FAQ

A Behavioral Financial Advisor, or BFA, has been specifically trained to work at the intersection of financial planning and emotional decision-making. The designation recognizes something most financial credentials do not: that financial decisions are made by human beings who are feeling things.

A BFA has been trained to slow down when slowing down serves you, to ask the questions that go beneath the numbers, and to build a planning relationship that honors your whole self, not just your balance sheet.

The Behavioral Financial Advisor (BFA®) designation is issued by think2perform and reflects education in behavioral finance and the impact of emotions and biases on financial decision making.

A Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, or CDFA, is a financial specialist who analyzes the long-term financial impact of divorce settlement options. Your attorney understands the legal process. Your CDFA understands the financial reality of what you are agreeing to, including what it will cost you in taxes, in retirement, and in lifestyle over the next twenty years.

To learn more about Certified Divorce Financial Analyst® / CDFA® visit InstitudeDFA.com.

A financial advisor helps you plan for the future. A CDFA is specifically trained to analyze financial decisions during divorce: retirement account division, the house, spousal support modeling, tax implications, Social Security timing for divorced spouses, and how all of those pieces fit together.

Some advisors hold both designations and can serve both functions, which is the combination I hold.

If you are navigating divorce, a CDFA analysis of your settlement is one of the most important pieces of work you can commission. The cost of the analysis is usually a fraction of the cost of an uninformed settlement.

If you are navigating widowhood, caregiving, inheritance, or any major financial transition, the BFA designation matters because it means the advisor has been specifically trained for the emotional complexity of your situation.

A Compass Call is a ninety-minute conversation, a single session, designed for women who want to work through a specific question with a real person. You bring the question keeping you up. We work through it together.

You leave with language for what you are carrying and a sense of the next step. No follow-on is required. Many women come for one of these and never need more.

No. I serve clients throughout the United States through Threshold Compass Strategies. I am based in Sheboygan, Wisconsin, and I work virtually with clients nationwide.

No. The framework works in stable seasons and in transitional ones. Women in stable seasons use it to understand the patterns they have already built their financial lives around. Women in transition use it to find steady ground while they decide what comes next.

Fees depend on scope. The Compass Call is a modest fixed fee and fully applied against any longer engagement if you decide to continue. Ongoing planning engagements and transition engagements are scoped individually.

I will talk about fees plainly on the first call. There are no surprises.

No. The Compass Call stands alone, and many women use it as a single conversation to get clarity on a specific question. If a longer engagement makes sense, we scope it together. You are never pressured to continue.

The Discovery Quiz is a good first step. It takes about five to seven minutes and delivers your archetype to your email, along with reflection prompts and a closing blessing. There is no obligation beyond that.

The Threshold is not a place to be rescued from. It is a place to be witnessed. Take the time you need.

Threshold Compass Strategies™ is a Wisconsin-based Registered Investment Advisory Firm registered with the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions, established in 2025 by Teresa McAlpine, Founder and President.  Threshold Compass Strategies is the behavioral financial planning practice of Teresa McAlpine, CDFA, BFA. The firm serves women navigating divorce, widowhood, caregiving, inheritance, and reinvention, combining fiduciary investment advisory with the Financial Wealthstyle Archetypes framework. You may check the FINRA Background of Teresa McAlpine on BrokerCheck.org by clicking here. You may check the status of the firm registration of Threshold Compass Strategies, Inc. by clicking here. Teresa McAlpine provides investment advisory services through Wisconsin Advisors, a separate entity and affiliate of LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. Threshold Compass Strategies™ is an independent businesses owned by Teresa McAlpine. There is no legal or supervisory relationship between LPL Financial, Wisconsin Advisors, and the Threshold Compass entities. The thoughts, tools, and insights shared are for educational and informational purposes only and are not intended as personalized financial, legal, or tax advice. You should consult with your own licensed financial advisor, tax professional, or legal counsel before making any decisions based on this content. The materials found here are not replacements for qualified, licensed therapy.