Ep #256: Navigating The Way Forward with XYPN’s Advisor Success Team

Narrator: [00:00:01] Join your host, Maddy Roche, as she brings you into a community, a fee only financial advisors who are successfully building profitable businesses that serve the next generation of clients. Learn from innovative advisors whose unique stories will inspire you to dream big and take action on your goals. Are you ready to live your best life and hope your clients live theirs? Then you're in the right place.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:00:26] Hello and welcome to this episode of #XYPNRadio. I'm Maddy Roche, your host. I'm excited to have XYPN coaches Emily Purdon, Arlene Moss, Carolyn Dalle-Molle and BB Webb on the podcast today. As the coronavirus pandemic hit the United States in February of 2020, the XYPN team mobilized to provide support to our advisor community during this time. Recognizing that advisors were going to be facing new experiences, opportunities, and hardships, the XYPN Advisor Success team rolled out "The Way Forward", a resource that aggregates the expertise of all of these coaches. Today, Emily, Arlene, Carolyn and BB discuss what they've built for our advisor community and The Way Forward, from providing open coaching opportunities to developing new resources around how to market in our new world. Emily and Arlene speak directly about actionable steps advisors can take to plan for and build a business in today's environment, from how to stay sane to providing new services with new price points. Carolyn and BB discuss how, in light of COVID, marketing and sales processes could change, but, to their point, could also change very little, if at all. What they do all agree on is keeping the human component of the advisor client relationship front and center. There's no denying that we're in a shared crisis with our clients for the first time ever. This provides meaningful opportunity for advisors to be seen as solution providers to their clients, but more importantly, a real human that understands what it's like to wake up every day right now with uncertainty. If you're interested in what XYPN has done to support advisors in a time of crisis, this episode is for you.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:02:06] Avocado toast. Selfies. A mountain of student loan debt. Gen Y is anything but traditional, and with over seventy five million people, it's a population you don't want to ignore. Learn more about how to serve this unique population in our guide called "Attract and Profitably Serve Millennial Clients in your RIA." Discover three key ways to tap into the millennial market and six things that they want from their financial advisor. Visit xyplanningnetwork.com/millennials for your free copy.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:02:38] You can find any of the resources we mentioned during this episode at xyplanningnetwork.com/256. Also, be sure to go to xyplanningnetwork.com/VIP to join our private group just for #XYPNRadio listeners. It's the community of advisors we've all been looking for that's there to provide support when we need it the most. Best of all, it's free! I encourage you to check it out. Again, that's xyplanningnetwork.com/VIP. Without further ado, here's my interview with the XYPN Advisor Success coaches.

 

[00:03:10] -- swish --

 

Maddy Roche: [00:03:10] Good morning. Welcome to #XYPNRadio, Emily, Arlene, Carolyn and BB. So glad to have all of you. We're on the line today with the four awesome XYPN coaches here in our community. We're gonna be talking about what we have done as a team at XYPN, but more importantly, what our individual coaches have done over the past several months as COVID-19 has become a reality for all of us. Arlene, go ahead and introduce yourself to our listeners. I know a lot of our listeners will be familiar with your voice and your energy and your name. But, go ahead and just give our listeners a little overview of your role here at XYPN, and then we'll dive into some of the more deep questions about what you're currently providing for advisors.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:03:55] Thanks, Maddy. Okie-doke. Well, I am Head Cheerleader (I think is my joke title). Executive Business Coach makes me sound like more of a grown-up. I spend about half my time in one-on-one coaching with our more advanced members and then the rest of my time is in small group training. All the fun that our Advisor Success team does - which is webinars, small groups, open coaching... I love working with our Pre-Launch folks that are in that stage where they're going through Initial Registration; we also do webinars; BUILD is an event we have coming up for our more advanced planners; and BYOB (Build Your Own Business) is another webinar series I do a few times a year. So, that's kind of how I keep myself out of trouble with the XY gang.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:04:44] Awesome, Arlene. And Arlene has been on the XYPN team for a number of years. She's worked with some of our most advanced firms as an executive business coach. We're so glad to have Arlene on today. Emily, go ahead and introduce yourself and your background, please.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:04:59] Absolutely. So, my name is Emily Purdon and I am the Financial Planning and Process Coach here at XY. I joined the Advisor Success team in June after working as a financial planner at a large fee-only RIA in Northern Virginia. I earned my Master's in Advanced Financial Planning from Kansas State this spring. I also completed KSU's Financial Therapy Graduate Certificate Program and FPA residency program. So as a CFP® and an EA, I coach members as they start, run, and grow their businesses. Along with Arlene, I coach in group and private formats, lead weekly educational webinars for members in different phases of the firm journey. And when I'm not coaching or engaging with members, I spend time creating ready to use resources, building out self guided courses and writing blogs.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:05:48] Awesome. Emily and I must say, you are one of the most complimented staff members we have right now. It had been a while for XYPN before we were able to invest into a position like yours where you're dedicated to building out this financial planning process for folks and supporting them in that regard, so I'm really looking forward to diving into those individual programs that you're gonna be running here and have been running. Thanks for that intro.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:06:13] Absolutely. Thanks so much!

 

Maddy Roche: [00:06:15] Carolyn. Why don't you introduce yourself to our listeners. I know some of our listeners have heard you before on this podcast and some may have even worked with you, but let the listeners know a little bit about your background and what you've brought to XYPN.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:06:27] Sure. Yes, I am Carolyn Dalle-Molle. I've been the XYPN Marketing Coach for a few years now and I come from the small business startup world, so I have about a decade's worth of experience, helping small businesses market themselves with a variety of levels of resources and, honestly, skill sets, too. So, I was spending my first part of my career out there doing the work, and now I'm here in network training members about how to do it in their own firms. I really, really enjoy the financial services space, so it's a great fit. And, right now I work with members in multiple different formats, just like everyone else on the call here today. But, there's a lot of group training stuff that's live, there's always on-demand resources in Academy, and the live coaching is sometimes my favorite because I get to not only present a training, but also hear from members about what their follow up questions are and really get into the details. That's sometimes my favorite part of the job.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:07:37] Absolutely. I know so many of our members love working with you and they credit you for being so familiar with the small RIA space. That's really what differentiates so many of our coaches is that - you know - yes, you're coaches, but you're coaches to this niche and you can speak directly to that. So, BB, why don't you introduce yourself and your background to our listeners, please?

