No matter how much or how little money you have flowing through your life, when you direct that flow with soulful purpose, you feel wealthy… When you let your money move to things you care about, your life lights up. That’s really what money is for. Lynne Twist The Soul of Money […]
Client Relationships
Your Client is an Adult – Treat Them Like One
At the end of a thorough financial planning engagement, an advisor hands their client a beautiful spiral-bound packet of information and says, “Here is what you need to do to accomplish your goals!” Three months later, they are exasperated with a client who hasn’t implemented any of their recommendations. If this sounds familiar, you’re not […]
Contagious Inspiration
“What Do You Do?” Have you ever met someone so excited about what they do that it’s contagious? They’re animated, leaning in, and inspiring you with their passion. If you haven’t met that person, you’ve probably listened to their Ted talk or heard them at a conference as a keynote speaker. Now, turn that thought […]
2020: A Values Homecoming
For all its faults, 2020 has prompted a homecoming to our values. As we deepen our understanding of impact investments, heart-fully face systemic racism, and wrestle with the wealth divide, we are also bearing witness to our clients going through the same process. During this year, advisors and clients alike are asking themselves this critical […]
Self-Efficacy – The Key to Financial Well-Being
In his long career at Stanford University, world renowned psychologist Albert Bandura made a tremendous contribution to our understanding of human behavior and motivation. One of his main areas of focus was the concept of self-efficacy—an individual’s belief in their own ability to succeed in accomplishing a specific goal or task. In fact, Bandura’s research […]
What is the Intention of Your Discovery Process?
One of the most challenging tasks for a financial planner is designing an effective discovery process that truly engages their clients’ hearts and minds, while also providing valuable insights about each person’s frame of reference. At Money Quotient, we believe the place to start is by recognizing that each client operates with two minds: the […]
Comfort with Emotion
More than a decade ago, I had the opportunity to work on a fascinating research project that was co-sponsored by the FPA and partially funded by the CFP Board. The study examined a large number of communication variables and surveyed both planners and clients. The goal was to identify specific elements of communication that […]
Know Thy Client
In our work with financial planners, we frequently make the point that a successful practice is built on knowing and understanding their clients. We also emphasize that this objective can only be met through adopting the intention of getting in touch with each client’s unique frame of reference. The reason this is so important is that […]
Reframe Your Goal Setting Process for Client Success & Satisfaction in 2019
Goals are targets—something to aim for. They give life direction and a sense of purpose. In addition, a structured goal setting process provides a framework for anticipating, planning, and preparing for the future. Despite these important benefits, many individuals are reluctant to set goals. Often this is because goal setting has been ineffective for them […]
Money Messages & Money Mentors
Your clients’ attitudes and beliefs about money have their roots in value-laden messages they have picked up along life’s journey. These money messages were not only clothed in the words of others, but in the behaviors they observed as well. To discover the roots of current financial feelings and behaviors, it is important for them […]