As Chris points out in the Pro’s Process, traditional (read outdated) financial conversations typically concentrate on transaction-oriented, commission-driven and product-based advice; picking the best stock, bond, mutual fund or insurance product. It is easy for the client to be treated as a consumer of product and source of commission with little consideration given to long-term financial goals, dreams or needs. Fortunately, we are amongst a growing number of Financial Advisors bucking this trend. The new trend in the Industry sees the Advisor combining Investment Management skills with aspects of being a “Life” coach. In this way, these advisors consider themselves to have a fiduciary obligation to act in the best interest of their client as opposed to the old broker model, where the advisor need only demonstrate suitability of the financial products being sold. The model then becomes building a comprehensive financial planning service that drives investment portfolio design and implementation, including future allocation decisions, targeting goals such as maximizing cash flow, wealth protection, and minimizing taxes. But wait, doesn’t this all sound familiar for clients of ONE? It should … probing the client to find out what their long-term financial goals are, what tax and estate issues they may be facing, what the career goals are, what challenges in their career and finances they are facing, and so on, is our standard. Asking thought-provoking questions can assist the client in aligning their financial decisions with what they know about themselves and the world. When you know what you and your family really want – what’s really important to you – you will know what to do.

Values come first; they are the rock-solid foundation on which smart financial decisions can be built. Financial decisions come second. The two main components then for us at ONE become 1) the process – The Pro’s Process and 2) Our Playbook. In this context, and by focusing on this process that we trust, our success comes from understanding our role in assisting our clients to identify any unrealized goals and keep them on track to achieve them. We do this by outlining and framing the choices you have available to you, based on our Playbook, and explaining how these will impact your big picture. That’s the delivery you get from us; the wholistic approach that includes everything I mention above, plus our concierge service offered through Shannon, the Estate planning piece I help steward, and most recently, with the addition of Grant Clitsome to our team, post-career transitioning.

In mid-January 2019, our book The Pro’s Process will be available on Amazon through our website. In this updated version, Chris gives more insight as to how the successful achievement of your life goals happens by focusing on the fundamentals of our process – The Pro’s Process. With updated statistics and new examples and models, Chris elaborates on the success of the first book and adapts the new material to our ever-changing economic landscape. We hope you give the new book a try; I know you will enjoy the read and gain valuable knowledge in the process. And if this is your first foray into the “ONE World”, welcome and give us a test-drive. As always, I would love to hear any and all feedback on this or any previous blogs.