I spent 33 years consulting with Olympic and professional athletes, and I’ve found that there are many parallels with the mentoring services I offer to financial advisors like you.
Just like good athletes, financial advisors are gifted professionals. You studied diligently in college, took rigorous training in finance and business, took and passed your professional licensing tests, received ongoing training and learned about a plethora of products you could provide for clients. You understand the basics of financial planning and even know a thing or two about selling yourself to prospective clients.
But are you performing your best?
Many of you have never reached your potential because you continually judge yourself against your colleagues. Or you feel inadequate, overwhelmed and exhausted by the rigors of prospecting and dealing with never ending fiduciary and regulatory changes, etc. So you find yourself underperforming, as many gifted athletes do.
But employing “sport psychology” techniques can help. With these you can supercharge your confidence, dramatically increase your referrals and build your clients’ trust in you.
In my future blogs, I will address a variety of different sport psychology techniques, but here I will address how to come back from difficult challenges, such as volatile markets, and deal with the stress of handling difficult and disenchanted clients.
Building a Comeback “Mind Set” In Challenging Times
Just as athletes need to learn mental toughness skills to carry them through challenging times, you can learn the exact same skills to propel yourself.
Each of you has a trigger event, or events, that set off your insecurity, lack of confidence, fear of failure, etc. The first step is to understand where that vulnerability is for you. For example, is it toxic clients insisting on speaking with you when you are busy, or your superior threatening you by comparing your AUM with that of others in your firm? Once you admit those vulnerabilities to yourself, you can develop the mind set to overcome them.
Just as mentally tough athletes let go of mistakes, wait for the next opportunity and take one play at a time, so can you. This will help you ride the waves of difficult days so you can enjoy weeks of accomplishment.
To do this, you must have an action plan for the week.
- Make a list of the negative, self-destructive thoughts that go through your mind every time you feel stressed in your career. Be honest with yourself and write them all down.
Example: “I get anxious each time the market tanks.”
- Have a handy written list of positive, rational thoughts about your career, reminding yourself of past challenges and how you overcame them, and include testimonials from happy clients.
Example: “I will always remember how grateful and appreciative the Smith family was when I prepared them for a financially secure retirement.”
- Remind yourself that you continue to help so many clients and their families maintain their wealth and security. Even though negative things happen (there are bad markets and errors are made, etc.), keep looking at these events as challenges that you can overcome.
- If your assertiveness skills with disgruntled clients need a boost, you can learn how to become much more assertive (not aggressive). Call me for help in that area.
- Visualize yourself comforting your clients by sticking to your core investment values and showing your clients how this strategy has paid off in the past and will continue to in the future. Demonstrate the same patience with the current environment that you want your clients to practice.
- View your present situation as a challenge, not a threat. Don’t overanalyze and question yourself. Let go of things beyond your control. Focus forward and recognize that you will get through this to smooth sailing again.
- You can discover a variety of mental toughness strategies that can be found in my book, The Financial Advisor’s Ultimate Stress Mastery Guide, and practice them daily. It’s really easy, and these are all very powerful techniques.
Dr. Jack Singer is a professional psychologist, speaker and a Stress Mastery Mentor for smart financial advisors like you. He is the author of The Financial Advisor’s Ultimate Stress Mastery Guide, which can be ordered in the FA Mag Bookstore, using this link: /book--ultimate-stress-mastery-guide. To learn more about Dr. Jack’s keynote speaking and exclusive mentoring services for financial advisors and his unique, referral-generating program for your next Client Appreciation Event, contact Jack at [email protected], call him at 1-800-497-9880 and read more at http://www.advisingtheadvisors.com