As an advisor, we get tasked with showing someone why they should pay us to advise them. If clients can do it all themselves or hire a computer to invest, what is the true value of having a financial advisor? Is it really worth it? Many have heard me say or read from previous writings that I believe not everyone needs a financial advisor, but everyone needs a financial plan. You don't need an advisor if you have the time, knowledge, and willingness to allocate time and resources and keep up with the economic and financial conditions.
To become advisors, we educate ourselves. There are numerous hours of schooling, readings, and trial and error. Practice makes masters, as we make more financial decisions in one year than one single person will make in a lifetime. After a while, some knowledge becomes innate.
We know time in the market is more important than timing the market. We also know certain money scripts and financial behaviors make it difficult for investors to make objective decisions. Clients' risk profiles change depending on market conditions, and we know we cannot control what the market does, but we can control how we react to it.
What do you need? When do you need it? How much do you need? We help solve these questions for our clients throughout their lifetime through their financial plans, not ours. This is why working with an advisor who uses personal financial planning and investment allocation is essential. For the trust and confidence our clients place in us, we provide a combination of the above factors with the knowledge of you: Knowing your goals and objectives. We learn what the investment is for – education, retirement, retirement home, a child's wedding. We gain the knowledge of what your goal and objectives are –open the business you have always wanted to, change careers to something that appeals to your heart, retire at 60 or maybe 65, move to Arizona or Florida when you retire, and whether you want to leave a legacy or spend it all.
For any other profession, we expect to pay for the services we are provided. If we have an attorney prepare a contract, we know they will likely bill by the hour. Your family practitioner may order tests to rule out certain conditions at your annual check-up. These professionals have a duty or an oath to do what is best for you. We trust them and trust their knowledge.
Advisors work similarly. We genuinely care about the financial and personal well-being of our clients. Because we know you and your family, we are objective and subjective. We can make decisions in your best interest the same way you can; the only difference is we can step back and choose to take what is personal out of the equation or, when the case pops up, to add what is personal back in.
Because I commit to education, I appreciate my clients who care enough about their personal situation to do their research or who may use a robo platform to dip their feet in to check the water's temperature. But, just because I type in a few symptoms in WebMD does not mean I should diagnose myself. Most client situations are unique, whether they are getting started with investing or have been doing it for a long time.
Next time you are wondering about the value of a financial advisor, ask yourself: How much is your time worth? Would you prefer to spend countless hours researching mutual funds or equities instead of riding a bike in the spring? Will you truly feel confident to place your family's legacy in the hands of a robo platform? Or would you instead work with an advisor who you are confident in, trust, understands you, and always has your best interest at heart?