 

BB Webb: [00:07:56] Sure. Hi, Maddy. Well, I come from being an entrepreneur for decades. I owned a small business in Georgia, just outside of Atlanta, that I ran for 14 years and sold it before moving to Montana, and, before that had I had a career in the arts. So, really came at small business ownership differently, and especially in my last business with about 28 employees, really learned the importance of creating structures and processes and procedures and learned an awful lot about sales and marketing and how to get the word out. So I bring that area of expertise to our members, our advisors who are small business owners, and my focus is as a Sales Coach. I work on sales process and really how to position sales as a service and selling as a conversation. And I really look at-at sales as the art and the science of sales; you need a process, but then what goes into that conversation depends on what you're getting from the person that you're speaking with. So loving working with advisors on how to put together their businesses and make sure that once Carolyn has worked with them on a marketing piece and they get a lead in, what do they do with that lead and how do they transition it to hopefully a raving fan client. Some of the resources available: certainly templates and worksheets in sales resource guide in Academy, but also some courses, some recordings, one-on-one coaching through my CALL program (which is for people who are are newly launched, although I have a waiting list and people who are a little further along in the process can sign up and we do that program monthly). It includes live learnings, worksheets and homework and then also two one-on-one coaching sessions with me and that's super, super fun for me to really learn where... where the advisors are and how I can help them. We also have a launcher series that all of the coaches do and that's focused more on the Implementing stage. And then, next week we're actually doing a BUILD program, which is focused on folks in the Building stage and we're doing our first- our first virtual session, in that we're all not traveling quite yet, but we're focusing on the New York area. And then, we also started something a few months ago called Open Coaching, where we take a specific topic in sales or marketing or financial planning and processes or executive coaching, and we coach around that topic. Everybody who signs up to be in - "on the mike", as we call it - has 15 minutes to chat with a coach about... something, a question that they have around that topic and other people can listen in. So, we've got lots of different ways that people can tune in to get coaching and the very support that I wish I'd had when I was busy being an entrepreneur, trying to figure it out on my own.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:10:49] Absolutely. And if any of our listeners are interested in hearing more about BB's background and her sales process, just look back at our #XYPNRadio page; she was on the podcast just a couple months ago with one of the most real podcasts filled with some of the best advice that we've had yet. So thank you so much, BB, for that podcast and thanks for being on again today. OK, Arlene, I'm going to start with you. Emily and Arlene are very parallel in terms of the support and resources that they provide for advisors. So I want to be sure that we focus our conversation in this first half around just the needs of the business and the advisors themselves that they're facing right now, as we all find ourselves kind of approaching a potential opening of our country back up after this COVID response, but we know so many of our advisors around the country have found a new world early March of this year. So, Arlene, just talk to us a little bit about what are you hearing from the members of the XYPN community right now as business owners? What's their status?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:11:53] They're hanging in there.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:11:56] Ohh.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:11:56] You know, I get on calls and every call I get on, you know, my one on one, I check in - "How are you doing?" - and you know, everybody used to say, "fine." And now, everybody is like, "I'm okay".

 

Maddy Roche: [00:12:06] Mmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:12:06] So... So, you know, we're worn down. And I say that not to start this out as like, "hey, everything's terrible. The world is horrible." I say that so that if you are listening to my voice and you feel like you are alone and you are the only one, you are not. There are millions of people saying, "I'm over it. This was a fun joke for spring. Let's have summer be normal." As far as, er, business-wise, it's interesting. The beginning was, "Ah! I meant to do contingency planning. I guess it's time we get around it." And, folks that were in offices definitely had to figure out their life; you know, they-they got almost no notice before they were going to be working from home full time. Now, a lot of our XY folks are already virtual - or at least a part of them is already virtual - so they are doing a little bit better. But some of those folks out there that are a little older firms, more -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:13:06] Mmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:13:06] - established, have more of an office. That was a big change. And now we've shifted. Now, those same clients, those same members, I'm working with them to figure out, how do we safely come back? How do we come back and socially distance in our office but get to come back? So it's-it's been a lot of humanity, Maddy.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:13:27] Wow. Hmm...

 

Arlene Moss: [00:13:27] Lot of humanity in the last month or so. This is not just business and business coaching. This is real -.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:13:34] Mhmm..

 

Arlene Moss: [00:13:34] - honest to goodness, human beings with very, very different thoughts, fears, concerns, anxieties that we're all fighting through.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:13:43] Yeah, thanks for that. I totally agree, Arlene, that the sense that I'm getting from our members is that we-we are all in this together - they with their clients, us with them and so forth - but that-that we're all kind of itching for-for some normal? That we all are recognizing that this is probably going to be a long experience. It's going to require a lot of tweaking to our businesses. Emily, you work one on one, and in a group capacity with members. Have you sensed similar feelings among our members and the advisor community?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:14:15] Yes, absolutely. I think Arlene and I, you know, personally, not even professionally, we struggle and deal with a lot of these things as well. So, we almost have conversations to make sure that our team is taken care of, so we can help our members as they help their clients. Right? And it's kind of this interesting chain of everyone's trying to support one another, which is really lovely. But yes, coaching conversations have definitely shifted, you know, less away from, you know, workflows and processes. We're not really talking about that right now. We're talking about how you can be there for your client and also yourself and your family and all of the other people that rely on you.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:14:55] Mmm. Yes. Arlene, you mentioned a couple of things: contingency planning, transitioning into the virtual practice. What are the biggest concerns of advisors right now?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:15:05] The absolute number one is, will the prospects ever come back again?

 

Maddy Roche: [00:15:10] Ohh!

