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Hosted by Financial Advisor Coach, Ray Sclafani, "Building The Billion Dollar Business" is the ultimate podcast for financial advisors seeking to elevate their practice. Each episode features deep dives into actionable advice and exclusive interviews with top professionals in the financial services industry. Tune in to unlock your potential and build a successful, enduring financial advisory practice.
Ray Sclafani (00:00.334)
Welcome to Building the Billion Dollar Business, the podcast where we dive deep into the strategies, insights and stories behind the world's most successful financial advisors and introduce content and actionable ideas to fuel your growth. Together, we'll unlock the methods, tactics and mindset shifts that set the top 1 % apart from the rest. I'm Ray Schlaffani, and I'll be your host.
The Stockdale Paradox. What is it and how can it strengthen your year -end planning? As we turn onto the homestretch and drive towards the finish line of the year, you may be faced with confronting some hard truths, needing to acknowledge both internal and external current challenges while continuing to maintain steadfast confidence in your team's ability to finish the year strongly while setting the stage for long -term success. Well, this mindset known as the Stockdale Paradox
is named after Admiral James Stockdale, who survived years of brutal imprisonment during the Vietnam War by balancing hope with realism. Author Jim Collins explains the Stockdale paradox as the ability to maintain unwavering faith in eventual success while simultaneously confronting the harshest realities of your current situation. It's a principle that can serve as a valuable guide and reminder to help ensure your team remains focused
on delivering high performance even as year -end deadlines loom. Industry data clearly demonstrates that the last four months of the year are pivotal. Firms that execute well during this period are much more likely to enter the following year with momentum. Well, how much better you might ask? According to a recent Gallup survey, highly engaged teams show 21 % greater profitability and 59 % lower turnover
than less engaged teams. Another study conducted by McKinsey found that companies with a clearly defined and actively communicated corporate purpose outperform their peers in long -term value creation by up to 40%. While some firms tend to slow down as they approach the end of the calendar year, high -performing advisory teams see this time as the ultimate opportunity to consolidate gains, refocus, and plan for the future.
Ray Sclafani (02:27.33)
Despite a multitude of client needs, compliance deadlines, and year -end financial reviews for the team themselves, but also for clients, these all require focused execution. It's nevertheless an ideal time for forward -looking strategic planning. And the earlier you begin this process, the more impactful it will be. Scheduling an offsite meeting focusing on current performance and future planning
is a critical step to setting the stage for continued success. It's your opportunity to realign, problem solve, make powerful decisions about the future and build momentum with the team. But to get the most out of this meeting, you'll need to plan it out step by step. Here are five steps for your consideration. First, define the meeting's purpose. Determine key focus areas, whether it's solving immediate challenges, planning next year's initiatives or a blend of both. Make sure
everyone is clear about the meeting objectives well in advance. Second, my favorite, develop pre -work. Have team members complete preparatory work in advance. This could involve gathering client feedback, reviewing performance metrics or analyzing upcoming market trends. The more information team members have, the more the work they do in advance of the meeting, preparing for the meeting, the more engaged they'll be in meaningful discussions.
Third, circulate an agenda in advance and gather feedback about this agenda. Outline who will lead each section of the meeting, what key decisions are gonna be made, what problems will the team seek to address. All of this will help reduce ambiguity and keep the meeting on track. Fourth, clear roles prevent overlap and ensure an efficient use of time. Fifth, define success metrics. Establish these clear performance goals for the meeting itself.
including key decisions that are going to be made, problems that are going to be solved, future opportunities you'll prepare for, and a plan of action for the weeks that follow the meeting. Ensure your offsite involves the key leaders who will influence the strategy and the execution of the plan. These will include the owners, next generation partners, heads of departments, lead advisors, and your COO, Chief People Officer, or your CFO.
