A key to success: Understanding your staff
Knowing your staff’s strengths and weaknesses can make all the difference in your business. It was a lesson 30-year MDRT member Donald F. White Jr., CLU, ChFC, learned well when...
Tag Archives: practice management
10 questions to ask job candidates
Behavioral investigator Vanessa Van Edwards seeks to reveal candidates’ motivation, personality and values without having to give a personality test (read explanations at scienceofpeople.com). That includes...
How to turn employee potential into performance
Imagine on Monday, you discover that your meticulous, rule-following accountant and creative, eccentric marketing person have switched positions. How likely is this to work out? In truth, some variation of...
8 questions to ask about your succession plan
Karl John Krokosinski, a 37-year MDRT member from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, has advised on more than 100 succession plans. Whether you’re the one leaving or taking over someone else’s...
Books with impact
What do people like Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Mark Cuban have in common, besides billions of dollars of net worth? They read voraciously and selectively. Here are five unforgettable business...
How recent high school graduates can help your practice
It’s no secret that business continuity planning is going to be essential for your business — if not now, then in the future. It’s also safe to say that actually...
When client uncertainty stems from disagreements about household costs
Most conflicts I’ve seen between couples in the office involve understanding what it costs to run the household. I think one person may look after certain expenses and one person...
Why I offer a condo where clients can stay
I was in Naples, Florida, attending the Top of the Table Annual Meeting, and I recognized the guy next to me on the beach from the meeting. We shot the...
Find clients by creating compelling experiences
To stand out from other advisors, 33-year MDRT member Tim M. Shaw, Dip PFS, greets his clients at the office door. He prints his client documents on high-quality paper branded...
Differentiate yourself to clients through relationships
Years ago, I was interviewing for my first sales job. I was sitting across the desk from the vice president of sales. I’d been through a few rounds of the...
Are staff performance reviews holding back your business?
Performance reviews are a common, and much grumbled about, business practice, but do they even help your business thrive and become more innovative? Angie Herbers, founder and CEO of FourPointe...
Gaining client trust so they will be honest about their challenges
I met with a prospect and had my own assumptions about how things were going with him. But it took probably a good year for us to develop trust in...
The differences between a financial advisor and a salesperson
The value of a financial advisor is not in selling products or selecting investments. Your value is in “all you can do to help clients accomplish a goal not based...
What to do when you don’t like your top clients
Sometimes, as financial advisors, we confuse top clients with ideal clients. There are important differences between the two, however. For me, ideal clients make going to work on a Monday...
What to do when a client’s dog drinks your tea
When I first started out, I would see any client anyplace, anytime and do anything for these people. One day, a client said to me, ‘Would you like a cup...