 

Arlene Moss: [00:15:10] Answer is absolutely, positively yes, they will. I do have some who are like, "what's happened? I'm busy", but more I have, that, am I- "Are they going to come out of their houses and come back and see me? Am I going to be okay?" And the answer is yes. Everybody's going to- you're going to be okay. One thing, I think kind of in line of that "will there ever be prospects again?" question is: "is it ever gonna be okay for me to ask for business again?" And yes, it's okay right now to ask for that business. That's-that's the message I want you to hear -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:15:46] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:15:46] - is that maybe your biggest concern, but it's a-okay. You get to still be helpful and offer your services and you can do that in a non predatory manner. I guess I'm kind of tripping over into accounts, so I'll let her cover that later. But... But this one's... you know, this concern is, it is different than, say, '08-09 where folks felt like history was on their side. And I've had a couple clients who just say, "you know, I'm afraid I might not be telling them the truth, that I might" -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:16:21] Mmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:16:21] - "be telling them 'it's all gonna be okay', and what if it's not?" And it's scary for our advisors to think they've learned all these things, they've learned financial history, and maybe their timeless advice isn't right? I think it is. I think everybody's going to be okay. But those are, yeah, those are the biggies I'm hearing over and over and over again.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:16:44] Yeah. Emily, when it comes to execution of the planning process, how are you hearing or sensing that, that the experience of the advisor is changing? How were they, how were they serving their clients differently because of COVID?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:16:57] Absolutely. So in a normal environment, a lot of clients, or as we'll call them prospects in this case, will come to an advisor and say, "you know what, Arlene? I'm having such a tough time. I just got married and I'm trying to pay off my student loans. And, you know, I'm looking at buying a house." Right? There's a few pain points, a few things, that I expect to get answers to when I engage an advisor. Now, it's a lot... It's similar in the fact that clients do have immediate pain points, but those pain points don't necessarily require numbers and analysis and planning software. Those conversations are more around how they're feeling, how we can help support them in times of just uncertainty. Right? A lot of our advisors have navigated recessions or just market volatility in general. But, when you add a pandemic to that, it's a new layer - kind of a new world for everyone - so when it comes to the planning process, you're probably going to be talking to your prospects and early clients, a lot more smaller touches, more unique in what you're talking about. And then, you'll get to the planning process probably months down the road after you feel like you've been able to support them and help them through this time.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:18:10] And Arlene - how are you coaching advisors in terms of those that, that may feel like they're in the first few years of this and that this was a really vulnerable time for them to experience a market volatility like this in a global pandemic for that matter? How are you speaking and working with the advisors in their first few years where this really is... it could, it could hurt the business?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:18:34] For the folks that are in that pre-launch/launch stage - it's that first year or two - I'm trying to get them to just keep on plugging. It gets back- I've sent more people to Carolyn, I think, in the last month or so, then other than I normally do. And it's because there is this fear around marketing and "is it okay to grow a business?" And I try to coach my folks: Just keep going. Keep doing the work. Keep showing up. People are going to come out of their houses and their same problems are going to be there. If they had, you know, credit card debt, it's still gonna be there. If they had student loan debt, things are changing, but there are considerations. Retirement is still going to happen for people. So, I just tell them to keep plugging away and doing the right work. As I said, I send a lot of folks to Carolyn because I want them to feel safe and comfortable building a business. I'm hearing more guilt about -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:19:35] Interesting.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:19:35] - asking for the business than normal. And there's, let me be real clear, there's always this little element when folks are starting out about "I don't want to ask all my friends and family and I don't want to be sales-y." Oh my gosh. It's like, -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:19:49] Mmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:19:49] - it's like getting the plague to say your sales-y. And so that's heightened right now. People are being more in tune with being afraid of being sales-y, so we're trying to get them to know that it's okay to show what you do, show you have value. Always be mindful of what people are going through, but that you get to keep moving forward.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:20:14] Mmhm. Mhmm. Emily, do you have any specific advice on what advisors can do today in terms of their planning process and execution with clients that can help? I loved what you were saying, that, that we really need to focus on what's most on the client's mind at this time. How do you think the components of the financial plan are going to change over the next year and how do advisors adjust to that?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:20:38] Yeah, so I will plug our Advisor Success team blog actually from last month. So this is a February blog that we wrote - all the coaches came together, as did the Director of our team - and we all kind of talked about, or coached on, the one thing that we're seeing the most. So what Arlene's hinting at with Carolyn, which, you know, she'll talk about here shortly, is also available in the blog. My section was mostly on pricing. So when we're -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:21:02] Mmm.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:21:02] - talking about any process, we're still in those really early phases of figuring out how we can adjust what's already in your ADV to make it work during this pandemic - so whether or not that means bringing out hourly services, creating some sort of project that may be a little bit more of a competitive rate than it would be otherwise. You know, things about pricing support, that's where I'm really coming in. And then Arlene's section is on self care and really wonderful kind of executive level coaching tips on that. And so, I would say my area of the planning process, as an ongoing -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:21:37] Mhmm.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:21:37] - service, isn't really being talked about as much as: what do we do right now? How do we price and how then do we market that without, like Arlene said, seeming opportunistic?

 

