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#FA Success Ep 338: Finding Your Why In Helping Clients Figure Out What To Retire Towards (Not From), With Tony Hixon

June 20, 2023 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Financial Advisor Success Podcast

Welcome back to the 338th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!

My guest on today's podcast is Tony Hixon. Tony is the Co-founder and COO for Hixon Zuercher Capital Management, an independent RIA based in Findlay, Ohio, that oversees more than $300 million in assets under management for nearly 330 client households.

What's unique about Tony's journey, is how the tragic death of his mother just 6 months after she retired, made Tony realize that even though retirees may be prepared financially for their retirement, they may not be prepared mentally for the transition to a life that is separate from their career identities. Which inspired him to change the way he engages with his clients around financial planning… and ultimately led him to write a book to honor her, and help his clients (and other retirees) learn from his mother’s story.

In this episode, we talk in-depth about how, just months after her retirement from nursing, Tony’s mother became depressed and decided to take her own life, which made him see first-hand how entering retirement means so much more than just being financially prepared (as even though his mom was financially stable, she lacked purpose and was not mentally prepared for life after her successful career), how Tony decided to add retirement transition coaching sessions to work more deeply with his clients to help them prepare for retirement by finding their own purpose in life beyond their careers, and the way Tony has expanded his in-person and now virtual retirement workshops for both clients and non-clients to further increase access to tools and information on how to mentally prepare for retirement.

We also talk about why Tony and his partner have taken an active approach to managing their client portfolios even as passive ETF models have become increasingly popular amongst advisors, why Tony and his partner Adam changed the firm name from Freedom Financial Solutions to Hixon Zuercher Capital Management (because they felt that adding their founder names into the name of the firm was the best way to build a legacy with name recognition that would continue beyond them), and the way Tony and his partner implemented 5 core values for their firm (of integrity, professionalism, excellence, abundance, and teamwork) to further establish a personal identity for the firm that can last beyond their leadership.

And be certain to listen to the end, where Tony shares why he and his firm follow the mantra “We win or we learn” because they don’t view mistakes as losing but rather as learning and growth opportunities, why Tony feels that younger, newer advisors should focus on working on their designations before starting a family so that when the time comes, they will be able to devote their full attention to their spouses and children instead of studying, and why Tony believes that feeling fulfilled in life begins with finding your ‘why’, and how by telling his mother’s story and helping others find their purpose in life he has found his ‘why’… and plans to continue to help others retire well through financial planning and coaching for the foreseeable future.

So, whether you’re interested in learning about why Tony uses the proceeds of his book to fund a scholarship for a nursing student at a local college in honor of his mother, why Tony and his partner decided to launch their firm together at 25 years old, or how the firm’s life coach is a former client of theirs from their previous niche of dentists who decided to give back during his retirement and help others find their purpose, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Tony Hixon.

Communicate (The Necessity Of) Fee Increases With A Client-Centric, Value-Based Approach

June 19, 2023 07:01 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Practice Management

Recent years have seen an increase in the number of RIAs charging fixed monthly retainer fees, and while retainer fees can have several advantages over other types of fees, one notable disadvantage – particularly as compared to traditional AUM fees, which tend to increase automatically in line with financial markets – is that financial advisors who use them must proactively raise their fees from time to time in order to keep up with business expenses, invest in new upgrades, and increase their own take-home income. The necessity of fee increases entails a certain amount of pain for monthly-fee advisors since each conversation around raising fees creates the possibility of pushback from clients that could put a strain on the client-advisor relationship.

This is all the more true when clients are dealing with cost increases in other areas from high inflation, yet the reality is that many advisors are also facing inflation in the form of higher business costs. As a result, monthly-fee advisors may see a decrease in their take-home income if they don’t increase their fees at least enough to keep up with their rising business expenses.

But using business costs alone as a justification to raise fees can backfire on the advisor. For one thing, it limits the amount that an advisor can raise their fees to roughly the rate of inflation in their business expenses, which translates into no net increase in take-home income. And even more importantly, higher business costs as a rationale for raising fees is bound to ring hollow with clients since they are likely to care much less about the advisory firm’s expenses than about the fact that they will be paying a higher fee going forward, 'just' to receive the same level of service they were already getting.

