Note: This episode is a rebroadcast of Shane Mason's appearance on the Only Fee-Only podcast.

This week on The Liquidity Event, we're sharing a rebroadcast of a recent conversation featuring Shane Mason on the Only Fee-Only podcast.

In this episode, Shane shares his unconventional founder story, from Big Four tax to touring life, before teaming up with AJ to build Brooklyn FI into a 20-person advisory firm rooted in transparency, productized service, and genuine hospitality. He walks through the early days of the firm, including running a tax practice out of a bar booth, pricing low to gain experience, and taking weekend prospect meetings to refine the offer.

The conversation quickly turns practical, covering why most equity compensation issues are really tax issues, how offering refunds can protect long-term trust, and why turning estate planning into a social, notarized event helps clients finally take action. Shane also discusses building an enterprise rather than a lifestyle practice, documenting workflows for consistency, evolving the firm's niche from creatives to tech employees, and what changes when founders step back from day-to-day client work. The episode wraps with a look at Gemifi, the fintech platform Brooklyn FI built to help advisors visualize vesting schedules and future balance sheets.

If you're building or scaling an RIA, this rebroadcast is full of hard-won insights on processes, client experience, and leading through growth.

Key Timestamps:

(00:00) Meet Shane Mason and Brooklyn Fi
(01:38) Career Origins and Early Accounting
(05:00) Quarter-Life Crisis and Adventures Abroad
(08:20) Sailing The Atlantic and Roadie Tales
(11:30) Building A Tax Practice In A Bar Booth
(14:55) Meeting AJ and Forming The Partnership
(19:10) Finding XYPN and Learning The RIA Game
(22:50) First Hires and Evolving The Niche
(27:00) Estate Planning Parties and Execution
(34:50) Advice For New Firms And Equity Comp
(38:50) Taking L's, Refunds, and Reputation

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