Twitter Linkedin
Twitter Linkedin

The Client-centred Blog

Welcome to The Client Centred Blog; Free content that shares a fresh approach to thriving as a financial professional in a rapidly changing environment.

This blog has its foundation in a new understanding of the human mind that gives you the ultimate platform for creating better results, thriving under any circumstances and living the life you want.     

I invite you to explore the materials, reflect upon how it relates to you and your business and enjoy the benefits.

Ten spiritual books every financial planner should read
29 October 2025
At first glance, the words ‘spiritual’ and ‘financial planning’ can seem like oil and water — two worlds that don’t naturally mix.  Money, after all, is concrete, measurable, and rational. Spirituality, on the other hand, is often seen as abstract, mysterious, and personal.
READ MORE >
Does your future look better than your present?
22 October 2025
I have been working with a practice owning financial planner and her business is doing well. So far, so good. However, she is what I would call ‘driven’. And there are many positives to this – such as being focused, persistent, and the desire to create something meaningful.
READ MORE >
Why clients say yes to financial planning (when they weren’t initially looking for it)
15 October 2025
A successful financial planner I work with once told me that no one ever comes to him asking for financial planning. Instead, there’s usually a trigger event — something that gets them thinking they need a financial product, investment advice, or help solving a money problem.
READ MORE >
The missing skill in financial planning: becoming a true influencer
8 October 2025
The missing skill in financial planning: becoming a true influencer In financial planning and advice, there are many excellent technicians—people who understand the products, the tax system, the rules, the numbers, and the strategies inside out. But there are far fewer highly effective influencers. So, what’s the difference?
READ MORE >
The smart way to deal with unresponsive clients
1 October 2025
How do you encourage a client to really open up? Every financial adviser experiences a client or potential client not responding to them. A typical scenario is that you have had a conversation(s), and the ball is now in the client’s court, but you hear nothing as time ticks by....
READ MORE >
Scale questions: A proven way to deepen client conversations
22 September 2025
How do you encourage a client to really open up? The most powerful financial planning conversations don’t come from rattling off a laundry list of questions. They happen when a client feels safe enough to share what really matters and begins thinking more deeply about their life. Why does this...
READ MORE >
Why the best financial planners don’t start with the numbers – and what to do instead
17 September 2025
When a someone sits down with you for the very first time what are they expecting? Every situation will be different, but most people will be expecting a left-brained conversation driven by numbers and financial products.
READ MORE >
Why slowing down attracts better clients
10 September 2025
Do you ever catch yourself trying to prove your value to a client or potential client? If so, you’re not alone because most of us have done this. It’s easy to slip into “impress mode” and this is especially in the sales process. But here’s the thing: it doesn’t work....
READ MORE >
Why financial planners should ditch the need to impress
3 September 2025
Do you ever catch yourself trying to prove your value to a client or potential client? If so, you’re not alone because most of us have done this. It’s easy to slip into “impress mode” and this is especially in the sales process. But here’s the thing: it doesn’t work....
READ MORE >
The hidden mistake in the ‘Find Your Purpose’ advice
27 August 2025
For more than twenty years, I was hooked on self-help and personal development. I devoured books, courses, and ideas in pursuit of realising greater potential in myself and others. One of the themes often explored is that big question: What is my purpose?
READ MORE >
The hidden shift that makes financial planning sell itself
20 August 2025
One of the most liberating realisations I’ve had is this: You can never want something for your client more than they want it for themselves. That’s why the most powerful version of financial planning doesn’t happen when you sell it – it happens when clients sell it to themselves.
READ MORE >
Is money holding you back from growing a thriving financial planning practice?
11 August 2025
A recent survey asked financial advisers about their biggest challenge. The number one answer? Getting clients. It’s easy to assume the solution is more leads. But that’s not always the real issue. Often, what’s really holding us back is something deeper – our relationship with money.
READ MORE >
Where financial planning clients really come from (it’s not where you think)
6 August 2025
Most advice on finding financial planning clients is highly prescriptive. ‘Use LinkedIn.’ ‘Run seminars’ ‘Ask for referrals.’ Do these work? All of them do. And none of them do. in other words, it depends.
READ MORE >
The twelve client-centred mind shifts that will transform your financial planning practice – part 4
30 July 2025
When I wrote ‘The Client-Centred Financial Adviser’ back in 2015, the core message was this: Who you’re being matters more than what you’re doing. Before I realised this for myself, I was very focused on doing. I was always looking for better ways to do things. This brought results –...
READ MORE >
The twelve client-centred mind shifts that will transform your financial planning practice – part 3
23 July 2025
Have you ever stopped to ask yourself: What creates the highest value for my financial planning clients? It’s easy to assume it’s the financial strategies and structures you recommend and yes, those matter. But I’d argue the real value lies elsewhere. It’s in their own mind shifts.
READ MORE >
The twelve client-centred mind shifts that will transform your financial planning practice – part 2
16 July 2025
We’re living in challenging times – full of uncertainty. No doubt, many of your clients worry about their finances, their future, and whether they’re doing the right things. You can’t change the external environment. But what you can do is help them find peace of mind despite it. So how...
READ MORE >
The twelve client-centred mind shifts that will transform your financial planning practice – part 1
9 July 2025
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,...
READ MORE >
Client meetings: why speak from your heart and not just your head?
24 June 2025
If you were forced to do just one activity in your business and had to relinquish all else, what would that one activity be? In my experience most advisers would say: “Spending my time meeting with clients.” Is this true for you?
READ MORE >
Top 10 coaching books for financial planners
18 June 2025
If you are doing genuine financial planning where you are helping your client identify and accomplish their goals and live the life they want then coaching them is a necessity. After all, life is full of distractions and people come off track all the time. For example, people can lose...
READ MORE >
The power of systems and how they can change your life
11 June 2025
I enjoy reading books and every now and then I read one that is outstandingly good. The most recent of these is ‘The power of systems’ by Steve Chandler and Trevor Timbeck. It’s a book about creating better, more consistent results in whatever you choose to do.
READ MORE >
Learning a Lot — But implementing little?
28 May 2025
We’ve just completed the final session of our online Client Engagement Masterclass. Over eight sessions, the participants and I explored the core principles of creating exceptional client engagement. The content was powerful — and just as valuable were the insights participants shared with each other. But as with any programme,...
READ MORE >
Five steps financial planners can take to becoming an exceptional listener
21 May 2025
Being an exceptional listener is one of the most effective and reliable ways to build or deepen any relationship. It also makes you different from most other people. In her book, ‘Time to think’Certainly not at the level which you can have a profound impact on people and take the...
READ MORE >
Why challenging your financial planning clients is great for business
10 May 2025
The key difference between a transactional financial adviser a ‘Trusted adviser’ is how the adviser is positioned in the mind of the client. As a ‘Trusted Adviser’ you are someone a client turns to for your valued input, advice, opinion, help with key decisions, and possibly coaching. A good description...
READ MORE >
If being chartered is so great, where are all the clients?
7 May 2025
You have put blood, sweat, and tears into becoming chartered. Or you are on the way. You want to do great work for your clients, build your practice, and deservedly create your own wealth along the way. But where are all the clients?
READ MORE >
Should you take notes in a financial planning meeting?
30 April 2025
What is the right approach to note taking in financial planning meetings? This is a question that often comes up in my coaching programmes with financial planners. So, let’s take a closer look.
READ MORE >
Client meeting not going well? Here’s what to do
23 April 2025
Have you ever been in a client meeting and sensed that it’s not going well? If you have you wouldn’t be alone. In fact, I am sure it happens to all of us occasionally. This article shares what to do if you are ever in this situation.
READ MORE >
How to sell more financial planning: stop giving advice
12 April 2025
Do you want to sell more financial planning and boost your income? If so, then stopping giving financial advice might seem totally counter-intuitive, right? In this article I explore why holding back from giving advice can consistently help you sell more financial planning and serve your clients better.
READ MORE >
What is the true value of a financial adviser in turbulent times?
9 April 2025
The last thing that brought our minds into sharp focus of how unforeseen event can change our lives was covid. That was until Donald Trump imposed trade tariffs. The result being that the world’s stock markets have fallen sharply and may fall further still. As a financial professional you are...
READ MORE >
The little understood power of the present moment
1 April 2025
In a world where we seem to be so focused upon ‘doing’ it is so easy to forget that it’s our state of mind that determines the quality of our actions, depth of impact, and overall quality of our life experience. For instance, I realised: *To truly connect with other...