Ray Sclafani (04:47.032)
This will help provide a well -rounded view of your firm's current standing, future opportunities and potential obstacles. Lastly, ensure that every member of your organization has a voice in designing the future. Team feedback and co -creation drives performance results, culture and engagement, engagement in executing of the plan and an engagement in the future of your company. Before entering your offsite meeting, equip your team with the necessary data
required to make more informed decisions. Data -driven decision -making is a hallmark of successful teams, and this final stretch of the year is an opportune time to use that data strategically. Pertinent data could include performance metrics, how is your firm tracking against its OKRs, the objectives and key results of the firm, what strategies have worked well, and where are there opportunities for improvement. Client feedback is essential. Identify any common client
pain points, areas where service delivery and advice could be improved, and maybe more of what clients are looking for into the future, both them and their heirs. Market trends, what market shifts or industry changes could impact your business in the coming months. This capital market can be volatile. So buyer beware. Anybody entering the leadership role of a wealth management business where your revenues are tied to the capital markets.
You've got to plan for the future. Equip your team with this information in advance to help ensure that decisions made in your offsite meeting are well -informed, strategic, and backed by tangible data. Also, take time to define your current meeting outcomes in advance. These could include which strategic decisions must be finalized, which obstacles prevent optimal performance, and how to resolve them. Every initiative you discuss should have a clear owner, timeline,
and set of deliverables. Well, how to go about communicating more effectively before planning for the future, it's critical to review your firm's vision, mission and values. And I know you might be thinking, hey, I've heard all of this before, but high performing teams thrive when they remain connected to a greater purpose. So strive to ensure that all your strategic decisions align with these three guiding principles, your mission. Why does your firm exist?
Ray Sclafani (07:11.68)
And what precisely are you working to achieve for the benefit of your clients and your team? Your vision. What's your long -term goal? And how do you see your firm positively impacting your community or the planning industry at large? And third, your values. What guiding principles dictate how your team operates internally and externally? And how is this culture evolving within your team as you grow? Remember that effective communication within the team is the
backbone of any high performing advisory firm. However, when CEOs and team members repeatedly hear the same concepts, I know, mission, vision, values, and they begin to take their importance for granted, well, this is called message fatigue or cognitive complacency. This occurs when the repetition of critical ideas makes them dismissed as routine or trivial, despite their foundational significance. It's important to assess whether this might be true for your team.
By leveraging newer communication tools, you can help team members understand one another better and remain connected to the firm's mission vision values. These tools will also help you facilitate smoother collaboration and conflict resolution. Some of the tools might be the Disk Assessment or the Colby Index. Myers -Briggs is very popular. Culture Index and the Clifton Strengths, which is formerly known as Strengths Finder. All of these links will be provided in the show notes.
Check out these tools. And the key here is less about the specific tool, but more about applying them regularly and consistently to ensure ongoing alignment and understanding within the team. So the final months of the year are indeed a critical period for every firm as you strive to balance your current execution with future planning to drive performance by applying the Stockdale paradox, confronting brutal facts while maintaining belief in a bigger future.
You'll ensure your team is well poised to finish strong and enter the year ahead with much momentum. So schedule your offsite meeting, gather your data, revisit your communication tools and strengthen team dynamics now to set the foundation for long -term growth and success. In each of these episodes, we include these coaching questions. I find that these coaching questions help the team go deep after listening to the episode and discussing it as a group.
Ray Sclafani (09:39.79)
So today there are four. First, how can your team apply this concept of the Stockdale paradox to balance the harsh realities of year end challenges with a confident outlook for long -term success as you move into the year ahead? Second, what steps can you take to ensure that your strategic planning offsite addresses the right current issues and sets a clear path for your firm's future growth and adaptability? Third, how can data -driven decision -making
and enhanced communication tools, improve your team's engagement and overall performance during the crucial final stretch of the year? And fourth, lastly, how can your firm realign with its mission, vision, and values to avoid this message fatigue and ensure every team member feels deeply connected to a shared common purpose and intent as you plan for the future? Well, thanks for tuning in and that's a wrap.
Until next time, this is Ray Sclafani. Keep building, growing and striving for greatness. Together, we'll redefine what's possible in the world of wealth management. Be sure to check back for our latest episode and article.