Advisers warned ‘don’t fight regulation’
Advisers will be wise not to fight against an overreach of regulation if they want to stay in business for the long term, according to financial planners.
On a podcast with the Association of Financial Advisers, Deborah Kent, Bill Webster and Peter Graham, who had 125 years of financial advice experience combined, shared their tips for younger advisers.
Kent, financial adviser at Integra Financial Services, said it was more important that financial advisers enjoyed their work and the relationships with their clients.
“I believe in advice, it changes people’s life and they see the value in the advice we give them,” Kent said.
“Things do crop up and right now we are going through a lot of change, some might say an overreach of regulation and I would agree that’s the case, but you have to work through it, don’t fight it or you won’t go anywhere.
“You have to pivot and move your business to cope with it because it is not going to go away. Have the resilience and the confidence, keep building your business and remember it’s about the client and your relationship with them.”
Asked for her advice for younger planners, she said: “Be yourself and be authentic, especially for female planners who might be told to change how they dress or look.
“Secondly, be honest with clients and tell them the truth even if you think they won’t want to hear it.”
Answering the same question, Graham, retirement coach at Redefining Retirement, said: “Never stop learning, you have a personal responsibility to do so, it has nothing to do with regulation or Government requirements, it is your personal responsibility to expand your knowledge.
“Get knowledge from people who know more than we do, no matter who I asked from the chief executive downwards was always interested and interesting.”
Webster, who now worked as a mentor after a long career as a financial adviser, also praised the level of mentorship in the industry and encouraged younger advisers to take advantage of mentoring opportunities with other people in the sector.
“I fell into the industry by accident, I was talking to a guy at a party and he saw more in me than I saw in myself and that is the power of mentorship. Financial advice doesn’t have a peer in that department,” Webster said.
“In most professions, you don’t talk to the opposition but we are very willing to share ideas and learn from each other.”
AUTHOR
Laura Dew
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