READ MORE >
The changing face of financial advice: How advisers must evolve to stay relevant
26 March 2025
One of the things I have noticed about financial advisers and practices that continue to thrive is that they are masters of reinvention.
READ MORE >
Too much information: Give clients only what they need (not everything you have)
19 March 2025
How clients feel is hugely important to how they receive information. If they are overwhelmed of fearful for instance, it’s likely that meetings will go poorly. On the other hand, if the client feels relaxed and calm, generally meetings will be successful.
READ MORE >
The importance of honesty in client relationships
11 March 2025
Building a thriving practice, based on making a bigger difference to clients has many aspects to it. One of the most fundamental is that client relationships are based on truth. It can feel uncomfortable (at first) to share your truth with clients and allow them to do the same with...
READ MORE >
Beyond Logic: Why intuition matters in a left-brained world
5 March 2025
Is intuition important in business? Can you rely on it or is it an unreliable distraction with the best way forward being a left-brained, logical, and data driven approach to everything?
READ MORE >
The 8 keys to inspiring financial planning meetings every time!
26 February 2025
There are specific and predictable keys that result in inspiring financial planning meetings every time. And by paying attention and making consistent progress with each key, you are: 1. No longer leaving the quality of your meetings to chance. 2. Raising the bar to an exceptionally high level. In this...
READ MORE >
Why your financial planning fees must NEVER be an issue
19 February 2025
This article explores why your financial planning fees must never be an issue with clients. Just recently a financial planner client of mine came to our coaching session wanting to talk about a fee situation with a client of his.
READ MORE >
The power of asking your clients permission   
12 February 2025
“How do I get clients to open up more easily?” This was the question that came up in a recent coaching session I had with a financial planner client. Of course, there is more than one single answer but the one that we explored is especially important. This is asking...
READ MORE >
Why goals won’t bring you success and what will
5 February 2025
I have been a goal setter ever since my mid-twenties. And when I look back, I notice that I achieved some of the things I set out to do and failed at some too. I used to be hard on myself over my perceived failures, thinking I was not somehow...
READ MORE >
My favourite Einstein quote and why it matters
29 January 2025
One of the biggest challenges for a financial adviser is getting stuck on a plateau they cannot seem to move past. Can you think of a recurring problem or limitation in your business?
READ MORE >
Financial planner? What you need to know about influence
22 January 2025
If you are going to build and maintain a successful career as a financial planner, then being able to influence people seems essential to me.
READ MORE >
Are coaching skills essential for financial planners?
15 January 2025
Is one of your goals to be the best financial professional you can be by helping your client get the results they most want? If so, there is a set of skills that look to me as essential.
READ MORE >
The most read articles of 2024
8 January 2025
As is traditional for me, the first blog of the New Year is a revisit to what financial planners and advisers were most interested in during the past twelve months.
READ MORE >
Stress free goal setting for financial planners
17 December 2024
What is your experience of goal setting? For me, I would set goals because it seemed like a good idea to know where I wanted to get to. Yet I found that, at times, the process could often become quite stressful. I have also heard many people share that this...
READ MORE >
How to ask powerful financial planning questions
11 December 2024
Asking great financial planning questions is the foundation of creating a highly compelling plan for your client. When your client can clearly see that their financial plan is going to be an essential part of getting what they most want then why wouldn’t they be excited about it?
READ MORE >
The truth about happiness and why this really matters
4 December 2024
Happiness matters. It matters not least because there is a well-documented correlation between our happiness and our health, wealth, and quality of life.
READ MORE >
What are great clients really paying for?
27 November 2024
A while back I read a long article in the financial press about choosing a financial adviser. From what was written it seemed that much of the industry continues to see advice as a commodity and under values the potential impact of the human element.  To quote directly from the...
READ MORE >
Are you driven or drawn? Discovering the effortless path to success
20 November 2024
We are led to believe that to achieve success, we need to strive and work hard; and that upon reaching our goals, we’ll find peace and happiness. But this is all being driven by fear. The flip-side to that is love, and when we are operating from this space, life...
READ MORE >
The importance of context in client conversations
13 November 2024
The context in which a conversation takes place really matters. Without it, conversations can feel misaligned, confusing, or even conflicting.  
READ MORE >
Highly effective rapport building for financial planners
6 November 2024
A deep rapport with your client is the foundation for a productive, profitable, and long-lasting relationship. Therefore, being highly effective at quickly building and maintaining a deep rapport is an essential skill for financial planners.
READ MORE >
Why movie montages can ruin your business
30 October 2024
Closing the gap between where we are now and where we want to be in our business doesn’t happen overnight. It takes sustained, disciplined and focus work.
READ MORE >
Do you want more high quality referrals? This MUST happen first
23 October 2024
Good financial planning referrals from happy existing clients are one of the best ways to grow your practice. Yet to create a regular and increasing flow of quality referrals there is something that MUST happen first. Let me share a story.
READ MORE >
Stop guessing and start listening: How assumptions can switch off clients
16 October 2024
When are you planning to retire? This seems like a perfectly reasonable questions for a financial planner to ask a client, right? Yet is it perfectly reasonable?
READ MORE >
Seven ways to become effortless to do business with
10 October 2024
One of the keys to creating a thriving practice is to make it effortless for clients to say ‘Yes’ to doing business with you. People do not enjoy saying ‘No’. They really want to say ‘Yes’ because they want their decisions and their life to be easy.
READ MORE >
Unleash your inner power: The power of believing you can make a difference
2 October 2024
As a financial planner you do brilliant work for your clients that can be life changing. But are you fully behind what you do and willing to take a stand for your work?
READ MORE >
The power of the pause: why silence in conversations matters
25 September 2024
How comfortable are you with silence? The reason I ask is because we are culturally conditioned to leave very small gaps when we speak to each other. 
READ MORE >
How to deal with imposter syndrome
13 September 2024
Do you ever feel like an imposter in your role, that you will get ‘found out’, or do not deserve your success? If so, you are far from alone as this is extremely common amongst business people.
READ MORE >
The right way to set financial planning goals
10 September 2024
In this article, you are going to discover how to help your clients set financial planning goals, the right way. You are also going to learn the difference between healthy and unhealthy goals and how this makes a massive difference to your client’s level of motivation, inspiration, and enjoyment of...
READ MORE >
The law of action – why action beats attraction
4 September 2024
Do you want to build a better, more profitable practice but finding progress is painfully slow? You have probably heard of ‘The law of attraction’. The idea gained huge popularity when the film and then the book, ‘The secret’ was released.
READ MORE >
The end of sales techniques: How authentic connection drives results
28 August 2024
Being able to positively influence someone and confidently sell your services are essential skills if you want to build a thriving financial planning practice. Yet it seems that many advisers feel uncomfortable in sales situations. They may fear coming across as ‘pushy’, being rejected, or receiving push-back. Some believe that...
READ MORE >
Success is an Inside Job: Why your state of mind is key to thriving as a financial adviser
21 August 2024
The importance and effect of state of mind is well known in sport. A recent and brilliant example being British triathlete Alex Yee at the Paris Olympics. In the men’s individual triathlon Alex was trailing Hayden Wilde of New Zealand as he had been for most of the run. He...
READ MORE >
A simple financial planning questions formula
13 August 2024
Effective, heartfelt communication is a natural consequence of a free and present state of mind. This is why trying to use techniques so often diminishes the potential rather than improving it. Questions are a great example. Trying to memorise a question or a series of questions will more than likely...
READ MORE >
Real financial planning – is it just about the money?
31 July 2024
Real financial planning – is it just about the money? What is the value (to a client) of a financial planning relationship? Far too many financial advisers and planners seem to assume that a client’s primary interest is in financial products, investments, and getting a better return on their money....
READ MORE >
What two things are clients REALLY buying?
24 July 2024
What if what you think you’re selling, isn’t what you’re actually selling. Watch the video in my latest blog post to discover how knowing the true outcome of your work, will help you engage more deeply and fully with your clients.
READ MORE >
How to start a financial planning conversation
17 July 2024
When starting a financial planning client relationship, do not make the opening conversation about you. Whilst they may or may not want to know more about you, it communicates to the client that their problems, thoughts and feelings are not the most important thing to the adviser.
