Real quick. You’re interested in hiring a financial advisor—one who’s held to a fiduciary standard by law, not some silly suitability one. You know you need help, but you just can’t make it happen because there’s resistance: No time, no real interest in digging into it, or you don’t know enough to explain to a loved one why you need it. “We’re fine, aren’t we?” She might ask.

OK, here are summaries of two calls I had yesterday with prospective clients that will help you gain some perspective.

The first one was with a prospective client whom was referred to me by a client I’ve been working with for twenty years. The two of them have been friends for 60 years. That was a great conversation lasting 45-minutes and could have easily gone longer as it was a comfortable exchange of questions and answers and life stories. The best conversations are like that and can only happen because there’s a level of trust already built-in.

In contrast, the other call was from a prospective client who wasn’t familiar with us. This call was more—bang, bang, bang—questions and answers about his eight-figure portfolio. The trust hasn’t been established yet. It can happen, though. It just will take more than three-quarters of an hour. But that’s my job.

Action Line: Finding an investment approach that’s right for you and your family is not intuitive. It takes work to find someone you feel you can trust. Then it’s a leap of faith of sorts. Keep putting in the work, and you just might realize, “This is the Way.”

Originally posted on October 22, 2020.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy.