“What’s Trending For New Financial Planners” is a collection of articles, podcasts, videos, etc. that I’ve been consuming regarding breaking into financial planning, industry trends, career development, and more.
Jason Wenk and Dasarte Yarnway share the principles and practices from the top advisors they interviewed in 2023 as well as a few predictions for 2024 [Podcast with Transcript]:
“Having done this for so long and talked to so many advisors for so many years, most people, when they have a big breakthrough, it’s something they already knew. So, it’s not like we don’t know being focused is a good thing. But then we meet with these advisors that are performing at this really high level and we go, ‘Wow, they have some pretty extreme clarity and focus.’
And oftentimes it’s because they start with a goal in mind and work backwards. Like, what should the actions be?
I’ve yet to meet any advisor in all of my years doing this that was both really successful and also really effective, and they do really great work for clients, that’s really disorganized. Like they’re trying to do ten, fifteen things at once. They’re trying to be like, I’m going to try five different client acquisition strategies. I’m going to work with every client persona out there. I’m going to use all sorts of different technology tools, strategies, portfolios, right?
Those who seem to be delivering the best outcomes for their clients, have the happiest clients, the highest retention and the most growth, they have a ton of focus. That’s just a consistent theme, and we all know that. And yet it’s very easy to get distracted.”
The Three Big Predictions For 2024 [Jason Wenk & Dasarte Yarnway, The Advisor Journey]
Peter Lazaroff with some historical perspective on investing at all-time highs [Podcast and Summary]:
“Let’s dissect this. So, looking at the S&P 500 data that goes back to 1926 provides some pretty useful perspective.
For starters, roughly 30% of closing levels have been new highs. And following these all-time highs, the market has showed a tendency to continue its upward trajectory.
So, if I was to look at the average annualized returns of the market after making an all-time high, the one-year following on average has had a 13.7% return. Whereas if I’m looking three years out, it has averaged an annualized return of 10.6%. And 10.2% in the five years following a new all-time high.
And those three- and five-year figures align pretty closely with what the markets overall average performance is across similar timeframes. So, that should give you confidence for what lies ahead.“
Investing In Stocks At All-Time Highs [Peter Lazaroff, The Long Term Investor]
Stephanie Bogan with a reminder that our ambitious goals typically bring challenging setbacks, but these provide the necessary seeds for growth [Article]:
“Remember to befriend the breakdowns. Uplevels are born from breakdowns, like butterflies emerging from cocoons. At a micro-level, that caterpillar is experiencing ‘creative destruction’ — the system is breaking things on purpose.
It’s messy, sure, but it’s the intentional breaking down of the old that makes way for the new. Like nature, our businesses need a system for breaking things on purpose as we seek to scale growth and create new levels of success.”
Breakdowns Before Breakthroughs [Stephanie Bogan, Monday Mojo]
If the growth you are looking for is adding new clients, Scott Hanson on blocking out distraction-free time for business development [Article]:
To be fair, one of the reasons it’s so difficult to land new clients is because advisors are so busy serving their existing base. What makes it so hard to free up time to build new relationships is that client service is reactionary, whereas business development is proactive. However, if you want to build, increase revenue, and strengthen your overall practice, it is crucial that you schedule adequate time for marketing and prospecting.
…
When I was building up my financial advice practice, I would set aside two hours every day for marketing and business development purposes. Plus, I set aside one entire afternoon and an evening each week for prospecting and marketing.
During those blocks of time, I was unavailable for anything that had to do with existing business. If a client called or emailed, I counterintuitively would not drop what I was doing to talk with that client. Before I had the staff to help, I simply waited to return the call. Once I grew to the point where I could afford to hire someone, I had a client service person handle whatever issue was urgent. I simply refused to be interrupted from my business development time to deal with any other matter.
Block Out Time In Your Schedule For Growth [Scott Hanson, InvestmentNews]
Caleb Brown with a few tactics for keeping up your energy and enthusiasm during extended interviews [Video]:
How To Keep Your Energy Up In Phone Calls And Interviews [Caleb Brown, New Planner Recruiting]
A look at how the “curse of knowledge” and “illusion of transparency” can hamper your growth and how to overcome each [Article]:
“From a neuroscience perspective, the curse of knowledge occurs because our brains create neural pathways reinforced with repeated use and practice. This means the more we know about a topic, the more efficiently our brains process information related to that topic.
As a result, we may assume that others have the same knowledge we do, causing us to believe (for example) that everyone understands what an “inverse yield curve” is (and portends).
Recognizing the curse of knowledge and its potential consequences is the first step toward mitigating its effects.”
The Curse Of Knowledge: The Downside Of Financial Expertise [Dan Solin, Advisor Perspectives]
Dr. Joy Lere on how to better understand human behavior [Article]:
“Pushing things can be exhausting, for sure. Lots of us live under a heavy load. We carry significant emotional, intellectual, physical, and relational weight. Who and what are you pushing right now? Where? To what end? Maybe you’re trying to drive forward a project. Perhaps you’re trying to motivate, convince, or cajole a colleague, child, partner, or friend. Maybe the person you’re pushing is YOU. Whatever your load, handle it with care. To avoid injury, make sure it’s not too heavy. Position it strategically, with appropriate support.”
Forced [Dr. Joy Lere, Finding Joy]
Morgan Housel with musings on spending money [Article]:
“How you spend money can be a reflection of what you’ve experienced in life. To someone who grew up snubbed by poverty, owning a fancy car might be the ultimate symbol of what you’ve overcome. To an old-money family, it might be the ultimate symbol of ego and insecurity. People don’t just spend money on things they find fun or useful. Their decisions often reflect the psychological wounds of their life experiences.
Spending money can buy happiness, but it’s often an indirect path. The big, nice house might make you happier, but mostly because it makes it easier to spend time with friends and family, and the friends and family are actually what are making you happy.
Unspent money buys something intangible but valuable: freedom, independence, autonomy, and control over your time. Every dollar of savings buys a claim check on the future.”
A Few Thoughts On Spending Money [Morgan Housel, Collab Blog]
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