As I was making a few changes to the website for GreenBridge Advisors, I found myself thinking about what it actually takes to be a good financial professional.  I started considering the importance of age, education, experience, and certifications first.  I personally believe that age has nothing to do with one’s qualifications, and certifications generally apply to a specific area.  Educational background and experience certainly are up on the list of important things to consider.  Then I started thinking about all of the horror stories I have heard throughout my career and realized that it is the intangibles that truly make someone stand out from the rest.

Yes, intangibles: qualities that cannot be quantified.  Anyone can work in an industry for a number of years, or attain a certain professional achievement.  The thing is, however, there are just some qualities that are even more important.  Perhaps at the top of the list is honesty.  It may sound trivial, but a majority of white-collar crimes arise out of a lack of honesty.  The ability to be transparent with a client as to one’s true intentions and desires:  Is a client’s interests truly best served investing in a certain mutual fund or is it because the fund carries a hefty load that will benefit the advisor’s interests?  It can be as simple as padding fees on a mortgage loan, and claiming that the fees are a “necessary part of the application process”.  Transparency and honesty are the foundation of trust in any relationship, especially one where the client’s money is involved. nolvadex

Another key trait that a truly special financial professional will possess is the ability to communicate.  This doesn’t mean that the professional has to be a charmer.  No, this means that the professional has to be able to actually listen: listen to a client’s background, their needs, desires, concerns, confusion, etc.  Once all of the pertinent information has been obtained, the next step is being able to communicate back to the client what the plan of action is going to be, but in such a way that the client will not only feel completely comfortable, they will actually understand everything.  A major point of concern with people who work with any kind of professional advisor is the inability to escape the constant use of industry jargon, which only leads to more confusion.

To some people, this quality may go hand in hand with honesty, but making each and every client feel relevant is something that oftentimes falls by the wayside.  Each client needs to be treated as if they are the only client a professional has–not just the few that pay the most.  Part of building a business relationship involves building a personal relationship, and nobody wants to be involved in either type if they feel neglected or as though they do not matter.  Too many professionals (in any field) tend to concentrate a majority of their attention on a select few clients.  If one cannot devote the requisite amount of time that each client needs simply because the income is not there, then they should not have taken on those clients in the first place. 

What it comes down to, is that a business relationship is essentially the same as a personal relationship.  Aside from education and experience, those who are able to be truthful, communicative, and make time for each of their clients will be successful.  Simply possessing knowledge and having years of experience alone are no longer all that define a truly good financial professional.

It is perhaps the true “American Dream”: to leave your job working for someone else and start your own business.  The idea is that not only do you have more control–over your time commitment, pay, the types of customers you deal with–but it also enables people to engage in an activity they actually have a passion for.  However, just having that passion is not enough to make a venture successful.  It takes thorough planning and a major time investment.  Below I outline several key steps that need to be considered when making the leap from employee to employer (in no particular order of importance since they are all important) which I have learned though my experiences as well as from others.

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• Choose something that you have a passion for.  This venture is still a job, and you will be less likely to put forth the requisite effort and care if you are not emotionally attached to the business. 
• Never just decide one day to quit your job.  You need to have reserves or cash flow to cover personal as well business expenses in case it takes longer to establish a customer base and start turning a profit. 
• Do your research into the market you are looking to get into.  Unless you have a new invention or can revolutionize a current process, you need to find a niche market in which you can differentiate yourself from every other similar business.
• Always consult a legal professional, preferably one that specializes in business start-ups or an accounting professional.  They will be the best source of guidance when it comes to selecting a business structure and naming issues, as well as state and local licensing issues.
• Stick to what you know best and do not try to do everything yourself!  If you are not good at handling finances, then hire an accountant or bookeeper.  If you are not graphically inclined, then hire a design firm to create your logo and marketing tools.  It is always cheaper to spend the money and have it done right from the begining than it is to fix a problem. 
• Do not rush.  Take your time and make sure that everything is to your specification.  You need to be able to 100% ready for business from day the doors first open. 
• Network.  Tell everyone you know about your business.  Word of mouth is the cheapest and most effective form of marketing.  Also solicit their opinions on everything from the name of the business to the logo design to the promotions you will be having.  Having outsiders who are less biased critique your business leads to more honest answers and will most likely reflect the public’s opinions as well.
• Make sure to budget enough money for advertising & marketing, as well as overhead, legal & accounting, insurance, etc. 
• Have patience.  Success is not an overnight occurance, and generally will take much time, effort, and work.
• Talk to people who are successful in the industry you are looking to enter (although try to choose people who you will not be in direct competition with).  Try to pick their brains as much as you can without seeming to be intrusive.  Many succesful people are more than happy to share their stories.
• Join professional associations, the local Chamber of Commerce, networking groups.  Form strategic alliances with other who offer similar yet distinctive products or services to gain mutual benefit.
• Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks, just take care not to be too reckless.
• Above all else, surround yourself with positive people who will support you and your ideas. 

This list is by no means complete, and in my estimation can never be considered complete.  There are just too many things that need consideration, and everything varies by experience level and industry.  This is just a guide

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The internet is a wonderful thing.  It enables us to shop, communicate, indulge in our passions, get the latest new and sports scores (or gossip), blog , post in forums and so much more in relative anonymity.  The thing is, though is that so many people out there are purporting themselves to be experts on a given subject, giving advice that they believe should be taken seriously, yet they hide behind a pseudonym.  A friend once asked me why I use my real name (or a variation of my business’ name-GreenBridge Advisors) on my blog, posts on other blogs and in forums and my response was quick and simple: I don’t feel the need to hide, and if I want to be taken seriously and make it easy for prospective clients to find out more about me and my business it seems transparency is the best method to achieve that goal.