Maddy Roche: [00:21:47] Emily, I'm interested. Why the discussion around pricing? What, what prompts us to need to change pricing, given COVID?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:21:55] Sure. It's two parts. So one part is accessibility and I guess, just in general, affordability. And then the second part is you're a business owner and we need to keep in mind the value that you bring at this time. Right? Your advice is arguably more valuable than ever. So let's start with accessibility. That could look like a pro bono offering. A lot of our members - I don't have the current count with me, I know it's over 80 members at least - have offered wonderful COVID pro bono support. When you go to Find An Advisor Profile, you'll see all of that wonderful work. You know, they're promoting it on Twitter or social media outlets. You know, they're recording videos and getting those out to COIs and making it known that they are here to provide support to people that have maybe been laid off or furloughed or whatever the case may be. So if you'd like to be accessible, pro bono. If you'd like to be affordable, hourly, project work. Right? If you have it in your ADV, pull it out and use it. Promote it on your website. Make it clear that you can just have a conversation for an hour for $200 or $250, or project $500 to $1,000. That helps them get financially organized in this time. So that's kind of accessibility, affordability. And then, we kind of look at you as a business owner and, what I coach a lot on is please don't cut your fees! So we switch away from prospects and new clients to existing clients. If you feel that you would like to cut your existing fees, it's time to have a conversation with Arlene or with me because we can help coach around maybe those thoughts and feelings and maybe just incorporate a different service offering. Alternatively, as you're kind of coaching, coaching your clients, I would say, realizing a mix of all three or a mix of a few options might be the best bet for you as a business owner. And I think that's pretty much where my coaching comes in, along with fees and services.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:23:52] Yeah. Well, I think that's a great segue, Emily. Why don't you go ahead and explain to the listeners the initiative that XYPN Advisor Success team has taken since COVID became a reality for all of us?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:24:05] Absolutely. So "The Way Forward: A Roadmap For The Critical Work Ahead" - as our marketing team has figured out such a wonderful and kind way to translate that. And basically what that means is our team has come together to offer training, resources, and programs to power our members through, not only the 2020 market disruption, but obviously beyond that as well. So everything lives over in Academy - our new learning management system we launched a few weeks ago now - and we currently have 45 lessons and they're topical - so they're separated into a few schools and the names, just to give you a little bit of a preview, are "COVID-19 And The Economy", "Conversations With Clients", "Running A Virtual Practice", and then, of course, some marketing support, support for a business owner, tips on working from home and then self care. So, that's kind of what that program looks like right now. We continue to add to it and evolve, and there's a few other components that I'm happy to talk about as well.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:25:04] Yeah. Emily, I'd love for you to explain some of the general trainings that we've included in "The Way Forward", but specifically your trainings and what you're going to be doing over the next several months to help our advisors continue to get through this.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:25:17] Absolutely. So there are two things, I think specifically. One is our team holds Open Coaching. So these are 15-minute slots where members can sign up for support and guidance on advanced topics. We have changed our structure a little bit to incorporate things like evaluating your fees in this type of environment -.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:25:36] Mmm.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:25:36] - and tips on self care. I think actually you and Arlene did something very recently for that. So we've started to incorporate just a little bit of a different topic, but the same structure. Other members pop in, they listen to us coach, they learn from one another, and it's just a really engaging, awesome member experience. All of our coaches are doing that right now, so that's a great program. And then the second thing I'll talk about is we've added a bunch of webinars.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:26:00] Mmm.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:26:00] So I've reached out, our team has reached out just to industry experts. Right? People that we can rely on. Upcoming webinar with Carl Richards talking about "Imposter Syndrome" - that will be, I think, very timely and effective. We've had wonderful conversations with the Financial Therapy Association, past presidents and, you know, board members on dealing with financial stress and anxiety. So, just really trying to get, you know, experts from the field to come in and support our members during this time.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:26:30] Wonderful. I'm looking forward to a lot of that. And I've heard really great things about the Open Coaching program. Arlene, talk a little bit about the programs and the webinars and the topics that you're going to be covering for our advisors in the coming months.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:26:42] Golly, I am... Well, I also do the Open Coaching. We all do that and we also have the Daily Briefing that I tend to show up on that on Fridays. We take turns. Malcolm's there each and every day, but the rest of the coaches pop in. That's a 15-minute daily briefing. It kind of brings breaking, relevant news, gives you a little bit on market updates, and we talk about how that's affecting you and your clients and your business. So join- pop on that. They're also posted in "The Way Forward", so we've got that. I am honestly doing a lot of... You know, we've, we've rejiggered a little bit of BYOB. Trying to, trying to look at everything through the lens of "what makes it more relevant right now. How can we shift it a little bit?"

 

Maddy Roche: [00:27:35] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:27:35] And the whole team has been working on BUILD, which we have coming up shortly. And we've been reworking that so it can be a virtual experience as opposed to in, in real life. So that's been a fun challenge for us. And again, that's just taking, it's taking that concept of, "you've got to keep putting one foot in front of the other." You can't - especially those in the early days, but anyone who's still growing their business, building their business - you can't just say, "okay, well, I'm not going to grow. I'm not going to work on this until after." You can't do that day in and day out. Yes, you can have a little time off. You can take a little break for self care, but we can't have you neglecting your business. So that's kind of where I come in, is just keep on nudging people to move down the road.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:28:22] What, what a coach approach! I so appreciate that, that you can't give up right now, that this is the time that we've got to keep plugging. What tips do you have for self care, Arlene? I'm interested in what you've been communicating to members about. How do we, how do we keep ourselves sane and happy?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:28:38] I mean, I'm not sure this is the day to ask me that, Maddy, I am not succeeding.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:28:43] Oh!

 

Arlene Moss: [00:28:43] I am - and I say that in part because it's very true today, but also because I want everyone to know we're gonna have good days and bad days. I have days where I'm like, "yeah. I'm going to kick COVID's butt, like, I'm taking on the world" and you will too, you people in the listening audience! And then you'll have days where you want to pull the covers up and say, "nope, not getting out of bed today."

 

Maddy Roche: [00:29:06] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:29:06] So I'm telling people to roll with it, that it's a roller coaster and we're all on different roller coasters. We're not on the same one, unfortunately, so we're not, you know, hands in the air squealing with joy. Sometimes I'm down when you're up and vice versa. I am trying to encourage people to make very nice boundaries, especially those who are new to "work from home" as a "work from home" alum here. I've been doing it -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:29:32] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:29:32] - since 2004. I have learned how to say goodbye to my office at the end of the day, that sometimes shutting the door is what I need to do to really get good at saying, "nope, it's, it's five o'clock." You know, there's, you know, it's the end of the day. Make, make that end. And if your life, and so many of you are probably laughing, saying "she doesn't understand our pain", there is no five o'clock end time because you're doing homeschooling in the middle and, you know, taking care of your house and just trying to keep your sanity. Do... Just do what you can do. Do not try to be perfect. Do not expect- no one is expecting perfection. When we get on Zoom calls, I try to start every single Zoom call with a group saying, "hey, we get these are weird times. If your dog is there, that's okay. If your kid is there, bring them on. I love to see kids." Please grant yourself grace. That's just -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:30:31] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:30:31] - such a huge, huge part of self care right now. Join Maddy's Meditation. If that fits your timeframe, pop on. If it doesn't, download Headspace or Calm -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:30:41] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:30:41] - and do your own self care.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:30:44] I love all of those tips, Arlene. One other thing that I heard very recently on an FTA webinar. It's my, honestly, I think, my favorite tip I've heard so far: schedule a worry time. Worrying -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:30:56] Wow.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:30:56] - leads to mental and physical exhaustion, so choose a specific time each day to write your worries down, save them, scream them, whatever you want to do. And by doing that, you allow yourself permission and freedom to focus on your day and get what you need to get done.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:31:15] Really, really good advice. I appreciate that idea of scheduling. As much as we're grasping at everything to find our previous normal, we really do have to take it upon ourselves to create our new normal and scheduling can actually be our friends. I've really enjoyed committing to the meditation every morning with our members because it gives me a time to sit down and start my day. I've really appreciated the Daily Briefings by your team. Those are hard hitting, great, short ways to start your day feeling motivated that you're tied into a community that cares and is supporting you. The experts that we have on every day really do provide some great insight to get you looking positively at the day. But Emily, to your point, man, we should each have 15, 20 minutes to do, to write, write, write not only what we're grateful for, but write and go ahead and be open about what we worry about. Arlene, XYPN recently rolled out an "Internship In A Box" program. Would you mind letting the listeners know a little bit about what that program is and how that might fold into all of this craziness that we have currently?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:32:22] Well, I don't know if our listeners have heard, but a lot of more traditional firms canceled their internships. This summer, you know, they were all set to have interns come in-house and then the world changed, and they were not able to do that, so they canceled a lot and, for many students, that is a graduation requirement. It's not just a fun summer job; it's the real deal. They've got to have it to get out of school on time. So, we had an internship program idea that had been percolating and suddenly, Alan was like, "you know what? It's time. Let's do this thing." So we rolled out Internship In A Box because we are so lucky - and that's a phrase that we don't get to use that much right now, so I'm going to jump on it. We are so lucky that we have 1,200 members who know how to work virtually. You get it, you understand how to do it and you're willing to jump in and have this unique virtual internship experience. We rolled out all manner of guide and templates and samples on those were all out on "The Way Forward" on the XYPN Academy, so anybody can go access that information. We also have a roster of 400+ resumes from students - I haven't checked today what the count is, but last time I looked, it was over 400 resumes. Those are available to members who signed an agreement that they will abide by some of our guidelines for internships. The biggie is it has to be professionally developmental for the intern and it has to be paid. Now, I could do an entire podcast on why we should get paid internships, but I won't rant too much today. Just know that that is a key element in opening up the industry to underserved, upper- underrepresented. So if we want to grow in diversity and folks from more diverse backgrounds, that's going to be one of the ways to do that. So we're real strong about paid internships. I'm excited because our members are in such a good place and I've talked to so many in the past couple of weeks, who like, "I thought about doing it some day or I was thinking maybe I'd do it next summer. But you know what? Yeah, I'll do it now. You guys have given me the resources; I can make this happen." So people have pulled up their timeline and I'm beside myself happy that they have done so and are willing to help: help students, help the industry, and grow that next generation.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:35:02] Great. I, too, have been impressed with the number of resumes that have come in. I think XYPN has gained a lot of attention over the years to some young folks, and they're looking to work with advisors, like all of you. Emily, I'm interested in your perspective and what an advisor can do currently while we all find ourselves quarantined to our homes: to lean into their community and to use the leverage of community to continue to benefit their, themselves, their firms and their process. What tips do you have?

