Stretch Yourself in the New Year – Goal Setting for the Motivated Financial Advisor

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The year is coming to a close so it’s time for my annual year-end wrap up and goal setting session for next year. It’s been a great year full of accomplishments, travel, excitement, new products, and achievement, not only for me but for my clients too. In this post I would like to give you a useful exercise and example that financial advisors can use to plan the next year.

Is success an accident?

Of course not! I have discovered that successful financial advisors and advisor teams PLAN for their success. It’s no accident. It’s really a mindset that focuses on the possibilities. It’s a mindset that says “if there were no possibility of failure, then these are the actions I will take.”

Let’s look back on what you’ve accomplished this year and then we’ll determine what you want to reach for in the next year. It’s useful to see how far you’ve come so that you can measure HOW much effort you’ll need to double your results in the coming year.

Answer these questions for the past year:

• What was your income?

• New investible assets?

• New ideal clients?

• Where did your top five clients come from in the past year?

• Who are your FAVORITE clients and where did they come from?

• What NEW marketing ideas did you implement?

• Did you improve your health and stamina?

• Did you improve your relationship with your family?

• Did you take more time off?

What patterns are you noticing by answering these questions? How does this apply to the coming year?

Now, let’s look at the coming year and what you want to accomplish. If your revenue increase this past year was 20%, let’s STRETCH YOU in the coming year by creating a goal of a 25% increase. Are you with me?? Think about what’s possible if you challenge your thinking and your actions? Think about what’s possible if you work productively and intelligently.

What I want for you is a wonderful lifestyle where you are working with only ideal clients who pay you for your time and expertise. What I want for you is to build a way of life not a practice.

What should you focus on next year?

I suggest financial advisors focus on bringing in more assets under management from ideal clients. You know, the kind of clients who don’t nickel and dime you. The ones who say “My finances are in your hands. I accept your advice.”

Concentrate on a goal, in this case, focus on the assets! When you focus on the assets, everything else falls into place. It takes about six months to see real results with assets since initially you won’t see a big increase in cash flow until the following quarter. Focus on an asset number!

3 Goal Creation Tips:

1. Have short term goals

These are the goals that are really behaviors and they help you focus on the small details that will get you to the big goal. Behaviors like picking up the phone, tackling the most difficult actions first, and being brave and asking for the business.

2. Have long term goals

When you think about the future, are you always going to be doing what you’re doing now? Or will your role change over time? Creating successful goals means getting out of the box and thinking like a business owner. I encourage you to think BIG! Double your revenue over the next five years! I know you can do it if you set your mind to it!

3. Be proactive rather than reactive

Anticipate the needs of your clients. Know their unique situations well enough that you can earn your keep in the coming year by adopting a consultative approach. A well prepared advisor is far more successful than one who does not know his clients.

I will leave you with two important thoughts for this year (courtesy of Steve Werner of Live to Win Coaching). These two questions will help you set up the behaviors you need to make the coming year one that you look back on with pride.

TWO IMPORTANT THOUGHTS

1.What do you need to START doing in your life / business next year that you have not done in the past?

2. What do you need to STOP doing in your life/business that you have been guilty of in the past?

Make the coming year the best year yet!

To learn more about making this year your best year, request a consultation.