The Trusted Financial Advisor

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	Bill Bachrach: Finding Your Keys

	Why do you find your keys in the last place you look? As the comedians like to point out, it's because you stop looking after you find them, of course! Perhaps the same could be said for systems and processes for building and running a successful financial services business. What do you do after you find a client service model that works? What do you do after you find a client acquisition process that works? What do you do after you find a system for building and leading your team that works? If you are still looking, it's probably because you have not yet found an integrated system that covers all the bases for building a highly successful financial services business. What are the bases? 1. A predictable way to be paid to deliver a superior client experience that is not dependent on events out of your control like the market or the economy or the underlying products. 2. A predictable way to consistently acquire new Ideal Clients. 3. A process to build and lead your team to help you produce results in both of these key areas crucial to being a highly successful financial advisor. What is your predictable way to be paid to deliver a superior client experience that is not dependent on events out of your control like the market or the economy or the underlying products? How do you consistently acquire new Ideal Clients? How do you build and lead your team to help you produce results in both of these key areas for being a highly successful financial advisor? While there are proven systems to produce these results, the bottom line is that there is no silver bullet. As the famous saying goes, "the only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary." Once you identify the process or the system or the method for serving clients, acquiring clients, and building a team, the real work begins to successfully implement these systems and methods. This may explain why so few advisors are producing consistent results in these crucial areas. "Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up." - Thomas Edison Successful advisors accept that there is no silver bullet and are willing to do the work their goals require to achieve them. Maybe you already have a great system or perhaps you still need to find one. The bottom line is that the sooner you find your keys the sooner you can drive your car. Looking for the keys doesn't produce any desired results. It's the driving that gets you somewhere you want to be. To learn how our turn-key business model can help you have your Ideal Life in 4 years or less by building an Ideal Client Community, by referral only, give us a call at (800) 347-3707 to schedule a complimentary consultation. Or, click here to schedule your complimentary Success Road Map interview with one of our coaches. If you missed our December 1st Webinar on how to make 2010 your best year ever, or any of our 2009 business-building webinars, click here to access the archives. It's free. *Keep moving forward,* Bill Bachrach, CSP, CPAE (Speaker Hall of Fame) Chairman & CEO; Bachrach & Associates, Inc. Author: Values-Based Financial Planning & High Trust Leadership ________________________________________ Contact Anne Bachrach at the Financial Services Speakers Network at anne@fsspeakers.net to schedule Bill Bachrach to speak at your next meeting or conference.