A better way to implement and communicate fee increases may be one that is centered around providing more value to the client in exchange for the higher fee. To start, this signifies a client-centric approach, shifting the basis of the increase from the advisory firm and its needs (to maintain its profit margins with higher business costs) to the client and what the fee increase means to them. Furthermore, it increases the potential for the amount that the advisor can increase their fees since clients are more likely to accept a higher increase when there is clearly something in it for them as well!

When communicating fee increases to clients, then, it’s important to be concrete and confident about how the advisor will bring extra value to the relationship (which, of course, means having a plan to deliver that value in the first place). Because, while any conversation around fees comes with the possibility of client pushback, that extra value represents a powerful argument for why it's in the client’s best interest to go along with the change – and if the client ultimately decides they don’t want to accept the higher fee and ends the relationship, it creates a new opportunity to add clients who do see the value in the higher fee.

Ultimately, nearly every advisory firm that charges monthly fees will eventually need to raise those fees to at least maintain a steady take-home income. But advisors who want to grow their income beyond ‘just’ the rate of inflation in their business cost can do so by stepping up their value to their clients – whether in the form of more services, better technology, or just greater experience and expertise allowing them to go deeper into planning!

Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (June 17-18)

June 16, 2023 02:00 pm 0 Comments CATEGORY: Weekend Reading

Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the SEC issued a risk alert highlighting areas of increased focus regarding its new marketing rule for upcoming examinations, including whether there is clear disclosure of whether the person giving a testimonial or endorsement is a client or investor, if the promoter has been paid, and if there are material conflicts of interest. Among other highlighted areas of interest, the regulator also flagged whether certain “ineligible persons” have been compensated for testimonials or endorsements and advisors’ use of third-party ratings in advertisements.

Also in industry news this week:

A recent survey suggests that while individuals who work with financial advisors find them to be valuable, those who have not worked with an advisor before do not necessarily understand the value an advisor can provide
The SEC is considering a new rule regarding advisers’ use of Artificial Intelligence tools, while the Department of Labor said it is planning to release the latest proposed update to its ‘fiduciary rule’ in August

From there, we have several articles on investments:

How advisors can add value for clients by evaluating the potential risks and benefits of investing in private credit funds
Why higher interest rates could change the calculus for advisors for allocating client assets to cash-like instruments
How performance data suggest that lower-cost bond funds tend to perform better and are less volatile than their pricier counterparts

We also have a number of articles on advisor fees:

While charging based on Assets Under Management (AUM) remains the most popular fee model, many advisors are looking to retainers and other fee models to diversify their revenue stream and reach more prospective clients
How advisors can help their clients save on taxes by strategically taking fees from client accounts in a tax-efficient manner
Why improved advisor service levels and the broader inflationary environment could make now a good time for firms to consider raising their fees

We wrap up with 3 final articles, all about taking breaks:

Best practices for how often to take breaks during the workday and what to do during them to promote focus and creativity
How advisors can structure their daily calendars to build in breaks and enhance their productivity
How managers can play an important role in creating an office culture where breaks during the day are not only accepted, but encouraged

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

Kitces & Carl Ep 114: When Clients Are Tempted By The Siren Song Of (A Competitor’s) Investment Results

June 15, 2023 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Kitces & Carl Podcast

For many financial advisors, keeping an open line of communication with clients is a key component of building trust, understanding the client’s values, and developing a meaningful plan to help them reach their financial goals. However, despite efforts to ensure all clients understand the ‘big picture’ of their comprehensive plans, some clients may be tempted by other financial professionals offering attractive investment returns and promising better portfolio performance. And when a client decides to pursue a relationship with a new financial professional for better returns, it can leave the advisor wondering what went wrong and how to prevent other clients from being lured away.

In our 114th episode of Kitces & Carl, Michael Kitces and client communication expert Carl Richards discuss ways for financial advisors to talk to clients tempted by promises of higher returns from other financial professionals, how they can ensure that all clients stay focused on the goals their financial plans were created to help them achieve, and why it’s so important to remind clients of their actual value.