READ MORE >
Clients are not willing to pay fees for financial planning – really?
10 July 2024
“Clients are not willing to pay fees for financial planning!” This was the bold claim of an adviser in a post I recently read on LinkedIn. You might refer to this as a ‘gross generalisation’ because, quite clearly, there are many people who do already pay fees for financial planning.
READ MORE >
The number one business strategy for financial planners – part two
3 July 2024
The number one business strategy is caring for your mind based upon the universal truth that in clear, present, and unburdened states of mind we are free to bring our best to whatever we are doing.
READ MORE >
The number one business strategy for financial planners – part one
26 June 2024
If you are a financial planner and want to improve your business results this article shares the most powerful yet under-utilised strategy.
READ MORE >
The importance of empathy in financial planning
19 June 2024
One of the most important aspects of successful financial planning is the feeling of human connection between you and your client. Without that feeling of human connection the financial planning process is more likely to fail to come to life and be meaningful.
READ MORE >
Do you ever get in your own way? Here’s what helped me
6 June 2024
Do you ever get in your own way? I know I do. I have times when I feel in a low mood, everything seems more difficult, and my natural zest disappears. Many times I have had clients say to me that the only thing stopping them is themselves. So, how...
READ MORE >
Why your financial planning practice culture is the key to delivering exceptional service
29 May 2024
Are you committed to delivering exceptional client service? If so, employees who genuinely care, communicate well, and take responsibility are essential. This article takes a look at how to bring out the best in your team.
READ MORE >
The power of our language
22 May 2024
In this blog I share a short video of inspirational young lady Amy Brockerstette who, demonstrates perfectly the power of state of mind and how language emerges from it.
READ MORE >
Are your financial planning conversations too nice?
15 May 2024
Why can it be a mistake to make your financial planning conversations too nice? This article explore why creating tension in a conversation is being of service to your client.
READ MORE >
Time management for financial planners – why helpful tips are not the answer
8 May 2024
How often have you felt like you had way too much to do, way too little time to do it, and you’ve stressed out as a result?
READ MORE >
Publishing a book is a huge opportunity for financial planners: Here’s why
1 May 2024
Have you ever considered publishing a book? I recently spent six months as part of a group of 36 coaches in the AJC Coaching Career School. Of those 36 coaches there were at least six people who were published authors of a book (some people more than one).
READ MORE >
The courage to ask essential financial planning questions
24 April 2024
Financial planning and advice are often triggered by an event. That event may have already happened, be about to happen, or may be some way out into the future.  Find out how you can connect with your client better by finding out about their feeling around a significant life event.
READ MORE >
The biggest challenge (and opportunity) in the financial planning process
17 April 2024
In a perfect world a client goes through the financial planning process and implements the recommendations and advice they are given. As a result, they are happy and achieve their goals. Yet we are not living in a perfect world, which presents both a challenge and an opportunity for financial...
READ MORE >
20 bad financial adviser inter-personal habits
10 April 2024
In this weeks’ blog I am looking at… 20 bad financial adviser inter-personal habits Look and see if any of these apply to you. Corrective action can make an enormous difference to your success.
READ MORE >
Will your financial plan pass the ‘so what’ test?
3 April 2024
Imagine that you have gone through the discovery process with your client and your next meeting is to present your carefully crafted financial plan. You want the meeting to be a success and have the client be enthusiastic about your recommendations. So, how can you give yourself the highest and best...
READ MORE >
The truth about trust building for financial planners
27 March 2024
Everyone knows that absolute trust is at the core of a successful relationship between a financial planner and a client. But where does real trust come from? And how do you create absolute trust quickly and reliably?
READ MORE >
Top ten essential inter-personal skills for financial planners
13 March 2024
Is technical ability a guarantee of a successful and prosperous career as a financial planner?  The answer is ‘no’ because being a successful practitioner is just as much about people as it is a technical role. So, in this article I am looking at my top ten essential inter-personal skills...
READ MORE >
Financial planning relationships – how do you keep adding massive long-term value?
6 March 2024
No matter how long you have known your client what is the secret to continuing to add massive value? Imagine when you first meet a new client and the early period of your relationship. In the beginning…
READ MORE >
Are your feelings running your business?
29 February 2024
Have you ever found that self-doubt, a low mood, or feeling fearful has held you back?  I’m sure this has been the case for all of us and it can have a big impact upon the quality of our results. In this article I am sharing how you get past...
READ MORE >
Why does attachment ruin client engagement?
21 February 2024
Successful client engagement has many aspects and, in this article, I am exploring one of the most crucial. Do you ever find yourself being attached to an outcome? For instance, you are in conversation with a potential client, and you have something on it going your way. You feel an...
READ MORE >
The amazing power of questions
14 February 2024
As a financial planner or adviser people come to you for your knowledge and expertise. Yet, first and foremost, you must create a context for advice so that when it is provided, people successfully implement it and get the outcome they want. The only way I have found of creating...
READ MORE >
Financial Planner? Are you selling drills or holes?
7 February 2024
In my career as a financial adviser the training and qualification process was all about pensions, investments, insurances, tax, markets, trusts, risk, and so on. So, in the beginning this is what I talked to people about because this is what I thought you did. It did not occur to...
READ MORE >
How to get more financial planning referrals
31 January 2024
Would you like to generate more high quality financial planning referrals?
READ MORE >
Why financial planning clients are paying for leadership
25 January 2024
Why do clients seek out professional help from a financial planner or adviser? Specific reasons are many, but fundamentally it comes down to only two things: 1. They have a problem to solve 2. They want to feel better  This is how value is created and this article explores a...
READ MORE >
Your social self verses your professional self
17 January 2024
Finances are a challenging subject for many people, perhaps most. So, for someone to seek out a financial planner or advisers help is a big deal. Yet just because someone receives good financial advice does this mean they will automatically be successful in achieving what they want?
READ MORE >
The most popular client-centred blog posts of 2023
10 January 2024
What have financial planners and advisers been most interested in over the past year? The following are my most popular client-centred blog posts of 2023.
READ MORE >
The value of knowing your value
30 November 2023
Last week I was in London for three days attending the AJC Coaching Career School. This is a six-month long school, run by Ankush Jain, for coaches who want to build a more impactful coaching practice. For me, one of the most important things about being in business is that...
READ MORE >
When is your financial advisory client ready for deeper conversations?
15 November 2023
Do you want to have deeper conversations with your clients but concerned about whether they are ready? If so, you are not alone. A typical scenario is that a financial adviser has a transactional relationship with a client and wants to shift to a financial planning relationship.
READ MORE >
Listening is a super power
8 November 2023
Perhaps the most underrated skill for a financial planner or adviser is listening. Is there anything more important? I appreciate that you need to know what you are talking about. Yet this is a given, isn’t it?
READ MORE >
A simple formula for making more money
25 October 2023
Would you like your career as a financial planner or adviser to be more financially rewarding? I sometimes have conversations with advisers who are not enjoying what they do. Some even say they are thinking of leaving the business altogether. Often, at the root of this is that they are...
READ MORE >
The importance of relaxing your financial planning client
19 October 2023
One of my financial planner clients made an astute observation when he said: “It takes a lot of courage for a client to meet with a financial planner.” He understands that when he first meets with a new client, or even an existing one, they may have a lot on...
READ MORE >
Integrity: It is more important than we think 
12 October 2023
As professional people we value integrity, right? We like to think of ourselves as being a person of integrity and we want other people to act with integrity towards us. To me, this seems at the very core of trust.
READ MORE >
How to have a great first conversation 
4 October 2023
The first conversation you have with a potential client sets the tone for everything that comes afterwards. Therefore, it is essential to make it a great conversation, meaning that the person feels listened to, understood, and completely trusts you.
READ MORE >
The power of creating client agreements
6 September 2023
This article is about a powerful, proven way you can add significant value to all your client relationships. So, let me share with you a recent experience of the process in action. I have just spent three days in London as part of the AJC Coaching Career School.
READ MORE >
Why elevator pitches don’t work
31 August 2023
What prompted me to write this article about elevator pitches was reading an article published by Asana. It said: “A good elevator pitch can be the difference between landing your next big opportunity or falling short of the competition.” Really? Does this stack up?
