Wisdom from Fred Rogers

Wisdom from Fred Rogers

“The older I get,” wrote television legend Fred Rogers, “the more convinced I am that the space between people who are trying their best to understand each other is hallowed ground.” I did not grow up in Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, but in a way, I vicariously went there...
Befriending Silence

Befriending Silence

Noise is a tenured resident in our modern lives. Whether it’s the whirl of a tumbling dryer, the muted voices of sportscasters calling a game, the hum of an automobile’s engine, or the buzz of the florescent fixtures in our offices, all manner of noise is with us and...
Nurture Empathy

Nurture Empathy

Humans have an uncanny ability to detect whether or not another person is fully present to us. Little things give us away like a furtive glance at the cell phone, a slight rotation of the wrist with a watch, or a peripheral look at the clock on the wall. And then...
Asking Tough Questions

Asking Tough Questions

Following a presentation I made to a class of new advisors, a member of that class of 75 came to me in the hall with a question about discovery. “Are asking questions about a client’s life story, family, family-of-origin issues around work, money, investments, health,...
Introductions

Introductions

Early on in the business, mentors taught us to offer our services to clients in such a way they naturally introduce us to others. Makes sense, doesn’t it?  The reality, however, is not quite that simple or obvious. Client introductions – which I prefer over the word...
Embracing Your Role

Embracing Your Role

On many occasions, I had the privilege of speaking to classes of new advisors with my firm. Reflecting on those presentations, it occurred to me that I would often fail to address the importance of being in a role as an advisor. Embracing our role as financial...