When I read other blogs or forums, and see posts by others with colorful names, the first thing I look for is a link to their website to see if there is an “about me” section.  If there is, and some revealing and real information about them is given, then I don’t give their post much more attention in that regard.  However, if I, or some other reader cannot find out anything about a poster, then what on earth would cause me to take their advice at face value? Granted, many people aren’t malicious in their intent, however there are a number of people who are susceptible to scammers and those who are in fact looking to dispense wrongful advice to these misguided souls.

Anyone who is running a business and responding to blog posts or forum posts or even writing their own blog and using it as a means of attaining credibility or simply promoting themself or their business would be wise to adopt some level of transparency.  Not only does it make other people feel more comfortable knowing that you are being upfront about your identity, but it also lends additional credibility.  I don’t know many people who would take advice from a stranger called “gumdoc23″, but they would if his name were Joe Smith, DMD with a website and current license which were verifiable. 

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So far today, I have seen 2 clients and each of them had serious issues with organization.  They are both bright, and quite successful, yet have deficiencies when it comes to planning and staging.

The first client is a CPA, and her office is in constant disarray.  She has a long U-shaped desk as well as a small conference table and a 5-shelf, 72″x24″ bookcase yet there is never enough space because papers a thrown haphazardly throughout the office.  She had explained to me that some tax planning had gone missing, and that it was a 4 day project which could not be billed twice.  We went and borrowed a label maker, and began sectioning off the bookcase so that people would know just where to put things without adding to the confusion.  We also sent an e-mail to the office staff to please not place things on the conference table or chairs and to kindly hold onto items if they were not sure which section of the bookcase to leave them.  We proceeded to get all of the accessories off of the top of the desk and into drawer sorters and placed stacking tray on the desk for items such as incoming faxes/mailings, urgent items, and inter-office communications.  Although she was still unable to locate her documents, going forward it will be much easier to keep orgainzed and find everything since everything now has a place.

The second client is a realtor and property manager.  Her office is relatively well organized, and nothing seems to have been sitting around long enough to have been from the last century.  However, she needed my services because her accounting bill has skyrocketed recently and she needed help bringing it back down to a manageable range.  So why did she call me; did she think my firm was going to be able to offer a better rate?  No, but because the reason for her increasing bills was due to her sending in incomplete source documents, and  the accountant having to track down the information from both her and her bank.  It is simply a case of not having the proper plan in place for submitting the month-end information.  We sat down, and created a checklist of all the things that she needs to get over to the accountant’s office at month’s end.  This way, each month she will see what is required and her accountant won’t have to run all over the place trying to track down statements and records.

 What it all boils down to is that being organized doesn’t only mean being neat.  It means having a plan, keeping order in your spaces, and properly maintaining these things.  Not only will you be able to become more productive, and efficient (as well as less stressed), but by simplifying your worklife, you wind up being able to accomplish more, therby earning more while spending less in the long run.

I don’t know of any business that cannot stand to benefit from an influx of customers looking to spend money.  However, consumers are fickle creatures who are very image conscious and asthetically driven.  Personally, I am very cautious as to who I do business with, and the image you project will be the first thing that potential customers will come across and will be a major factor in whether they decide to do business with you or not.

Of course, not every business has a billion dollar marketing and advertising budget like the large, multinational corporations, but you can give the impression of being a worthy business partner, supplier, service provider, or whatever relationship you are looking to develop with potential new customers.  And, it isn’t as expensive as you might think. online motilium

For starters, something like having a toll-free phone number will give the impression that you are running a highly successful company with lots of customers to handle.  In actuality, a toll-free number will only run between $2 and $25 after minimal one-time set-up fees at a vendor such as Kall8.  Different types of numbers will have different costs (ie: more common 800 numbers or special vanity numbers will be more than random 866 numbers).

Another method in which you can appear to be the professional you are is to actually pay for a domain name, build a website and have hosted e-mail.  Let’s face it, if anyone comes up to you claiming to be an accountant, lawyer, or any other type of professional and has a gmail, yahoo, or aol e-mail address ontheir business card, you would probably throw it away as soon as they turned around.  The cost to register a .com domain name is between $6.99 and $9.99 depending on where you register and for how long.  Some vendors, such as www.GoDaddy.com not only have low-cost hosting for as little as $4 a month which includes plenty of e-mail accounts and more space than many small businesses need.

Speaking of business cards, do you use those free, pre-formatted cards that some design companies give for the low cost of shipping & processing?  You know, the ones that have their own company logo and information on the back?  If so, you are not only doing yourself a disservice, but at the same time are helping to promote that company free of charge.  Or, maybe you are using the perforated blank card stock that you can get at your local office supply store and print on your own pc.  In either case, you should spend the $40 or so that it costs to get a box of 1,000 cards printed on machine-cut, true-weight stock that is printed on professional machines. 

The image you present to the world is always going to be the very first thing potential customers find out about you.  This is not the time to be cheap about spending money, as it only takes a couple of seconds for a person to decide whether they want to find out more or not solely based upon your image.  But don’t just take my word for it, look around my contact page for starters and see for yourself that I have already done all of the things I mentioned and more.
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