Monday, May 15, 2017

Review of Financial Advisor Success Podcast with Michael Kitces




For my regular day job I work in the financial planning industry helping clients reach their financial goals. One person that has been a big influence on me is Michael Kitces. Kitces is a technical whiz within the financial planning world and seems to write with two hands and always posts useful articles for those in the industry on his blog. Full disclosure: I have listened to every episode of the podcast so far.

Michael recently debuted a podcast after having the idea for it for some time. The podcast interviews different people in the financial planning industry who have made a difference. Michael has an in depth conversation with the guest about their career path, how that individual defines success for the advisor, and has the individual tell their own story. Some of the initial guests like Ron Carson, Deena Katz, and Bob Veres are well known throughout the industry. What is interesting is that if you had asked people 10 years ago "Hey would you like to listen to a podcast about two people talking about the financial planning industry?" I wonder how many people would have said "Heck yes!". What is fascinating is that these days people can listen to a podcast on nearly anything! Michael is very good at asking the right questions and it doesn't feel like there is any time wasted on the podcast. The podcast range over an hour but just the right amount of time. I often listen to the podcasts as soon as they come out on Tuesday morning on my way to and then later in the day when I am working out.

What is fascinating is learning about how people in the industry had to pay their dues and often go through ups and down before having success. One concept that Kitces points out is that there is an iceberg illusion of success of what people see (top of the ice berg, however what they don't see is what is below the iceberg (working hard, failure, disappointment). It would be nice to hear more questions difficult time or a time where the person had an "oh crap" moment that they thought could change their career.

The guests so far on the show have been fun listening to. Here are some guests I would love to see on the podcast.
Peter Mallouk, Harold Evensky, Ric Edelman, Nick Murray, Wade Pfau, Tom Gau, Michael Nathanson, Andy Berg, David Blanchett, Jason Zweig, J. Richard Joyner, Elaine Bedel Fred Fern, Erin Botsford, Jeffrey Zlot, Thomas Langdon, Larry Swedroe, Ken Moraif, Jeffrey Thomasson, Vickie Hampton,

Also it would be interesting to see academics who may have a a financial planning practice as well, With the fiduciary rule it would be interesting to talk to former brokers who were very successful and making a transition to becoming a fiduciary.

I really enjoy how Michael sometimes gets into the financials of a practice and breaks down revenues, AUM, and profit margins. The additional resources in the show notes are helpful for anything discussed on the podcast.The show highlights are also helpful as well. Also I enjoy the ability to read the transcript of the show. What is also interesting is hearing how other practitioners create value for clients whether it is doing estate planning or going the extra mile. The story telling from some advisors is really interesting. One question I wish Michael would ask would be "What is a typical day like in your firm?"

Overall the podcast is great, fun, and informative. I have really enjoyed listening to each episode and hope the podcast can remain on the air for many years to come!  

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