Engineering Connection: Faith, Finance, and Finding Purpose in a Tech-Saturated World

“How do I engineer connection before someone ever meets me?”

That question changed everything for Dr. Joshua Wilson, and it might just change the way you think about delivering financial advice and marketing for your own firm.

At the 2025 Wealth Management EDGE conference, Money Chronicles co-hosts Johnny Sandquist and Torie Happe chatted with Dr. Wilson, founder of NeuBeFi, to unpack what it means to build trust in a world increasingly shaped by algorithms and AI.

His story? It didn’t start with a CFA or a Silicon Valley dream like it does for a lot of people in finance.

Instead, it started with a degree in religious studies, a call center job, and a lot of questions about what makes someone memorable.

From Rural Alabama to High Finance

Dr. Wilson didn’t set out to join the wealth management industry. When he got his start, he simply needed a job. But what he found instead was a calling.

After grinding through licensing exams and the 2008 financial crisis, he began to climb the ranks. Yet despite the designations, pitches, and playbooks, something was missing: real connection.

“I was doing all this work to be the smartest, most qualified guy,” he said. “But it wasn’t until people started referencing a graduation speech they found online that I realized they were deciding whether to work with me before I ever met them.”

That a-ha moment led to his obsession with the science of connection and ultimately to founding NeuBeFi, a company focused on helping advisors discover and communicate what makes them magnetic, marketable, and unforgettable.

Trust Is the New Differentiator

In a digital world where deepfakes and synthetic voices are commonplace, trust has become the scarcest resource.

Dr. Wilson argues that as content gets easier to produce, skepticism grows.

The modern wealth management client is filtering faster, clicking past, and tuning out. Advisors can’t afford to wait until a first meeting to show their humanity. They have to lead with it. On their website, in their social media, everywhere.

And for Dr. Wilson, that humanity is rooted in something deeper.

“My edge doesn’t come from money or strategy. It comes from Christ. I want everything I do to be a small reflection of something bigger than me.”

The Takeaway

This episode is about finding meaning and purpose, not finding success in the market. It’s a reminder that in the race for efficiency and scale, the best advisors are still the ones who know how to connect.

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Watch the full interview with Dr. Joshua Wilson here: