This year, my main focus is the undoubtedly the growth of my practice as a Financial Advisor (FA). I spend every day talking to people – potential clients, current clients, other industry professionals, support staff – and it can be incredibly draining. However, one of the reasons I love this job is because I like to meet new people and learn about all their histories. It was the same reason I studied journalism in college and had originally pursued journalism. I get to encounter so many different personalities and hear so many different perspectives on a daily basis and it’s crazy how much people are willing to reveal if you’re willing to ask. In a short period of time I feel as if my own perspective of the world has expanded. If anything, work is never dull.
Meeting good people can really make your day. Good interesting conversations make me forget that I’m even working because I’m enjoying it so much.
An Example of Good People
- I met a fellow Financial Advisor who was over twice my age, but was starting at the same time as me. It turns out that he had already sort of done all this . He had already spent fifteen years at the firm and was even a former lecturer at the same training we met as trainees at. This man had risen through the ranks of management only to be knocked off his pedestal during the merger and forced to either start over or be forced into early retirement. To see someone so humbly start over and do so gratefully reminds me how lucky I am. Despite any career pains I may experience, I am fortunate to have an opportunity to be something great when far more cunning people out there are unemployed.
An Example of Not So Good People
- I came across a 78 year old man who was the victim of a Ponzi scheme. He told me that he had survived both the Vietnam War and the Korean War only to lose it all at the end. He had trusted his Financial Advisor with his life savings and one day, when his roof was in need of repair, he called to cash some out. The Advisor never returned any of his calls and when he realized what was happening he broke down and sobbed at the humiliation.
People like this make me really angry because they give my whole industry a bad name. Because not all of us are here to cheat the public and that many of us believe we are actually helping our clients to the best of our ability.
Cheers to Having My Own Studio (because after a long day, it’s nice to not be around people)
