Create Your 2022 Blueprint for Success – Part 2

Many busy advisors explore using LinkedIn, but soon become overwhelmed and confused then end up ignoring it. After all, isn’t it mainly a job seeker and recruitment tool, and why should they spend their limited time there? LinkedIn expert Jennifer Darling says no businessperson can afford to ignore LinkedIn because it can be a powerful marketing machine for your business – if you set up your profile in the right way. In this interview she explains the three areas to concentrate on to simply set up your LinkedIn profile the right way, for lead generation, sales and even client retention.

Why would a financial advisor want to write a book? Cynthia Zigmund says there can be a range of reasons – from a brief introduction to a deeper dive into your business philosophy and showcasing how you use your expertise to positively impact your clients’ lives. If done well, it can make a huge difference in connecting with your ideal clients. But many aspiring authors don’t know what to expect or have misconceptions about what creating a useful book entails. Many don’t understand that creating a well-published book is much more than simply printing a manuscript. She discusses what makes a successful book and how her team at Second City Publishing Services provides direction and resources to ensure a great end result.

Mitch Anthony has been creating innovative discovery approaches for financial advisors to use for more than two decades. He helps advisors understand the necessity for listening and hearing people, then provides ideas and solutions for doing just that. He’s certainly experienced to do this: he’s helped his local community significantly by establishing their first suicide/crisis hotline and saw first-hand the necessity for listening to people during their most deep and personal times of need – much like financial advisors do when listening to their client’s plans, regrets, and aspirations. In this episode he discusses important mindsets and skills necessary when beginning conversations with people; patience, empathy and an approach that will set you apart from many advisors and have people opening up to you, seeing you as the professional they need, and beginning healthy relationships with you. He says that advisors need to understand the importance of getting to the heart before going for a product. Every one of us has a story; the sooner someone sees you as genuinely interested in hearing theirs, the sooner they’ll trust you, tell you more, and permit you to become valuable in their life.   

LaRae Quy was an FBI undercover and counterintelligence agent for 20 years and spokesperson for the Agency’s San Francisco Division for another 4 years. Today, she marries neuroscience and social psychology to help people develop mental toughness so they can effectively manage their emotions, thoughts, and behavior in ways to set themselves up for success. In this episode she discusses key processes for developing a strong mind, which all start with facing reality and self-awareness. She says, while life can be hard, and pain is inevitable, growth is optional. She is on a mission to equip people with tools to choose growth and enjoy the results.

Brian McArthur, creator of the Medicare Execution Process™, understands why Medicare is the most overlooked part of the financial planning process: it’s convoluted, constantly changing and creates minimal revenue. Advisors know Medicare planning is a need for all their clients who reach age 64, yet industry education has been lacking in equipping advisors to guide their clients to effective Medicare results. Clients’ confusion is only multiplied when they are bombarded by the Medicare insurance industry’s fear-based marketing material. Brian provides a way for advisors to have clients look to them for the advice and guidance they most need at this perplexing time.

Playing football in the NFL felt like SaVion Harris’ destiny – his brother and many close friends played, and he always thought he would be next. But a college season filled with multiple significant injuries brought an end to that dream and forced him to pivot. Knowing he had given his all to his lifelong dream, the transition did not leave him filled with regret; but instead feeling grateful. The game he loved had prepared him well for his next step in life – becoming a financial advisor. Hear how SaVion shifted his “big-dream” approach, teamwork skills, and honest self-analysis to the financial services industry, overcoming setbacks to successfully build a business based on serving his clients like family.

So many financial professionals end up trading their health for their career and don’t really take notice of their declining health until they get some shocking wakeup call. But, exercise physiologist and Certified Wellness Coach Stevyn Guinnip says it doesn’t have to be this way. We can avoid or even recover from “Advisor-Bod.” In fact, she says, advisors’ financial know-how is actually a super-power they can apply to reclaiming their health for good, staying on track forever, and retiring “wellthy.”  She says the journey to physical health is almost identical to the journey to financial wealth, from starting early, to having a plan, to making small but consistent deposits. In this interview she talks about some of the most important (and obvious) health markers many advisors are overlooking and provides many no-cost, easy-to-implement activities to boost your wellness account balance, which is just as vital to a quality retirement as your financial account balance. 

Brooklyn Brock, CFP®, CEPA®, ChFC®, CKA®, says financial advisors are their own worst clients. Advisors rarely do financial planning or retirement planning for themselves like they do for their clients, and most advisors’ business succession plans fail because they never get started. Brock, a 3^rd generation financial advisor herself, is founder of Ellevate Advisors, LLC, the only advisory firm in the world that specializes in financial planning and exit coaching for advisors. She discusses why advisors need to hire a professional to advise them, despite often believing they can best take care of things for themselves. She also highlights issues people simply can’t work through effectively without outside/distanced input.  Hear her specific advice for advisors about how to avoid distractions and shape your day-to-day activities to ensure you successfully achieve your end vision for both your professional and personal life.