What It Takes To Have A Million-Dollar Day

What It Takes To Have A

Million-Dollar Day 1,O0o,0oO.oo

Get the right factors into alignment to execute the perfect day for your practice.

By Rebecca Korn

Imagine you ran a practice in its most brilliant design. You would have a “Million-Dollar Day” that you would command from the start of your journey into the office.

It would start with the way you woke up, and then move on to the way you drove into the office, and then to the care you would take in preparing for clients, the way you’d lead your team and so on. Imagine how you would move through the day with key insights and tools you used to free yourself from the natural psychological tendencies that, in the past, derailed and held you back. Now you move from one thing to the next, aligning with everything purposefully. In order for us to do this, let us take a moment — a very intentional moment — to sit back and let this soak in.

Despite this vision of a Million-Dollar Day, the reality of our current circumstances is grim at best. Much is changing inside the financial world, along with COVID-19 and a variety of other external, yet-to-be named “plot twists.” The real problem is, these things are flooding into your day. Impacting your clients. Creating more instability than necessary.

A Million-Dollar Premium Day or a Million-Dollar Rollover Day, whatever relates to your practice, doesn’t appear by magic. It is deliberately created. It is crafted with intention — with detail, understanding, consistency, and a sprinkle of clarity and intention.

First, before we go too far out onto the magic limb, let’s identify key biological factors that may get in the way of our execution of a Million-Dollar Day. Let’s begin with an example of a common psychological obstacle that we’re all likely to encounter. Neuroscientists discovered that the pain that results from a financial loss affects the same parts of the brain that process mortal threats. That fear of a loss within your business, or even fear about a prospect who won’t complete a

sale, places your brain into high alert. Your brain makes you feel as though a saber-toothed tiger is right around the corner, about to pounce at any moment. The brain’s survival mechanisms have a purpose, but they don’t help you when it comes to growing » a powerfully aligned practice. No wonder we can’t focus! We constantly throw rocks at things that we perceive as threats.

In order to shift this psychology, the clarity of what a Million-Dollar Premium » Day looks like to you will help. Olympic athletes learn that visualizing and imagining their own actions enable them to succeed at the highest levels. Tennis star Billie Jean King and Olympic medal-winning discus thrower Al Oerter were among the first athletes to use this technique back in the 1960s. Some may scoff at this, saying it’s a “woo-woo” practice, but you will be hard pressed to meet a professional athlete who doesn’t use visualization at some level.

An Exercise In Visualization

Begin by visualizing that you have an uncle who would pay you to run his practice. He walks in the door as you are reading this article and says he would like to pay you the commission of a Million-Dollar Premium Day every single day while he’s away on vacation. What would the commission on a million-dollar premium be for you? If your practice is focused on assets under management, what would a million-dollar rollover generate for you? Now begin to let those thoughts flood your nervous system. Don’t worry, these thoughts won’t hurt you! How would you feel if you had the Million-Dollar Day and what would you do with the funds it would generate?

Your uncle then explains that all you would need to do is map out exactly what you would fill your day with to show him that you would be productive and moving his business forward. After all, we can’t just play with his business.

Your mind begins to reel. How would you design your day? Would your phoning be more aligned and more in your personal power than ever before? Perhaps you would set appointments with those A++ clients because you have certainty of being in power. Or perhaps you would go to a country club to schmooze it up with that high-powered exec you’ve been avoiding for months now.

How would you spend your morning with your family? Would knowing that you would receive the proceeds of this Million-Dollar Day change the way you relate to your family? Would it allow for cleaner, intentional mornings? Maybe you would sit down and take the time to make sure your language and the way you educate clients are clear and confident. Would you end your day at a certain time or would you spend some time hitting the gym, knowing you need to be in peak physical health? Take out a piece of paper and commit to 10 minutes of mapping this out in a detailed way to empower your day, your month and your year. Imagine if you committed 48 weeks of to this. That’s right, you would take an extra month of vacation too. Where would you travel to?

Welcome to the chapter of your practice where your brain isn’t operating in survival mode, but in a systematic ability to execute every day!

The first quarter of 2022 went by faster than we expected. That doesn’t mean that the year is over. Sometimes it takes a quarter to master our awareness and to kick up the right keys to clarity. This is your chance to shift and pivot if you choose to. As we step into April, we can shift everything into full throttle. We feel energized; we feel prepared and full of excitement for 2022. We give ourselves the permission to begin again, and it ushers the perfect time to double down, with intention, focus and understanding.

As you begin to imagine what a MillionDollar Day would be like to you, redefine the next quarter as a beginning of that new energy for you, your practice and your clients.

