One Year In
HWM turns one on October 18th. I said I wanted to post here at least once a week, and on average, I’ve made it happen. I missed a few early on (changing firms is quite the endeavour), but since then I’ve been able to stick to the schedule.
I’ve written over 50 posts now and the content has varied. Looking back, I can say that some posts were just awful, while other posts I share regularly (SoRR, Irrelevant Dividends, and Dunning Kruger). The most important thing I’ve learned, though, is just how important it is to keep showing up (or to keep writing).
This post isn’t about writing, though, I did that already (link here). This post is about what I’ve learned over the last year, along with some of my goals for the future. Here they are.
What I’ve Learned
1. I’m never doing this again.
I know, I know. Never say never, right?
The stress caused from moving from my previous firm to RJ was immense. It was stressful for me, Carey, my previous colleagues, and my new colleagues. But especially for all the people who trust me with their life savings. It was a rug pull, and I still feel bad about it. I’m glad most of them found me. I’m also glad a ton of new people found me too.
2. You’re either right for us or you’re not.
Early in my career, I was happy to bring on just about anyone as a client. But I won’t do that anymore. It wouldn’t be fair to existing clients, or to us. It’s why I always have a quick phone call before scheduling a first meeting.
3. Punctuality is paramount.
When I say I’ll call you at 9:15am, your phone will ring at 9:15am. When I say I’ll be in touch on June 5th to follow-up about XYZ, I’ll be in touch on June 5th to talk about XYZ. There is no better compliment from a client than when they pick up their phone at 915am and say, “Wow, you weren’t lying about 915am.” It’s part of the brand and it’s important.
4. Speak up only when it matters.
This is just a fancy way of saying, “pick your battles.” There were a lot of things at my previous firm that irked me. There are plenty of things at this firm that irk me. I’ve only brought up two of them, and they were resolved quickly. One of my good friends had to remind me, “there is no such thing as a perfect firm, Vince. It’s your job to make it look perfect to your clients, though.”
5. Find good help when you need it.
I don’t like the insurance process. Don’t get me wrong, life insurance, disability insurance, and critical illness insurance is vital when it comes to financial planning. I just don’t like it. I have an entire insurance team here to help with all things insurance (and segregated funds). Their help has been immense.
I can also call on a team of people with a whole heck of a lot of letters after their names for advanced tax, estate, and business planning. Their help has been invaluable.
What’s Next
1. I like the way we do things.
Show don’t tell. I know this is something you learn in creative writing, but it’s been the phrase I most often use when training new advisors. We’ll continue to get better and better at doing the most important things right. Simple is tough but best. We’ll keep it that way and we’ll prove it in how we work, not in what we say.
2. I want to grow but not for the sake of growing.
I know advisors who want to join us. And I want them to join us. But only if they’re bought into how we do things. I can’t wait to add an associate advisor next year. Once that associate is ready to rock, I hope to add a few more advisors too. But I don’t want to grow just for the sake of growing. I want to grow so that we can offer clients and potential clients the advice that we think is right.
3. Continue to counter needless complication.
No predictions. No fake complexity. No knee-jerk reactions. We will keep things simple, and we will call out people who needlessly make things complicated purely for the sake of marketing.
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We’ve got a long way to go, and I’ve got a lot of goals that I want to achieve by this time next year, but I’ll keep them to myself. For now.
