As someone looking to make smart decisions about your money so you can live a life of significance, one of your biggest goals should be to ensure you’re getting value from your professionals—the wealth managers, lawyers, accountants and similar experts you rely on for guidance. This becomes especially true as your level of wealth grows over time and your financial concerns and objectives become increasingly complex. With that in mind, consider how you would rate the following statements in terms of their accuracy as they relate to you and your experiences.
In our view, each answer you rated a 1, 2 or 3 means that an important element of your working arrangement with the critical professionals in your life is far from optimal.
Answers that you rated 4, 5, 6 or 7 often mean that the element in question is in progress but your professionals could do better.
The 8-, 9- and 10-rated answers indicate that the professionals you rely on are where you want them to be—they’re adding real value to your financial life. If you ranked some statements 1 through 7, you may be able to make improvements. Take a moment to consider what it might mean if you could rate every statement an 8, 9 or 10.
- How might your life and your financial world improve?
- How would your ability to take care of the people you love and the causes you care about be enhanced or even optimized?
THREE DRIVERS OF EXCEPTIONALISM
Achieving an optimal financial world for yourself and the people you care about most is largely a function of three key drivers: the human element, a cohesive team and systematic processes. These drivers are fundamental to all types of professional relationships.
- The human element. This powerful driver is essential because it addresses the quality of the relationship you have with the professionals you engage. In our experience, the way to consistently get great results is to work with professionals who truly and deeply understand you—and who are able to communicate with you in a way that truly resonates with you. This is what we call the human element—the extent to which advisors and other experts who serve you get to really know you “beyond the numbers.”
- A cohesive team. When it comes to your overall financial life and its many moving parts (which might include investments, tax management, estate planning, philanthropy, business operations and so on), it is extraordinarily unlikely that one single professional can do everything you need and want. In our experience, no single expert—not even the smartest or hardest-working one—possesses the full range of knowledge that affluent clients require. That’s why we believe you need a strongly motivated team of experts.
That said, it takes more than just any old roster of skilled professionals to pursue exceptional outcomes. Those professionals also need to be able to work together seamlessly on your behalf. That’s the “cohesive” part of the team equation. Referrals to other experts are good—but what can really make the difference is when all the experts come together to work collaboratively and creatively on your behalf. When that happens, there is typically one professional—often a wealth manager or an accountant—who coordinates the team and the process of working together. The end result can potentially be ideas, plans and solutions that wouldn’t have been thought of if each professional stayed working in their own “silo.” - Systematic processes. Some professionals deal with their clients in a haphazard, disjointed manner—an approach that makes it essentially impossible to get optimal results. On the other hand, there are proven methodologies to ensure that you get ideal, integrated results. When you have a professional adeptly coordinating the efforts of other experts on your behalf and doing so based on proven methodologies, you can enhance the likelihood of achieving the best outcomes. Bottom line: You want the professionals you work with to use systematic processes to engage with you and your finances.
Our advice: Strive for excellence by identifying and working with professionals who see the importance of being exceptional—and who have the resources in place to actually be exceptional on your behalf. It’s one of the best ways we know to pursue optimal financial outcomes—now and in the years to come.
Fidato Wealth LLC is a Registered Investment Adviser. Please note that the use of the term “SEC Registered Investment Adviser” and description of Fidato Wealth LLC and/or our associates as “registered” does not imply a certain level of skill or training. This brochure is solely for informational purposes. Advisory services are only offered to clients or prospective clients where Fidato Wealth LLC and its representatives are properly licensed or exempt from licensure. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns. Investing involves risk and possible loss of principal capital. No advice may be rendered by Fidato Wealth LLC unless a client service agreement is in place. If you are not the intended recipient, or the employee or agent responsible for delivering the message to the intended recipient, you are notified that any review, copying, distribution or use of this transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please (i) notify the sender immediately by e-mail or by telephone and (ii) destroy all copies of this message. Please note that trading instructions through email, fax or voicemail will not be taken, as your identity and timely retrieval of instructions cannot be guaranteed. If you do not wish to receive marketing emails from this sender, please send an email to sayhello@fidatowealth.com. This article was published by the VFO Inner Circle, a global financial concierge group working with affluent individuals and families and is distributed with its permission. Copyright 2024 by AES Nation, LLC. Fidato Wealth is not affiliated with AES Nation, LLC. AES Nation, LLC is the creator and publisher of the VFO Inner Circle Flash Report.
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