Relationships





Relationships are the life blood of our personal and professional lives.  We are constantly reminded of this fact by our “friends” at Hallmark and recently at Tender.  Relationships are on our minds as we recently celebrated Galentine’s or Valentine’s day.  Heck, we spent a record amount on Valentine's this year.  Our blog this week discusses the importance of relationships for Wealth Advisory firms and more importantly their clients.  


First Date


We put too much pressure on our first date.  “Can you set me up?” makes some major assumptions that you like the same type of person that I like and more importantly they will like me!  Referrals are a major source of growth for most wealth management firms.  The assumptions here are even greater and potentially serious.  A diversified portfolio that works for me might not work for you and your family.  What can we do?  Our experience is to spend time with the advisory firm and to read any thought pieces that the firm produces.  Hopefully this will help you decide. 


Diversity


Diversity is a corporate buzz word that sounds good, but we need to make sure that we and our advisors are not just paying lip service to this important item.  The community that the wealth advisory firm is located has a large impact on its diversity. All wealth advisory firms can't be headquartered in San Francisco or New York City.  We can’t change that reality, but we can change ourselves.  Our responsibility  is to observe the professionals at the firm and ask to meet their clients.   Diverse professionals and clients provide new and fresh perspectives that can help us.  This is easier said than done and should not prevent us from making our final decision.



Philanthropy


Our generosity is essential for our personal and community’s well-being.  Ask your advisor what charities are import to them and how they support the charity.  Time is much more important than money and volunteers receive surprising benefits from their charitable work.

Choosing our long-term relationships requires time and is more involved than just swiping right.



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