IF YOU CAN SEE IT, YOU CAN DO IT

Olympic athletes learn that visualizing and imagining their own actions enable them to

succeed at the highest levels.

Rebecca Korn is CEO and founder of RiseReignRule. She specializes in coaching and developing female entrepreneurs. She may be contacted at rebecca.korn@innfeedback.com.

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Older Generations Becoming More Aware Of ESG Investing

While millennials were the early adopters of this type of investing, it’s no longer exclusive to this generation.

By Amanda Cassar

As we work to help our clients build investment portfolios that promote a promising financial return, we also are seeing an increase in the number of clients who are interested in the content of those investments. Bloomberg reported that an estimated $120 billion was spent in ESG (environmental, social and governance) investments in 2021, and the sector appears to be on an upward trajectory in the years to come. To provide our clients with the most informed advice, it’s important that we as advisors are knowledgeable on this growing trend and can guide our clients on the opportunity to invest ethically.

What Is An ESG And How Does A Stock Become One?

An ESG investment is a stock that is rooted in values relating to environmental, social or governance issues, such as climate change, human rights, and data protection and privacy. For a stock to qualify as an ESG, it must undergo a rigorous evaluation process and adhere to certain principles set out by investment houses.

If the stock passes the initial evaluation, it is then scored based on the MSCI ESG index. ESGs can fall under three different categories in the U.S.: AAA-AA: Leaders, A-BBB: Average, and BB-B-CC: Laggard. This index rates organizations based on their exposure to ESG risks and how they manage those risks, and then assigns them one of the three categories above.

However, as I learned from a fellow MDRT member in the United Kingdom, work still is being done in the standardization process of ESGs, and these principles and ratings may vary from one nation to another.

Getting Started With ESG Investing

While millennials were the early adopters of this type of investing, it’s no longer exclusive to this generation. Older generations are becoming increasingly aware of ESGs and are expressing interest in incorporating ethical investments into their portfolios. In addition to getting kudos from their children and grandchildren for their conscious investing, clients feel as though they are helping make the world a better place without having to undertake a large social initiative.

For clients who are new to ESG investing, it’s important to review their portfolio with them in order to understand their passions and values that can translate into ethical investing. From there, I like to share available investment opportunities that align with those and see how we can incorporate them into their portfolio while also mitigating risk. Although ESGs do not carry any more inherent risk than do nonESG investments, maintaining your client’s financial well-being should always be top of mind. To quell any fears about the financial return of ethical investing, I tend to invest only a small percentage of their portfolio, typically 10%, into stocks of this kind.

Finally, I like to look at the remainder of their portfolio and point out any possible conflicts of interest. For example, I had a client who did not want any investments in coal mines; however, one of their investments had an indirect relationship with funding coal mines. Although they ultimately decided to keep the stock due to its performance, it’s important to take a holistic approach when reviewing a client’s portfolio in order to provide them with full transparency and the best possible guidance.

Best Practices For Advising On ESGs

Every client’s degree of knowledge and comfortability with ESGs will vary, but ensuring you are educated on the topic and able to thoroughly discuss ESGs with your clients is essential. And while some clients are novices to the topic, I work with a sizeable number who solely invest in ESGs. These clients have a zero-tolerance policy for any investments that do not align with their values or efforts toward the betterment of the planet.

I recommend that advisors take the following steps before discussing the topic of ESGs with a current or prospective client. First, do your homework. I advise that you speak with a couple of the fund managers you work with and learn what types of ESG investments are currently available in a few different focus areas. Additionally, be sure to ask them what their screening criteria is and how they determine which stocks qualify as ESGs. Second, provide educational resources. While some clients are OK with investing 10% of their portfolio right away, others may need more research to make their decision. Putting together a one-pager that outlines the basics of ESGs and why they might be of interest to your client is a great way to not only show that you’ve done your research, but it also serves as an educational keepsake for your clients to refer to.

Amanda Cassar holds a master’s degree in financial planning and is a nine-year member of MDRT. She has been in financial services since 1991 and is the sole director of Wealth Planning Partners in Robina, Queensland, Australia. She is the author of Financial Secrets Revealed. Amanda may be contacted at amanda.cassar@innfeedback.com.

Encouraging The Next Generation Of Advisors

Many students who are smart, motivated and planning their post-graduation lives are largely unaware of insurance and financial services as a career option.

By Karen Byrd

The financial challenges and decisions faced by Main Street families and small businesses are more complex than ever. People need services and advice, and insurance and financial advisors are crucial to helping them make some of life’s most important decisions to ensure their financial security. But our industry could face a troubling shortage of qualified and motivated professionals.