	Anne Bachrach: Take Action Now and Achieve Your Goals Sooner

	Wouldn't it be great if you could have everything you want magically appear with the snap of a finger? Like the old adage says, "You can't get something for nothing." The only secret to achieving your goals comes down to one main thing -- taking action. There isn't some magic code that is only given to a select few at birth - achieving your goals is an inherent ability in all of us. You can achieve absolutely every goal you imagine, you only need to get moving. One of the benefits of taking action is that your movement is the very thing that bridges the gap between imagining a dream and manifesting it. Action = Results! That's not to say that the road to goal achievement is free of challenges, and it's rarely a breeze, but if you ask anyone if their hard work was worth it in the end, they would say yes. The benefits of taking action far outweigh living a life that is using only a fraction of your potential and living with regret. You can go from living a life you feel controlled in, to living a life you feel in control of. When you realize the power you hold and the benefits of taking action, your life will never be the same. At this very moment, you have 3 choices in life: 1. Give up on ever achieving your goals. 2. At some later time you might get serious about taking action and pursue your goals. 3. Achieve your goals now and realize your dreams! 1. Sometimes it's easier not to work hard to achieve your goals because you just aren't willing to do what it takes - and that's okay if that's really your choice. Fear of failure and disappointment keep us trapped in a mediocre life that is so much less than we deserve. You were born with the potential to succeed and anyone that has told you differently is just plain wrong. If you knew you were born for success and that achieving your goals is what you were made to do, would it make it easier to justify the pursuit of them? The truth is your success is inevitable. Failure is just something we learned from our environment - and is not part of our inherent nature. So now you know you were born for greatness. You only get one chance in life - make it a fantastic one! 2. If you're in this category, that's good - but you might as well go for #3. The gap between #1 and #2 is the greatest, so if you're here, you've done half the work. Do this quick exercise: If you could have anything in the world right now, what would it be? Close your eyes and imagine having what you want... feel it, be in it, and breathe it in. Now tell me how delaying that good feeling could possibly benefit you. You deserve everything you are imagining. Quit thinking and talking about doing it and just do it! 3. Congratulations! If you are in this category you already feel the fire and know you want more. So let's get to work! Remove the Words Can't, Try, and Maybe From Your Vocabulary There is no such thing as try. Either you do or don't. Commit to achieving your goals or don't - it really is that simple. You were born for greatness and trying to achieve your goals is not the same as committing to achieve them. Fear is Not an Excuse Fear is never an excuse for not taking action. You are exactly where you are right now because you have been too fearful to step outside your comfort zone. To get to where you want to be - you have to feel the fear and do it anyway. After you take action, you will wonder what you were so afraid of in the first place. The fear is only temporary, while the benefits of taking action last forever. Taking Action Creates Support The minute you start taking action to achieve your goals, people will rush to support you - but they have to know you are serious and mean business. The support of friends and associates, and even unlikely opportunities, will all come to your rescue as soon as you show everyone you are committed to achieving your goals. Quit Talking the Talk - and Start Walking the Walk Talking about taking action and actually taking action is not the same thing. You have to get busy if you want to get to where you want to be. The sooner you get walking, the sooner you'll get there. If you want to achieve your goals within the timeframe you desire, quit wasting time and procrastinating. Start today by just doing what you know you need to do. Life is not a predetermined set of circumstances - it is what you make of it. When you commit to achieving your goals, you realize how much power you really have. To see the benefits of taking action - you have to start. Have faith that were programmed for success and you are already equipped with everything you need to get to where you want to be. Keep your focus on your goals and know that the benefits of taking action are so much bigger than anything you have to do to get there. Have a great holiday season and a fantastic 2010! Anne M. Bachrach is the author of the book, Excuses Don't Count; Results Rule!. She has 23 years of experience training and coaching. Anne helps financial professionals keep and get more clients while maintaining balance in their life. Through her proven systems, she inspires Advisors to stay focused and take action on the highest payoff activities that lead to their ultimate professional and personal success. Take advantage of the many complimentary resources on her website (www.AccountabilityCoach.com) and subscribe to her blog (!Anne's Blog!). ________________________________________________________________________ If you're looking for a cost-effective way to help you stay focused and gain a competitive advantage to achieving your goals in the current economy, click here to learn more about joining Anne Bachrach's 90-Day Goal Achievement Group Coaching Program.

	Mark Little: A Category of One; Making Your Mark

	There is no debating that those advisors who offer the most comprehensive financial services to their clients command the highest fees and are the most indispensible to their clients. However, through my blog (http://blog.trustedadvisortoolkit.com) and the forums on The Trusted Advisor Toolkit™ site I still often hear questions from advisors about how to best "market" their services. Advisors will ask me if they should create expensive "branding" of their services by way of expensive websites, brochures or other multimedia presentations created for potential clients about their services and them personally. My responses have always been simple and consistent; the best marketing is being the real deal. Offering fully comprehensive financial services to your existing Ideal Clients is the most effective way to "brand" and "market" what you do. Let's explore what fully comprehensive financial services means and why it represents the best and only "marketing" you'll ever need. When defining comprehensive financial services the temptation, as a financial advisor, is to "go technical" and describe it in technical terms. In other words, to establish that a comprehensive plan has a detailed written plan, along with recommendations, focused on each clients' objectives. It should concentrate on money management, tax planning, estate planning, insurance planning and overall financial planning (including financial projections). Even as I write this definition I find it insufficient. Far too limited. The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. defines it as; the process of meeting life goals through the proper management of finances achieved through a six step process: 1. Establishing and defining the client-planner relationship. 2. Gathering client data, including goals. 3. Analyzing and evaluating your financial status. 4. Developing and presenting financial planning recommendations and/or alternatives. 5. Implementing the financial planning recommendations. 6. Monitoring the financial planning recommendations. This definition is fine, but still seems lacking. I would describe fully comprehensive financial services in much broader terms. If you ask Ideal Clients of a comprehensive financial advisor you'll hear things like; We're so well taken care of financially the better question is 'What doesn't our advisor do for us?' There are no areas of finance that are off limits for discussion, advice and guidance. We get proactive recommendations in areas of finance that are so broad; I would not have considered them financial discussions before. The toughest, bottom-line issues have been addressed by our advisor. If an issue, financial or non-financial, stands between us and our goals, it is fair game for discussion. What is my biggest concern? My greatest concern is what will happen to us if our advisor dies. A comprehensive financial advisor adds value by having a comprehensive process and access to expertise in all areas of finance. Nothing falls through the cracks due to having Subject Matter Experts in all areas of finance. Also, a thorough, checklist-driven, comprehensive financial services process ensures that issues are raised which, if applicable, will require much thought, planning and advice from your planning team of experts. All of this leads to the second issue of why being a fully comprehensive financial advisor is the best and only "marketing" you'll ever need. You are extraordinarily referable. Your clients are so well taken care of that they would never allow anyone they know, love, or care about to go anywhere else. Your clients will proactively try to get you to talk to folks they know, because they trust that if they don't meet the profile of the type of client you serve best, you will help them by pointing them in the right direction. Because your clients have such a high-trust relationship with you, they will recognize the value you bring to their lives without you having to say a word or create any "branding." Your clients will do your marketing for you because you will in fact be in a "category of one" in their minds. ___________________________________________________________ __________ To learn more about how to delegate the coordination of your client deliverables to your Deliverables Team, you can sign up for "The Kate Wilson Case-Study" at no charge at http://trustedadvisortoolkit.com/. Mark McKenna Little is a speaker, author and Trusted Advisor who began implementing Values-Based Financial Planning® in 1999.