As a starting point, it can be insightful for advisors to understand the underlying motives behind a client’s decision to end their relationship when they say they want to pursue better performance results. As while it’s possible the client was always truly more interested in investment performance than in identifying and planning for financial goals (and that they weren’t really a good fit for the advisor in the first place), there are often deeper reasons that go beyond dissatisfaction with portfolio performance (e.g., pressure from family members, an attractive 'deal' offered by an investment management firm, etc.) that shift the client’s focus from their original financial plan, compelling them to pursue the guarantee of more money.

Having a meeting to discuss these reasons can allow advisors to help clients refocus on their goals and priorities, reminding them that their portfolios were designed with those goals in mind while minimizing unnecessary risks that could otherwise jeopardize them in the long run. Advisors can even use these conversations to identify whether there are gaps in how they communicate with clients around how investment strategies are designed and chosen, how portfolios are monitored and managed on an ongoing basis, or how the client’s allocation is designed to align with the client’s values and goals.

For clients who feel confident about terminating the relationship, the conversation doesn’t need to focus on convincing them to stay. However, it may still be helpful for the client to reevaluate their motives and priorities (even possibly ending out with them changing their mind as they realize they were already in a good place with their advisor keeping them on track to attain their financial goals). But if the client is still convinced they can do better with a different advisor at the end of the conversation, it may be best to let them go.

Ultimately, the key point is that advisors provide tremendous value to clients by keeping them focused on what’s most important to them, even when they may be tempted to chase better returns elsewhere that sound too good to be true. And while it may be a rare occurrence for a client to decide to leave because of investment performance results, having a good communication strategy in place ahead of time can help the advisor remind their client of the value of ‘real’ financial planning and talk them off the ledge from making an emotionally driven (and potentially irrational) decision that they may later regret!

Why Pre-Commitment Strategies Can Work And 3 Steps To Implement Them With (The Right) Prospects

June 14, 2023 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Financial Psychology

One common sales tactic for financial advisors is to offer prospective clients a free (or low-cost) financial plan to demonstrate the advisor’s expertise and to let the prospect ‘test drive’ the advisor’s services. However, creating these pre-commitment strategies and plans can take up a significant amount of an advisor’s time and there is no guarantee that the prospect will actually decide to become a client (in which case the advisor’s work would have generated little or no revenue). Further, when combined with the work the advisor does for current clients, the ‘extra’ work of creating free plans for prospects can easily lead to advisor burnout. However, by asking prospects a series of screening questions to assess whether they might be a good fit for the firm, and by emphasizing the value of the process and implementation of financial planning, advisors can better determine whether preparing an up-front plan for them is likely to end up being a profitable tactic.

Advisors can start by determining whether a prospect might be a good candidate for an up-front financial plan with a series of questions that ask whether they can meet the firm’s asset and/or fee minimums (to screen out prospects who will clearly not be a fit), how ready the prospect feels to get started, and whether the prospect is willing to follow through with the advisor’s onboarding and data-gathering processes. These questions can help the advisor confirm that the prospect would be a suitable client and will be able to meet the advisor’s timelines (so that the creation of the up-front plan does not drag on for weeks or longer). Once an up-front plan is created, focusing on the value of plan implementation and the ongoing financial planning process can increase the likelihood that the prospect will decide to engage as a client. As while the free plan may demonstrate the advisor’s expertise and knowledge of the prospect’s situation, the course of action that the advisor takes with the prospect (after they sign on as a new client!) to implement the plan as part of an ongoing relationship is even more valuable than the plan itself.

Ultimately, the key point is that while the preparation of free or low-cost plans for prospective clients can be a useful sales tactic, advisors who don’t have a process in place to assess prospect suitability and to showcase the true value of the planning relationships can suffer from burnout, preparing plans for prospects who are unlikely to become full-time clients. But by implementing simple steps to formalize a screening process and have conversations to emphasize the value of the long-term financial planning process and plan implementation offered to clients who have a relationship with the firm, advisors can improve their rate of converting prospects into clients, spend less time preparing free plans for the wrong prospects, and even enjoy a potential boost to their own overall well-being!

#FA Success Ep 337: Becoming An ‘Accidental’ Entrepreneur When Independence Isn’t Chosen But Forced By Circumstance, With Danika Waddell

June 13, 2023 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Financial Advisor Success Podcast

Welcome back to the 337th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!

My guest on today's podcast is Danika Waddell. Danika is the President and Founder for Xena Financial Planning, a virtual advisory firm that advises 40 client households of women in tech and supports more than $275K of ongoing revenue.