READ MORE >
Value creation: the key to happy, loyal clients
21 August 2023
This article is about value creation and why it is the key to happy, loyal clients and a thriving practice. Over the past couple of weeks, I have had two services come up for renewal. One was my car breakdown cover and the other was my car insurance. In both...
READ MORE >
Be the casino, not the gambler
27 July 2023
Are you happy in your job as a financial planner or adviser? I often speak with financial planners or advisers who feel stuck in a rut and want to reinvigorate their work.  Maybe they have been doing the same thing for a long while and simply want to change. Sometimes...
READ MORE >
Financial planner? Stop trying to prove your value
12 July 2023
Do you ever concern yourself with trying to prove your value to a client or potential client? If so, you would be far from alone.  It can be tempting to try and be impressive and this can be especially true in the sales process. Yet it is also destructive.  So,...
READ MORE >
What use is financial planning without strong leadership?
5 July 2023
Highly effective financial planners are not just good at delivering great advice; they are also strong leaders. One of the greatest challenges in the financial planning process is having clients consistently follow through on their plans and achieve the success they desire. So, leadership is an essential quality for financial...
READ MORE >
Two approaches to goal setting and why only one is healthy
30 June 2023
I have found that goal setting can be a double-edged sword.  On one hand we want to achieve things that are important to us, so aiming at something makes sense. Yet for many people pushing hard towards their goals also causes them a lot of stress and compromises their quality...
READ MORE >
Why slow down your financial planning conversations?
22 June 2023
This article is about slowing down your financial planning conversations. But what does this mean and what makes it worth doing? Slowing down your conversations does not mean speaking slower or dragging out a conversation for no reason. That would make no sense. It is about creating significantly more value...
READ MORE >
The most dangerous word in the English language
15 June 2023
When we think back to when we were little kids, we never knew what limitations were. In fact, to little kids the very idea of a limitation is absurd. Our imaginations knew no boundaries and we lived in a world of pure possibility. You could be a superhero, be invisible,...
READ MORE >
Why is a client’s well-being at the core of financial planning?
1 June 2023
Just recently I read an article in Professional Adviser about how financial advisers see financial well-being in relation to financial planning (according to a study by Standard Life). The research showed that 71% of advisers view supporting financial well-being as a secondary part of their business in comparison with financial...
READ MORE >
The timeless wisdom of Charlie Munger
26 May 2023
Charlie Munger (now 99 years young) is a billionaire businessman, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and business partner of Warren Buffett, one of the greatest investors of all time. He is asked about the secret to a long and happy life, and he replies: …
READ MORE >
How to get the most from a financial planner
12 May 2023
Do your clients know how to get the best out of their relationship with you as their financial planner? Let me share an example of one powerful idea from the world of coaching. There are hundreds of books on the process of coaching. Yet Karen Davis and Alex Mill wrote...
READ MORE >
The secret of successful selling
4 May 2023
I first met Jamie Smart nearly twenty years ago and have seen him build two successful businesses and author some excellent books and programmes. His book, 'Clarity' is a best-seller and I recommend it. I was re-reading my copy a few days ago and his section on 'The secret of...
READ MORE >
How to have clients sell financial planning to themselves
20 April 2023
A realisation that has been extremely helpful to me is that you can never want something for your client more than they want it for themselves. In this way, financial planning is almost certainly going to be most beneficial when a client sells it to themselves. This article explores why...
READ MORE >
How to make your financial planning meetings better than ever
29 March 2023
Do you want to conduct outstandingly good financial planning meetings? This seems exceptionally important to me because the quality of the meetings you conduct are the foundation of building a thriving, profitable, and sustainable practice. This article is about the number one way to achieve consistent and continual improvement of...
READ MORE >
Twenty signs you are on the path to truly great financial planning
23 March 2023
What is the difference between ‘average’ financial planners and those who become truly great at what they do? I have been reflecting on this question for a while now and wanted to share my thoughts on this with you. I think it begins with the ‘want to’. Do you truly...
READ MORE >
Deep rapport and why it matters
8 March 2023
Rapport is an essential element in creating strong, productive and lasting client relationships. It is also a highly significant factor in not only the provision of financial planning and advice, but also whether your client follows it. Below is a link to an audio recording (18m39s) where I take a...
READ MORE >
A new way of thinking about financial planning fees  
3 March 2023
Although there seems to be plenty of information on the process of increasing your financial planning fee, there is far less on the thinking behind it. So, in this article I am taking an alternative look at fee charging. Read on to discover:  1. How most firms set fees 2....
READ MORE >
Is money holding you back from building a prosperous financial planning practice?
22 February 2023
I read a survey conducted with financial advisers asking what their biggest challenge was. Number one was getting clients. It would be easy to believe that all is required to solve this problem is finding a reliable source of potential clients. Yet this is not always true. As I discovered,...
READ MORE >
Four keys to highly motivated financial planning clients
15 February 2023
In a perfect world all financial planning clients would be highly motivated to follow through with their financial plans and get the results they want. Yet this is not a perfect world and I remember sometimes getting frustrated with clients that did not take the actions they needed to take....
READ MORE >
Wisdom from one of the UK’s most successful female financial planners
8 February 2023
My client Fulva Giust is one of the UK’s most successful female financial planners, operating for over thirty years.  Fulva has built a thriving practice serving wealthy families and individuals built upon rock solid foundations of trust, caring, and kindness. She takes a deep interest in the lives of her...
READ MORE >
My favourite Warren Buffett quote and why it matters
1 February 2023
Warren Buffett is one of the most successful investors of all time and one of the world’s wealthiest individuals. He also has some very astute observations about life. My favourite is his observation that: ‘Busy is the new stupid.’ One time he was in discussion with another super successful person,...
READ MORE >
A simple guide to living in flow
26 January 2023
Would you like to spend far more of your time in a state of ‘flow’? Flow is the experience of being totally absorbed in the moment, when time seems to stand still, and nothing else seems to matter. I was reading about the legendary tennis player Billie Jean King and...
READ MORE >
10 powerful ways a financial planner can deeply serve clients from the first moment
19 January 2023
How can you begin to deeply serve a client from the very first moment? When meeting with a potential client there are likely to be at least three important questions on their mind: 1. Do I like them? 2. Can I trust them? 3. Can they help me?
READ MORE >
Why I stopped meditating
12 January 2023
Last week I had a wonderful conversation with a friend who has a vast amount of experience as a coach and has worked with thousands of people. She observed that in her experience every single person always wants the same thing in the end. Ultimately, we all want to feel...
READ MORE >
The most popular client-centred blog posts of 2022
4 January 2023
What have financial planners been most interested in over the past year? The following are my most popular client-centred blog posts of 2022. Most importantly, none of this would be possible without you. Thank you for your valuable time and attention – you are very much appreciated.
READ MORE >
Do you hate selling financial planning? Discover the two shifts that change everything
15 December 2022
Do you love working with your existing clients but hate selling? If so, you would not be alone. Yet rather than enduring this essential aspect of being a financial planner what if you could learn to love what is often perceived as the hard part? If this is you then...
READ MORE >
The 12 client-centred mind shifts – part 4
8 December 2022
When ‘The Client-centred financial adviser’ was published back in 2015 the core message in that book was that who you are being is massively more significant than what you are doing. I even wrote a chapter titled, ‘Being is the new doing’. For many years in my own business, I...
READ MORE >
5 truths to help financial planners prosper in turbulent times
1 December 2022
What prompted this article were a number of conversations I have recently had with financial planners who were worried about the current trading environment.  So, how do financial planners prosper in turbulent times when the economy is contracting, clients are tightening their belts, and media is spreading doom and gloom?
READ MORE >
The 12 Client-centred mind shifts – part 3
24 November 2022
Have you ever considered what creates the very highest value for your financial planning clients? I am going to suggest it is not, important as they are, the financial arrangements you recommend and put in place for them. No. It is their own mind shifts.
READ MORE >
The 12 client-centred mind shifts – part 2
10 November 2022
You almost certainly have clients that are worried about their finances, what might happen in future, and if they are doing the right things. We are living in challenging times. Some advisers avoid their clients at times like this. They don’t want to tell them their investments have gone down...
READ MORE >
