Should Your Financial Planner Also Be Your Life Coach?
The financial planning field, as with most other industries, has been evolving lately and has changed how it promotes itself.
In the case of personal retirement planning, the advice had been"Save as much as you can today so the money will be there tomorrow for when you decide what to do with it.
"Lately the advice is "Let us first help you figure out what you want to do, then we can put together a plan to finance those dreams.
" This new way of thinking is called life planning and is getting mixed reviews from the people you depend on for financial advice..
There is a good reason why investment advisers want you to start by thinking of your dreams.
If you are focused on a specific goal, you are more likely to save for it.
We tend to delay saving for some vague concept of a "better future" when there are things today that we want the money for.
It takes a very disciplined individual to give up buying something like a new car today to instead invest that money for some yet undetermined lifestyle 20 years from now.
Having a clear goal for how you will spend that money in retirement gives you more incentive to sacrifice a little today.
Considering that you may have 20 or more years of retired life to plan and pay for, thinking ahead really is good thing.
Though the idea of taking your dreams as a starting point for a financial plan is a valid one, the question arises "Is a financial planner the right person to help you work out a lifestyle plan?"The answer is "It depends on how comfortable the adviser is in the role of life coach.
" Many financial companies and independent advisers have some sort of retirement dream worksheet for their clients to complete.
Basically it is a questionnaire that helps you focus on what you want your retired life to look like.
The ones that I have seen are good but nothing can help individuals and couples really come to grips with the future as a true heart to heart conversation.
These multiple page "quizzes" are a good starting point but they may short change the people taking them if their written answers are the sole basis for an investment strategy.
Their real benefit comes when advisers go further to engage their clients in meaningful dialog.
When responding to good open ended questions, people tend to say more in spoken words than they do in written answers on a form.
This is where the skill of the person reviewing the dreams questionnaire comes in.
Some advisers are very comfortable in this role and will take all the time necessary to develop a very comprehensive lifestyle plan with their clients.
To do so generally takes several hours of discussion over a number of weeks.
An adviser who is skilled in these life coaching techniques can be a very valuable person to his or her clients .
Many financial professionals, however, have neither the time nor the inclination to become involved with this type of conversation.
They understand that their expertise is in investment advice and that life coaching should be left to those trained and experienced in that specific field.
They are willing to work side by side with experienced retirement lifestyle planning coaches for the benefit of their clients.
In thinking about your investment goals, especially your retirement plan, it is certainly advisable to have a lifestyle plan as a starting point.
However, there is much more to planning your retirement than saying "I want money to travel and play golf.
"You will probably have 20 or more years of healthy living ahead.
How will you spend the time between trips and golf games? How will you satisfy your needs such as feeling a sense of purpose and maintaining your sense of self worth?What will you do 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 1000 weeks or more? There are many exciting possibilities ahead of you.
Perhaps you can have an even more fulfilling retirement than you are imagining right now.
You owe it to yourself to find out.
Your financial planner may now claim to do life planning but unless he or she has extensive training in life coaching, your retirement lifestyle planning needs will be better served by seeking out a professional who has an expertise in that area.
Then let your financial adviser help you determine how to fund your dream retirement.
In the case of personal retirement planning, the advice had been"Save as much as you can today so the money will be there tomorrow for when you decide what to do with it.
"Lately the advice is "Let us first help you figure out what you want to do, then we can put together a plan to finance those dreams.
" This new way of thinking is called life planning and is getting mixed reviews from the people you depend on for financial advice..
There is a good reason why investment advisers want you to start by thinking of your dreams.
If you are focused on a specific goal, you are more likely to save for it.
We tend to delay saving for some vague concept of a "better future" when there are things today that we want the money for.
It takes a very disciplined individual to give up buying something like a new car today to instead invest that money for some yet undetermined lifestyle 20 years from now.
Having a clear goal for how you will spend that money in retirement gives you more incentive to sacrifice a little today.
Considering that you may have 20 or more years of retired life to plan and pay for, thinking ahead really is good thing.
Though the idea of taking your dreams as a starting point for a financial plan is a valid one, the question arises "Is a financial planner the right person to help you work out a lifestyle plan?"The answer is "It depends on how comfortable the adviser is in the role of life coach.
" Many financial companies and independent advisers have some sort of retirement dream worksheet for their clients to complete.
Basically it is a questionnaire that helps you focus on what you want your retired life to look like.
The ones that I have seen are good but nothing can help individuals and couples really come to grips with the future as a true heart to heart conversation.
These multiple page "quizzes" are a good starting point but they may short change the people taking them if their written answers are the sole basis for an investment strategy.
Their real benefit comes when advisers go further to engage their clients in meaningful dialog.
When responding to good open ended questions, people tend to say more in spoken words than they do in written answers on a form.
This is where the skill of the person reviewing the dreams questionnaire comes in.
Some advisers are very comfortable in this role and will take all the time necessary to develop a very comprehensive lifestyle plan with their clients.
To do so generally takes several hours of discussion over a number of weeks.
An adviser who is skilled in these life coaching techniques can be a very valuable person to his or her clients .
Many financial professionals, however, have neither the time nor the inclination to become involved with this type of conversation.
They understand that their expertise is in investment advice and that life coaching should be left to those trained and experienced in that specific field.
They are willing to work side by side with experienced retirement lifestyle planning coaches for the benefit of their clients.
In thinking about your investment goals, especially your retirement plan, it is certainly advisable to have a lifestyle plan as a starting point.
However, there is much more to planning your retirement than saying "I want money to travel and play golf.
"You will probably have 20 or more years of healthy living ahead.
How will you spend the time between trips and golf games? How will you satisfy your needs such as feeling a sense of purpose and maintaining your sense of self worth?What will you do 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 1000 weeks or more? There are many exciting possibilities ahead of you.
Perhaps you can have an even more fulfilling retirement than you are imagining right now.
You owe it to yourself to find out.
Your financial planner may now claim to do life planning but unless he or she has extensive training in life coaching, your retirement lifestyle planning needs will be better served by seeking out a professional who has an expertise in that area.
Then let your financial adviser help you determine how to fund your dream retirement.
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