Improve Your Practice By Making It 4D

We didn’t suddenly hire 500 people, however. First came a person to help me. Then more people. Then people to help the people we already hired. We added by onesies and twosies initially, then a handful at a time, and now we hire entire recruiting classes. We’re seeking people constantly in every area of the company, not just experienced advisors but people in every department. That’s how, after 27 years, we find ourselves with 500 employees in 41 offices around the country. It’s a slow metamorphosis, an evolutionary process. And it explains how, as of April 30 of this year, my firm had 120 advisors serving 27,000 people and managing $15 billion.

And it all begins with delegating.

It’s that simple. But it’s not easy. So I’ll devote a future column entirely to this topic.

The Fourth D: ‘Do’
By now, we have dumped the junk, delayed what’s not urgent and delegated assignments that others can do. What’s left are the tasks that must be done now, and only you can do them. So get on with it.

If you’ve mastered the first three “D’s,” you’ll find that your to-do list is very small, but everything on it is essential. For most advisors, probably including you, a to-do list should consist almost entirely of talking and meeting with clients.

So if you agreed at the outset of this column that your top complaint is a lack of time to spend with your clients, you can solve this problem by developing a 4D practice, or by joining a firm that has one in place for you. (That’s how my firm’s advisors are able to handle far more clients than the average advisor, which increases their career satisfaction—and their income.)

If you want to take your practice to the next level, 4D can get you there. 


Ric Edelman is the chairman and CEO of Edelman Financial Services LLC, a registered investment advisor. He is an investment advisor representative who offers advisory services through EFS and a registered principal of (offering securities through) Sanders Morris Harris Inc., an affiliated broker-dealer. You can connect with him on LinkedIn or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RicEdelman. Follow him on Twitter at @RicEdelman.