Many planners do not have time to get to the things they themselves admit are the most important.  Why is that?  Most of us get overwhelmed when we are in the day-to-day rigors of our work.  One minute we get pulled one direction and the next minute we are pull in another.  To be more successful, planners need to take a break from their daily responsibilities and look ahead to the future.

For those that are drowning in work, I advised them to track a week’s worth of work in 15-minute increments.  After that week is over, evaluate where the time goes.  Does it get dedicated to client service, administration, management, sales, marketing, human resources, training, technology, compliance or something else?  For most, the results can be an eyeopener.

Assess The Situation

For many, they do not know exactly what they need to do to be more successful.  They often try to do too many things at once, and as a result, they do not do any of those well.

For these financial planners, I advised them to do a SWOT analysis, usually with all the associates of their advisory firm.  By writing down the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, first for the firm and them for themselves, it gives a starting point for a business plan.  For the most part, strengths and weaknesses address the current short-term plan, while opportunities and threats can play into the longer-term planning.

It is then a good idea to conduct third-party client research to layer on their thoughts.  By taking these steps, a list of major initiatives should be easy to put together.

Depending on the resources and bandwidth of the firm, the initiatives should be prioritized and the most important items should be the focus.  Other things should be put in a “parking lot” until there is time to get to them.  That way they do not distract the financial planner, but at the same time they are not forgotten.

Balance Personal Needs

Too often business success can come at the cost of an advisor’s personal happiness.  To avoid this very common issue, up front it should be clear what is important so an advisor can have greater purpose, passion and realized potential.

Rabbi Daniel Cohen also spoke on that same concept in his keynote address. He said we need to live inspired, and many of us will look back and say, “Where did the time go?” For that reason, he asked the attendees, “How do we slow down time?”  He mentioned, “Many of us suffer from ‘CPA disease.’  Continue partial attention.”  Instead we should be living in the moment.  He challenged the audience, by asking, “What are we doing today that is worthy of a future memory?”