knew nothing about taxes besides filing them every year with a trusted tax professional and we had to figure out our own flow. To be honest, this industry is always changing so you have to change with it to stay in compliance and to gain and keep the trust of your clients, to which we refer to them as a family member because at the end of the day, we are just like you….striving to live a better quality of life.
As a whole, we are not where we want to be yet but we are taking it to the next level by investing in better systems, better training and a great quality mentor. The future for Greenwood Financial Solutions is getting brighter and will one day be a household name in the community in which we serve
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I think the moment you make up your mind to start a business, no matter what it is, life becomes different. First off, you’re going against the norm of what society has been taught since they can remember: go to school, get good grades and get a good quality job. That formula is no longer working. We have always known that we wanted to do something different out of the norm and no it has not been a smooth, steady road.
We have ran into so many obstacles from partnering with other tax professionals who have taken money out of our pockets by running off with our agreed split. Or employees trying to pouch your clients to sway them to go to other tax offices. Or the best one is tax payers going from tax office to tax office to get loan advances on their return only to file their own return, basically scamming & stealing! People see tax professionals and think that you’re automatically rich…..far from it. It takes time and patience
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
The name of our financial firm is: Greenwood Financial Solutions. Our firm is named after a street in Tulsa, Ok that was a part of Black Wallstreet from years ago. The name also came from the group The GAP Band (Greenwood Archer & Pine) who are also from Tulsa, Ok. The name just resonated with us because we believe in keeping all history alive and present.
We are a one stop shop when it comes to finances. We don’t just do taxes but we also do credit repair, life insurance, consulting and we have a qualified notary on staff as well. The thing that sets us apart from other financial institutions is that we believe in educating the community and changing the lives of our “family members” for a better quality of life for themselves and their own family. And by education we aspire to teach others about how money works and how finances work for the betterment of your financial situation via financial literacy. What i want the readers to know is that we are here to grow with you: just like you’re growing we are growing and learning just as well. We are here to grow with you
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
The one thing that i wish that i would have known from day one is that the financial industry is very cut throat like the drug game and everyone is trying to go after the same clients not realizing that there are millions of people who need tax help. We don’t have to compete for the same clients because our target audience is different and expanding.
If you are new to the industry just get to know all of the rules and regulations about tax laws. There are no tax shortcuts or no magical tax tricks. The laws are the laws and they are forever changing. What was good last year possibly wont be good for this year
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.greenwoodfs.com
- Instagram: Ontario D Dickey
- Facebook: Ontario D Dickey/ Greenwood Financial Solutions
- Other: Email: info@greenwoodfs.com