 

Emily Purdon: [00:35:32] Interesting. Yeah, I think right now, leaning into the community is a virtual experience. Right? Right now, it's all about being connected. Trying to replace that really valuable in person time with meaningful virtual communication. Arlene and I joke about this a lot because I feel like every day I'm invited to a new webinar or something else that is a virtual experience where you can learn and get educated, and we're all trying to do our part to stay connected. And I think right now, for our members... You know? I almost feel like it's a good time to slow down. You know, I think you've, you've read a lot about, "well, the Earth was telling us it was time to slow down!" or whatever the case may be, and I think it's just, realize your business will be there, like Arlene said, you know? The client questions and concerns, you can answer them now. They'll still be there a few months from now. But just realize, spend time with your family, whether that's homeschooling or skipping homeschooling or whether that's, you know, just going out in the backyard and spending time with your family. I think I'm just giving my clients, so our members, permission to do what they need to do to feel fulfilled and feel as happy as they can be during this time. So not a lot about, you know, professional memberships or attending this webinar or that webinar. More so just enjoying their natural community and the family that they are able to see.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:36:52] Absolutely. That-that shared and the validation we can give one another, that-that we all are slowing down a little bit, that our all of our worlds have changed and that we're each taking time for self care and pivoting a bit I think it is so important, and that's where the value of a community does come in: is that you can hear and sense and understand what other people are doing so that it gives you a more, you know, real feeling that you're not too off track. Arlene, have you given any tips about utilizing a community during this time to any of the members that you've worked with?

 

Arlene Moss: [00:37:26] I always recommend that they stay connected to their NAPFA study groups or their FPA chapter, and I encourage them to continue to do so as best they can. What I'm finding a lot of is helping folks lead. If they're, if they're not sure how to connect, I say, "you know what? You can be the one that hosts the happy hour. Reach out to -"

 

Maddy Roche: [00:37:51] Mmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:37:51] "- all the folks that you would normally be seeing at networking events." This is coming mostly with my more extroverted networking powerhouse clients. The ones that hated networking are very happy to not be networking.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:38:08] Haha!

 

Arlene Moss: [00:38:08] But those who really got excited about going and seeing people in real life are, are, they're legitimately struggling right now.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:38:16] Mhmm.

 

Arlene Moss: [00:38:16] So I've encouraged them to create their own online happy hour, their own brown bag lunch, their own content, and don't be afraid to host and be the one that invites people to stay connected. Be that, be the hub of that wheel, so to speak.

 

Emily Purdon: [00:38:34] I'd love to add onto that. One of my favorite things, and this is coming from an introvert, is our weekly happy hour. I absolutely love it. So XY, for staff, you know, has our happy hour every Thursday, and it's some of my favorite, I think, moments with co-workers, especially during this time. And I will say, you know, feeling like you have a community, be that at work or elsewhere - study groups, I'm hearing a lot from members - but I will say I'd encourage you to join things even if you might be a little bit more introverted. Or maybe you're appreciating the kind of quiet opportunity to go and stay kind of in your space. It's really great to engage with fellow co-workers and people that are just experiencing the same thing that you are.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:39:18] Yeah. I couldn't agree more that - you know, during a time like this - that it's so important to be reaching out to the folks that you care about. It's been a number of weeks since any of us have been in the same room. And although a virtual environment is surely not the same, it is, it is one that can help and it can help remind us that we're in this together. We've talked a lot about that already, and I so appreciate it. Carolyn, I really want to dive in with you and BB about how, how the landscape of sales and marketing has changed, given our new COVID-19 reality. We've talked a lot with Emily and Arlene already just about how the business dynamics have changed, how, how the, the mental and emotional worry that a lot of our advisors and their clients carry can impact the relationship. I'm wondering, Carolyn, from your experience as a marketer, what are the biggest challenges facing our advisors right now?

