In a Nutshell: As our industry evolves beyond money management, engaging with clients on their money-life issues and formative experiences surrounding money will be one of your most valuable services.

Guest: Dr. Preston Cherry, the Founder and President of Concurrent Financial Planning, a comprehensive financial planning firm serving households and business owners across generations. Dr. Cherry is also an Assistant Professor of Finance & Personal Financial Planning at the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay's Austin E. Cofrin School of Business, where he is in the process of building a new personal financial planning program.

My Key Takeaways:

1. Experience matters. Your clients are bringing a lifetime of positive and negative money experiences into this working relationship. You need to understand where they're coming from to help them get where they want to go.
2. Bridge generations. Older clients might still be "stuffing money under the mattress." Millennials are curious about the latest bitcoin surge. How are you serving your current client base while broadening your horizons for the next generation?
3. Share your stories. Opening up about the experiences that shaped your own life and career creates real connections. Those connections can create clients for life.

Also Learn:

• Why one of Preston's favorite discovery questions is, "Tell me about a money situation that you've had the last six months."
• How a combination of open dialogue and measurable assessments can keep clients actively engaged with your planning process.
• How to use connection, communication, and convincing to "nudge" your clients towards better financial decisions.
• What Preston saved in an envelope to remind him of an important disconnect between his emotions and his money that he was able to overcome.

Mindy Diamond is the President and CEO of Diamond Consultants in Morristown, NJ. Recently, Mindy invited me to be a guest on her podcast, Mindy Diamond on Independence, and I appreciate her allowing me to share our conversation with you here.

Some of the topics Mindy and I discussed include:

• Why discipline and focus are two essential traits of a financial advisor, especially an RIA CEO who wants to grow a lasting business.
• Some of the most common problem areas that the advisors I coach are working through right now.
• How the best advisors crash through perceived barriers by adjusting their mindsets and matching their dream to their desire.
• The 5 key areas I believe advisors need to focus on to accelerate their growth.
• Wisdom from top advisors like Ric Edelman, Joe Duran, Jon Jones, Elliot Weissbluth, and Peter Mallouk that you can adapt to your own business.
• The ways that the pandemic will continue to affect marketing and messaging as we head into 2021.

Thanks again to Mindy for having me on and for letting me republish this episode.

In a Nutshell: In this era of "fake news" and deep divisions between people, understanding the context behind dominant narratives can help build bridges, stimulate new ideas, and push us all forward.

Guests: Nathaniel Whittemore, a strategy and communications consultant for leading crypto companies as well as the host of The Breakdown, which is my favorite podcast in the crypto world. Nathaniel was also a principle at the venture capital firm Learn Capital and he was on the founding team of Change.org.

My Key Takeaway: As you try to anticipate some of the narratives that could shape your story in 2021:

• Think macro. Big ideas like Bitcoin and MMT could have more of an impact on global economics than they do on how we buy and sell things day to day.
• Explore in good faith. There are thoughtful folks on both sides of every issue who are worth listening to and learning from.
• Share your diagnoses. When we talk about problems we agree on, we're more likely to arrive at meaningful and inclusive solutions.

Also Learn:

• Why, as a financial tool, Bitcoin might not be an "either or" but more of an "and."
• What the broader applications for crypto could mean for developing countries and creative companies.
• How narratives can create self-fulfilling prophesies that alter our beliefs.
• Which narratives Nathaniel Whittemore is trying to break right now to expand the range of political and economic possibilities he shares with his audience.