The twelve client-centred mind shifts – part 1
3 November 2022
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,...
READ MORE >
What is the biggest factor in successful financial planning?
27 October 2022
Just recently I read an article by a financial planner who said that a client’s financial success comes down to the advice they get or don’t get. This article explores why this will rarely be the case and what really creates successful financial planning.
READ MORE >
What makes a client want to engage a financial planner?
12 October 2022
A successful financial planner I work with remarked to me that no one ever approaches him for a financial planning engagement. Instead, there is usually a trigger event that leads a client to thinking they want a financial product, financial issue solved, or investment advice. So, how do you shift...
READ MORE >
How to transcend the financial planner comfort zone
6 October 2022
Our comfort zone can be very limiting. For instance, it can hold you back from realising your greater potential, making a bigger difference to your clients, and experiencing greater success. So, in this article I explore what a financial planner comfort zone is and what it takes to transcend it. 
READ MORE >
The most powerful two word financial planning question
9 September 2022
This articles shares a two-word financial question that can significantly increase the value of financial planning for a client. It is also be great for opening up new business opportunities too. So, let me share how I was inspired to write this post.
READ MORE >
Top 10 ways to capture and keep your financial planning client’s attention
7 September 2022
To make financial planning meaningful and a good investment for your client it requires them to be fully engaged and do their best thinking in your meetings. Yet we also live in a society where an ever-increasing number of things are competing for our attention. People have shorter and shorter...
READ MORE >
How to run magical financial planning review meetings – every time
17 August 2022
When a client relationship is new it will feel fresh, engaging, and there will often be a lot to do. You are getting to know your client, they are getting to know you, and important issues are being dealt with. But how do you keep financial planning review meetings fresh,...
READ MORE >
Resilience: An essential key to building a financial planning practice
3 August 2022
Have you noticed how resilience has become a hot topic in business? For instance, there are TED talks on it, articles in the Harvard Business Review, and covid brought into sharp focus how unforeseen events can literally change our lives in a moment. This article explores a deeper understanding of...
READ MORE >
A simple guide to influencing financial planning clients
22 June 2022
Do you want to become more effective at influencing financial planning clients? In this simple guide I explore one of the most crucial factors of influence you can apply immediately for better results.
READ MORE >
One of the best financial planning questions and how to use it
15 June 2022
Often, the best financial planning questions are the ones that help a client to open up and think more deeply. Why is this important? Because the impact of your financial planning and advice is directly correlated to quality of the information you gather from your client.
READ MORE >
How do you become a great financial planner… not just good?
9 June 2022
How do you become a great financial planner? One who has a powerful, positive impact in the lives of your clients? Of course, there are many attributes but one in particular stands out. Read on to discover what this is and why it is so important. What do clients look...
READ MORE >
4 ways to create massive value financial planning meetings
11 May 2022
What do clients want most of all? Do you want to create massive value financial planning meetings at every opportunity? One of the challenges in any long-term financial planning relationship is keeping it fresh, inspiring, and avoiding it becoming stale. In this article I explore how value is created and...
READ MORE >
Better time management for financial advisers and planners
4 May 2022
As a financial planner are you as productive as you would like to be? Would you like to get more done, in less time, and with none of the stress? In this article I am going to explore the hidden factor that leads to genuinely better time management for financial...
READ MORE >
How to do a brilliant financial planning fact find
21 April 2022
Doing a brilliant financial planning fact find underpins everything that you do for a client. It is what differentiates you from other financial planners and is a golden opportunity to build exceptional relationships and provide massive value. But there are also two very different elements to fact finding.
READ MORE >
What are the three roles of a lifestyle financial planner?
6 April 2022
Do you ever find your role as a lifestyle financial planner being overly complex? Would you like it to be simpler, more productive, and more rewarding? If so, this article considers that there are only three core roles of a lifestyle financial planner.
READ MORE >
How to successfully sell financial planning
31 March 2022
Genuine financial planning is very different from providing purely transactional financial advice. So, how you sell financial planning is a different kind of conversation too. Would you like it to be easier to sell financial planning engagements?
READ MORE >
Building a financial planning business – overcoming the biggest obstacle
23 March 2022
Building a financial planning business is not easy! In fact, you are far from alone if you find it challenging. This article explores one of the biggest obstacles of all and how to rapidly get back on track.
READ MORE >
The hidden secret to high-impact financial planning meetings
16 March 2022
Do you want to have your financial planning meetings be high-impact, high-engagement experiences for both your clients and you? Of course! We all want this, don’t we?
READ MORE >
Why is client well-being increasingly on the agenda for financial planners?
9 March 2022
Client well-being is fast rising up the agenda for financial planners. Why is this and is it something you should be focusing upon with your clients? In this article I explore why financial planners and advisers are increasingly focusing upon the well-being of their clients.
READ MORE >
5 steps financial planners can take to becoming a better listener
2 March 2022
As a financial planner what value is there in becoming a better listener? Is it worth your time, effort, and focus to improve? This article explores the value of deep listening and 5 practical steps you can take to immediately become a better listener.
READ MORE >
Asking essential financial planning questions: the ones that no one else thinks to ask
24 February 2022
This article looks at an important aspect of asking financial planning questions that often get neglected. Often, financial advice is triggered when something happens or is going to happens in a client’s life. For instance, the sale of a business, divorce, or an upcoming retirement.
READ MORE >
How financial planners can build instant trust with clients
15 February 2022
As a financial planner building instant trust with clients is one of the biggest obstacles you will need to overcome. This article looks at a different yet highly effective approach.
READ MORE >
Getting financial planning clients – the only obstacle
26 January 2022
Getting financial planning clients is the number one challenge for many advisers. But why is it such a challenge? It is not for the reasons that most people think…
READ MORE >
What is the most important financial planning question of all?
12 January 2022
Do you want to have greater impact with your clients, create more value, and escape the diminishing world of transactional financial advice? If so, there is an important financial planning question.
READ MORE >
Financial Planning clients for life – the one thing you MUST do
1 December 2021
Creating happy, enthusiastic, loyal financial planning clients for life requires you to do one thing well, and consistently. What is that one thing?
READ MORE >
How to get financial planning clients – the only way I know
22 November 2021
Financial planning is not a commodity. It is experiential and conversations are right at the core of this.
READ MORE >
Presenting your clients financial plan – the key to success
17 November 2021
Will your presentation pass the 'so-what' test? You have gathered all the information you need from your client, carefully created their financial plan, and are now ready to present it. How do you ensure it is a highly effective and successful meeting? This process actually begins long before the meeting...
READ MORE >
To succeed you must have self belief… really?
17 October 2021
If you have a goal or outcome that is important to you and you want to go for it, then what does self belief and whether you have it or not have to do with it?
READ MORE >
Great people skills – in an instant!
14 October 2021
Is it possible to have great people skills in an instant?
READ MORE >
Giving financial advice – 3 important steps
9 September 2021
You no doubt put a great deal of time and effort into creating high quality advice for your clients. Yet this alone does not guarantee it will be accepted and followed.
READ MORE >
The best prospecting advice for financial planners
7 September 2021
Why do some financial planners seem to effortlessly find clients whilst others experience growing their practice as a constant struggle?
READ MORE >
Are your financial planning conversations too friendly?
1 September 2021
What is the difference between a financial advisory conversation and a financial planning conversation?
READ MORE >
What does it really take to 10x grow a financial planning business?
26 August 2021
There is a critical factor in growing your financial planning business that is often misunderstood.
READ MORE >
Should Financial Planners stop talking about retirement?
4 August 2021
Why should financial planners choose their language carefully in their financial planning conversations with clients?
READ MORE >
Understanding your client’s world – key number 1
28 July 2021
Financial Advice is so often delivered in very unimaginative ways that has little difference to how the majority of practitioners deliver it.
READ MORE >
What they don’t teach you at financial planning school
19 May 2021
There are some key skills a financial planner should exhibit if they want to be successful, skills that aren’t necessarily taught during financial planning qualification process… 
READ MORE >
How to have bigger impact with clients