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:40:15] Sure. I think from the marketing side of things, the biggest fear or worry in this environment is to feel like if you're marketing your business, you're insensitive or you are going to appear like an opportunist.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:40:30] Mmm!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:40:30] There's this worry: "I don't want to misstep. I don't want to damage my reputation or seem pushy." Lots of ways to describe what I call, you know, misstepping or being that opportunist. And it's a valid fear. It's actually a helpful fear because it might help you - an advisor - steer clear of the kinds of marketing that would appear such.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:40:56] Hmm!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:40:56] Because there is a way to communicate right now, that would be insensitive. There's a way to -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:41:01] Mhmm.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:41:01] - advertise yourself that would be pushy. So a fear of that is actually helpful. And you can use that fear to instead turn it around and say, "well, what do I want to do? If I go out and I communicate right now and I reach out offering help, how do I want to show up and present my offering so that it seems useful, helpful, generous..." all the positive attributes that you want to be associated with.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:41:32] Beautiful. BB, have you felt that you've identified challenges specifically regarding the sales process for our advisors in this environment?

 

BB Webb: [00:41:42] Yes, Maddy. I think, similar to what Carolyn was saying, I think that people don't... Well, with sales in general, the first fear people have is, "my gosh, I've had some bad experiences with sales people who put pressure on me", and, and it's reminding them, again, what we do in all the trainings, which is: it's a conversation that you have and creating a structure and really, really coming forth as the leader and explaining what the process is. That, "hey, this is what we're gonna do." You know, for instance, with the first prospect fit meeting, "we're going to get together. I'm going to learn a little bit about you. You're gonna learn a little bit about what we do. We're gonna see if we're a fit. And if we are at the end of this meeting, then we're gonna have a deeper dive meeting that it's all complimentary." Just being upfront about about what is the key issue. And I think the shift with the pandemic is the issues have changed a little bit. We're now dealing more with cash flow issues. We're not looking at investments. Maybe we're looking at, "oh, my gosh, someone in the family lost a job" and, "boy, you know, what's this new tax law?" I had one, one member who became expert at the CARES Act, and, even though she was presenting not in front of her-her main niche, she was coming forth as a leader and really guiding people, and, and, and that's, that's paying off for her. People are beginning to talk about, "wow, she's the go-to person, the leader who is listening to the current needs that folks are having" and they're remembering her and inquiring about, you know, her practice because of that. So I think that, that really, as I would recommend in any sales process, being the leader, guiding the path, sharing what the expectations are and letting the person who is listening be totally in charge and in control. So there is absolutely no pressure, but they can feel that you're coming forth with an attitude, a framing of service and really helping them through a challenge.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:43:41] Yeah. I love this theme of all the coaches. You guys are talking just about being of service to one another and being there as humans: to the advisors as-as coaches, but for our advisors to be there as humans to their clients. Carolyn, I'm wondering, are there immediate changes that you recommend advisors make to their marketing today because of what we're facing?

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:44:01] Yes, there does need to be some filter through which we put our marketing. The marketing you may have planned out for this spring and summer, perhaps needs a second glance and see, you know, is it still appropriate, given the environment because the challenges do change right now and the tone of voice we use might need to become a little bit more compassionate or sensitive to the circumstances. So the immediate change would be to look at what you've scheduled, what you were planning to launch, and just look at it through the current lens of this pandemic, this global challenge, and a lot of the fear that's going on. So what is your new voice? How might you change some of the word choice or the titles? Is there something that you should pause and wait for, you know, further down the line to share at all? So that's the first step, is to look at what was scheduled, to look at what you were planning and say, "is it still appropriate?" And then second is to say, "how can I be of service right now? Are there short term things I can do to amp up my outreach to be able to help more people or to get even more specific about what I do so the right people easily find me?" And with that short term effort, there are some marketing mediums that are a bit longer term versus shorter term.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:45:35] Hmm!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:45:35] So that's actually one of the resources I provided in "The Way Forward", is a list of marketing mediums that can be effective short term. Because, honestly, not every single thing is. Some, some marketing campaigns or strategies are the long term play, and that just might not be the most, most helpful way to spend your time today when so many people are in need of help right now or yesterday.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:46:03] Mmm.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:46:03] Those would be the two things, right? Just look at where your planning, is-is it still appropriate, and then secondly, could you gear up and launch more things in the short term that will be helpful to people?

 

Maddy Roche: [00:46:16] Yeah. Dana Menard and Kevin Mahoney were on the podcast just a couple of months ago with us as-as the pandemic really started and they talked a lot about what they were sensing from, from clients. And it really sounded like - and I almost feel like we're still there - that we're still in this, we're in the "shock phase" and that ultimately, you know, potential new clients have not gotten to the point where they're looking at their budget quite yet and realizing that they need to engage in a financial planner. They're both very optimistic about that happening in the future, but that right now, we, as a hu-, you know, a shared culture are just kind of in shock, and BB, I'm wondering: do you have any advice about immediate changes to the sales conversation, given that? That folks may be a little bit more in shock, they may be a little bit more vulnerable than they would have been, say, three months ago.

 

BB Webb: [00:47:04] Absolutely, Maddy. And I think the first step of that is really honing, again, what we need to be doing in a sales process anyhow, but now more than ever is really listening between the lines.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:47:16] Mmm.

 

BB Webb: [00:47:16] People are scared. People feel vulnerable. You know, it's, they're not used to that kind of vulnerability and, depending on how well you know somebody, if it's a prospect, really setting the stage so they feel very comfortable being able to share. And that might be you being a little more vulnerable about things that you're uncertain about. But I think as soon as, you know, typically I would call that "rapport building" is a little different timbre. Right now, it's, you know, again, creating a safe place for people to really share where they are. But, I think when, when the advisor does become aware of where someone is, it's, it's being able to guide them into, "okay, this is, this is where you are" - and I love the expression that "you've got to make things what they are before you can change them" - so... Fearful, and then, and then what are the things that we can control? In fact, I saw this wonderful graphic - I don't know who to give credit to, but I saw it maybe through LinkedIn or something - but they were talking about three zones that people tend to go through in -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:48:18] Hmm!

 

BB Webb: [00:48:18] - this period of time. The first one is "the fear zone." You know, where they're, they're, you know, people are in that hoarding mode or, "my gosh, what do we -"

 

Maddy Roche: [00:48:24] Ha!

 

BB Webb: [00:48:24] "- do when it's over?" It's a crisis and, and doom and gloom forever. Forwarding scary messages to people to move people into the next zone, they call "the learning zone." And it's where, you know, "what can I, what can I let go of and what can I start to proactively do that will be helpful? Whether that's look at my spending, look at my budget, work with somebody who can be a guide, maybe going to joining Maddy's wonderful meditation, you know, to chill out my thinking." They're, they are verifying information before sharing it.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:48:56] Mhmm.

