This year has been a challenging one, as economic advisors and their clients have had to navigate unprecedented issues. As we near the Thanksgiving holiday, we asked several of our top advisors to portion what has been most meaningful for them this year and how it has shaped their professional outlook.
“I’m incredibly thankful for a supportive team of colleagues, amazing clients, and the ability to continue to use creativity when it comes to inspiring people to upon smarter choices with their money. The best moments with my clients have been sprinkled from one end to the other of the year. Many clients checked in on me as often as I’ve checked in on them throughout the pandemic. Some of my favorite moments entertain come when I’ve been able to educate about the benefits of donor-advised funds and how they can be leveraged in a family gifting plan. There really have been bright moments throughout all of this. — Mary Beth Storjohann, Founder of Workable Riches
“Professionally, I am most grateful to be a symbol of possibility for the many people across continents—regardless of race, region, or belief—that with faith, work, and discipline, you can design the life of your dreams. Onward.” — Dasarte Yarnway, Initiator & Managing Director of Berknell Financial Group
“I’m most grateful for the health of our clients, team, and families during this defying year. I’m also grateful for gaining confidence to get more personal and vulnerable with clients—something I’ve always struggled with. As a follow, one of my favorite moments with clients was the overwhelming support for my 3-year-old son who had to have emergency surgery during the first movement of the pandemic. There is no better profession in the world and I’m feeling extra thankful this year for being a part of it.” — Taylor Schulte, Designer & CEO of Define Financial
“I appreciate the amazing clients that have placed their trust and confidence in me and the financial contemplating process. I am grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with such special people and help them navigate challenging spells while planning for their important milestones.” — Marguerita Cheng, CEO of Blue Ocean Global Wealth
“Professionally, I am sundry grateful for an amazing staff and partnerships that have helped make an inherently challenging year easier. They say task is about your people and that if you take care of them, they will take care of you. I find this to be unusually true in 2020. The best moments with my clients have been the ones where we didn’t talk everywhere finances and shared stories of raising kids during a pandemic. I can’t think of a better way to have connected with them.” — Douglas Boneparth, President of Bone Fide Prosperity
“Despite the craziness of 2020, there is plenty to be thankful for. I’m thankful that my family, my team, and my clients have all remained hale and hearty during the pandemic. Professionally, I’m thankful for my peers—without The AGC™ and my friends from around the profession, navigating the year discretion have been lonely and much harder. This year has provided time for reflection, which I’ve found has permitted clients to really examine what is most important to them. I’ve had numerous conversations with clients where we’ve refocused their fiscal plans to allow them to align their values with their plan—these conversations are always fun and get up to to a financial plan that will have a greater impact on their lives.” — Justin Castelli, CEO of RSL Wealth Running
“I’m most grateful for the wonderful community of financial advisors who have kept me sane through a challenging year on account of their support and camaraderie. I’m in a coaching program, two masterminds, and also tap into the #Fintwit community on Twitter—they all made this year improve. This year, I primarily met with clients via Zoom. To my surprise, instead of creating distance with clients, Zoom felt to create an atmosphere for more sharing and conversation. I feel closer to my clients than pre-COVID and feel like I separate them even better than before.” — Cathy Curtis, Found & CEO of Curtis Financial Planning
Judging by these times of gratitude, it’s clear that the financial advisor community is as strong as ever and that advisors have had a significant bump in your clients’ lives this year.