Sharon Kissinger was taught a strong work ethic as a young girl from her parents and quitting was never an option.
That same work ethic continues within Kissinger at age 65 while helping the community financially plan for their future.
Owner of Kissinger & Kirkman, Investment Centre, LLC in Poplar Bluff, Kissinger said she looks forward to going to work each day and has no plans to retire.
"I hope I work here and keep doing my job until the day I die," she said. "I don't have any plans to do anything else."
Kissinger's path to opening her own business was not an easy or traditional journey.
During her junior year in high school, Kissinger began dating her now husband, David, and they were married the first part of her senior year.
At 17, she became a mother and 15 months later, the Kissingers' second daughter was born.
"I think my parents were very disappointed," she admitted. "Not that being a mom wasn't a good thing, but they wanted me to be successful too."
Kissinger worked for the State of Missouri when her daughters, Michelle and Martha, were young, but said babysitters were getting more than half her paycheck.
"I found a part-time job at Lincoln University and that's when I met Violet (Hinton) Brown," she said.
Brown encouraged Kissinger to take the step and enroll in college. Admitting to mainly keep her at bay, Kissinger agreed she would take a few classes when her children began school.
"She encouraged me and was just a great friend through that whole process," she said.
The two women are still friends today and recently were able to catch up with one another while Brown was traveling through Poplar Bluff.
Brown was not the only support system Kissinger had behind her while attending school.
David went to work at 6 a.m. at the post office and was home in the afternoon to get the girls off the school bus.
"He and the other moms would do carpools to get the kids to ballgames and I would come in as the games began," Kissinger said with a smile.
In addition to attending college during the day, she also worked two and sometimes three part-time jobs to avoid student loans.
The couple arranged their busy schedules so the kids were with babysitters as little as possible.
"We worked well together," Kissinger said. "We helped each other out and just kind of divided and conquered on the chores and items to be done. It took a little coordination and willingness."
Kissinger recalls sitting at the kitchen table with her daughters and doing homework together.
She credits going to school while the girls were young for their love of education. Michelle has a master's degree and Martha has earned a doctorate.
Once she finished college, Kissinger was already working in the financial planning industry.
Straight from her parent's home to being with David, Kissinger set out for a training and would be gone for two and a half months.
"I cried all the way to West Plains and thought what in the world have I done," she said.
Kissinger once again credits her strong support system of David, her girls, parents and siblings for getting her through a scary time.
She now encourages women who didn't go to college right out of high school that have the desire and are able to recruit their families to support them, to do so and enroll in classes.
"It's hard to go back when you have children," she said. "It's rewarding, but it's not easy."
After many years with a financial firm, Kissinger made the move to Poplar Bluff in 1983 to open her own office.
At the time, it was required for anyone wanting to open their own office within the firm to knock on 1,000 doors to pass out business cards, discuss plans of opening her own financial advisor office and to explain to potential clients what she would be doing.
Pulling from her strong work ethic, Kissinger decided if 1,000 was a good number, then 2,000 should be a better number.
"So I knocked on a lot of doors and opened my office in April 1984," she said.
Starting out in the financial advisor world in the 1980s, Kissinger said women "had not really broken into the field and it was predominantly a male field."
"They didn't really know what to do with me and I had several say that," she added.
At that time, Kissinger believes women had to work a little harder to be equal.
"You didn't work harder to be better, but I felt like you had to work harder to be equal," she said. "I think that toughened me up a little bit and I have never been afraid to work."
Kissinger did not let her gender be a determining factor for herself and encourages other women to not let it be as well, no matter what field they go into.
Twelve years ago, Kissinger took another chance and began her own business with her son-in-law, Erick Kirkman.
"That was kind of a leap of faith at the age I was at that time," she said. "I was pretty satisfied with where I was and this was an opportunity that turned out to be extremely good."
This past spring, the two purchased a new office at 2102 Shelby Road, Suite 1, and Kissinger said the new location has been exciting.
Thirty-eight years later, Kissinger said she loves the work she does more than the day she started.
"So many people I know get up and kind of dread going to work and just put their time in so they can get to the weekend," she said. "I love what I do. People dread Mondays and I love Mondays because I get back in my routine and schedule."
Questioned a lot about when she will retire, Kissinger said that is a fair question, but is adamant in her decision.
"As long as my brain works, I really don't ever plan to retire," she said.
Kissinger feeds off the challenges she is presented with daily by helping clients financially plan for a new child or second home.
Outside of helping clients plan for their own retirements, Kissinger said she and her husband enjoy planting flowers together and she likes to swim in the summer. She also enjoys reading and is active in Bible study classes at church and volunteers at Sierra-Osage.
"My grandkids are my greatest hobby," she said with a smile.
All four grandchildren, Alex, 26, Jacob, 17, and twins Addison and Olivia, 14, are located within the area, so she is able to spend a lot of time with them.
"My daughters and their husbands are very generous with their kids and we have always kept them at different times," she said. "I hope it was as valuable to them as it was to us. We are very close to them and I hope it stays with them forever."
Kissinger said while she is busy, she does not ever feel "completely washed out."
"I think that comes from the fact that I love what I do," she said. "I don't go to work, I go to fun everyday and I look forward to being here."