I used to live in New York City. In fact, I was born and raised there.
A couple of decades ago I met, I guess what you’d call a “love interest,” and in a blink I was livin’ 3,000 miles away in Southern California, barefoot and pregnant!
Before we go into the fairy tale of the whole thing, I can honestly say, every step of the way, you must prepare yourself for the what’s-to-come.
A true challenge when in new terrain. Will expand on that another time.
Somehow, by the time 2002 rolled around, for some nutty reason, I chose to become licensed in financial planning. Whoopie!
And what I learned from this experience is that anyone who could study (hard) and pay fees (lots of them), is in the club.
Like many before (and after) me, I believed in the system. Believed I could make a difference. Believed I could be an impact player in protecting families.
In some ways, that’s true.
Nothin’s better than insurance … when you need it.
Unfortunately, insurance premiums are usually the first to be cut when a budget gets tight.
The Beginning of the End for Most Financial Planners: Year One!
The industry is shrouded in rules and regs. Most of which are career killers.
Any business operating under the thumb of compliance hurts someone’s pocketbook. Surviving the learning curves of year one make for lean pickings as newbie colleagues fall off the grid.
My top pet peeve is the public flogging of the “do what’s in the best interest of the client” mantra that takes place in most meetings.
Yet, behind closed doors, we’re mired in quotas, fees, and proprietary products to sell … or face even more fees.
Then there’s the pushing of industry spiffs.
If I sell a certain percentage of a certain product line, I could win all sorts of things: from a toaster to a trip.
Last, but certainly not least, there’s the (the unspoken) higher commissions of certain products. Some you get 1%, others you get 8%. So which should I peddle?
In other words, if you happen to be sold something that actually benefits you, call it dumb luck.
The “Friends” and “Family” Plan
Let’s not forget this game called: who do you know? That’s where big brother expects your client base, like charity, to begin at home!
Let’s face it, who else is going to let us into their homes, sit at their coffee tables, and sign on the bottom line, without too much effort.
And thus is how the insurance companies and financial industries make a ton of moulah.
You see, after a few months, most newbie agents and advisers run out of friends and family. And then the real sales begins. Which most fail at.
Leads to be purchased, quotas to be met, cold calls, warm calls, it’s a grind.
Huge Source of Revenue For Financial Institutions
So when most fail, the little dirty secret of the financial industry, is that all those policies written early on, get to say with the company, long after the newbie agent has gone.
Providing, as I said, a huge source of revenue for the financial institutions.
Just sayin’!
Pulling Back The Curtain
Life is what we make it.
As we pull back the curtain on the financial industry, your job is to keep your eyes open.
Don’t get mad … get even!
There are success formulas. Stick with us and we’ll explore the best … and get rid of the rest.
So how do rich people do it?
1. They stay informed.
2. They stay in control.
3. They win more than they lose.
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t … either way, you are right!” ~ Henry Ford
For many, Wall St. is a legal Ponzi scheme. But before you go hating it, make no mistake about it, politicians are in their pockets.
Big government is just a bloated bunch of workers figuring out ways to keep their jobs.
The IRS agent’s job is to get you. If he reported every return as squeaky clean, he’d be on the unemployment line.
The highway patrol officer’s job is to write tickets, make arrests. That’s what brings home the bacon. Some deserved, as in the case of Harry Reid’s brother. Some marginal.
Congress’s job is to protect us from bad things (they’ve most likely created), and save the day.
So how do you get around this?
If you’re gonna roll the dice, roll it on you.
You be the best bet.
We’re not sheep. We do not have to follow the pack.
As Tony Robbin’s says, Burn The Boats. If you want to make something big happen, commit to it. No matter how blustery the storm, how far the island, how small the vessel, stay the course.
So what’s on your course?
Is there a project you have shelved, you’re now ready to develop? A book to be written? A mission to unearth?
Let’s stand united and take back control.
Let me hear from you: soundbites@renegadefinancialplanner.com
And when you get around to it, throw a “like” my way!
Renegade Financial Planner
