6 strengths of great advisers that clients may perceive as weaknesses

In this post I will be sharing my thoughts on the strengths that great advisers demonstrate, which some clients may deem as weaknesses. Most mature money management and financial strategies are counterintuitive and against conventional wisdom. Modern media and access to ‘free’ information is maybe our biggest threat and our client’s most destructive influence.

The sole purpose for my professional existence is to ensure my clients don’t do anything which is financially self-destructive. The world is full of financial landmines and we are our own worst enemies. It has been said that we (the humans) are the biggest wealth destroyers of all. So let’s delve into the skills that may be seen as weaknesses.

1: Not reacting to current news.

You don’t need me to tell you that we are now bombarded with ‘news’, which I call Negative Events World Service. 24-hours news and sensationalist journalism is the enemy to financial success – never forget this. The media moves from one crisis to the next. We are never crisis-less. I know there is a lot happening in the world; however companies will still be making things which people buy. Our clients mistakenly think we should be continually reacting to news and making decisions based on it. We know the truth (which is eternal) about managing money and clients, whereas the media just knows news. Clients will mistake our lack of concern with a lack of competency. Over time, say 5+ years, they will start to see our wisdom and appreciate it.

2: Making very little changes with their portfolios.

Money is like a bar of soap – the more you touch it the less you have. Timing markets is a fool’s errand and predicting market swings is the preserve of the crazies. Misinformed clients emotionally may feel joy in an adviser continually tweaking their portfolio and what they’re invested in. The elite adviser knows the only sure indicators to long-term success (performance) are discipline, patience and costs. Frequently picking outperformers in advance is impossible. Our lack of ‘action’ may be perceived as a weakness but actually, it is one of our strengths.

3: Being ecstatic during periods of negative volatility.

If you’re a long-term investor, which means you have monthly automatic savings set up into the markets, you should have a smile from ear to ear during temporary (they are all temporary) market downturns. It could actually be argued this is the whole reason why you’ll be exposed to superior returns. It’s because you were disciplined during periods of low asset prices. The only item clients actively pay over the odds for is investment assets. They love sales in every other area of their lives yet they hate investment sales. The stock market offers, January sales, Easter sales, Black Friday, the lot. A tiny minority understand the impact of these. A client will seldom say ‘I’m loving the temporary market declines, I’m getting a lot more bang for my buck’.

4: Spending as little time as possible discussing investment performance.

We know lifetime financial success will be determined by behaviour and not making big financial mistakes – there are too many of those to list in this article. I aim to talk about investments for approximately 5% of my client planning meetings, as this is how much impact a ‘portfolio’ has on lifetime financial success. How much you save is far more important. What you want to achieve and when has more impact. Why would you want to spend any longer discussing the past and also something that is fundamentally out of our control? Some clients will think that ‘investment performance’ is the main driver, so if you spend little time on this they may see it as a weakness. We are here to deliver uncomfortable truths and not comfortable lies. Performance chasing is like a patient going to see a Doctor for more drugs. The Doctor knows that the patient’s lifestyle is likely to have a far more profound effect on his or her health than the drugs that are prescribed. Rather than prescribe yet more drugs, the answer is to exercise more, eat better, quit excess drinking and stop smoking – these are the root causes of the issues.

5: Always focusing on the future and spending little time worrying about now and the past.

We forget how skilled we are at thinking about the future (most people can’t process their future self). As I say to most of my clients, the 62-year-old sat in front of me is not my client. It’s the 92-year-old you’ll become in 30 years. I’m also not really bothered where they currently are, when we first meet. This is a snap shot of time; future planning is what I’m concerned about. They may perceive our lack of interest in their current position as concerning, when really it’s a mature skill.

6: Not having an immediate answer when asked a question.

Clients ask many questions, which is great as it shows they’re engaged. Some we can answer there and then, hopefully without boring them too much with the mess that is financial services! However some questions are too tough to answer on the fly, as they’re hyper complex. This can be expanded to all areas of life – you should be wary of someone who can answer any question without missing a beat. They’re either a genius or a fool, usually the latter. Intelligent people can often be heard saying ‘I don’t know, I’ll need to look into that’ and I like to hear this as it shows humility. Those who least need help seek it. Humble people often seek help, which is encouraging. Some clients however may think this exhibits a lack of knowledge, when in actual fact it’s to the contrary.

Financial Advising is a noble profession – it’s hyper complex, full of emotion and continually evolving. We have to manage our behaviour and emotions. I will never perpetuate bad financial behaviour. This may result in uncomfortable discussions, maybe even clients leaving me. However, being professionally authentic is crucially important in reaching the top of this mighty profession. I still have a lot to learn and I certainly don’t have all the answers, however I am ruthlessly aware of the biases which accelerate bad behaviour – we all need to train our bias bells and be ready to address them once they go off.

Source: Maven Advisor.