Yellowstone Wealth Advisors
Independent Financial Advisor and Financial Therapist
I provide independent financial therapy, coaching, and planning through my firm, Yellowstone Wealth Advisors. I specialize in providing psychologically informed financial guidance for entrepreneurs, academics, physicians, business owners, and other busy professionals. I work with individuals, couples, and organizations.
How is a behavioral financial advice different than what you might receive elsewhere? We understand that psychology (our emotions, thoughts, and feelings around risks, time frames, and decisions) impact how we spend, save and invest. Money is emotional, and our choices are never as rational as we'd like them to be.
My expertise in behavioral science and personal finance work to help you recognize and manage any emotions and fears that might be holding you back. I help you build a mindful money mindset. Using behavioral techniques, we help you better understand your own behaviors and tendencies.
I am a fiduciary. As a fiduciary to our clients, your goals and needs are our first priority. I only offer fee-only services, and do not receive any bonuses or commissions from others, and specialize in holistic, client-centered therapeutic guidance for big financial and life goals. I do not sell any insurance or investment products, and our investment advice will be focused on long-term diversified portfolios of mutual funds from a variety of investment companies, based solely on the client’s preferences and goals. I will provide clients with comprehensive financial planning outlined by financial planning standards, which includes everything from running a business, to planning for your child's education, to preparing for eventual retirement or estates.
My Story
James Langabeer, PhD, MBA, ChFC®, CFT™️
I grew up in a U.S. Air Force family, born in Tokyo and raised between Michigan and Texas. Military life meant structure, discipline, and frequent moves. At home, I also had the influence of a CPA father who valued precision, planning, and financial responsibility.
From an early age, I understood that stability does not happen by accident — it is built.
I worked my way through school, paying my own tuition, and went on to earn two doctorates in behavioral decision-making and finance. Along the way, one question continued to fascinate me:
Why do intelligent, capable people make financial decisions that undermine their own goals?
My academic training gave me the analytical, economic, behavioral, and strategic tools. My professional career — serving as a CEO, software executive, financial controller, consultant, and professor — showed me something deeper: financial success is rarely about math alone. It is about behavior. It is about emotion. It is about the stories we carry about money.
I have trained hundreds of medical students in medicine (psychiatry and emergency medicine) and behavioral sciences, as well as business, and have authored more than 8 books and 125 journal articles. I have create dozens of large-scale clinical programs, and generated more than $75 million in federal and state grant funding. I'm one of the top medical scientists in the country, and use my skills to apply towards financial conditions related to stress disorders.
I have seen high earners paralyzed by financial anxiety.
I have seen disciplined professionals sabotage long-term wealth building.
I have seen families repeat multigenerational money patterns without realizing it.
Money is not just numbers. It is identity, security, power, fear, and hope. They are all intertwined.
That realization led me to integrate behavioral science with financial strategy. My work today sits at the intersection of psychology and finance, helping individuals understand not just what they are doing with money, but why.
As the author of The Quest for Wealth, recipient of two Silver Medal Finance Book Awards, I’ve dedicated my career to advancing the science of financial decision-making. But my greatest reward is working one-on-one with clients who are ready to reduce financial stress, strengthen their money mindset, and build lasting wealth with intention.
My approach is disciplined, analytical, and deeply human.
Because true wealth is not just accumulated — it is constructed thoughtfully, behavior by behavior, decision by decision.
As Seen in Oprah
I have regularly been quoted in the news or appeared on TV. My expertise has been featured TWICE in Oprah magazine, including this one on how to save money.
