Working With Busy Professionals
Time
Throughout my career, I have frequently worked with busy professionals and often the biggest challenge we face is time – how do we cover a range of financial planning matters in a relatively short period of time?
I would normally meet my client at their office and we may only have about an hour or so which means making efficient use of time is extremely important.
I would have prepared an agenda beforehand and this would have been sent to the client for them to add any additional agenda items along with any preparatory documents such as their Annual Review.
Our meeting can then cover a brief review of what has happened over the previous six to 12 months and we can agree an action plan for the next 12 months.
I believe that it is important to work collaboratively with clients and to ensure that I have addressed any concerns they might have and that we have covered everything that they have wanted to discuss. Often, the most important question on the agenda is the first question, “What has happened over the last six to 12 months?”
I would generally close the meeting with a big-picture question for my client to reflect upon, for example:
What is your number – what level of accumulated capital are you striving for that would make you feel financially comfortable?
What would you do if you could spend your time doing exactly what you want?
Over time, these types of questions help build a picture of the lifestyle my client is aiming to achieve enabling us to design the most suitable financial planning strategy.
Attributes
In my experience, busy professionals are looking for a number of attributes in their financial planner:
Trust
This is a given especially as the client is sharing deeply personal information and relying on their planner for their family’s financial well-being.
Someone who can lighten the load
Busy professionals have a lot going on so being able to take away the stress of ensuring ISA allowances are used, pension contributions are made and they are up-to-date on any changes to tax rules is important.
Having a plan and making sensible financial planning decisions
Markets can be volatile in the short-term so being disciplined and taking a long-term view is important for clients to achieve their goals.
Communication
Busy professionals want timely responses to emails and clear, concise communication. An executive summary is generally the most important part of any recommendation.
Service
Busy professionals want an awesome level of service and a firm that does what they say they will.
We are obviously biased but we believe Mangu Wealth Management can offer all of these things.
If you are a busy professional and would like to discuss your financial planning requirements, please do get in touch.