Raymond James' Experienced Empathizer

What is the biggest challenge facing you/your team today, and how are you/your team responding?

The Department of Labor … regulations on retirement accounts. We’re prepared to implement the proposed changes, but many of them are truly not in the best interests of all of our clients. This totally contradicts both Raymond James and my team’s beliefs in putting “clients first.”

What are the biggest issues confronting the wealth-management field today, and how should it respond?

If we can collectively put pressure on our elected officials and the DOL to revise or (better yet) abandon the proposed rules and then have the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), which is our industry regulator, address a uniform fiduciary standard, then that would be a positive result. Unfortunately, right now, much of what the DOL has proposed will negatively impact our clients.

What are you doing specifically in terms of retirement planning (and/or overall wealth management) that you think is quite innovative?

It’s hardly innovative, but I am stressing to clients that they need to be more prepared for retirement than they typically are. People truly underestimate what they’ll need in retirement and will postpone as long as they can making certain decisions because the desire for instant gratification is so profound!

One area where I focus a significant amount of my practice is in pre- and post-divorce planning. I draw upon my own personal divorce experience to help clients prepare for the inevitable in terms of financial as well as emotional needs — and I try to mitigate some of the natural anxiety of their situations.

Can you tell us about one of your best relationships with a client/family and how you made it successful?

A female client asked me to sit in on her divorce mediation about seven years ago. At one point as things got “heated,” and she got very emotional, I asked her attorney and the mediator to leave the room so I could speak to the client privately. I told her at that time she had more than enough assets, and if she wanted to fight for this additional amount, which had become a bitter point of contention for her, she could be looking at over a yearlong court battle.

I asked her, “What was getting her life back worth to her?” She was stunned by my directness, but it brought her back to reality. She had been emotionally abused during the marriage, and she was now so angry at her spouse that she was ready to break free, but was also determined not to let him “win” at anything else. Over the years, she has retold this story to her friends many times, as she said it was one of the most important things anybody has ever said to (or done for) her.

What advice/tips would you give younger advisors based on your experience?

Be present! Listen! Although technology has really helped us to do so much more and be so efficient, it doesn’t replace the “human connection.”

Clients want to be heard and understood — so listen to them. I can’t stress that enough. Make it personal! Send handwritten notes. It is so much more impactful!

Who, as a mentor or source of inspiration, has most helped you and your career — and why?

My first business partner, Don Barnes, was about 30 years older than me. As a young advisor, I was a bit insecure and intimidated by people who had a lot of money. He had such confidence in me and always complimented me in front of clients, so that shored up my self-confidence immensely. I am now repaying the debt to my younger partner and associates, as his attitude helped me in so many ways.