Financial Advisor Career: Keys to Success

Discipline Building a business as a Financial Advisor may be one of the hardest challenges you'll ever have to face. Because you're the boss, you're responsible for how you manage your time. But you're also responsible for your income, which depends completely on how successful you are in developing and maintaining your book of clients. You need to be organized and focused. You have to set goals and develop strategies to meet them. And you have to be determined to do whatever it takes to succeed. When you establish discipline at the beginning of your new career, it becomes second nature. You won't have to spend as much time organizing and planning your strategy. Once you determine what works for you, you make it part of your routine. The result is efficiency. Back to top Perseverance All beginning Financial Advisors come to the same realization -- building a business as a Financial Advisor is a lot harder than they expected. They face: • Long hours, including nights and weekends • Repeated rejection while cold-calling prospects • A temporary decrease in income while building their books of clients Can you handle 60-hour weeks? Can you handle hearing "I'm not interested" many times throughout the day? Can you handle a smaller paycheck until you build up your client base? Can you stay focused even if your results are slow in coming? The first 18 months as a Financial Advisor are the hardest, especially when your results don't meet your expectations. You spend those months learning the business, establishing new work habits and determining which business strategy works for you. Once you've done that, your success begins to build. Your commissions increase, and you'll probably find that you can accomplish more in less time. And while prospecting will still be an important part of your business, much of the time you used to spend cold-calling prospects will shift to building relationships with your clients. Back to top Accountability In this career, accountability has two distinct meanings: •  You're the CEO and CFO of your own business. You're responsible for your time and your income. If you don't put in the time or effort, you won't receive the financial reward. • You're a Financial Advisor. You're responsible for the advice you give and the recommendations you make. It's up to you to fully disclose -- and help your clients evaluate -- the advantages and disadvantages of each action in each situation. As a business owner, you have the freedom and flexibility to run your business the way you want. And your income is your reward. As a Financial Advisor, you're the expert who can help people develop strategies to reach their financial goals, such as retirement or a college education. And when those strategies are successful, when your clients are happy with what they've accomplished, your reward is their thanks, their continued business and, hopefully, their referrals. Back to top Attitude It's all in your attitude -- that's what people respond to. And clients respond to those who take time to ask questions and learn about their situations. Those who really do seem to care, who aren't just going through the motions. So you have to be able to stay enthusiastic through the long hours, the endless number of conversations, the frustrating rejections and the unpredictable income. The right attitude can help you succeed. It can attract the clientele that you're looking for and increase your client referrals. Simply put, your attitude can directly affect the hours you spend prospecting, the quality of your conversations, your income and your job satisfaction. Back to top