The Human Side of Money

In 2005, Josh Gilliam set out to research, read, and learn everything he could about behavioral finance, psychology, and communication.  He was seeking to master the human side of advice.  18 years later, he admits it’s still a work in progress. But, he took what he learned and created the [Fi] Life Framework. A framework he uses to facilitate better conversations and connections with client...

In 2005, Josh Gilliam set out to research, read, and learn everything he could about behavioral finance, psychology, and communication.  He was seeking to master the human side of advice. 18 years later, he admits it’s still a work in progress. But, he took what he learned and created the [Fi] Life Framework. A framework he uses to facilitate better conversations and connections with clients...

If you work with people and their money to fund something now or in the future, it’s absolutely crucial that you understand the dynamic between goals and values. Once you can move beyond goals and understand what’s truly important to the person you’re meeting with, everything changes. In fact, once you embrace and internalize this dynamic, research shows it creates emotionally co...

As behavioral finance has moved into the mainstream, one thing has become clear. It’s great to know there’s a way to explain a client’s sub-optimal behavior. But, it’s an entirely different challenge to know what to do about it.  In other words, behavioral finance has done a great job of providing advisors with a list of diagnoses: Overconfidence, anchoring, Dunning-Kreuger...

Asking great questions is a superpower for financial advisors. But, it’s not enough to simply ask questions. The types of questions, the timing of questions, and the tone of questions all matter. In other words, there’s an art to asking great questions. Fortunately, Warren Berger is a Questionologist and the world’s foremost authority on questions. He is here to walk us through t...

Every advisor always wants to know what questions to ask. But, more important than WHAT you ask is WHEN you ask it. A great question asked at the wrong time is no longer a great question. In this episode, we’ll go through six different steps of the client journey and arm you with three questions to use at each stage: Intro Call Discovery Meeting Onboarding Implementation/Recommendations Revi...

We all know that human beings buy on emotion and justify with logic. Yet, when meeting with a prospect, the majority of advisors default to leading with logic rather than emotion. The success of your prospect meeting hinges on your ability to communicate in a way that takes them out of their heads and into their hearts. Once you do that, you can create a level of trust in 3 minutes that often take...

Financial advice requires working with money and people. Working with money is the easy part. You need a calculator and some decent math skills. Working with people is the hard part. You need an understanding of what goes on in their brain. Ted Klontz says, “The more you understand how the brain works, the more effective you’ll be working with people.” In this episode, he reveals...

This is the inaugural “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode. Whether it’s been emails, Twitter DM’s, LinkedIn messages, one-off virtual meetings, coaching sessions, or at a conference, one thing has become clear about financial advisors and the human side of advice. You guys have questions. A lot of really good questions and I want to help you answer them on your path to masterin...

Everything changed during FPA Retreat in Cheyenne County, Colorado in 1995. Up to that point, the focus of these gatherings, conferences and presentations was the continued honing of technical knowledge. But, this presentation by George Kinder and Dick Wagner brought the human side of advice into the light. Dave Yeske was in attendance that day and calls the presentation a turning point for the hu...

Think back to a time when you were “in the zone.” A time when you were completely immersed and focused on what you were doing. Psychologists refer to this as “flow.” It’s a state of mind that athletes and creative artists describe when they’re operating at their peak. A flow state elicits greater enjoyment, energy, and involvement in what you’re doing. So,...

You’ll never truly master the human side of advice until you have the right mindset to do it. And, unfortunately, most advisors need a complete re-programming. One that wipes clean most of what you’ve been taught over the years. A mindset shift that transforms the way you approach your clients and your practice. If that sounds daunting, don’t worry. I’ve distilled it into 9...

In healthcare, client outcomes and client satisfaction are directly correlated to the doctor’s “bedside manner.” The same holds true for client outcomes and satisfaction in financial planning and advice. In fact, research has shown that the #1 thing prospects look for in an advisor is “Interpersonal Skills.” But how do you create trust and improve your interpersonal s...

Ever wondered why you don’t get more referrals from your clients? Good News: Most advisors have a client base that’s willing to refer. Bad News: Most clients aren’t capable of executing a referral. Armed with this information, Dan Allison designed a comfortable process for advisors that creates clients who are both willing and able to refer. And once you combine the two, the refe...

The Human Side of Money in 2022: Released 28 episodes Had 21 conversations with expert guests Delivered 2,342 minutes of content on the human side of advice Inside those 28 episodes, 21 conversations and 2,342 minutes lie hundreds of ideas, insights, and nuggets that will do two things: 1) Enhance and enrich your clients’ lives 2) Forever change the trajectory of your business and career But...

Every advisor has two puzzles to solve: What to do and how to get them to do it! The first requires an understanding of numbers. The second is an understanding of people. Whether you’re trying to get a prospect to become a client or a client to implement your advice…One thing is certain.  The least effective way to get them to do something is to push or persuade them. The most effectiv...

Most goal-setting exercises have one major flaw. They focus too much on WHAT someone wants to accomplish rather than WHY they want to accomplish it. The best goal-setting exercises combine the two. They produce goals that are both meaningful and measurable. Goals that provide connection and clarity. And when you do that, clients are motivated, inspired, and resilient. But, the question is how? For...

The discovery meeting is the single most important meeting for your clients and your practice. If you’re like most, you’ve probably looked up “the best questions to ask prospects in a first meeting.” You’ve likely picked up ideas listening to podcasts with advisors explaining how they conduct their meetings. You’ve implemented the tips and tricks you gathered from talking with fellow advisors. But...

You can’t help a prospect if they never become a client. You can’t help a client if they don’t implement your advice. Like it or not, both require a skillset rooted in sales. As Nancy Bleeke points out, sales isn’t about being pushy.  It’s simply an information exchange. And the purpose isn’t to convince someone to do something. Rather, it’s to guide them...

No client actually cares about maximizing their wealth. Every client cares about maximizing their life. Therefore, money should never be a goal. It should simply be a tool. A tool that funds the life you want to live. That’s why every client needs to define their “financial purpose.” It allows clients to align their money with what’s truly most important in their lives (rat...

Your client’s decisions are almost always subconsciously driven by invisible influences. Should I wear a suit? Should CNBC be on in the lobby? Does the way I’m presenting the info influence the client’s decision? Should I offer free financial planning in the beginning or charge for it? Whether these things should influence a client’s decision-making or not, they do. Fortuna...

The job of a financial advisor and planner isn’t simply to dispense the advice, pat yourself on the back, and walk away as if your job is done. It’s to help the client follow through on your advice. Ensuring they implement and execute the items you’ve laid out that solve their problems and achieve their goals. The reality is that getting clients to actually follow through and implement the advice...

Money and happiness will forever be intertwined, specifically the relationship between the two. While money may not be able to buy happiness, it can certainly influence it. When you’re working with people and their money, you have the opportunity to help them use their money in a way that accumulates happiness rather than just simply accumulating wealth. Chris Budd runs an organization focus...

Money decisions are never just about money. Research tells us that about 90% of all financial decisions are made emotionally, not logically. Decisions driven by our mind rather than our money. And every financial behavior, even if it appears illogical, makes perfect sense once you understand the underlying beliefs, feelings, and thoughts that accompanied the decision. These beliefs, feelings, and...

Whether you’ve been an advisor for four days or four decades, you know that your client’s success has just as much to do with their mind as their money. It’s simply not enough to run through Monte Carlo simulations and construct diversified portfolios. And you know it’s critical for you to be able to understand your client’s psychology and behaviors around money. But,...