How Your Financial Advisor Can Help With More Than Just Your Money

Wondering how your financial can help with your finances? Well, it starts with asking this question: Do you feel supported by your financial advisor? And I don’t just mean financially! 💰 A great advisor is someone who takes into consideration your…

Career dynamics
Family dynamics
Emotional dynamics

You are so much more than just a number on a piece of paper, and ultimately, you deserve an advisor who understands that.

Join me for this week’s podcast episode as I share my thoughts on client-advisor relationships and what you should be looking out for.

Show Notes:

Hey there, welcome back!

Are you feeling like your relationship with your financial advisor is transactional? Is it only about your investments and the return? Are you getting more than an annual statement? And do you forget what your financial advisor looks like?

I really hope there is more to it than this, and I really hope you remember what your financial advisor looks like. There need to be conversations and those conversations are more than just a rate of return. Your financial advisor really can help with more than just money. Now, money is a big part of our life. And you peel back the onion, and it is there. Finances is kind of everywhere in our day-to-day life, and it can be hidden.

But, this is more about having a relationship. This is about having a safe person to talk about your life and possible decisions that come up. Fact-based decision basis – making those informed decisions. Someone that says, “You know what? Let’s look at the math. Let’s look at the consequences in your own financial life. And then once we can quantify and qualify with all these facts, let’s look at family dynamics, the emotional dynamics, the emotional health, everything else that is important.”

I have a real-life example. I’ve got a couple that I’m going to share with you. This is about a case of a couple, they’re in their fifties. Kids are out of the house. The husband is in a job that is absolutely soul-sucking, and it brings a lot of stress. And they do have another 10 to 15 years of working, meaning they want to be productive and proactive and have a great career. They want that challenge and purpose.

Money is great in his current job. The pension and benefits are absolutely phenomenal. Now, he does have some health issues, not life-threatening, but it does play a day-to-day factor. His wife is self-employed and is thriving. Her business is growing each year. We have more meetings more often, and it is not about the investments and performance.

I mean, don’t get me wrong. That’s a very quick small discussion, but the focus is around happiness. Career alternatives for the husband, can he afford to just quit? How do we plan for exiting this job and finding something else? Can you afford to just retire and not work? How do we support the emotional health of this person and family?

I know their children, and this is part of that big discussion. So there’s a piece that’s yes, let’s start planning and crunching numbers to make this. This is a huge change in life, new career planning for no income for a year or two during this rebuild. What are the rippling effects? Now, these conversations – that is beyond investment choices.

You know, I can think of another couple right now. I just went and visited them. They are the most amazing people. I know. So close to my heart, good friend. And it was about making a change in life so that they can be around community and family and people that love them. And they changed provinces, took a pay, cut, changed careers, and it is the best decision they’ve ever made. I feel honoured to have at least been a part of that discussion and helping them get there because when I just went and visited them, I get it. I’m standing there in the mountains and the streams and the paths and the hikes and the water. And I’m like, and meeting their close family and friends. And I’m like, I understand this. This is more than just about money.

So this couple. Back to this couple in their fifties, and he’s trying to change careers. We’re talking about in our meetings, we’re doing check-ins, and there’s a referral to, for example, a head hunter that I know that can help them start looking for a different job.

It’s about connecting them in emails to people I know in a different field that they’re interested in and introducing them. It’s about, when the question comes about family and stress, do you think, do you know the name of a good counsellor? Should we go see this counsellor? Hey, you know what? I do know somebody. Let me send you an email and connect you.
So introductions to other people in different careers, introductions to a family counsellor to help with stress and anxiety. This is priceless. This is more than your investment return. This is life coaching and directing connections when it’s outside of my ability. I make sure that I pass them on and do a referral. But this is about getting that ball rolling and getting the momentum, and pointing them in the right direction.

Okay, so another example that is more than just money. This one is just recent too. It may have involved a glass of gin and tonic every meeting. And so this is, you know, a little bit outside of the convention, but this is about an amazing woman that is a client. She’s a professional, a younger professional looking to change careers and kick ass. Like, she just is, wow! Look out city of Regina, because she’s going to be a leader in our city.

So when it’s, “Hey, you know, I want to reach out and have meetings outside of my investment performance. Yes. We have those scheduled, but would you mind meeting once a month? And can we talk about leadership, and can you share some of your experiences and point me in the right direction?” That’s a hell yes!

We meet, we share books, we share connections. I’m learning just as much from her. So this is about developing friendships and developing connections and trying to help people move in the right direction. Of course, we talk about finances. But more importantly, we inspire each other and help lift each other, and I like to think that I’m helping her move up and to do great things and grow.

So, those are just a few examples out of many that a relationship with a financial advisor is more than just the investment return and performance. It is more than just the number, the dollar sign, the money on a piece of paper when you know, you’re filling out all the forms, and you’re looking at net worth. It is more than that. This is about financial coaching that encompasses everything. It is meant to build confidence, bring awareness to things in your life. It is the partnership and it’s where I can bring more rational decisions and ease anxiety, and also bring extra support in other areas of life.

So I know that – oh, trust me, I know – I am far from perfect. I know that there’s no magic wand to fix everything, or I don’t have the fairy dust to sprinkle a hundred percent of the time. But we need to recognize that this relationship is more than just transactional. It takes heart, it takes care, it takes love, and it takes having to know that person, that couple, that family. And knowing all layers of their life.

So my wish for you today is that you find that relationship and recognize that you deserve more than an annual statement that comes in the mail once a year. You deserve more than leaving a message at, I’m going to pick on the five major financial institutions, those big banks that they’re in. I’m not going to name it. We all know they’re out there.

You deserve more than just leaving a message and hoping for a call back two weeks later. You are a human, not a number, and you deserve someone that has your back. Remember that your financial advisor can help you with more than just your money.

So that’s it. Send me a comment at [email protected]. I promise I read all my own emails, I returned my own emails, and so you’ll have an actual human being behind that cares about you. Until next week, take care.