I’m a dad, a husband, an engineer, and the person behind this platform. My work is helping people make clearer, more informed, and more confident decisions that impact their life, so they can build security and a better future.
I leverage my systems engineering and risk management background to analyze a situation in a holistic way, identify the tradeoffs, pros, cons, and a course (s) of action.
My story starts in Lima, Peru, where I grew up facing financial struggle. I was raised by my mom and grandmother, and I learned early what it means to work for what you have.
One of the most powerful stories I remember as a kid was when I was 5 years old, walking around the busy streets of Lima, and I asked my grandma to buy me a large size, green Power Ranger.
When she asked how much it was, she looked at me and said, “Not today.”
I didn’t notice at the time, but looking back, I could see the pain in her beautiful eyes — though she wanted to get me the toy, she couldn’t afford it. And I could tell that broke her.
As I grew older, I also watched my mom struggle with an untreated hip injury that only worsened over time, and it couldn’t get fixed because we didn’t have the money.
She needed $6,000 — at that time, in Peru, that was a lot of money. It still is to this day. That deteriorated her health, and her ability to care for me and my aging grandmother.
Those two instances really left a mark on me, financially speaking. They taught me how, though money isn’t everything (because we still had each other, our love, and our families), it was still so important — not just to eat, but to survive, to build a quality, healthy life.
When I was 10, my mom suddenly passed away. It was a loss that changed everything about how I saw the world. I didn’t notice at the time, maybe as a defense mechanism, but I look at my nephews and nieces who are 10 years old today, and say, “Wow, I was so little… and vulnerable.”
It breaks my heart.
My family’s love (Godparents, aunt, cousins) kept me moving forward, even when it didn’t feel possible.
At 17, my Godparents (now whom I call parents and have always been by my side since I was born) adopted me and brought me to the United States.
I was determined to build a better future. Not only because I was taught that education was the way out of our financial situation, but also because I was not about to let my Godparents’ sacrifice to bring me here go to waste.
I wanted to make everyone in my journey — my mom, grandma, Godparents, and everyone who helped me — proud.
Relentlessly, I learned English fast, and I worked multiple (up to four) part-time jobs to put myself through college, and in 2012, I earned my mechanical engineering degree from Virginia Tech.
Breaking into corporate America without connections took a while and a lot of persistence, but that same year, I launched my engineering career.
Since then, I’ve spent my career supporting high-level decision-makers in the defense industry, including managing multimillion-dollar engineering projects.
In 2018, my wife and I faced our biggest financial test: $215,000 in debt. (Check out our full story here.) Because we wanted to pay off all that debt in order to start having kids and growing our family, it took us just under three years of deliberate, focused work, and by 2022, we were debt-free.
That process taught me more about money, mindset, and discipline than any course could have.
It’s one of the reasons I started sharing what I’ve learned, and continue to learn, publicly.
While I’ve built a successful engineering career, I’ve found that mentoring others and sharing my lessons helps my professional journey and allows me to give back.
And after years of trial and error, I discovered my passion for empowering and guiding professionals to achieve financial security, build businesses, and secure their family’s future.
Since 2019, I’ve helped tens of thousands of viewers work toward career growth and financial security through my YouTube channel, Wealth Engineered. My work has been featured by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), and I’ve been an invited guest speaker for Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) chapters.
I am based out of the Washington, DC area, where I live with my wife and two kids (new picture coming soon!).
If you’ve made it this far, thank you for taking the time. I’m glad to share what I’ve learned, and I’m still learning too.
And if you need help, someone to discuss your goals with, or clarity on your situation, you can book a call with me here.
To your success,
Alex