What's unique about Danika’s path, though, is how, she launched her own independent RIA not out of a desire to be an entrepreneurial business owner, but because an IAR registration filing error by her prior firm left Danika, through no fault of her own, unable to be compensated for working with clients for an extended period of time… for which the fastest way to begin working again was to launch her own firm and register herself instead.

In this episode, we talk in-depth about how a state regulator audit of Danika’s former firm revealed that she was not properly registered with the state of Washington and sparked an investigation during which she was prevented from working with her clients at the time and sidelined her for several months, how, on top of not being able to work with current clients, Danika also found out that during the investigation she would only be compensated for her base salary and not for any client work (including prior completed projects) which ultimately cut her total revenue-based compensation by about 50%, and how, even though Danika’s former firm quickly registered her upon learning of their error, she realized that the only way to work with clients would be to either wait an indeterminate amount of time until the state’s investigation was over… or leave the firm, which ultimately led her to launch her own firm so that she could get paid and get working with clients again (and… maintain more control of her own registrations and career in the future).

We also talk about how Danika’s former career in corporate finance at a number of tech startups inspired her to work with women in tech, as she realized that she understood the financial issues they faced and by being specifically niche-focused, she could create more repeatable processes and it would be easier to scale the business over time, how Danika drove rapid growth for her firm by leveraging volunteering at industry associations to connect with other advisors and Centers of Influence, for whom Danika created a one-page reference document to help her connections refer more of her ideal client, and how instead of using a traditional client portal or vault, Danika creates personalized private Google sites for each client to centralize all of their documents and links to their various logins in one central place for easy access.

And be certain to listen to the end, where Danika shares how, even though she didn’t originally intend on becoming an advisory firm owner, she feels it was the better move for her as getting pushed outside of her comfort zone helped her personally evolve and become even more energized and comfortable embracing her curiosity, how Danika has dealt with the unexpected reality of loneliness as a solo advisor by embracing mastermind groups and industry communities to build deeper more profound relationships with other advisors (and gain some insights along the way), and why Danika believes that joining local industry associations, connecting with like-minded individuals, and finding a mentor can be especially valuable for younger, newer advisors to develop their own communities early on as a foundation to navigate a better long-term career path for themselves.

So, whether you’re interested in learning about how Danika evolved her fees from an hourly rate to a flat fee, why Danika feels spacing out her 5-meeting process helps her get a better understanding of her clients’ goals and makes it more likely clients will implement her recommendations, or why Danika invested $7,500 in the creation of her website so that she can create better branding toward her niche, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with Danika Waddell.

Summer Reading List Of “Best Books” For Financial Advisors – 2023 Edition

June 12, 2023 07:07 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Personal/Career Development

While 2023 got off to a bumpy start for many advisory firms, still smarting from a rough prior year of market returns (and volatile revenue), a relative return to ‘normalcy’ means that for most, the advisory business has reached whatever its new post-pandemic normal will be. Firms that were returning to the office have done so, those that are staying remote are remaining as such, and either way most advisory firms have figured out how to continue to service and retain clients, and are slowly adapting to finding new (or reinvigorating old) paths to grow at least slowly once again. For which the approaching summer season is once again providing its usual respite – a time when most advisors take more time off (if only because clients are harder to pin down for summer meetings as more once again take summer vacations away from home)… and find some time to read and catch up on a few good books!

For those who love to read, though (and especially for those who have limited time and will only get to read just 1 or 2 books over the summer), the perennial question is always “so… what’s a good book worth reading this summer?”

As a voracious reader myself, I’ve always been eager to hear suggestions from others of great books to read, whether it's something new that's just come out, or an "old classic" that I should go back and read (again or for the first time!). And so, in the spirit of sharing, a few years ago I launched my list of "Recommended (Book) Reading for Financial Advisors", and it was so well received that in 2013 I also started sharing my annual "Summer Reading List" for financial advisors of the best books I'd read in the preceding year. It quickly became a perennial favorite on Nerd's Eye View, and so I've updated it every year, with new lists of books in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and a fresh round last year in 2022.

