Ten Pivotal Questions
THE TEN PIVOTAL QUESTIONS
1.) What do you do?
2.) How do you deliver on that (what you promised to clients)?
3.) What kind of clients do you serve best?
4.) What keeps you in this business?
5.) Exactly how do you charge?
6.) What exactly do your clients get for what they pay you?
7.) Why should I work with you (over other advisors)?
8.) What’s the process if I become a client?
9.) What makes you think I would make a good client?
10.) How can I be certain I can trust you (your firm)?
1.) What do you do?
We help people make smart choices about their money so you can accomplish your goals for the reasons that are important to you.
I initially founded my Registered Investment Advisory, and Wealth Advocacy firm to help foundations, endowments, and pension plans get their “financial house in order,” and keep it there, so that they can create the greatest probability to accomplish their goals and make smart choices about their money along the way. Soon, the investment committee members, and the trustees invited me to assist them personally. With the inherent issues a non-profit presents, I decided to re-focus my attention on you, the “middle class millionaire”.
2.) How do you deliver on that (what you promised to clients)?
Our job is to orchestrate the written holistic plan we help every client create & hold we everyone involved accountable, including you, to ensure the greatest probability the plan unfolds well, to fulfill your goals. It all starts at our first meeting with a simple conversation about what’s important.
Having this experience in our first meeting, which takes an hour, is a very good way to determine if we might be a good fit in working together. And… that’s the primary issue I ponder with anyone interested in our firm. Will this be a good fit or not?
3.) What kind of clients do you serve best?
We have a small community of corporate executives who mainly live within a ten-mile radius of our office (because we want to be convenient to them). We have a specific ideal client profile, which I’d be happy to send you, but it’s fair to say we work with financial delegators are passionate about their goals. The clients we serve best have well-over $660k.
4.) What keeps you in this business?
I’ve been helping affluent clients make smart choices about their money and accomplish their most important goals for a long time. What motivates me is empowering clients to make smart choices with their money, fulfill their aspirations and seeing you experience genuine happiness and security in their lives. Peace of mind.
This gives me a sense that I’m making a difference helping coach people who believe money is important but that there are things in life more important than money. This allows me to fulfill my purpose which is what I was put on earth to do. And THOSE are MY values.
5.) Exactly how do you charge?
We charge a single simple fee, which is a percentage for the assets under our management according to a schedule outlined in our Investment Advisory Agreement. Our minimum fee is $6,000 per year, so the clients we serve the best have combined financial assets that characterize you as affluent.
6.) What exactly do your clients get for what they pay you?
We provide services, which involves an annual checklist of well-over 100 checkpoints we cycle through for each client. We have a team of the best-in-class subject matter experts across every area of finance. In essence…
- For every client our job is to ensure there is a fully-updated written and compressive lifetime financial plan at all times.
- We prevent the financial malpractice and cure the financial cancers that cost you over 7% per year.
- We provide oversight designed to protect you and your assets.
- We ensure that your tax strategies optimize your situation.
- We ensure that there is a plan for what happens with your assets when you’re gone,
- We ensure that there is a clear plan in place to manage your assets if you are unable or unwilling to manage things yourself.
- We review all your insurance, look for gaps and make recommendations about how much you need, or if you need it at all.
7.) Why should I work with you (over other advisors)?
It depends (let’s not get ahead of ourselves). First of all, we are not mere advisors. We coach, so you win. But at this stage, it’s not about whether we do business together or not. Our process is focused on establishing whether there will be a good fit in working together. If we both agree that there is… then great. If not… our process is designed to give you clarity about your situation. So if there’s not a fit, we will have added-that value for you.
8.) What’s the process if I become a client?
- The first step is to listen to our CD and do your homework
- Then, schedule an appointment, at no charge, to get your Financial CAT Scan™ done.
- If it’s a good fit & we move forward, we then spend two weeks getting the first draft of your financial plan completed.
- We schedule a meeting to immediately begin implementing the elements of the plan that our team of best-in-class subject matter experts feels need the most attention.
- We ask every client to attend 4 awesome and engaging events every 12 months.
- In addition, there may be one on one meetings for a comprehensive safety reviews, advanced tax hedging strategies, advanced wealth preservation strategies, and other necessary services.
9.) What makes you think I would be a good client?
Our profile includes nice people of means who make good decisions. People who delegate, who are willing to be coached, who have a higher purpose than just money, who are frustrated with investment losses, excessive taxes and fees, and perhaps unsure of the future. People who seek comfort, clarity, and confidence. Peace of mind.
10.) How can I be certain I can trust you (your firm)?
Trust is an interesting thing… it is both earned & given. It’s a requirement of any meaningful business relationship… any relationship.
We complete your Financial CAT Scan™. The reality is that the highest purpose of that meeting is to determine if it will be a good fit for us to work together or not. If after an hour, it seems as though things should move forward, it will be obvious to both of us. If things are not going well, it will be obvious to both of us. My process for that meeting is designed to determine if we can establish a relationship where we trust each other, and to decide if it is a good idea to begin moving forward together.