9 April 2021
How much impact am I having? This is a great question to reflect upon when it comes to your client relationships. Whether you have just met someone new or have been working with someone for a decade or longer the amount of impact we are having in that person’s life...
READ MORE >
Who are the financial advisers of the future?
25 March 2021
Going back to when I became a self-employed financial adviser in 1991 it was a sales role. I had my one week of training and then was expected to go out and make money immediately. This is why the attrition rate was so appallingly low. Oh, how things have changed!…
READ MORE >
Getting the impossible things done
26 February 2021
Do you want to get things done? By this I do not mean your day-to-day routine work. I mean projects that are significant accomplishments in your life. What is on your ‘impossible’ list? Writing the book you have always wanted to write? Completely re-engineering your business? Learning a new skill...
READ MORE >
Labels are for jars, not people
4 February 2021
Have you ever been told you are not listening? I have. It did not feel good and I thoroughly deserved it. I was new to coaching and was very enthusiastic about sharing my knowledge with my client. So enthusiastic that I thought what I had to say was more important...
READ MORE >
Do you want highly motivated clients?
28 January 2021
Do you want clients that are…? *highly motivated to work with you. *highly motivated to follow through on the tasks that you need them to do. *highly motivated to take the actions necessary to achieve their goals. Rather than these being qualities that some people have, and others do not…
READ MORE >
Solve your financial planning lead generation problem forever!
21 January 2021
If I had a penny for every time I’ve been asked how to get more clients as a financial adviser, how to grow a client base, and the best lead generation tips, well, I’d be very rich. Getting your first financial planning clients is actually rather straightforward…
READ MORE >
How do you measure your success when life is completely unpredictable?
14 January 2021
If there was one thing we learned in 2020 is that life is unpredictable. None of us really know what is going to happen in the next hour, day, week, or month, do we? We can make plans, set goals, have expectations and yet just as we have all recently...
READ MORE >
Do you love what you do?
14 December 2020
Going back a while I was invited to speak at an event for advisers at The Etihad stadium in Manchester. I spoke about creating better client engagement through being curious about what it is that clients want from life rather than just focusing on products and investments…
READ MORE >
Getting out of your own way
19 November 2020
I was recently in conversation with a client and he said to me that the next month at work was going to be difficult. So, I asked him why he thought that and he explained that several staff were due to be away on training and this was going to...
READ MORE >
The one thing that will help your financial planning business prosper
1 October 2020
How do I get my financial advisory practice off the ground? How do I get more clients to notice my financial planning services? If you’ve done all the things you’re supposed to do from a marketing sense to entice new clients with no luck, it could be time to take...
READ MORE >
Shoulder Taps
24 September 2020
The impact you can have on another human being has a lot to do with how much you realise you can impact them. How do you see your role as an adviser? You can operate at the level of arranging transactions, you can see yourself as providing a service or...
READ MORE >
Why regulation will never improve the public’s trust in Financial Services (and what can)
17 September 2020
Most people I come across in Financial Services are caring, dedicated and highly professional people who do great work for their clients. On top of this a great many of those, like you, continually strive to improve and I have huge respect for this because it takes time, effort and...
READ MORE >
Which screw to turn
15 September 2020
There is a famous story about FedEx, the delivery company. In the US the central hub of the business is in Memphis, so all overnight packages go through here. One night the conveyer belt system suddenly stopped working bringing the business to a halt. It meant that the packages could...
READ MORE >
Growing your business in the quickest, most efficient way possible – Here’s how
20 August 2020
Something extremely valuable I learned from my coach is that every system is perfect for the result it creates. For instance, … If you are only getting half of the business that you want, then your current system is perfect for that result. If you are working fifteen hours a...
READ MORE >
Why deep rapport matters for financial advisers
10 August 2020
For even seasoned financial planners, creating a stronger and more open relationship with clients can be challenging. While you may not have attributed deep rapport as an important aspect of providing advice, it is right at the core. What is rapport?
READ MORE >
How do you know if a client meeting is going well?
17 July 2020
Have you ever wondered why young children are able to indiscriminately enjoy almost everything and anything they do? Whatever situation they are in they seem to find a way to be absorbed in the moment and have fun. As adults we often tend to lose this capacity. Business can be...
READ MORE >
Living your life’s purpose
13 July 2020
I was an enthusiastic devourer of self-help and personal development material for well over twenty years, although I have now been in healthy recovery for nine years. During my addiction I always noticed how much material there is on finding your life's purpose and it continues to be a popular...
READ MORE >
Working ONLY with wonderful clients – the two essential questions
26 June 2020
The very first stage of a new client relationship is connecting with someone. They may get in touch with you. You may get in touch with them. Whichever it is the next stage is that you invite them into a conversation. Conversations are the most important aspect of building your...
READ MORE >
Why mental clarity is the biggest game in town
19 June 2020
Imagine someone who absolutely needs to be in the moment. For safety's sake. Say someone like a surfer who is out there in the ocean hanging ten. Picture this surfer riding a huge wave. Can you see how thoughts don't help the surfer? What's the surfer doing? Paying attention to...
READ MORE >
Never be derailed by adversity again
12 June 2020
There is no question that many, if not most, businesses have been severely affected by the lock-down. For instance, if you are a retail outfit then you have had no choice but to keep your doors shut. A similar situation with restaurants and bars. Advisory firms have been unable to...
READ MORE >
What is the highest value your clients can get from you?
30 May 2020
A few years ago, I attended a conference in Oslo and one of my memories is of Dr. Aaron Turner making a particularly powerful point. Aaron shared a story about a time he was holidaying in Hawaii with his family. They were spending some time on the beach and he...
READ MORE >
The power of simplicity in a world of complexity
27 May 2020
The human intellectual mind loves to make things complex. And this is just as true in the financial world as anywhere else. We could have a much simpler tax system - but we choose not to. We could vastly simplify pensions - but we choose not to. We could make...
READ MORE >
Are you sharpening the saw?
11 May 2020
It’s important for financial advisers to consider self-care and their mental wellbeing in order to best serve their clients.
READ MORE >
There is an easier way to do life
30 April 2020
The world we live in consists of the visible and the invisible. The form and the formless. The finite and the infinite. The business world focuses almost exclusively on the visible, the form and the finite. If you want to improve results in any area – marketing, sales, leadership, management,...
READ MORE >
Where is the opportunity in forced change?
3 April 2020
It is said that a week is a long time in politics. Well, that saying seems to apply to just about everything right now! If the lock down (only!) lasts a few weeks, then my guess is that most of us will be tempted to get back to 'business as...
READ MORE >
The biggest Megatrend of our time
30 March 2020
Last year at one of my events at Henley Business School, Kimberley Hare, our speaker for the day, put a poster on the wall that read: "Uncertainty is inevitable, insecurity is optional" We humans have a fascinating relationship with certainty, don’t we? So often we try to desperately hang on...
READ MORE >
Should you be coaching your clients?
23 January 2020
Coaching happens within a conversation and strong powerful conversations are about being fully present, listening deeply and asking questions.
READ MORE >
The most-read blog posts of 2019
14 January 2020
I was looking back over 2019's blog posts and I wanted to share the 5 most read with you again. You never know which ones are going to have the most reads and sometimes it can be a surprise. I enjoyed re-living the inspiration for each one and hope you...
READ MORE >
Why not even Richard Branson can help you
19 November 2019
What is stopping your business becoming a much better business? It is an interesting question to reflect upon, isn't it? One of my clients, Noel, is an entrepreneur who has started several successful companies. His latest creation is a tech business in the financial sector, and it has gone from...
READ MORE >
Get paid not to stop
25 October 2019
How it looks to me is that a significant element of the financial services business still believes that the value for clients is all in the transaction. Why else would 'advice' be offered for free? Only this week I saw an advertisement from a product provider offering 'free advice'. The...
READ MORE >
There is only one thing blocking you
17 October 2019
I was delivering a workshop to a business a couple of weeks ago and I asked the question… What gets in the way of what you want to accomplish? Each person present had some important business and personal goals and I wanted to know what they perceived as the obstacles....
READ MORE >
Scripts – are they a help or a hindrance?
17 October 2019
Going back several years I was once asked by the PFS to speak at the regional conferences on 'How to make an effective elevator pitch'. In case you don't know, an elevator pitch is a script you learn to describe your business. It is supposed to be clever, engaging and...
READ MORE >
