Meetings are the single most important component of your entire business.

Whether it’s a client or a prospective client, it’s the meetings where things actually happen. Meetings are where prospects become clients (or don’t).

Dan Smaida, a “Meeting Execution Specialist”, has consulted with over 10,000 advisors on how to use behavioral science and a consultative process to create more persuasive and engaging meetings.

We discuss:

• The most common mistake Dan sees in a discovery meeting and the ideal way to start
• How to listen better in online meetings
• The 3 questions every prospective client wants answered and how to answer them for max effect
• An effective way to control someone’s attention during a meeting when trying to make a point
• The “Digital Yellow Pad” approach that improves connection and follow-through

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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Ever wondered why your clients and prospective clients have failed to take action on your advice despite the fact you’ve shown them exactly how to accomplish their financial goals?

This episode is all about developing the skills and techniques to deliver advice that clients actually follow through on.

Financial coaching “works to narrow the gap between what people know and what they do; it illuminates through thoughtful questioning what gets in the way of meeting life goals.”

Saundra Davis has developed a program where she teaches advisors from around the world the key skills and techniques of financial coaching to improve communication, connection, and follow-through.

We discuss:

• How financial coaching differs from and complements financial planning
• The financial coaching skills that enhance the discovery process with clients
• Handling the conversation with a client who isn’t following through on the plan
• The most effective ways to identify the barriers preventing action
• A better way to ask questions

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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With the future of our profession continuing to shift towards the human side of advice and the CFP Board’s announcement earlier this year that they added “The Psychology of Financial Planning” as a principal knowledge topic, it’s becoming crucial for advisors to start familiarizing themselves with this aspect of the business.

At the same time, it’s too much to think that advisors and planners are all going to become experts in financial therapy, financial coaching, life planning, etc. on top of all the work that already comes with the job.

A couple weeks ago, the FPA of San Francisco hosted a panel discussion on the application of psychology in financial planning.

Brendan moderated a panel that included Amy Mullen, Meghaan Lurtz, and Lexi Olian.

They covered:

• An overview of the main pillars of psychology in financial planning
• The differences between each pillar
• A few practical ideas from each pillar that advisors can apply to their practice and conversations

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

 

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier           

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Change and transition are a constant and pivotal part of our clients’ lives. And it’s these moments that can shape both the future of their life and their money.

However, successfully guiding clients through the changes and transitions of life requires more than sound technical knowledge and advice. 

Susan Bradley coaches advisors around the world on how to navigate change and joined the show to help advisors understand the dynamics of change, the psychology of transitions, and the skill set advisors need to successfully guide clients through the constant changes and transitions in life.

We discuss:

• Why technical knowledge is insufficient to manage change and transition
• Why decision-making is the most crucial element of navigating transitions
• The “Decision-Free Zone”: Process to help prioritize tasks without getting overwhelmed
• The importance of being a thinking partner during times of transition to help clients develop clarity
• An example of “sound” technical advice that morphed into “bad” advice without deep listening skills

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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Carl Richards has a mantra for financial advisors that he says changes everything once you can fully internalize it:

“Financial advisors are guides in a changing landscape. Not the defenders of an outdated map.”

It’s no longer enough for advisors to build a detailed financial plan or construct a portfolio.

It’s about building trust and connection with clients, unearthing their values and emotions around money, and changing their behavior for the better. It’s about the human side of advice.

We discuss:

• The two main things he’s learned over the years that he would go back and tell himself when he was an advisor
• Why understanding a client’s purpose is at the foundation of the work advisors do for their client’s
• The difference between purpose, values, and goals and what it looks like in the planning process
• How to effectively help clients develop and prioritize goals
• Using a “Statement of Financial Purpose” in the planning process

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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When financial advisors work with couples, it’s more than just navigating their finances. It means navigating an emotional and complex relationship dynamic.

It’s not just a matter of aligning the numbers. It’s a matter of aligning two completely different belief systems. When you combine two different upbringings and two different sets of belief systems around money, naturally tension arises.