And now, I'm now excited to share my latest Summer Reading list of top books for financial advisors in 2023, from a new framework in how to think about our “Geniuses” in where we do our best work at work, to how to restructure the way we work for a remote (or at least partially-remote) workplace, how to re-set the growth foundation of the advisory business to be more competitive in an increasingly crowded landscape, a masterpiece on best practices in how to scale a (multi-)professional services firm (remote or in-person!), learning to give better feedback to team members, or migrating our own role in the business to be less advisor and more instructor, manager, or executive leader.

So as the summer season and summer vacations get underway, I hope that you find this suggested summer reading list of books for financial planners to be helpful… and please do share your own suggestions in the comments at the end of the article about the best books you've read over the past year as well!

Weekend Reading For Financial Planners (June 10-11)

June 9, 2023 02:00 pm 0 Comments CATEGORY: Weekend Reading

Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the House has passed legislation that would expand the definition of who qualifies as an accredited investor eligible to invest in certain private investments to include those who pass an exam designed by the SEC, and those with certain licenses or educational backgrounds, including financial advisors. And given the opaque nature of many private investments, financial advisors could play an important role in helping their clients assess whether these opportunities make sense for their portfolio and broader financial plan.

Also in industry news this week:

A study has found that during the past several years, investors are not just bypassing mutual funds for ETFs, but are increasingly investing in individual equities, shaped by a new wave of younger market participants
Congressional leaders are planning to introduce legislation that would fix a variety of drafting errors in “SECURE Act 2.0”, including sections regarding RMDs and IRA contribution limits

From there, we have several articles on cash flow and wealth:

Why being ‘rich’ and being ‘wealthy’ are not necessarily the same thing and how advisors can help clients identify the differences
How a client might have hundreds, and not just 4, “money scripts” that drive their financial decision-making
How exploring a client’s social-emotional relationship with money can help explain their spending decisions and other financial choices

We also have a number of articles on retirement:

Why many retirees are choosing “semi-retirements”, continuing to work part-time well after traditional retirement age
Why the biggest challenge retirees face could be replacing the social networks they built during their careers
3 techniques advisors can use to help reluctant retirees spend more

We wrap up with 3 final articles, all about the path to career success:

Why it is important to recognize that even the most successful individuals typically have to make sacrifices both along the way and in their current positions
How to identify and mitigate the “microstresses” that build up throughout the work week
How cultivating a sense of moxie can help individuals address “impostor syndrome”

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

Form U4: Common Missteps And Best Practices For RIAs

June 7, 2023 07:02 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Regulation & Compliance

All Investment Adviser Representatives (IAR) of registered investment advisory firms are required to file Form U4, a regulatory filing containing public disclosures of certain information about financial professionals. And while IARs are responsible for keeping their own Form U4 up-to-date, Form U4 – unlike other regulatory forms like Form ADV that require an annual amendment – doesn’t need to be amended unless there is a change warranting an update, which can often lead to an IAR’s Form U4 being neglected over years or even decades, potentially becoming out-of-date if the IAR forgets to amend the form for any changes to their situation. Which means that, in order to fulfill their regulatory responsibilities for maintaining the accuracy of their Form U4, IARs (particularly those who haven’t looked at their Form U4 in a while) can benefit from a deeper understanding of Form U4 in general and from refreshing themselves on what’s in their own Form U4.

In this guest post, Chris Stanley, investment management attorney and Founding Principal of Beach Street Legal LLC, breaks down the key details of what’s included on Form U4, common missteps that may trip up IARs in their filings, and best practices for preparing and filing Form U4 with state and Federal regulators.

One of the first challenges in preparing Form U4 is understanding which sections to complete: Because Form U4 is used by both IARs and registered representatives of broker-dealers, some sections of the form aren’t applicable for those registering solely as IARs. And when completing the sections of Form U4 that they are responsible for, IARs may come across language that is ambiguous or even conflicts with the language used on different regulatory forms. For instance, while some IARs who are independent contractors with their firms may be considered “employees” for the purposes of the firm’s Form ADV, they would still need to classify themselves as “independent contractors” when completing their Form U4.

