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Happy Holidays!

To paraphrase Canadian Capitalist… sure, I hire someone to cut my hair alright.

But if the person who cut my hair made a big bold hole at the top of my head, painted my hair blue instead of brown, stepped on my shoes all the time in the process AND then charged me extra for the priviledge, you bet I’d cut my own hair.

I have found it really hard to find someone who will tell you when you’ve messed up.

- they really listen and understand MY needs

- they want the best for me to succeed and they use Gail’s percentages to ensure I don’t go over my head with something.

- they show me all the options that are available not only by them but even options outside the bank, such as bonds. We then talk about all the options and I make the final informed decision accordingly.

- I check outside the bank to see if they are correct and on the ball. So far they have always given me better information.

- because they want not only my business but my whole family’s they look at what is best for me not just now but long term and they know they have to be honest and correct to keep me and my other family members.

- they too have given me hard truths when I was young to bring me in line. I sometimes didn’t like what they had to say but it was for my own good.

- I also meet with the person and get a feel for whether they are really listening and then ask them to repeat what I said and what they think I want financially. This is a good indication as to whether we are compatible.

- I must admit I have been fortunate to have really knowledgeable bank reps, but I have always checked them out. In a small town/city words gets around as to who is good, honest, and knows their stuff. The local restaurant at breakfast time is a good time to get great info on who’s good or not from the table of the “radoteurs” which is an Acadian word that means a group of men that meet to gossip and talk about what is going on. You want to know anything about anything they know it. And when it comes to money they are always in the know.

I think the key is not which type of financial is the best, but which is best for each individual. We all live in different type of towns and cities, have different needs, and have different experts. I found what works for me, and I hope others find what is best for them.

My point being, we all have a job or a career doing something. We will pay someone to change the oil in our car, cut our hair, clean our teeth, but to pay someone to manage our money or to help get us on the path to financial prosperity, we stuggle to justify paying them to do their job.

The last client I helped I was able to redo their budget, set them up on a 12 month debt repayment plan, readjust 6 years of tax returns to claim a disability tax credit that they were entitled to but were not claiming and provided them adequate life and disability insurance through the services of a licenses insurance advisor. Retirement plans were set up and a hole host of things, all for $395, which is not bad considering that they are receiving about $12,000 in refunds after the tax adjustments.

When I look back to my first experience, I laugh, because back then I would have put more effort into purchasing a pair of shoes than I did with getting a loan. Lesson learned.

Then I met someone who reminded me so much of Gail that I had to know more. She had an extensive background in money matters from banking to insurance to investing and no matter what question I threw at her she had a fantastic explanation that made sense to me with REAL words…. I could tell she was passionate about her job and genuinely likes helping people understand more about how it all works… kind of like Gail! I knew I had a winner with her, so that’s where we moved everything.

To this day I don’t know whether it was a “BETTER” set up with her, but I know that I trust her more. She gives advice to help us on our taxes (present and future), she has offered ideas to help us reach our goals faster (that don’t always involve her products) and all in all has beed very kind. When the ca-ca hit the fan with stocks, she was phoning and emailing to help us through the stress, reminding us how long we have still to ride it out, and she gives us regular reports about what is going on in the money world. Her communication skills are superior in every way than who I have dealt with in the past, so I think I have found my financial planner for life.

I have a financial advisor that I have used for years. As I haven’t always been the best with my money, he definitely has not made a lot of money off of my investments but when I call him he always returns my calls and makes time for me if I want to meet with him. That is my idea of a good advisor. Someone that treats the little person (meaning small investments) the same as the big guy.

Educating ourselves and getting a good advisor are excellent steps in the right direction.

Other than that, I’m with you: no one works for you except you.

Thanks.

If you don’t pay this person out of your own pocket per hour (and even then), you should be sure that all the mutual funds you will be offered are going to be the ones that return him/her the biggest commission. Isn’t this obvious to everyone? That person does not work for free. So no, they do not work for you, please remember. They work for themselves.

I would trust someone at the bank much more than any type of financial planner, but I trust myself even more. I’m saying that because a financial planner at a bank is less likely to only make commission from a very small pool of funds.

http://www.canadiancapitalist.com/finding-a-financial-advisor-part-1/

regards,

Jason