Ed Coambs combines a background in financial therapy and financial planning to offer advisors some critical insights on navigating couple dynamics.

We discuss:

• Why most money arguments aren’t actually about money
• Why our upbringing is the main source of money conflict in relationships
• Implicit Money Memories: The lessons that were “caught” not “taught”
• The most effective way to engage an uninterested spouse
• How to navigate the conversation between a dreamer spouse and a rational spouse
• And more!

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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When was the last time you thought about:

• What your office or Zoom background is “signaling” to prospective clients?
• What minor detail or design on your website could drastically improve conversions?
• How to package your services in a way that feels less overwhelming and provides clarity around exactly what the client receives?
• What things could be causing your clients to perceive your services as expensive rather than a bargain?

Rory Sutherland, author of Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Business, Brands, and Life, consults with companies around the world to help them enhance their branding and marketing by better understanding the invisible influences that shape our behavior.

We discuss:

• Why you can’t always trust what people say they want
• The real reason why people go see doctors (and financial advisors)
• The psychological challenges involved when saving for retirement (and what to do about it)
• How to use context to influence decision-making and behavior
• The power of “signaling” – the most underrated component in building trust
• And way more!

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Resources:

• “Alchemy: The Dark Art and Curious Science of Creating Magic in Business, Brands, and Life” by Rory Sutherland

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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Imagine guiding your clients through a process of discovering what a meaningful, fulfilled life would look like and then providing them with the financial strategies to fuel that vision.

You help your clients clarify and fund their best life. That is life planning.

But, what does life planning actually look like in practice? When do I have these heartfelt conversations? What do these conversations sound like? 

Fortunately, Scott Frank is the founder of Stone Steps Financial, has been through the Life Planning trainings, and coaches advisors around the world on the Life Planning process.

We discuss:

• Specific techniques to get clients to open up and tell you the things that are most important to them (and the techniques to avoid!)
• The #1 goal he has for every prospect meeting that creates connection, buy-in, and follow-through
• How to create a lens through which to make financial decisions based on life rather than returns
• A real example of how this process improved a client’s life in a way that simply providing technical knowledge never could

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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Imagine going into a meeting with a complete picture of your client’s money mindset.

You know exactly how they like to communicate about money, that they have a tendency to “keep up with the Joneses”, and that they are likely to panic when the market plummets.

Armed with that information, you would know exactly which behaviors to focus on changing to improve their financial outcomes. But, that kind of information is not readily apparent and difficult to uncover.

Which is why behavioral assessments are on the rise around the industry. They have the ability to deliver that information faster and more reliably. Sarah Fallaw founded DataPoints to equip advisors with these assessments and show them how to use them in their practice.

We discuss:

• The four tools that Sarah recommends advisors use to help assess their client’s money mindset
• How do these tools help to first bring awareness to behavioral issues and why that’s so important to changing behavior
• How to communicate to client the benefits of better understanding their own beliefs and behaviors
• The problem with most risk tolerance questionnaires
• And way more!

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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After five years of frustratingly inconsistent prospecting meetings, Dan Solin decided there had to be a better way.

So, he spent a year researching and learning everything he could about the neuroscience and psychology of what it took to seamlessly convert a prospect into a client.

From that, he built an evidence-based process that flipped everything he knew on its head. And, in his first year prospecting with this new approach, he brought in $100 million under management (no, that’s not a typo).

In this episode, Dan explains what he learned from his research and what he changed to see such massive growth.

We discuss:

• The science behind why it’s so powerful to get someone to talk about themselves
• The power of questions to build trust and credibility in a way nothing else can compete with
• The reasons why you shouldn’t take notes during meetings
• How to answer “What do you do?” and why most advisors get it way wrong
• The question to ask at the end of every prospect meeting instead of closing
• And way more game-changing insights!

To sign up for Brendan’s monthly newsletter focused on the human side of advice → Click Here

Connect with Brendan Frazier: 

• RFG Advisory
• LinkedIn: Brendan Frazier
• X:@jbrendanfrazier

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