Turning the Tables

Still, as Aznar notes, it’s even more helpful to put yourself in the client’s place on an emotional level, especially when things don’t go as planned. Soon after launching her firm, Aznar helped a client roll over an annuity, and although she and the client discussed surrender charges and she even asked the client to confirm that the surrender charge period had ended, neither of them actually confirmed that fact, and the client was charged. Although the client didn’t expect Aznar to eat the fee herself, she did so. “I felt that the right thing to do was pay for it, learn from my mistake, and move on,” she says. “I think in the long run, it was a small price to pay.” The client was impressed, says Aznar. “She told me, ‘I never would have asked you to pay it, but you’re a good businesswoman.’”