 

BB Webb: [00:48:56] And then the third zone, which I like, which I think that if an advisor can think about this with, with their client or their prospect is moving into "the growth zone" that we, you know, for instance, I've been through other, you know, '07-'08 and I was through 9/11. Different situations, but they were crisis points - and that we got through it through methodically looking at what we could control, what we couldn't, and then making a plan and working with reliable, grounded people who can help guide us through, and then also having challenges for when we do go down the rabbit hole and in that scary spot. What are the different strategies we do? Whether it's take a bath or take a walk or call a friend or get on Zoom - you know, the things that we can control. This is part of the role, I think, that advisors need to play to get people in that even, more even keel place to begin to have the conversations about the things that are showing up as emergencies now. You know, estate planning, I mean, gosh, I went from a brokerage firm to an XYPN person. I had no idea the things that I was missing in -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:50:00] Right!

 

BB Webb: [00:50:00] - estate planning that nobody talked about.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:50:03] Hahaha!

 

BB Webb: [00:50:03] Well, now more than ever, I'm so thankful to have my guy helping me through some of those questions that, you know, should've been handled 10 years ago. But thankfully, they are now.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:50:12] Yeah, absolutely. Carolyn, let's talk opportunities. I know you, you alluded to one of your resources in "The Way Forward", is, is outlining some of those different methods and mediums that could be helpful in the marketing space. What opportunities exist for advisors to demonstrate value, to have impact, to make change in their businesses given our new reality?

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:50:34] The biggest opportunity right now is that we are incredibly relevant to everything that's going on. And I say we, the industry of fee-based financial planning. The economy is on everyone's mind. Finances are incredibly topical. People want to talk about their money right now.

 

BB Webb: [00:51:01] Mhmm.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:51:01] They need help. And this is the kind of what oftentimes is called a life event. Oh! People often come to planning when there's a big a life event. They get married, they have a kid. They inherit money. Well, everyone is going through a collective life event right now. Huge opportunity. So with that comes, yes, you're more and more relevant. You might be more welcomed by consumers who hear about you because they have a need, but also from the true marketing kind of strategy sort side of things, the media really cares right now and other content creators at large really care. They want to be topical. They want to be relevant and timely with their audiences. So if you can think big and small about any sort of collaboration you could have, whether it's a small podcast or a YouTube channel or The New York Times. I mean, these are all happening; it's a big, big opportunity to reach out, offer a story, offer help. Just be there to support their audience. And you might be able to feature yourself as a solution provider. So that's the the biggest one; it's undeniable. And then you can see how that also - the relevancy of finances in everyone's life right now - would bleed into other marketing mediums or opportunities. I mean, it basically infects everything. I would just highlight, you know, media or collaborations in general as perhaps the most effective thing to think about.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:52:41] That term - "a solution provider" - I've never thought of an advisor like that, but that is exactly what folks are looking for and what our advisors can frame themselves up as! That, that really is that we're all in this collective life event and in need of some advice and to be able to really showcase and not be afraid of doing it and not feeling bad about it, that we are, in fact, the solutions to some of our community's problems. BB, what, what specific, tangible advice do you have for, for advisors in terms of the opportunities that they have available to them in this new landscape?

 

BB Webb: [00:53:19] Yeah, I think that waking up every morning, just asking how can I serve? And then considering today what is one possible way - similar to what Carolyn was saying - to do so? Whether it is, you know, finding an association that is now, not meeting in person, but offering to do a webinar for that group, for that association and your niche or - you know, I just heard a great story. It's not related to advisors, but the graduation couldn't be held. And I heard this on NPR. So the principal was created, created creative, and he gathered everybody together at the drive-in and they did a big video for the kids who were graduates. So they just created a new way to -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:54:02] Yeah.

 

BB Webb: [00:54:02] - create an event and help serve people. And I think through content that people are, not just craving but need, what is the great way to get that out? And how can you adjust your models so that - whether you don't typically do hourly your project, maybe now you do for a while with the idea that, gosh, once we get through the crisis, let's talk about maybe how I can help you on an ongoing basis and be that guide because a plan all by itself, it's like a, like culture statements in a company. If you have this great culture statements - with wonderful communication and systems based that sits on a shelf (which I did in my company and I wondered why people weren't doing the things that we've talked about). It wasn't until we visited those culture statements daily that we began living it and creating the kind of robust culture we wanted. Obviously, it's the same if a plan is sitting there, and it's, you don't have an advisor helping to guide you through, challenges can happen and I think being able to share that with people now and get them started on that track to a healthier place, it's going to serve them for years to come. So just waking up and how can you serve?

 

Maddy Roche: [00:55:12] Yeah. Well-said, BB. Carolyn, I'm interested in hearing from you a little bit about what strategies you have for marketing in terms of - let's, let's focus specifically on some of the new advisors in this space right now, some of the new members who maybe joined XYPN in the past year or so, those that may be joining in the next year: marketing has changed. We are no longer in - and BB, I'll be asking you the same question - that we are virtual right now. How does, how does that change? And what advice do you have for advisors in that space? Whether it just be the words of wisdom and support, but ideally, some tangible pieces of advice in terms of marketing in this world.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:55:50] Absolutely. I can elaborate more on this in the resource. Again, that is in XYPN Academy right now under "The Way Forward." Look for "Marketing During Recession Can Hurt Your Reputation: Here's What To Do Instead."

