Category: Business
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Informed, Intelligent People Are The Best Prospects, And Clients
I remember a commercial that declared, “An informed customer is our best customer.” The commercial offered no proof, no argument, and no evidence of the claim. However, with respect to financial advisors, there now is proof, argument, and evidence. It is those facts with which I deal in this essay. The facts come…
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Will Tesla Own the World?
If Tesla won’t own the world, consider selling your Tesla shares. In recent trading, the market cap of Tesla reached $869 billion. If you own Tesla, this high market cap is good news. But if you plan to keep Tesla stock, this astronomical market cap may, in fact, be bad news. If you, or…
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What Can You Do With Real Estate Trapped in a C-Corp?
If you have clients who own real estate in a C-corporation, you probably already know some of the difficulties that stand in the way of clients getting their hands on “their” money (i.e. the assets inside the C-corporation). Consider a case we’re currently working on. (The names are changed to…
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Personal Goodwill — Surprising AUM Opportunities?
If you have clients who own and run businesses in which they, as individuals, play an important role, they may have personal goodwill. Identifying personal goodwill can open up valuable planning opportunities, especially for businesses that might be hard to plan for otherwise. Goodwill is an accounting concept, as well as…
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Helping Your Clients Overcome High Stakes Paralysis
Happy New Year, everyone! This post is part three in our decision-making series, “Are Your Clients Really Irrational?” Sometimes, even an “easy” decision can be emotionally difficult if the stakes are high enough. And if the decision seems easy, but the stakes are high enough, a good decision maker might well…
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Are Your Clients Really Irrational? Part Two
We’ve all faced conflicting goals, and it can seem like it happens all the time. For example, when was the last time you worked, when in an ideal world you’d have been doing something else? Maybe you decided to go to work because you really wanted to close a sale,…
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Are Your Clients Really Irrational? Part One
Over the past thirty years, oceans of ink have been spilled promoting the idea that, in effect, your clients are stupid. Or if not stupid, “irrational.” The academics will have us believe that people, clients, are hopelessly “biased” in their decision making. I was at Stanford when I first encountered…