Two emotions – which one do you operate from?
26 September 2019
Several years ago, I was fortunate enough to come across and even get to train a couple of times with the great Steve Chandler. Steve has written over thirty books and is a world-famous success coach to high-achieving business people, CEO’s, best-selling authors and Fortune 500 companies. For me, Steve...
READ MORE >
Uncertainty is inevitable, insecurity is optional
19 September 2019
On Monday we had our second live day of 'The Freedom of Mind Programme' and we gathered at the inspiring Henley Business school on the bank of the river Thames. The brilliant Kim Hare lead the day and one of the posters she put up on the wall read: Uncertainty...
READ MORE >
What’s controlling your life?
12 September 2019
Deepak Chopra said: “What you pay attention to grows. If your attention is attracted to negative situations and emotions, then they will grow in your awareness.” What he points out is that when we worry about things it doesn't improve the situation; it brings more of that thinking into our...
READ MORE >
Creating a client centred culture, not a numbers driven one
22 August 2019
Do you lead a team of people? Do you want to get the best from them but avoid the downsides of pushing them too hard? It has often been said that 'an organisations greatest asset is its people'. I believe this has to be true because without people there is...
READ MORE >
This will skyrocket your ability to influence
9 August 2019
We live in a world that talks far too much and listens far too little. People love to tell other people their opinions, ideas or just what happens to be on their mind. It seems that most people want to be interesting rather than interested. As a professional person, being...
READ MORE >
Turning financial planning clients away – is it good for business?
11 July 2019
Towards the end of last year, I was privileged to be invited along to a focus group for a financial planning client of mine. A group of the firm’s clients had been invited along to a half-day event where an external marketing agency explored with the group a number of...
READ MORE >
Twice the productivity, with half the effort and none of the stress
4 July 2019
Is twice the productivity, with half the effort and none of the stress a realistic goal for you and your business? And whether you think it is realistic or not, how much difference would this make to you? Many business people, if not all, are on the lookout for edges...
READ MORE >
The invisible side of client engagement
28 June 2019
Client engagement seems to be a bit of a buzz term at the moment and yet what it is and how you achieve it is still widely misunderstood. Ultimately, advancing technology will see to it that face to face advice must offer more than a purely transactional, product-based service if...
READ MORE >
What does a reformed prison inmate have to do with us?
7 June 2019
Last weekend I attended my favourite annual conference, the 'Life 2.0 Three Principles Conference'. It was my 7th conference and in that time the number of people attending has tripled to around 900. On the drive home afterwards the friend I attended with asked me if any moment stood out...
READ MORE >
What are (great) clients really paying for?
17 May 2019
Patsy Rodenburg is one of the world's leading acting and voice coaches, having worked with many famous names including Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Day-Lewis and many others. She has also very successfully taken her work into the business environment, helping people to operate from what she calls second circle....
READ MORE >
Are you ready for a new normal?
3 May 2019
'All truth goes through three steps: first, it is ridiculed; second, it is violently opposed; finally, it is accepted as self-evident' German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer Imagine you were about to have a medical procedure that involved 'opening you up'. What would be your reaction if you knew that the instruments...
READ MORE >
The truth about breaking bad habits
26 April 2019
Reaching your next level of success is so often about what you stop doing, rather than what you start doing. Executive coach Marshall Goldsmith found this in his work with senior leaders in Fortune 100 companies. He even wrote a book about it called 'What got you here, won't get...
READ MORE >
Where do you find new clients?
18 April 2019
What prompted this article was recently reading that 70% of advisers are actively seeking new clients. I know from working for myself for over twenty five years and working with dozens of my own clients that consistently bringing on new clients can seem a big challenge. Typical questions that people...
READ MORE >
Without the fear, what would you do?
5 April 2019
Fear, if misunderstood, is such a debilitating emotion. When I began my coaching practice it soon became obvious that the business and personal challenges that people experienced were almost always some kind of fear in disguise. I noticed that when people were stuck or struggling - to get clients, build...
READ MORE >
The Most Effective Sales Programme Of All
29 March 2019
Being able to sell with integrity is an essential business skill. Yet many people seem to struggle with it. So, what is the factor that makes the biggest difference of all? A while back I met up for coffee with a friend who runs a business networking group in London....
READ MORE >
Effective client acquisition – what do you say after ‘Hello’?
8 March 2019
A useful realisation to have, as a professional service provider, is that people do not buy what we do. What we do is always a bridge to something of more substance. For example, in my business, the end result that people want is not coaching or learning how to think...
READ MORE >
Giving up the illusion of control
25 February 2019
I am writing this piece whilst on a train back home from meeting a valued and trusted client in London. An idea for a new programme had occurred to me and it had been percolating in my mind. I had met with my client to ask, "What do you think...
READ MORE >
Is some stress good for you?
25 January 2019
I was reading an article by a psychologist just recently and he was putting forward the idea that some stress is good for you. He was suggesting that in the absence of stress we would find ourselves sitting around, doing nothing and completely unmotivated. His theory was that you need...
READ MORE >
What it really takes to conduct exceptional client conversations
17 January 2019
The quality of your client conversations is the most important part of the relationship you build with them because they form the foundation of everything else that follows. You could think of it like this… Poor conversations = poor (or no!) relationshipAverage conversations = average relationshipsExceptional conversations = exceptional relationships...
READ MORE >
Does goal-setting work?
6 January 2019
As we enter a new year it is that time when many people make plans, set goals and resolve to be a new, improved version of themselves - new year, new you and all that. A couple of days ago I read that something like 40% of people resolve to...
READ MORE >
Can money really make you happy?
6 December 2018
According to a survey published by Channel 5, 76% of people believe happiness is linked to money but 34% don't agree that money can buy you happiness. So, who is right? The majority or the minority? Dr. Elizabeth Dunn, author of 'Happy Money: The science of happier spending' is quoted...
READ MORE >
Getting clients to come to you
29 November 2018
If you are building your practice then having an increasing number of people seeking you out and wanting to work with you is the ideal situation. What could be better than having great conversations with interested people and hearing them say the magic words... 'So, where do we go from...
READ MORE >
Is over-thinking your barrier to a more wonderful life?
22 November 2018
My good friend Alex Manzi created a popular podcast called Dreamers Disease where he interviews inspirational guests about what they do, why they do it and their motivations. A few weeks ago we met up for a coffee and came up with idea of sending his subscribers a couple of...
READ MORE >
The biggest lie that holds you back
19 November 2018
Do you know what the biggest lie we tell ourselves is? I cannot change. This false belief is at the core of why so many people get stuck in a rut, living out the same old thinking and behavioural habits, often for years. It is also apparent that one of...
READ MORE >
Getting into your client’s world – key number 1
8 November 2018
One of the most important things you can do for your business is going 'above and beyond' to create value for your clients. Professional services are so often delivered in very unimaginative ways that have little difference to how the majority of practitioners deliver them. So, the ability to deeply...
READ MORE >
How to stop sabotaging your own success
1 November 2018
“Many people die with their music still in them. Too often it is because they are always getting ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out.” Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr. An enlightened business leader was teaching a group of new entrepreneurs about increasing their level of success, and...
READ MORE >
How to raise your fees (and have clients willingly pay them)
11 October 2018
Going back over ten years to the early days of my coaching business I was walking along Piccadilly on the way to see a client one day and, quite by chance, I bumped into my friend Jamie who is also a business and corporate coach. We both had a little...
READ MORE >
Finding your life’s purpose
4 October 2018
I was an enthusiastic devourer of self-help and personal development material for well over twenty years, although I have now been in healthy recovery for nearly seven years now. During my addiction I always noticed how much material there is on finding your life's purpose. Have you ever noticed this?...
READ MORE >
Why advisers shouldn’t avoid challenging their clients
27 September 2018
Although the term 'sales' can have negative connotations these days, if you are providing a professional service then engaging new clients and re-engaging existing ones is often an important part of your business. So, what can give you a significant advantage? A while back I came across some research that...
READ MORE >
No pain, no gain vs. no pain, no pain
13 September 2018
Dusan Djukich wrote in his book 'Straight-line Leadership', "Most failure comes from quitting too soon." I guess we have all had projects, ideas and changes we intended to implement but, as he says, we have quit too soon. If we had stayed in the game, then we would have created...
