Getting In The Way Of Our Own Financial Success

by Hugh Massie

This article first appeared on Nasdaq.

If we are to be effective in the decisions we make, we need to understand our uniqueness, our talent, our individual behavior and our personality. Without this insight, we are unlikely to make rational, wealth-growing financial decisions.

What gets in the way of our own success? Lack of self-awareness? Do we have a bias we are unaware of? Perhaps it’s because we do not know how or why we make the decisions we do. Or maybe it’s because we have no life plan or direction in life.

That’s what we call getting in the way of our own successes, whether financial or in life in general. So, expecting financial advisors to know how to advise us is a big ask. We are all unique, even though some of us might share similarities, we are all different in terms of how we respond to situations and make financial decisions.

Add to the mix a partner, and unless we and they devote time in to understanding each other’s communication, behavioral and decision-making approach, we simply have more confusion. More to decipher. I might add that the partnership dynamic is often a significant problem for financial advisors to navigate. Examples:

• One party is results-focused; the other relationship-focused.
• One wants the pension fund; the other the big house.
• One wants to research and make the financial investment decisions without an advisor. The other needs guidance from an expert.
• One is trusting and will go with whatever the advisor says. The other is skeptical and questioning and challenges everything they say.
• One is comfortable taking risk; the other cautious and conservative.

Still, we often put our financial decisions in the hands of advisors who have absolutely no understanding of how to manage these our differences. Therefore, we make dumb decisions and get in the way of our own success. Not only that, if we make no attempt to be behaviorally self-aware, we will keep making the same dumb decisions and failing at our own financial success. I believe we make those dumb decisions because:

• We lack self-worth.
• We lack confidence.
• We are too easily persuaded.
• We are not growing in terms of understanding our behavior.
• We don’t understand how to buy time out to consider our response to decision making.

Or perhaps we simply fail to consider the why of what we are doing. Why:

• Am allowing other people to make financial decisions for me?
• Have I not considered the significance of delegating these life decisions?
• Is it that I’m accepting the decisions others are making about my life and circumstances?
• Aren’t I making these decisions for myself?

Taking a step to gain insight into our inherent talents and behaviors ensures we are well equipped to understand how we make decisions. What should our life goals be? How and when and who to entrust with advising us? There are many quality behavioral data gathering processes that can be used. Be behaviorally smart and make sure you the advisor know yourself and, in turn, help your clients complete this discovery process. This will put you both on the same page. Your clients have a lot at stake and will appreciate the small investment of time it takes for you and them to best know how to help them. The vast majority of clients will find it at least enlightening and often fun.

Why not begin right now – try our complimentary DNA Behavior Natural Discovery here.