The average financial advisor is 55 years old, and around 20% of these professionals are age 65 or older. Cerulli Associates has projected that more than 110,000 will retire over the next decade. Meanwhile, the demand for advisory services is expected to increase by up to one-third over the same time frame. It is clear that we need to prepare the next generation of financial professionals to take over.

However, that is not always easy. Many students who are smart, motivated and planning their post-graduation lives are largely unaware of insurance and financial services as a career option. Compounding the problem, many established firms are reluctant to bring on younger advisors.

When you ask students what they are looking for in a career, you often hear responses that align very well with positions in our industry. Of course, students say they want a career that allows them to make a good living. They also say they want to help people and make a difference in the lives of others. They are looking for flexibility and independence. They want to be in control of creating their own success. A career in financial services checks all the boxes.

And these students bring a lot to the table for their potential employers. They provide insights and inroads to serving a younger, more diverse clientele. They are technologically savvy. Effective planning for younger families and individuals requires interacting with these prospective clients using technology they are comfortable with as well as creating lifelong relationships.

When advisors create connections with clients at a relatively early age, they are involved in all their clients’ major adult decisions — getting married, buying a home, having children, sending those children to college, preparing for a happy retirement, all the way down the line to leaving a meaningful financial legacy. Financial planning no longer starts when clients approach retirement age. To attract this new generation of clients, a new generation of advisors is crucial.

It benefits our entire industry to encourage and support our next generation of insurance and financial professionals. One way to do this is by working directly with colleges and universities. I have established a strong relationship with my alma mater, Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tenn. I work with students in the finance program there to help them understand the benefits of a financial services career. I talk about my own career as a financial professional and assure them that help is available, from mentorships to professional association memberships.

I encourage these students to participate in NAIFA’s Future Leaders program, which provides free educational and professional development sessions for those considering a career in the industry, and I urge them to take advantage of NAIFA’s student membership category.

As seasoned insurance and financial services professionals, we have dedicated our careers to helping our clients achieve financial security and prosper. As we look to the future, we don’t want this good work to end. It is important that do what we can to encourage the next generation of advisors for the sake of our clients, our communities and the industry.

Karen Byrd, LUTCF, is a past president of NAIFA-Tennessee and NAIFA-Clarksville. Karen may be contacted at karen.byrd@ innfeedback.com.

Selecting The Right Annuity Requires Dialogue & Partnership

A study showed most investors would discuss annuities with their advisors, but they would make the final decision on which product to choose.

By Matthew Drinkwater

With millions of Americans entering retirement over the next decade, many will benefit from the unique features of annuities. Although the core and defining value of annuities is guaranteed lifetime income, deferred annuity products offer various combinations of downside protection and upside potential. Investors of varying levels of risk tolerance will have an abundance of options to meet their financial needs.

In the current investment environment — where interest rates are low and stock market returns have generally been strong — annuity carriers and distributors need to understand which annuity product concepts have the greatest appeal and which investors favor certain products. Aligning specific annuity products with clients’ needs is a service usually performed by advisors. Because of this tendency, simply looking at sales patterns may not reveal investors’ preferences on a conceptual level. If investors are given the opportunity to select for themselves, what would they want?

A recent Secure Retirement Institute study examined investor preferences for the four main types of deferred annuities now on the market: fixed-rate, fixed indexed, registered index-linked and variable. We asked investors to consider their current financial situation and to select one of four investment options with varying degrees of downside protection and upside potential in which to “invest” $100,000 for five years. Rather than use the industry terms for the product types, we provided study participants with a basic description and hypothetical outcomes.

Nearly half of investors (46%) selected the “full downside protection, limited upside potential” option, which corresponded to an FIA. The top reason was their placing more value on protecting savings than seeking maximum gains. FIAs are especially popular among older, more conservative and less financially knowledgeable investors. Another 35% of investors chose the “limited downside protection, limited upside potential” option, which corresponds to a RILA. Those who selected RILAs tend to believe the stock market will perform well over the next five years and value the ability to maximize gains. These two product classes were much more popular than were either VA or FRD products. If investors have such strong preferences for FIAs and RILAs, could they simply seek out and purchase these products on their own? The SRI research suggests otherwise: Among the 57% of investors who regularly work with paid professionals to assist with the household’s financial and investment decisions, the vast majority (92%) would involve their advisors in this kind of product selection decision. Only 9% of those surveyed would fully delegate the decision to their advisors without the investor’s involvement. Older, retired and higher-income investors were more comfortable delegating this product selection decision to their advisors.

This overall selection pattern reveals that most investors appreciate the combination of upside potential and downside protection offered by FIAs and RILAs. In the context of a multiyear bull market, the notion of protecting assets clearly has traction. However, with interest rates so low, many investors also want to avoid locking in a low rate of return.

