Hyper Focus

You’re just about to finish the first quarter of 2012. How did you do?

Think about how you did in your business, professional and personal life. Were you happy with your progress? Are you achieving your goals? The more you hyper focus your human and capital resources on one particular goal, the higher the probability is that you may achieve it. If you hyper focus on a specialty within the life insurance or investment business, the more your services may be in demand.

Genius is when your personal, professional and business objectives converge into one over-arching focus. If you hyper focus on one specific vision for your future, you just might become a genius in your field. Focus on every aspect of your respective field and great things may begin happening.

I recently met an advisor from Omaha, Neb., who has been named one of the top advisors to doctors by Medical Economics magazine. How did he get there? Well, he focused on serving that sector of clients very well. He educated them through a blog, through workshops and by writing helpful white papers for hospital foundations. He helped and educated them in ways that they would appreciate. He wrote columns for Medical Economics and sent copies to CPAs and JDs to talk specifically about how they might collaborate in a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Another example of such hyper focus is an advisory firm that works only with dentists. One dentist client I currently serve used to have his insurance, investment work and taxes done by one firm that only marketed to dentists. This specialization created momentum within one special niche and developed a buzz among prospective clients. This financial advisory firm would gain an advantage through announcing that it worked exclusively with dentists.

About 10 years ago, one of my business owner clients sold her business for $12 million. When I called her to talk about creating a wealth plan and managing her wealth, she had already decided to hire a firm that worked exclusively with business owners in that marketplace. By developing a narrow specialty, this firm positioned itself well in the mind of our former client.

What is your special market niche? If you work with retirees, you need to go deep into the needs of pre- and post-retirees. They need to outlive their money. Their money can’t retire before they do. Creating lifetime income strategies may help them meet their long-term needs. If you work with business owners, you should speak their language and help them solve problems they may face, including dying too soon, living too long or becoming disabled along the way.