You’re banging your head against the wall. Most days, you love your work as a financial advisor, but today, a subordinate made a costly error, a long-term client was upset, and three prospects ghosted you. The only thing to do now is to go home, pour a drink, and vent to your partner, right?
Although that might be a band-aid for today, handling the frustrations of the financial planning profession this way is not going to improve your professional or personal life. This is reason #42 for why you need an executive peer group.
Executive peer groups are designed to take your business to the next level through the support of like-minded peers. Your group meets on a regular basis to discuss pain points, set and achieve goals, share ideas, and explore the latest trends in the industry. The main focus is on your professional growth and development both as an advisor and as a leader.
"Something magical happens when you begin to share ideas with optimistic and ambitious like-minded people," says Ermos Erotocritou, CFP®, "Your idea may begin as a tiny spark. Something you thought of in passing but didn’t really explore. Then someone in your group suggests an idea to improve on your tiny spark. Then another suggestion and then another. From there your mind takes over and you begin to imagine all the possibilities. You blurt out a twist on your idea that only came to you because your peers opened your imagination. Like a road that seems to magically appear in front of you as you drive through the night with your headlights, it begins to unfold. The road of your imagination turns down paths you never thought possible."
As a leadership and performance coach, Ermos emphatically encourages advisors to get an army of positive people in their inner circles. "What would have happened if you shared your spark with a bunch of unmotivated, negative people? Your spark would have burned out the minute someone said 'That’s a terrible idea, it will never work.'”
"Your journey is an exciting one that gets your heart pumping as if you’re working out," he continues. "This process continues and evolves until you have that euphoric “aha” moment. And there it is… the idea that began as a tiny spark has evolved and grown into a burning hot inferno. You can feel it, see it, taste it. All of this happened and could only have happened with the help of your mastermind group. Like-minded, optimistic people who are craving to improve the world around them."
Although the purpose is always similar, not all executive peer groups run exactly the same way. Here at Plancraft, we meet monthly on video. At each meeting, we share a win to start the call on a positive note. Then, we dive into our challenges. Challenges can involve specific questions, professional goals, the nuts and bolts of running a business, or simply just a broad discussion about the direction of your career. Challenges I’ve heard include:
“I feel like I’m at capacity, but I don’t have time to find and train an assistant.”
“I’m feeling dissatisfied at my current company, but I make good money and I like my clients.”
“I want to double my AUM in the next 12 months.”
The majority of time is spent on challenges—discussing each other’s issues and providing support, feedback, and ideas. The facilitator will also ask each participant to share an update on the progress of their goals and ask, “What is one thing you plan to accomplish before we meet again?” Accountability is a major benefit of peer groups.
Successful groups embrace the concept of collaboration over competition. We’re all here to grow and level up. We have hundreds of years of experience and combined brain power in one Zoom room—that’s some real problem-solving potential right there!
The secret sauce for our groups at Plancraft: all participants are financial advisors. These are colleagues that really understand the industry, pain points, and shared experiences. Often, they’ve had similar career paths. We believe it is important to have a support network of like-minded peers who can appreciate the highs and lows of the job and the nuance of certain situations. It’s that combined experience that is so conducive for growth. Someone may have experienced something similar and can share what worked or what didn’t. They’ll likely have resource recommendations, saving others hours and hours of independent research.
Another key ingredient in the secret sauce is a strong, dedicated facilitator. Their role is to support and empower the group, gently pushing participants to set higher goals and dig deeper into challenges. They’ll ensure the meetings run smoothly, take note of resources shared, and keep engagement strong and positive.
That’s an important word: engagement. A successful participant is an engaged participant. Executive peer groups are powerful, but it’s really a team effort amongst all participants.
Participating fully means being a little vulnerable, and that can be scary. However, groups are confidential so participants can share “the real stuff”. When we open up our minds and our ears, we can manage our lives and our businesses better.
When Planswell partners join an executive peer group, we ask on an intake form, “Why are you interested in joining?” This is important information to group them with folks who want the same things out of the experience. To my surprise, the reasons vary dramatically, yet each one is THE perfect reason to join. Check out these responses from a recent incoming cohort:
To build a network to share referrals
To get ideas on how to approach prospective clients
To be successful
To better myself
To stop struggling in business
To make more money
To create relationships
To serve clients better
To get my drive back
To improve my closing ratio
To celebrate successes
To connect with people again after shutdowns
To have another tool in my toolbox
To help me transition back to work after extended time away
To accelerate growth
To get affirmation that I’m going in the right direction
To find advisors to partner with
To be more productive
To get help
To learn about marketing
To start succession planning
To hear HR best practices
To learn what I can do better
To get a mentor
To gain a support system
To practice lifelong learning
To learn from mistakes
To get encouragement
To feel comradery
To try something new
To workshop with peers
To improve my skills and knowledge
To be a better advisor
To learn something new after 40 years in the business
To socialize with other advisors
To gain knowledge from outside my organization
To learn how to gain my desired type of clients
To see what mastermind groups are all about
To scale up
To grow my connections
To not drink my frustrations away
To stop banging my head against the wall
To have good conversations
To enhance my strengths
To improve my weaknesses
To give back
To be around like-minded professionals
To get more diverse points of view
To improve the quality of my service
To kick-start growth after being stagnant
To fasttrack my career
To learn the ins and outs of the industry as a new advisor
To spend time with people who are excelling
To enjoy some fellowship
To get practical tips & tricks
To fuel a 90-day blitz
To add value to Planswell’s mission
To get collective wisdom from the group
To create a fire under me
To get fulfillment helping others
To get knowledge of real world events
To rise to the responsibility of being a leader in my firm
To elevate each other
To learn about trends in the marketplace
To accomplish my goals
To hone in on my personal beliefs
To develop my personal philosophy
To create action plans
To get motivated
To engage with my professional community
To get support
To contribute to others
To get new ideas
To collaborate with others
To get a break from the day-to-day grind
To elevate myself
To find my voice
To learn what’s working for others
To learn what didn’t work for others
To hear different points of view
To learn from more experienced advisors
To learn modern trends from younger advisors
To get the most out of Planswell
To learn best practices
To learn from peers how to better manage a practice
To learn how to get more client referrals
To learn how to overcome objections
To hear different perspectives
To learn to share experiences
To know I’m not alone in facing obstacles
To brainstorm ideas
To enjoy time with peers
To be held accountable
To maximize growth
To master this system's sales pitch
To share what I’ve learned with others
To meet advisors from my generation
To have a rewarding experience
To work on a common goal
To get coaching
To gain an outside perspective
To get best practices specific to Planswell
To expand my abilities as an advisor
To help other advisors
To follow the advice of my colleagues
To learn how to facilitate high-level discussions
To be a resource for others
To learn how to interact with the platform while on calls
To understand as many aspects of the value equation as possible
To learn better methods
To start over in my career
To work on my client onboarding process
To be more disciplined over long periods of time
We also ask about their previous experience in similar groups. Of those with peer group experience, one hundred percent said the opportunity was positive and valuable, and they were eager to join another.
I encourage you to give your spouse or partner a break by bringing your shop talk to an executive peer group. We’re eager to hear what’s on your mind.