David Millington, CFP®, CIMA®,CEPA® , SE-AWMA®
President
As President of Puzzle Wealth Solutions, LLC and a Wealth Manager with over 23 years of experience, David Millington is dedicated to simplifying the complex world of finance. His goal is straightforward: reduce financial stress and provide clarity, so clients can focus on what matters most — time with loved ones, growing their businesses, and pursuing their passions.
David's approach is both strategic and practical. Acting as his clients' financial project manager, he works to align every financial decision with their unique goals. His experience spans investments, financial planning, cash flow modeling, estate planning coordination, executive compensation, liability management, business exit strategies, gifting, and philanthropy.
That coordination happens through Puzzle Wealth's 7-Step Puzzle Checklist — a disciplined review across investments, cash flow, estate planning, taxes, liabilities, and gifting designed to help ensure the details don't fall through the cracks. His planning methodology also incorporates guidelines for sustainable portfolio withdrawal rates, targeting approximately 4% at age 60, 5% at age 70, and 7% at age 80.
David's passion for investing started early — he built his first stock portfolio in 7th grade. His work ethic took root even earlier: his first paycheck, earned at age 8 delivering newspapers, still hangs on his wall as a reminder of where the entrepreneurial spirit began.
Since joining the team in 2003, David has led the Business Development Committee and served as a Senior Portfolio Manager on the Investment Committee. He earned his B.S. in Finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1999.
David has been recognized as a Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Advisor — DFW High Net Worth #57 (2026), North Texas (2025, 2024), and Illinois (2021)**, as AdvisorHub's #163 Advisor to Watch in the USA (Over $1B, 2026), AdvisorHub's #124 Advisor to Watch in the USA (Over $1B, 2025), and AdvisorHub's #56 Advisor to Watch in the USA (Under $1B, 2024)*.
David resides in Southlake, TX with his family. Outside of work, he enjoys watching his sons compete in sports, cheering on both Chicago and Dallas teams, and (unsuccessfully) working on lowering his golf handicap.
*Nominees are required to have a minimum of seven years experience, $100m minimum AUM, and a clean regulatory record. Using data on assets, households, and production, advisors are ranked on three categories: scale, growth, and professionalism. The list is broken into several sublists: RIAs (fee-only), Over $1b, Under $1b, Next Gen, Women, Solo, and Fast-Growing. Please note that participation in this ranking is free, and AdvisorHub receives no compensation from the participating advisors.
** The Forbes Best-in-State wealth advisor ranking, developed by SHOOK Research, is based on in-person telephone due diligence meetings, and a ranking algorithm that includes: Client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Portfolio performance is not a criterion due to varying client objections and lack of audited data. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receives a fee in exchange for rankings
***Forbes Best-in-State Wealth Management Teams ranking was developed by SHOOK Research and is based on in-person, virtual and telephone due diligence meetings and a ranking algorithm that includes: a measure of each team’s best practices, client retention, industry experience, review of compliance records, firm nominations; and quantitative criteria, including: assets under management and revenue generated for their firms. Investment performance is not a criterion because client objectives and risk tolerances vary, and advisors rarely have audited performance reports. SHOOK’s research and rankings provide opinions intended to help investors choose the right financial advisor and team, and are not indicative of future performance or representative of any one client’s experience. Past performance is not an indication of future results. Neither Forbes nor SHOOK Research receive compensation in exchange for placement on the ranking. For more information, please see www.SHOOKresearch.com. SHOOK is a registered trademark of SHOOK Research, LLC.
Securities offered through, LPL Financial, Member FINRA / SIPC. Investment advice offered through Gladstone Institutional Advisory, LLC, a registered investment advisor. Gladstone Wealth Partners is a separate entity from LPL Financial. Gladstone Institutional Advisory, LLC and Puzzle Wealth Solutions are separate entities from LPL Financial.