To succeed in the financial advisory industry is in itself a formidable task. It is important that you get off on the right foot, to have a reasonable chance to last the journey. To start with, ask yourself: have you selected the right financial advisory platform or firm for you?
Assuming that you already decided that this is the right career path for yourself, there are 5 key things you need to look at when choosing what financial advisory firm you are going to join. The 5 key things are:
Many people have been asking about how long to prepare for the CFMAS exam, whether it’s so difficult that you’ll need to take leave and such…
I’ve just posted a poll on which CFMAS Exam is the most difficult and requires most preparation time. Collectively, I think we have a better answer.
In my opinion, M5 is the driest, lot’s of memory work, best to do some cramming (2 full days before). M9 involves some calculation and understanding, thus spreading out the studying over 2 weeks (1-2hrs a day) would be better. Health insurance like M5 is a bit dry, questions can be quite tricky and not straight forward, so do lots of mock exams! M8 is not easy for those without a business diploma/degree background, so be prepared to spend 2-3 weeks of preparations, focus on practice of mock exams but understand the topic well. M6 difficulty is at least twice that of M8.
That’s just my feedback. Perhaps, collectively more light can be shed here.
Kindly participate in my poll if you have already taken the exams and help the newbies, ya?
What are the licensing requirements for Financial Advisers?
Well there are 3 types of Financial Advisory Firms which has different licensing requirements:
I thoroughly enjoyed this entertaining and insightful slideshow about six important Career Lessons by Dan Pink author of The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need
1. There is no plan. Try as you might, it’s usually not possible to chart an exact plan. But there is a way…
2. Think Strengths, Not Weakness. <much like Gallup Management Journal’s concept of working on strengths not weakness. See the book StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup’s Now, Discover Your Strengths
3. It’s not about you, it’s about helping others, as Napolean Hill said “It is literally true that you can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed.” – Think and Grow Rich: Revised and Updated for the 21st Century
4. Persistence trumps Talent. As the saying goes:”Your Attitude determines your Altitude.”
5. Make Excellent Mistakes. “There are no failures, just experiences and your reaction to them.” Tom Krause Touching Hearts, Teaching Greatness
6. Leave an imprint.
Do enjoy and leave some comments.
To be read with conjunction to “What Does a Financial Adviser do?”
Now that you know the career path and roles of financial advisers, how would you like a crystal ball that looks a little into the future and let you see how you are faring as a financial adviser or even how you are enjoying your career?
Knowing your personality and career profile can help you avoid getting in a career you are not suited to and also look out for potential pitfalls in the future.
Personality and Career Profiling tools have been around for decades to help businesses recruit and train their workforce. While there are no best profiles, there are certainly profiles that are more suitable and certain types that are usually ill-suited as a Financial Adviser. Read it all..
Globalization and the Information Revolution is rapidly changing economies all over the world. What is the lasting impact on a career in Financial Advisory?
Three significant changes have a lasting impact on how Financial Planning will be conducted in the future.
“All roads do not lead to Rome.”
Being a Financial Adviser is not the be all and end all, in fact there are different routes in the Financial Advisory Business. What you eventually take depends on what you want out of life, your talent and passion.
Are you someone who really enjoys the challenge of “climbing the corporate ladder”? Are you someone who wants to be the person in charge, make your own decisions? Do you feel you have leadership qualities inside you? These questions need to be answered before you can really decide whether you are better suited to the Financial Adviser Career, as a Practitioner or Financial Services Manager or go along the Corporate path.
How would you like to get into the right financial advisory group right from the start? I am about to share with you the research I have done as well as my own personal observations.
A quick refresher from the previous article, the financial advisory pie is divided into three groups: personal or private bankers, tied-agents, multi-tied or IFAs. Due to the breadth of products and services offered, they tend to appeal to differing demographic groups, customer profiles, and also require different skill-set to market services to them. Their business models also have different strengths and weaknesses. Read it all..
“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” - Sun Tzu
Make no mistake. The financial services market is a lucrative and therefore a competitive one. But does that mean that as a new entrant, you cannot compete with more entrenched players?
How would you like to command an income of more than $500,000 per year? An established financial adviser managing $50m from 50 high net worth individuals (HNWI) can easily accomplish that. A more average financial adviser managing 100 client accounts each $200,000, manages $40m, and can earn $200,000 per year from wrap fees.
Of the three segments of the financial services market: mass market, mass affluent (between $80,000 to $300,000 per year income) and accredited investors or High Net Worth Individuals (personal net worth above S$2m or income above $300,000 per year), the last two represent great opportunities for you to build a profitable financial advisory career and business. Read it all..
