About the Author: Austin Pryor
Austin C. Pryor, Jr., founder of Sound Mind Investing and author of the Sound Mind Investing Handbook, is an American financial writer, speaker, and radio personality whose work focuses on investment counseling from an evangelical Christian point of view.
Austin is a native of Louisville, Kentucky, and graduated from the University of Kentucky where he received a B.S. degree in Banking and Finance in 1967.
Austin has been married to his wife, Susie, for more than 40 years; they have three grown children and nine grandchildren. Austin and Susie live in Louisville, where they have been members of Southeast Christian Church since 1990.
Austin founded an investment management firm in 1978. During the company's first five years of operation, his average client account earned an average annual return of 25.5%. That level of performance resulted in Austin being rated among the top 5% of investment advisers nationwide.
In 1990, at the urging of Christian financial teacher Larry Burkett, Austin launched Sound Mind Investing, a monthly financial newsletter targeted to "today's Christian family." The publication has garnered more than 42,000 subscribers since its inception and has grown to become America's best-selling financial newsletter written from a biblical perspective. The publication's website membership has grown to more than 8,500 users since it launched in 2000.
The first edition of Austin's book, The Sound Mind Investing Handbook: A Step-By-Step Guide to Managing Your Money from a Biblical Perspective, was a finalist for the Evangelical Christian Publishing Association's Christian Book Award in 1993. The Handbook, now in its 5th edition, has received endorsements from many respected Christian teachers, including Ron Blue, Dr. Charles Stanley, Randy Alcorn, Mary Hunt, and the late Larry Burkett.
Austin's articles have appeared in the publications of such Christian organizations as Focus on the Family, the Moody Bible Institute, and the Christian Business Men's Connection. His work currently appears on Crosswalk.com, and the websites of the Christian Broadcasting Network and Crown Financial Ministries.
For many years, Austin was a frequent guest on Crown Financial Ministries' Money Matters program.
Austin has been the featured speaker at various municipal and state prayer breakfasts, including a breakfast hosted by former Arkansas Governor (and later President) Bill Clinton. He also has spoken at various functions of the Christian Business Men's Connection and Christian Women's Clubs. He was a founding member of the Board of Directors of Pro Athletes Outreach (a Christian training ministry to pro athletes of all sports), and The Christian Embassy, an outreach ministry to government and diplomatic officials and their families in Washington, D.C.
Austin is also a former member of the staff of Campus Crusade for Christ, where he worked closely with founder Dr. Bill Bright and its current president, Steve Douglass.
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