Getting organized has been a big focus with this Plancorp client. “One of our biggest value-adds has been putting together a comprehensive financial independence analysis, which includes all her income, assets in various locations and expenses,” says Gelsheimer.
This analysis shows the client’s cash flow and her probability of living a “successful” retirement, says Gelsheimer. She has built a plan based on a life span of 100 years (instead of the typical 95 years) because longevity runs in the client’s family.
Gelsheimer’s client is very frugal—still working outside the farm by choice and not out of necessity—and has more than enough money to be more generous with herself. She has recently started to take nice vacations with her grandchildren.
“I feel like she has more energy and spunk than I do and she’s a lot older than I am,” says Gelsheimer, 34.
Building Rapport
Despite their big age difference, Gelsheimer, who has been in the industry for 11 years, says she was able to easily and quickly build a rapport with the client. Initially, an older colleague also sat in on the meetings.
Gelsheimer says she and her client spend the first 15 to 20 minutes of meetings talking about life. She types notes into the system about anniversaries and trips the client mentions and brings them up during their subsequent conversations.
“Those little things show that I legitimately care about her as a person,” says Gelsheimer, who started out as a social work major and then realized, while taking a finance class, that she could use her love of math to help people.
Showing her client she cares is “more important than showing her that I put together a really cool spreadsheet,” says Gelsheimer. “The biggest thing with the business is relationships.”