You have worked hard to become a qualified financial professional.
You are making a difference in the lives of your clients, and your business is steady.
This is a big, well-deserved success and there is much to celebrate.
Yet at this stage you might also pause, reflect, and ask yourself, “What’s next?”
Maybe you are happy and satisfied with where you are and see no reason to change. And that’s great. Read no further!
But maybe you would like to make more money? You have a purpose in mind like paying off your mortgage early, providing for your child’s education, or achieving financial independence.
Maybe, as many advisers discover, you want to take the impact of your work to a whole new level. You enjoy making a difference in people’s lives and can see much greater potential.
You are ready to pay attention to the inner voice that nudges you to grow and ask yourself, “What can I do next?”
The 12 Client-centred mind shifts
A mind shift always happens through an insight, revelation, or light bulb moment (or a series of them).
As a result, you see and experience your world in a new, more enlightened way. It brings with it a greater sense of clarity and flow to your life.
One of the most important aspects of a mind shift is that new behaviours are in-built. In other words, a new and improved way of operating naturally follows, without effort. And the change lasts.
The 12 client-centred mind shifts are the mind shifts I have been helping advisers with for over fifteen years.
These are the shifts I went through myself before I was able to coach people to do the same.
In this article I am sharing the first three. The rest will follow in three further upcoming posts.
Mind shift 1 – Your personal transformation
Marshall Goldsmith wrote a book called ‘What got you here won’t get you there: How successful people become even more successful.’
I love that title because it seems so true to me.
Whatever got you to your current level of success – your belief system, understanding of the world, habits, behaviours – will hinder your progress to your next level.
A thriving client-centred practice is a natural extension of your own continuing personal transformation. As you transform, your business transforms with you.
Your client relationships stay fresh and inspiring because you are growing and able to share valuable new perspectives and wisdom with your clients.
Mind shift 2 – Transactional to transformational
Transactional financial advisers primarily focus on the money. Their client conversations are mainly centred around products, markets, and fees.
This leaves a disconnect from the bigger “Why?”.
As a client-centred adviser, you understand that money is a means to an end, not the end in itself. You know that without clarity about those ends it is impossible to make smart decisions about life and the part that finances play.
So, the shift is in knowing that whilst setting up your client’s financial arrangements has value, the greatest value is in the conversations you have with your clients.
Mind shift 3 – Creator of value
Imagine there are three levels of value creation:
Level 1 – you provide financial products.
Level 2 – you solve financial problems.
Levels 3 – you facilitate transformational change.
The new role for financial professionals is being a catalyst in increasing your client’s well-being, quality of life, and peace of mind.
Of course, you can continue to create value at levels 1 and 2 as well, but these are not your primary focus.
What is the pay off?
Keep delivering at level 3 and you’ll have a client for life (and more quality introductions). You are also future-proofing your business by focusing on what truly matters to your clients.
Your client sees you as integral to their quality of life rather than someone who arranges their financial products.
Are you evolving?
It is so easy to settle and get stuck on a plateau. So, take a few moments to reflect on these mind shifts and notice where you are compared to where you would like to be.
What is your next step?
PS. If the question, ‘What’s next for me?’ is relevant to you right now you can read more about the effortless path to success by clicking here.