	Tom Voccola: The Second Key to Building a Growing and Sustainable Business

	There are, in my experience, at least five keys to building a growing and sustainable business. Last month I outlined them to be: 1. Know exactly what you want. 2. Develop and inspire a conscious team that appreciates what you want. 3. Install a 90 day project cycle to keep everyone focused and growing. 4. Encourage the dynamics of intention, creativity, innovation, and integrity. 5. Let go of wanting to know exactly how you will get there in advance. As a Financial Advisor, you may only have a few people on staff, maybe 2 to 5, so you might think CEOing may not apply to you. Actually, the fewer people you have the more important creating an extraordinary organization becomes. So keep at it, because no matter what, if you ever hope to have a life you love, the one full of personal freedom and sustainable reoccurring revenue, you're going to have to address the second key to building a growing and sustainable business. 2. Develop and inspire a conscious team that appreciates what you want. The fastest way to develop and inspire a team is to engage them in what they truly desire. People truly desire to feel: Part of something meaningful ______ Challenged with respect ______ Appreciated for their contribution ______ Responsible for the outcome ______ Yet what 76% of employees generally report is they feel disengaged. They feel that their job is unimportant and they feel overwhelmed, unappreciated and fearful. Now there are two sides to every situation, of course, two perceptions, if you will. There is your perception as the owner and there is your staff's perception as employees. The truth is that the more requiring you seem to be (do what I want or else) the more resistant people will tend to be. Conversely, the more inspiring you seem to be (do this because it makes a difference) the more engaged people will tend to be. In short, it takes two to tango. Which means there is give and take that needs to occur, and a balance that needs to be attained between the leader and the led. It's the difference between feeling fearful and hopeful. You may have heard me say this before, but I fully believe that HOPE is THE leadership strategy that empowers growth and development. The leader that gets his people to focus on what they want for themselves and their families, versus what they fear, uses substantially less energy in the process of achievement. Fear grinds us down, uses more energy that it generates and is not a sustainable strategy. Hope picks us up, moves us forward and generates more energy than it uses. You might begin your work in this area by rating your perception of your progress to date in providing an environment that encourages and rewards positive feelings. Use a scale of 1-10, with 1 being not at all and 10 being fully. Think about the following as you fill in the chart above: To what degree have I created a Vision of the future that is not only compelling to our customers but inclusive of my staff? Do my people feel part of something meaningful and important, or do they feel like they are simply trading hours and a never ending stream of tasks for a paycheck? Do your people feel you highly regard them and their ability to get things done well when you give them a project, or do they feel nothing they do will ever measure up to your standards? Do your people feel intrinsically as well as extrinsically good about working at your company, or are they constantly reminded about where they fall short? Do your people routinely take on projects and see them through to the finish? Do they pick up the ball if one drops? Or is "That's not my job!" the standard? You will be well on your way to developing an inspiring and conscious team that appreciates what you want when your staff's ratings approach 8 - 9 -10. Next month: The Third Key to Building a Growing and Sustainable Company Entrepreneur, speaker, author and CEO Guide, Tom Voccola is the CEO of CEO2, a Chief Executive Consulting Firm specializing in the rapid transformation of corporate and organizational cultures. Tom is the co-founder and past Chairman of the Los Angeles area CEO Round Table for the American Electronics Association, and the author of The Accidental CEO – A Leader’s Journey from Ego to Purpose. His life's work is to inspire a new generation of leaders who transcend ego and its fear based agenda. His work gives executives immediate and authentic access to new levels of power, influence and freedom within their organizations.

