April 5, 2021 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
What do successful financial advisors do that unsuccessful or even adequate advisors don’t, won’t, or can’t do? I could list several things here, but it all starts with setting clearly defined goals—and then achieving them. But, while the vast majority of advisors understand the importance of setting goals—actually writing them down—and having a plan to achieve them, fewer manage to achieve them. As a result, they never raise the bar for themselves, gradually slipping into mediocracy.
The failure to achieve goals can be attributed to a number of things—i.e., the goals are unrealistic or too vague; not having or strictly following a plan; not being accountable for your goals, to name just a few. While these are identifiable reasons for not achieving goals, they are more of an expected outcome for advisors who lack the vital qualities to carry them to success. You can have the most incredible work ethic, but if you’re not setting and achieving your goals, it’s like a rudderless motorboat spinning around in a lake.
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7 Qualities Financial Advisors Must Have to Achieve Their Goals
April 5, 2021 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
What do successful financial advisors do that unsuccessful or even adequate advisors don’t, won’t, or can’t do? I could list several things here, but it all starts with setting clearly defined goals—and then achieving them. But, while the vast majority of advisors understand the importance of setting goals—actually writing them down—and having a plan to achieve them, fewer manage to achieve them. As a result, they never raise the bar for themselves, gradually slipping into mediocracy.
The failure to achieve goals can be attributed to a number of things—i.e., the goals are unrealistic or too vague; not having or strictly following a plan; not being accountable for your goals, to name just a few. While these are identifiable reasons for not achieving goals, they are more of an expected outcome for advisors who lack the vital qualities to carry them to success. You can have the most incredible work ethic, but if you’re not setting and achieving your goals, it’s like a rudderless motorboat spinning around in a lake.
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5 Steps to Improve Your Sales Skills
April 9, 2018 / by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself / 0 comments
Advisors often dislike being known as ‘sales people’ – they see the act of selling as somehow disreputable. In fact, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Selling is essentially the art of persuasion. If you are to get people to open accounts with you, you need to convince them it’s the right thing to do. You need to become proficient at selling if you want to grow your business.
Top advisors are inevitably skilled salespeople. Make it your aim to become great at selling by taking the following steps.
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If You Try to Be Perfect, You Will Always Fall Short
October 2, 2017 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
Don’t constantly strive for perfection. You will never achieve it. It will simply waste your energy and make you miserable. Instead, focus on what is achievable.
Sharpen your best skills and qualities so you can showcase them to clients and prospects. Practice them over and over until you get things right every time. Don’t dwell on what you’re not so good at.
Here are some ways to forget perfection and strive for excellence.
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How to Convince Someone to Trust You
February 19, 2015 / by Don Connelly / Managing the Relationship / 0 comments
Whether you’re a new or well-established advisor you may find it difficult to establish trust. It’s incredibly difficult to develop trust quickly. How can people know whether you’re honest, sincere and trustworthy when they first meet you? And people today tend to suffer from an inherent lack of trust. Their belief systems about investing have been shattered by a seemingly endless stream of bad news.
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5 Reasons You Should Get a Mentor
November 20, 2014 / by Don Connelly / Best Practices / 0 comments
When you first start out as an Advisor you’re given a set of products to sell, but unfortunately they don’t come with an instruction manual. You need to learn how to market and sell them yourself. This is where a mentor can step in, by helping you prospect, sell and manage your practice.
Mentors can also help you stay on track and improve, no matter how long you’ve been in business. Making sure you can still execute the fundamentals is key to becoming the Advisor you always wanted to be.
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Your Selling Skills Are a Reflection of Your Self-confidence
July 24, 2014 / by Don Connelly / Marketing Yourself, Prospecting / 0 comments
Would you open an account with a Financial Advisor who was nervous and unsure of himself? Neither will your prospects.
Your livelihood is dependent upon your ability to sell yourself.
How well you sell yourself is in direct proportion to your self-confidence. The more success you have, the more you believe in your abilities and the higher you go. Top tier Advisors are supremely confident in their ability to influence and persuade. They have overcome the fear of failure.
It takes self-confidence to move another person to take action.
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