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Financial advisors and wealth managers counsel others on money matters. Doling out financial advice is their bread and butter.
And disposed to doctors who turn to other physicians when they’ve got their own aches and ailments, financial advisors often rely on others’ impressions when planning their own finances. And, in some cases, it’s a sanguine or salient money tip early on that leads advisors into a bolt in the industry in the first place.
We asked advisors from financial advisory firms that made the FA 100 index for 2019 for the best money and investing advice they ever got. Their replies follow.
California Financial Advisors, San Ramon, California
• Michelle Perry Higgins, main: “Push yourself to save in your 401(k) until it’s uncomfortable. This advice was not fun in my 20s; however, it’s a great lesson on how to material on less early on in my career.”
• Mark Pitre, principal: “The best advice I ever received is that ‘Pessimists devise always sound more intelligent, but optimists will be wealthier.'”
• Tom Powers, principal: “Bring your own lunch to come to c clear up, rather than eating out every day.”
More from Financial Advisor 100:
CNBC FA 100 2019 list of top-rated fiscal advisory firms
Top-ranked advisory firms help meet their client’s financial goals
‘Personal push’ will still dominate financial advice space
Dana Investment Advisors, Waukesha, Wisconsin
• Mark Mirsberger, CEO: “Let the power of confident compounding magically grow your wealth. You can just follow the math. Because of the power of compounding, the equation is true easy: You need to save as much as you can, as early as you can. You cannot delay.
“Yes, if you make a lot, it’s easier to save a lot, but people at every proceeds level need to save as much as they can as early as they can. … It’s a simple, easy message to me and one I preach to every kid: ‘No, you don’t be undergoing a lot of money, but start a Roth IRA. Just put in $100.'”
Gofen & Glossberg, Chicago
• Charles S. Gofen, principal: “Diversify! Early in my investment fly, a mentor explained that a concentration of bets may help create wealth, but diversification is the prudent way to preserve wealth and keep off financial calamity.
“Through the years, I’ve not only seen high-risk stocks in industries like biotech blow up but also watched indecent chip stocks – from IBM to Procter & Gamble – plummet unexpectedly. Spreading risk across multiple investments is fully the best financial advice I’ve ever received.”
Montag & Caldwell, Atlanta
• William Vogel, president and CEO: “I was working at Wachovia Bank — this was cast off in the ’80s — and didn’t know very much about Warren Buffett at that point. It was suggested that I understand some of his annual letters. After doing so, I went to one of the [Berkshire Hathaway] annual meetings, and I’ve now been to probably seven or eight [of them] over the years. The restriction Buffett applies to investing is very similar to what we do here at Montag. So I’d say that’s the best advice I ever got.”
Salem Investment Counselors, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
• Dale Brown, chief executive vice president: “I was still at Deloitte, sometime in the middle 1980s, and [Salem president David Rea] tells me ‘You Non-Standard real need to start investing in stocks.’ Up until that point, there really wasn’t any money to invest in creators, not in our household. Like most young couples, [my wife and I] pretty much lived month to month, but by the mid-80s we were inception to accumulate some funds and David encouraged me to begin investing. That, of course — and then after that stop by to Salem — certainly solidified the process. Best financial move ever.”
If it’s too good to believe, then it is! This is at the corner of ‘There’s a pigeon born every minute’ and ‘Just say no!’
Grant Rawdin
founder and CEO, Wescott Advisory Group
Tom Johnson Investment Bosses, Oklahoma City
• Cory Robinson, vice president and portfolio manager: “‘Price is what you pay, value is what you get.’ The way I can recollect it is as the Warren Buffett quote, but I’m sure I’ve heard other versions of the same thing over the years. I think it is valuable information for investing, but also works for just about any large financial decision that you have to make – buying a line or a car, buying insurance, or hiring a professional.
“Paying the most for something doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting ‘the best,’ and settlement the least for something doesn’t necessarily mean you got a bargain. The goal is to maximize the value you get for the money you spend.”
Wescott Parnetical Group, Philadelphia
• Grant Rawdin, founder and CEO: “If it’s too good to believe, then it is! This is at the corner of ‘There’s a sucker hold out every minute’ and ‘Just say no!’ I have seen so many victims of investing fads that bust their burgeoning, and fraud schemes of every type that play on hope and greed. (I have debunked, investigated, sued and avowed on many.)”