I’ve been thinking a lot about great questions lately. Which isn’t unusual for me because I think a lot about questions – great ones, good ones, not-so-good ones, questions that work, and ones that don’t.   Do you ever think about the questions you ask? Are you intentional about your questions? Here’s Albert Einstein on [...]

Is This a Flattering Profile?   Could this be part of a job posting for a financial planner?   “Truly listens to the client, seeking to understand the client’s world. Is authentically empathic.  ‘Gets’ the client. Acts professionally…and then some.”   These were among the core qualities of planners cited during a recent meeting of [...]

We’re about 90 days into the new year, and all of us are fully immersed in the realities of running our businesses and engaging in our personal lives. It’s the perfect time to look back on our 2012 goals and aspirations (whether we used a structured approach such as the one I presented in my [...]

Happy New Year to you!   Before we get so engaged in 2012 that we no longer recall much about 2011, I have a few questions for you to ponder:   Was 2011 everything you hoped it would be – for yourself, your family, your business and other important aspects of your life? Did some [...]

At the recent FPA Experience in San Diego, Marie Swift hosted a Twitter Live quick-fire event in which each of twelve industry thought leaders identified a challenge facing the profession and prescribed their remedies. I was honored to be included among the dozen. In this column I’ll present and elaborate upon what I said in [...]