Additionally, IARs and their employers may need to familiarize themselves with the requirements of the state(s) in which they’re registered to properly complete Form U4. For example, some states require registrants to be fingerprinted before approving their registration, and some have different rules for dually-registered IARs, which may only allow IARs to be registered with RIAs and broker-dealers if they are affiliated with each other – or may not allow dual registration in any case. And because IARs generally cannot solicit new business or render investment advisory services until their registration has been approved by their applicable states, any hangups in the registration process caused by incorrectly filling out Form U4 can leave the IAR unable to do their job for several weeks or more.

Ultimately, even though many IARs rely on their compliance departments to handle their Form U4, IARs are still responsible for reviewing and ensuring the accuracy of their Form U4 and for making sure that any required updates are reflected on the form (either by amending the form themselves or by notifying the proper compliance personnel at their firm). Additionally, it’s worth remembering that, save for certain personal information like home addresses and birthdates, much of the information on Form U4 is made public on the SEC’s website. Which makes it all the more important for IARs to ensure Form U4 is up to date and that the way they are presenting themselves to current and potential clients in public – including content on their website, advertisements, and social media post – aligns with their (also publicly available) regulatory disclosures!

#FA Success Ep 336: Showing Prospects An (Asset) Map To Generate More Advice Engagement, With H. Adam Holt

June 6, 2023 07:07 am 0 Comments CATEGORY: Financial Advisor Success Podcast

Welcome back to the 336th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast!

My guest on today's podcast is Adam Holt. Adam is a principal with RubinGoldman and Associates, and the Founder and CEO of Asset-Map, a financial planning tool that helps financial advisors create a visual representation of their clients’ financial situation, reaching over 1.25 million users.

What's unique about Adam, though, is how he combined his early career training in geographic information systems to make land use decisions using maps, with his work as a financial advisor sitting across from ultra-high-net-worth clients, and began to create “mind maps” to visually capture for himself all the details of their very complex financial situations… which became so popular with his clients, and then other financial advisors in his firm, that he eventually turned it into an advisor software company – Asset-Map –that helps financial advisors create their own visual representations of their clients’ financial situation.

In this episode, we talk in-depth about how, while working with ultra-high-net-worth clients, Adam began to draw his own financial maps to help him better visualize his clients’ complex financial situations on one page (and then realized that by showing his financial planning maps to his clients, they became better engaged in the financial planning process, why Adam structures his Asset Maps to concentrate on 5 components – important people in the household, income sources, assets, liabilities, and insurance policies – to illustrate a holistic picture of the clients’ financial journey, and how Adam designed his Asset-Maps to be used as tear sheets (instead of serving as a “one-page financial plan”) because the goal is not to conduct a complex analysis, but instead simply to provide clients with a quick and easy-to-understand visualization of the topic to facilitate a complex conversation, instead.

We also talk about how Adam almost didn’t land his first job with Equitable because he didn’t do well on his insurance exams and only lucked into the job because a newly-hired manager happened to need one more insurance producer to meet his own numbers, how, in the early stages of his career, Adam wanted to work with business owners and found that by asking people he knew for help to connect him with business owners (instead of asking for a referral), he ended up gaining referrals more genuinely and consistently, and how, after getting his initial version of Asset-Map approved by the compliance department of his firm, Adam tripled his production each year for 3 years… which caught the attention of other advisors in the firm, eventually leading to Asset-Map being incorporated into the financial planning process for 1,600 of the firm’s clients and eventually become the standalone software company it is today.

And be certain to listen to the end, where Adam shares how he didn’t initially think Asset-Map would grow beyond his practice but found that having mentors and hiring the right people for the right roles helped support his journey and get him where he is today, why Adam encourages advisors looking to launch their own fintech companies to pursue their ideas as long as it is innovative and they feel can solve a real problem, but still have a realistic understanding of the amount of sacrifices, lifestyle changes, and support that is needed to really build a software business, and why Adam believes the key to success for younger, newer advisors is being committed to continually learning from the industry and to acquire their CFP marks… not for the credentials themselves, but so they can gain knowledge to become credible educators to attract and serve their future clients.

So, whether you’re interested in learning about how Adam leveraged his education in geographic information systems to create his Asset Map, why Adam believes that surrounding oneself with the right people can help increase accomplishments, or why Adam feels, in financial planning, direction is better than precision on a 30-year journey, then we hope you enjoy this episode of the Financial Advisor Success podcast, with H. Adam Holt.