	Rick Barrera: The Easiest Business in the World

	How's this for a fantasy? Each day you arrive early at your office only to find that you already have several voicemails and emails from potential clients who having been referred to you, would like to transfer all of their assets to you, and would like to meet with you to see how soon that would be possible. Wouldn't that be the Easiest Business in the World to run? "It would be awesome," you say. "My life would be grand! No more cold calls! No more seminars! I would be rich!" But how did your business get that way. The only way your business could get to that place without being a complete fantasy would be to design a practice that consistently delivered an EXTRAORDINARY CLIENT EXPERIENCE. It's time for a reality check. How extraordinary would your client experience have to be for you to get daily or weekly unsolicited referrals from your clients? What service levels would you have to provide? What systems would you have to have in place to ensure that you are delivering that level of service to every client in every interaction? What level of employee would you have to recruit? How well would you have to train them? How organized and disciplined would your meeting preparation have to be? What quality of advice would you have to deliver? How would they have to feel about you at the end of each meeting? How well would they have to sleep at night knowing that you had their financial back? How much trust would they have to have in you to refer their closest friends and colleagues to you, suggesting that on their say alone, those people transfer control of their entire financial life to you? Before you read the next paragraph go back and answer each of the questions above. REALLY! Do it RIGHT NOW! You'll get nothing from reading this article unless you get out a sheet of paper and really do this exercise. You've already taken time from your practice to read this article so you may as well take a little bit more to get some real value from it. Now, compare your answers to those questions to the REALITY of your current business. I think you'll agree that there is a considerable gap between the ideal practice you outlined above and what you and your team are delivering now. I know you are trying hard and everyone is doing their best. That's not the point. Your competitors are doing their best as well. But without a deliberate business design to create an EXTRAORDINARY CLIENT EXPERIENCE it will never happen. That's what Overdelivering is all about... designing your business on purpose to ensure that at each critical client TouchPoint, you, your systems and processes, AND your team are all seamlessly aligned to create a specific emotion in every client interaction. Only when you can consistently generate your desired emotion, on cue, for every client, will you have built the referral generation machine you fantasized about at the beginning of this article. If you've written out detailed answers to the questions above, your next step is to have your team do the same. Then, you'll need to have regular meetings to work ON your business until you have systematically closed the gaps between your ideal business model and your current business model. To get there quickly, you'll need to set aside several hours each week to design your future business model and implement the actions required to close the gaps. You'll know you have succeeded when you start to consistently receive unsolicited referrals to clients who fit your Ideal Client Profile. Of course it's a lot of work, but you knew that already. My title didn't fool you a bit. The Easiest Business in the World isn't a fantasy. It is the reality that is well within your grasp, if you design your business to consistently Overdeliver EXTRAORDINARY CLIENT EXPERIENCES. _______________________________________________________________________ Rick Barrera is a nationally acclaimed marketing consultant and author, known throughout the Fortune 500 for his extraordinary speaking ability and his unique approach to brand building. His consulting focuses on helping companies design unique client experiences that drive high levels of referrals. Rick's research on the strategies used by breakthrough brands like Apple, American Girl, Starbucks, Chico's, Lexus, Tivo, and Google will change your thinking about marketing forever. His impressive client list includes Abbott Labs, AutoZone, Bayer, Caterpillar, IBM, Intel, Merrill Lynch and Verizon. His newest book, Overpromise and Overdeliver: How to Design and Deliver Extraordinary Customer Experiences is both a Wall Street Journal and Business Week best seller.

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The Trusted Financial Advisor (tm)
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