brilliant at the basics Archives - Page 10 of 11

Becoming a Financial Advisor at 40? Yes, You Can!

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This is for all you career-switchers, and those considering a career change move into financial advisory services:

Don’t listen to the nay-sayers and the haters: You absolutely can become a successful financial advisor as a second career. In fact, as a career-switcher, you’ll have many advantages over your younger peers in your training classes.

Here are some of the many pros of becoming a financial advisor mid-career – and a few of the obstacles you may encounter.

Advice for New Financial Advisors – 8 Things Veteran Advisors Wish They Knew When They First Started Out

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“Experience is the best teacher. But only a fool learns by no other.”

This is a slight misquotation of Benjamin Franklin. But the idea is sound: We all can and should learn from the mistakes and experiences of those who came before us.

And advisors are certainly making mistakes! Somewhere between 70 and 90 percent of financial advisor trainees are out of the business by their fourth year. And too many of those who survive aren’t thriving.

So we asked some veteran financial advisors what they wished they knew when they first started out in this business, or what they would do differently if they could start over. There was a lot of variation in the details, but most of them had these themes in common.

5 Rules for Effective Communication with Prospects and Clients

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

In order to establish trust and credibility – and get your messages across to prospects and clients – you need to be an effective communicator. If you, like many advisors, find this a challenge, you don’t need to feel defeated. With hard work and practice you can become a proficient and natural communicator. Here are some key rules to bear in mind.

A Blueprint for Aspiring Million Dollar Producers to Follow

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A while ago I received an email from Guy Steele who is a friend and an advisor in Hawaii. He said:

“Give me an idea of how a million dollar producer works. How many calls a day do they make? How many hours a day do they work? Mentally what’s their mindset each day when they go to the office? Do you have a blueprint for aspiring million dollar producers to follow?”

Listen to Don’s answer or read the transcript below.

Three Challenges Financial Advisors Face in Their Daily Work

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

A recent post on this blog outlined three challenges Advisors face when acquiring clients. This week I’ll outline three more chief challenges you are probably facing in your daily work, along with some tips on how to overcome them.

#1. Providing clients with reassurance when the markets take a downturn

Keeping clients on track when markets take a dive is a situation many advisors find tricky. But It’s essential to know how to keep clients invested for the long term.

How Do I Get People to Call Me Back?

/ by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments

I heard this great question from Jesse in Grand Rapids. Jesse said he was having difficulty getting people to return his calls, after supposedly thinking about his proposal. He meets with prospects and makes his presentation. They say “Let me think it over, I’ll give you a call” and they never do. After some time has passed, he calls them and leaves messages but they never return his calls. Why is that?

Listen to Don’s answer to this question or read the transcript.

What Happens If You’re Not Brilliant at The Basics?

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

Only a tiny percentage of financial advisors get to the top and there’s no mystery about how they got there. It’s because they did what unsuccessful advisors didn’t: they became brilliant at the basics.

Unless you nail the basics there’s no way you can become an elite advisor. If you don’t set goals, work hard, organize your time efficiently and practice your soft skills to perfection you won’t have the underlying tools to take your business to the next level.

There are no shortcuts to getting the basics right. It will take time, years in fact. But if you don’t put in the effort, you won’t reap the rewards. If you don’t get brilliant at the basics your career will fizzle out long before you achieve success. Here’s a look at some of the basics and what happens when you don’t get them right.

Nobody’s Holding You Back but You

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices, Storytelling, analogies and power phrases / 0 comments

Listen to today’s short audio post on brilliance and get inspired for success!

This is a true story of a young boy being sent home from school with a note from his teacher. The boy happened to be deaf. The note said – “This boy is too stupid to learn.”

Goal Setting: Don’t Look Where You Don’t Want to Go

/ by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments

Let’s talk about goal setting. I’d like to tell you about a piece I read, called “Keep your eyes on the prize”. Watch the video or read the transcript below to learn the story about a man who was afraid of heights.

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