READ MORE >
Your ultimate competitive advantage
3 September 2018
I recently read about a study that revealed that most businesses lose, in profits, around 25 to 30 percent of their annual sales figure due to something called 'COPQ' - the cost of poor quality. Where does 'COPQ' originate? It comes from good, caring and intelligent people making mistakes, errors...
READ MORE >
The 4 keys to getting into your clients world
17 August 2018
Getting deep into the world of your client is the only way you can get to understand them and what they want, and put yourself in a position to deliver beyond their expectations. This is actually far easier than many people seem to make it. What is the starting point?...
READ MORE >
Trust – what builds it and what destroys it?
13 August 2018
Trust is often thought of in terms of behaviours - do trustworthy behaviours and people will trust you. Also, in financial services many people believe that technical mastery is something that builds trust. The idea being that if you have qualifications and professional designations, then this leads to higher trust....
READ MORE >
Who pushes your buttons?
3 August 2018
One fine sunny day Theresa was driving down the M20 towards the south coast with her friend Gavin, enjoying the conversation. That was until another car, driven by Jean-Claude, overtook and cut dangerously across Theresa causing her to brake hard. Theresa was not going to let him get away with...
READ MORE >
The key to doing transformational client work – you go first
31 July 2018
A couple of years ago I attended a conference in Oslo and one of my memories is of Dr. Aaron Turner make a particularly powerful point. Aaron shared a story about a time he was holidaying in Hawaii with his family. They were spending some time on the beach and...
READ MORE >
The Power Of Vulnerability
23 July 2018
As a financial practitioner it is easy to only talk to your clients about products, investments and financial matters. Why? Because it is comfortable for you. It is where you feel safe. It is what you know about. But this isn’t where the real juice in the relationship is –...
READ MORE >
Resilience – The essential key to suffering less and accomplishing more
5 July 2018
Have you noticed how resilience has become a hot topic in business? There are TED talks on it, it is being written about in the Harvard Business Review and organisations are beginning to realise that high resilience levels are a major factor in creating sustainable success. Often, the most successful...
READ MORE >
Quick guide: Get more of your best thinking
2 July 2018
There are many factors involved in the process of creating, running and continually improving your business. Getting clients, servicing them, building an infrastructure, innovating, responding to changes... Success in any of these activities is under-pinned by the quality of thinking that is brought to each one. A client and I...
READ MORE >
Are your clients emotionally engaged?
21 June 2018
In my recent post 'No pressure selling and influence part 2' I touched upon the fact that humans are not driven by reason and logic - we are driven by emotion. Our behaviour is driven by our feeling state. The decisions we make come from how we feel. And what we...
READ MORE >
No pressure selling and influence part 2
14 June 2018
“If the only thing people learned was not to be afraid of their experience, that alone would change the world.” Sydney Banks Being a powerful influencer is a vital aspect of your role with clients and yet it is something that advisers can be uncomfortable with. In part 1 of this...
READ MORE >
No pressure selling and influence part 1
8 June 2018
“This is what it means to serve: improving another’s life and, in turn, improving the world.” Daniel H. Pink, To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others Being an effective influencer and confidently selling your services are essential skills if you want to build a thriving practice based upon...
READ MORE >
The more present you are, the more presence you have
25 May 2018
A few years ago I read a book called 'Clients Forever' by Doug Carter. He very wisely points out that real value is created when clients have a revelation, an 'ah-ha' moment or an insight. This is when they see something new or differently and this is important because people...
READ MORE >
Good advice is useless without leadership
27 April 2018
There is a famous story about a woman visiting Gandhi with her young son. She and her son had travelled a long way and when they eventually got their chance to speak with him he asked how he could help and the woman said "My son eats far too much...
READ MORE >
Qualified Financial Planner – but holding back?
20 April 2018
About 18 months ago I published an article titled 'Qualified Financial Planner - but holding back?'. The inspiration for the piece was actually a friend of mine who's an adviser. He had work really hard to get his financial planning qualifications and yet he wasn't putting into practice any of...
READ MORE >
A crucial key to effortless influence
14 January 2018
Jacques Prevert  a French poet, once walked by a blind beggar who had a sign next to him that read... "Blind Man without a pension." He asked the man how he was doing, and the blind man replied... "Very badly, no one is making any donations." Jacques picked up the...
READ MORE >
Sell the experience, not the concept
25 January 2017
Several years ago I learned from master coach Steve Chandler his 'Eighteen fearless disciplines' for creating clients. He calls them disciplines because you actually have to practice them rather than just know the idea. The first of these disciplines is 'Sell the experience, not the concept' and it can transform...
READ MORE >
What can we learn from doctors who get sued?
4 January 2017
Would you like to build even stronger, more productive relationships with your clients and deliver more value than ever before? Although technical knowledge seems to have taken precedence over everything else for advisers in recent years, what use is it if an adviser is not able to combine what they...
READ MORE >
Qualified financial planner – but holding back?
22 November 2016
Just recently I had lunch with an adviser friend of mine and he revealed to me that despite becoming a certified financial planner five years ago, regularly attending meetings and events for planners and wanting to only offer a financial planning service he is not actually doing it. He said...
READ MORE >
The real problem with fee charging (and it is never about the money)
15 September 2016
Fees and fee charging are now a fact of life for financial professionals and yet it seems to be an area that creates far more challenges than is necessary. Common questions that come up for advisers are: What to charge for? What to actually charge? How to charge? When to...
READ MORE >
Selling your services – are you pushing or pulling?
18 August 2016
'To effectively engage someone, you must be operating from a higher level of consciousness than the other person at that moment'. Garrett Kramer, Stillpower At a time when consumers have more choice, are more demanding and less tolerant of being placed under any kind of negative pressure it has never...
READ MORE >
Do you want more of the right clients?
26 May 2016
An area that many advisers seem to find challenging is finding and engaging enough of the right clients. Naturally, there is a great deal of information and advice available in this area, however, if you feel you have diligently tried to find out what to do and yet continue to...
READ MORE >
The three levels of value creation
14 April 2016
"If you don’t like change, you’re going to like irrelevance even less.” General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff, U. S. Army The primary function of a financial advice practice is to create value for its clients. So, I would imagine that everyone would agree that it is vitally important that...
READ MORE >
The ‘I’ll be happy when’ trap
15 March 2016
One of life's illusions is that the attainment of a particular goal, whatever that may be, will provide us with the happiness, fulfilment and peace of mind that we want. It is an easy trap to fall into. James was an adviser I worked with who wanted to grow his...
READ MORE >
Stay in the world of your client
12 February 2016
Several years ago I was fortunate enough to come across and even get to train a couple of times with the great Steve Chandler. Steve has written over thirty books and is a world famous success coach to high-achieving business people, CEO's, best-selling authors and Fortune 500 companies. For me,...
READ MORE >
The hidden secret of effective business building
20 January 2016
"Why is it that with all the information available today on how to be successful in small business, so few people really are?" Michael Gerber When it comes to building a better business and one that provides more of the rewards that you want there are two kinds of change...
READ MORE >
The inner game of trust
7 January 2016
          Many people experience a great deal of insecurity around money and feel apprehensive when faced with talking about the future. Therefore, engaging the services of a financial adviser is not something that most people will take lightly. From an advisers perspective gaining sufficient trust to...
READ MORE >
Get off the safe ground
14 October 2015
“You have to take risks. We will only understand the miracle of life fully when we allow the unexpected to happen.” Paulo Coelho As a financial practitioner it is easy to only talk to your clients about products, investments and financial matters. Why? Because it is comfortable for you. It...
READ MORE >
Welcome
9 October 2015
The Client-centred adviser blog shares materials on the ultimate source of potential, performance and what is at the very core of being Client-centred. Please feel free to explore, consider for yourself and benefit from the ideas.
READ MORE >

Get your FREE copy of
‘Magical Client Meetings Every Time!’ report and exclusive content

Just pop in your name and email below for immediate download

Your information is not shared or sold to anyone else.

SEARCH BLOG

RECENT POSTS

BLOG CATEGORIES

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

John Dashfield spent 14 years as a self-employed adviser. Since 2006 he has been a coach, mentor and author helping advisers create transformations in their business and personal lives.

Get your FREE copy of the
'Magical Client Meetings Every Time!' report
and exclusive content

Just pop in your name and email below for immediate download

Your information is not shared or sold to anyone else.