Our study clearly shows that most investors do not want the sole responsibility for such a complex financial decision. Even if clients give their advisors discretion over day-to-day buying and selling decisions in their portfolios, selection of a deferred annuity clearly requires dialogue and a partnership. When working with carriers, advisors will be successful by connecting the specific objectives of annuity products with the needs and mindsets of investors.

Delegation of Product Selection to an Advisor

Source: The Upside and the Downside: Annuity Production Selection, Secure Retirement Institute, 2022

Matthew Drinkwater, Ph.D., FSRI, FLMI, AFSI, PCS, is corporate vice president, Secure Retirement Institute. He may be contacted at matthew.drinkwater@innfeedback.com.

A Proven Retention Tool For Women In Financial Services

Mentorship is key to retaining a diverse workforce.

By Kaylee Ranck

The financial services industry increased the representation of women among its employees during the past two decades, only to have a substantial exit of female employees with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Increased caregiving and household responsibilities led to nearly one-third of women leaving financial services temporarily or permanently, rendering the progress of previous decades moot.

Claudia Goldin, professor of economics at Harvard University, describes the discouraging phenomenon accurately by stating, “[Gender] inequalities that existed before the pandemic are now on steroids.” According to a recent MetLife study, nearly 50% of women surveyed stated that the pandemic has negatively impacted their career path. For success in continuing with their current occupations or returning to the workplace, women are seeking increased flexibility and career advancement opportunities as well as skill development and supportive work cultures.

A recent study conducted by The American College Center for Women in Financial Services on behalf of The American College Center for Economic Empowerment and Equality at The American College of Financial Services found 55% of financial advisors surveyed did not have a mentor. Of those surveyed, more women than men sought mentorship outside of their current employers and outside of the industry. This is particularly important to industry leaders, especially those wanting to retain a diverse workforce.

Formal and informal mentoring can help achieve upskilling, supportive work environments and career advancement opportunities. Industry leaders can help address the challenges faced by working women or those considering a career change through targeted initiatives to help retain and advance women within the industry.

Mentors provide a powerful combination of attributes. The best mentor is a catalyst for professional development, a pathway to industry contacts, an emotional support system, an inspiration for career trajectory, a role model and a candid cheerleader of a mentee’s career. Mentors can have a positive and profound impact on a mentee’s confidence, advancement and success. Mentoring can be, at times, intensive, arduous and rewarding, with successes and letdowns. For women, mentorship is critical in professional advancement, promotion attainment, salary increases and career satisfaction and is particularly important in male-dominated professions. Industry leaders can seize an opportunity to establish mentoring initiatives, especially at a time when so many women are leaving the financial services industry temporarily or permanently.

Mentoring is mutually beneficial to businesses and employees. Companies with formal mentoring programs have higher retention and engagement rates. Employees who partake in formal mentoring programs are more likely to benefit through higher compensation, increased promotions and greater career satisfaction. Given the empirical support for mentoring, it is surprising that fewer than half of individuals in the financial services industry have a mentor.

Here are some mentorship best practices to help you keep this important commitment:

• Establish a personal connection

and trust with a mentee. It’s an impactful relationship; treat it as such — break from formal roles and titles to establish common ground and equality. • Ensure you are available. Before committing to the relationship, evaluate how much time and attention you have to devote to a mentee.

• Allow relationships to grow

organically. Not all mentor/mentee relationships are a good fit even if they began with promise.

• Contribute to the development of character and job skill competencies.

Quality mentors go beyond ensuring a mentee has the requisite competencies for a job and devote time to assisting them with developing self-awareness, confidence, empathy and other key characteristics of future leaders.

• Show support and praise success.

Mentors should bring energy to the relationship in support of their mentee’s professional endeavors. This does not preclude mentors from addressing concerns or providing valuable feedback, but good mentors prefer support over being critical.

• Be open to sharing your profes-

sional network. This can be helpful to the mentee once you feel they can benefit from other professional contacts.

• Encourage a mentorship team.

Each mentor on the team can serve a different role in a mentee’s professional trajectory.

• Know your limitations. • Keep confidential client information private.

Mentoring is a proven retention tool and an avenue for advancement for women. Quality and successful mentoring can serve as a method to help women develop a sense of inclusion, develop skills and get promoted. This is particularly timely for the financial services industry, with the increased resignation of women, the consideration of career changers, and the desire and need for flexibility.

Kaylee Ranck is the research director for The American College Center for Women in Financial Services at The American College of Financial Services. She may be contacted at kaylee.ranck@innfeedback.com.