 

Maddy Roche: [00:56:06] Hmm!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:56:06] So there's - it's a multiple page document that you might want to give a read, but I'll give a shout out to a couple of the points now - one of them is... In this environment, marketing at its core is the same because marketing is communication. And if you want to be strategic about it, then create a plan of action to achieve this kind of overall aim of helping people, bringing more prospects into your sales. So the change in your plan is not... Is only to understand that the audience circumstance has changed. Marketing will still remain the same. You still have to go out there and communicate, share your message, articulate your value. You know, give them guidance toward the next thing that they should look at it. All those fundamentals remain. The only difference is that audience circumstance: the problems they're looking to solve are different, or at least they're being viewed under a different light because everyone has this current perspective of fear, uncertainty being a little bit sad, you know, just all the, all the things we're all feeling. So that is the change in your strategy to be thinking about. For new people coming in, that is actually really useful because the human experience is, from my view, more shared than usual. And so the specific problem people are having, you could almost write down a quick list of 10 problems you think the United States is experiencing right now, and you would be probably pretty correct. It's... The problems are glaringly obvious in this environment, so you can more confidently speak to those and how you help them. This time last year, as an example, you'd have to be kind of guessing what people's problems are, guessing how you can articulate some value and doing much more experimentation around that. But right now, it's kind of out there in the public and -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:58:21] Hahaha!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:58:21] - everyone is feeling that way, so that, that should give some folks a little bit more confidence about how to approach their initial launch or how they get their foot off the ground - is you're actually quite in tune with the problems people are trying to solve. And so under that, also, some tips just to avoid misstepping is to offer very specific value. Now is not the time to put out vanilla statements about "plan for your future for a better tomorrow."

 

Maddy Roche: [00:58:51] Haha!

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:58:51] Now's the time to get very specific. And, and the more specific you are also, the more confident you can be that your -

 

Maddy Roche: [00:58:58] Mmm.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [00:58:58] - message will resonate and be viewed as, "oh, that sounds hopeful" vs., you know, the pushy opportunist that we all want to avoid being. And then the more you can be generous to is another pillar to go after. Is, not only how can you get- market the firm, maybe grow the business, but are there ways you can infuse your activity with a lot of generosity? And the answer is yes, but have that wing of your marketing as well. It will only serve you and others. There's no harm in adding more generosity at this point.

 

Maddy Roche: [00:59:40] Yeah. Really, really good advice that we are more aware of the problems facing our potential clients than ever before. That, that really rang true in my mind, Carolyn. Thanks for reminding the listeners of that, that, that activity of just writing down the top 10 issues you're facing, you can assume the rest of society are facing very similar ones. Very, very, very good point, Carolyn. BB, how about you in terms of a sales conversation and the moving into the virtual world? I imagine that that new members and new advisors in this space were really planning on making that sell in person across the table and have that energy be able to be shared. We're, we're not able to do that now. What are, what are your tips for those folks?

 

BB Webb: [01:00:23] Well, I think naming, to start by naming the elephant in the room, and let me back up before that, is leaning in as the leader, leading the show. That this is what we're doing now with confidence and naming the awkwardness that maybe it is even, "hey, a little tutorial on Zoom" and "this is new for all of us, and let's just take the first couple of minutes and, and, and, and make sure that we can hear each other and how we're set up." And, but just to be, to Carolyn's point, generous with, not everybody knows how to do this virtual world. We live in it day to day, but, so really naming that. I love to start or talk with advisors on starting conversations with, you know, guiding the conversation; creating structure is really important. But we start with something called "WIFLE (What I Feel Like Expressing)" and it really gives everybody a limited timeframe of, "okay, we start the conversation. Anything can, can be shared. Anything you want to talk about, but you've just got a minute and nobody can interrupt" and then the next person goes, if there's several people on the call, just to, kind of, all bring the energy in the room together and let people put their other concerns. They've just voiced them so we can focus on, on, on what we were meeting about to begin with. And then people have the opportunity at the end of the minute-sharing or whatever, to make a comment, but it gets everyone in the same room, it eases the energy a little bit, and they can move forward with the structure of if it's a prospect-fit meeting, an introductory meeting - being able to line out what we're going to talk about - the time frame - so creating a structure and, within that structure, being able to have the dialogue that's important to that person who you're speaking with: if it's a prospect, to be able to ask good open ended questions so they can really express what's on their mind. And then it also gives the advisor an opportunity to share key stories that illustrate their value and help the person they're speaking with know that they are expert in a certain area, have experience in it, but really guiding that conversation with structure being accountable to the timeframe. and then, setting up what's next. I think this is the time when people don't want a lot more unknowns, so really, this is the time to lean on the sales process and I am in the process of - I have quite a few great resources that people can look to in Academy - but also we're building out some new resources around my six-step sales process and, you know. But again, being the leader, leaning on structure and sticking with the process to keep a continuity and kind of a safe place, something that folks can really count on, that, you know, "he or she is going to lead me through and is accountable to everything he or she says. I know that we're gonna go here and then we're going to go here and then we're gonna go here and I can count on that" and that's so important in times of great uncertainty.

 

Maddy Roche: [01:03:20] Yeah.

 

BB Webb: [01:03:20] For sure.

 

Maddy Roche: [01:03:22] I'm amazed how fast this hour has gone by with all of you. I could talk individually with you for hours, and I would love to do that, but out of respect for our listeners' time, we will have to wrap this up. Really, some of the core takeaways from this is that the process really doesn't need to change; how we show up does. And what we recognize in our clients and where they're at. To be able to meet them, take some inner work for ourselves, to take care of ourselves first and be able to show up passionately and forcefully with those clients. So thank you so much, Carolyn, BB, Emily and Arlene. You all have provided so much value and really impressive resources to our XYPN advisors, and just on the show today, some real tangible takeaways. Thank you so much.

 

Arlene Moss: [01:04:07] Thanks for having us, Maddy. It's been great.

 

Carolyn Dalle-Molle: [01:04:09] Thank you, Maddy.

 

BB Webb: [01:04:10] Thank you, Maddy!

 

[01:04:11] -- swish --

 

Maddy Roche: [01:04:13] Avocado toast. Selfies. A mountain of student loan debt. Gen Y is anything but traditional, and with over seventy five million people, it's a population you don't wanna ignore. Learn more about how to serve this unique population in our guide called "Attract and Profitably Serve Millennial Clients in your RIA." Discover three key ways to tap into the millennial market and six things that they want from their financial advisor. Visit xyplanningnetwork.com/millennials for your free copy.

 

Maddy Roche: [01:04:44] Be sure to join our VIP community at xyplanningnetwork.com/VIP to hang out with other #XYPNRadio listeners, ask questions for future mailbag episodes with Alan and Kitces, and finally, to find a community of like minded financial advisors. Thank you so much for joining me today. Have a safe and wonderful one. We'll see you next week.

 

Narrator: [01:05:05] You are not alone and you are not crazy. It's scary starting, building, and growing your own financial planning firm. And that's why we put together a free private community just for you, the cutting edge financial planner. Go to xyplanningnetwork.com/VIP or text XYPN Radio to 33344 and join a network of thousands ready to change the lives of Gen X and Gen Y clients.