My wife recently bought front-row tickets for the local high school’s performance of The Wizard of Oz. She was excited to take our daughter and 6-year-old niece out to dinner and to the show. Dinner was great, but after the kids were ushered to their VIP seats up front, we discovered a major problem. When our niece sat down, it became painfully obvious that she couldn’t see the entire stage. It was so tall that she couldn’t see over it from her spot right behind the orchestra pit, which meant she would miss a lot of the action in back. It meant my wife would be holding her for part of the show.

This is obviously a First World problem.

Financial professionals often have a different kind of front-row seat. We are getting to see up close the huge transition of baby boomers into retirement. We see those who are just starting to plan for it, people already in the throes, and those already living in it. We get to see how they accumulated their savings, what their plans are for life after work, and how the transition affects them both personally and financially. It’s an interesting play.

But like my niece, some of us are getting a partially obstructed view, missing the backdrop and scenes playing out in the background. We can see a few major players but miss the supporting cast.

The things going on up front usually involve finances. Yet when you really take a look at everything, particularly things going on in the back, you get a very different experience.

I recently met with a couple dealing with a forced retirement. The husband was getting let go from his career after 25 years. He wasn’t mad about it. Instead, he was grateful for the opportunity to move on to something else. He was only 60. But he didn’t have the financial resources to retire yet. So we discussed several job opportunities in front of him and their financial ramifications.

Eventually, I asked them, “What are your favorite things to do when you’re not working and on weekends?” Turns out, Thursdays were their big date nights. On the weekends, they enjoyed volunteering and attending church. They also had some other events planned.

One simple background question made it clear that two of the four new opportunities would cancel key moments they wanted to enjoy together. And that could have served as a wedge in their relationship. If they have less quality and planned time together, they might grow apart, resent their decision to make the change, and potentially add stress to the situation again in the future if the husband has to make another job change.

I said, “Well I think you just eliminated a few of those job prospects.”

Money and benefits are often the star attractions of the show. Don’t get me wrong. Those are important things. But if I had stayed in my financial advisor seat with a limited view, I don’t know if I would still be managing their joint account in a couple of years.

This problem plays out in so many ways with our other clients, which is why it’s so important to pay attention and ask more backdrop questions to improve their retirement transitions.

Another client of mine was a woman who sold her big beautiful house a couple of years ago after her husband passed away. She was unsure what she wanted to do or where she wanted to live, so she opted to rent a nice condo in a new development. Then a new landlord prompted her to seek other options.

She started looking for homes, but got sticker shock and couldn’t find anything that fit her taste. She was quick to jump into the numbers, asking me about different situations and possible scenarios. After a few minutes, I stopped her and asked, “What if we put you first, and then figured out the money stuff later?

“For example,” I continued, “what’s most important to you about where you live right now?” She said she liked her neighbors, appreciated the fact that she didn’t have to worry about the furnace or hot water tank going on and needing to find someone to fix it, and that her friends were close by.

Next we talked about what she didn’t like, which was that she didn’t feel as if she could put her stamp on the rented condo. I asked her what she wanted to do specifically. She wanted the kitchen painted, new hardware on her kitchen cabinets and a bathroom with more stylish light fixtures and vanity.

I asked her if she knew someone like a handyman who did painting and that kind of bathroom and cabinet work. She did—there was a guy the condo association recommended for residents. I suggested that she ask him to come over and give her a quote for the work.

I’m sure you can see where this is going. She got the quote, shared it with the new landlord, and they agreed to split the cost of the work. She didn’t have to trudge through a new home purchase, pack up and move, add more worries or move further away from her supporting cast. The tone and direction of the meeting and her life could have been very different right now. The backdrop was important to the story.

There are myriad other examples, but the main thing I want to get across to advisors is this: Just like a good play transports you into another world and other lives, you need to be transported into the play that is the personal life and situations of your clients. You need to get swept up into the background of their lives and understand that the scenes, lighting and music will change. Sometimes it may be bright and cheery while others times it’s dark and somber.

The final act for clients’ lives hasn’t been written yet, and you have a front-row seat to not only watch it unfold but also to help direct it, set the stage and create the conditions for their best performance. But in order to do that, you have to adjust your seat and be willing to look at more than who is center stage in the show. That’s how you and your clients will get that standing ovation we all want and deserve.

Robert Laura is a best-selling author, nationally syndicated columnist and the president of Wealth & Wellness Group. He is a seasoned conference speaker, corporate trainer and founder of the Certified Professional Retirement Coach designation, which focuses on the non-financial aspects of life after work. He can be reached at [email protected].