Coach's Corner

What if we could adjust your approach to prospecting calls to reduce the likelihood it feels like a sales call? Many advisors we work with have a straightforward path in mind when making prospecting calls.

We speak with many advisors who believe the April swoon was likely a small dose of the kind of volatility to expect in the days ahead, yet few have taken many steps to act upon their predictions.

How long do clients have to prevent a recurrence of an unpleasant income tax filing? The short answer is "the rest of the year." Therefore, if a taxpayer discovers under-withholding in May, there are only seven months to correct it before year-end.

We consider sentiment to be a conundrum because while most advisors understand sentiment is often contra indicator, most prospective clients are representative of “sentiment.”

Tariff concerns have created conversation opportunities with existing and prospective clients. Lacking clarity on­­—or conviction in—your opinion could lead to missed opportunities.

When you meet someone new, establishing a bit of common ground is often easy. While common ground can be valuable, sometimes it can lead you astray. 

Advanced planning is key to helping clients avoid after-tax surprises. Ask yourself these questions to prepare for client conversations in the weeks ahead.

When turbulent markets disrupt clients' sense of financial security, the six C’s of client conversations can help you set a collaborative tone, fortify relationships and nurture client resilience.

Much of today’s investing headlines focus on the potential implications of new policy initiatives and the impact on the broad markets. Some markets get less press and are more nuanced. 

Effective collaborators practice active listening so others feel that their opinions matter and they’re part of the decision-making process. 

How can you turn tax season into teachable moments in the weeks ahead? By discussing the four investment approaches below, you can help existing and prospective clients build a better tax experience.

Clients want to hear from you when turbulent market conditions disrupt their sense of financial security. While they don’t expect you to have a crystal ball about what’s likely to occur in the weeks ahead, clients are looking to you for clarity.

It’s during times of significant volatility and confusion when financial advisors are needed and valued the most. Here’s a four-step game plan to help you realize the full potential of this moment.

Inspiring clients to act in their best interests starts with your ability to slow down your own thoughts with a healthy dose of "agendaless" listening.

Having tax-aware conversations with clients now can arm them with better questions for their CPAs in March and April. Whatever answers their tax professionals provide, clients will still look to you to implement their investment strategies.

We agree that there’s danger in talking religion or politics with existing and prospective clients. Yet, we do feel strongly about the importance of being a student of today’s political crosscurrents and discourse in an apolitical fashion by way of a thesis—a timely, pithy sound bite that connects the dots to the advice you provide.

Your clients will be talking about AI in the months ahead. A well-articulated thesis can help turn them into conversations about you when clients repeat it in their conversations.

Reframing your mindset and taming your inner voice can help smooth out your introduction and small talk in such a way it eliminates the premature pivot all together.

While prospective clients should consult a CPA or attorney for tax advice, you can point out how the tax code can serve as a guide for identifying which shares should be disposed of first.

Leverage the 3 Dynamics the next time a client conversation is stuck in a state of inertia. You can be the external force that turns complacency into action.

A well-developed thesis—a timely, pithy, soundbite that connects the dots to the advice you're delivering—can help create curiosity gaps in four dimensions of conversation to drive organic growth.

Your ability to inspire action requires you to understand your clients' ongoing thoughts and reflections about how it would feel to work with you.

Using a systematic tax-loss harvesting¹ strategy year-round can help build better tax outcomes for clients and be more efficient for your team.

You're in the unique position to bring advanced planning ideas to your clients' attention.

Systematic tax-loss harvesting helps investors take advantage of the systemic volatility that is inherent in investing, see investment returns compounding over time and delay tax payments until a later date.

While asset allocation decisions may explain most of a client's pre-tax returns, tax-smart asset location helps them keep more of what they've earned.

When the calendar collides with big market memes, think opportunity.

When you choose to be in a moment, be in that moment rather than thinking about your next move.

Illustrate the importance of understanding how owning the right asset (asset allocation) in the wrong account (asset location) can have unintended tax consequences by asking these three questions.

It's vital to keep watch on state elections and ballot initiatives advocating for state-level tax reform.

Rather than debating a prospective client's view, lift the conversation to a higher plane by using an ism—a timeless, pithy sound bite that connects the dots between your foundational beliefs and the advice you give to clients.

How you communicate with clients will likely vary based upon individual coping strategies.

Help clients identify how they can capitalize on current opportunities and prepare for the possibility of tax law changes.

Articulate your view and connect the dots to their personal balance sheets. You may not have all the answers, yet your call will be appreciated.

Your role as an After-Tax Advisor is to get clients thinking and talking about how different tax scenarios might affect their financial goals.

Providing sound counsel and context can help alleviate your clients' fears, despite the headlines surrounding today's market volatility.

It's vital for you to remain clear-eyed, never allowing your personal political views to influence your objectivity./p>

Is your ability to influence the conversation between your client and his colleague as easy as delivering an ism such as, it's profits not politics that drive markets?

How you frame the after-tax conversation with clients will determine your success.

While clients may not be able to get exactly what they want, tax benefits with retained access and control, they might find they can get what they need with a SLAT.

The best way to meaningfully help someone during turbulent markets is to be empathic in your approach.

Risk is symmetrical: There's both upside and downside risk. It's important to consider hedging the upside risks.

Isms can have a multiplier effect on the growth of a team practice as they help you in various dimensions of conversation.

For thesis inspiration, we turned to the July issue of The BEAT's key takeaway of slowing wage growth in the U.S. and Eurozone, which in turn should help ease persistent services, inflation, and allow central banks to adjust rates lower.