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Episodes by Topic: Financial Advisor
Financial Confidence: A Client Story
Mike is joined by his cousin Tim Van Dam and Tim’s wife, Martha, who also happen to be Ronald Blue Trust clients. Tim and Martha share a little bit of their backgrounds and how the Greenville office of Ronald Blue Trust has helped them on their financial journey.
Listen to the EpisodeThe Ronald Blue Trust Difference
Mike is joined by Eddie Holland, Ronald Blue Trust advisor, and Hayden Ericks, Ronald Blue Trust intern, to discuss what makes Ronald Blue Trust so different.
Some of what makes us different than most other financial planning firms:
- Our core philosophy is: “Helping Christians free up resources for the fulfilment of the Great Commission.”
- Our core focus is on financial planning, not on bringing in assets.
- We don’t earn commissions from products we sell because we don’t sell anything! Our fee-only structure helps make sure we are truly looking out for the best for our clients.
- We want to work with both spouses to make sure everyone is comfortable with the financial plan and give you both peace of mind financially if something were to happen to either one of you.
- We have a saying that we are “courageous to advise,” meaning we aren’t afraid to have difficult conversations and tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear.
- We want to feel like your personal CFO: asking you questions to fully understand your financial situation and goals so we can help you achieve those goals.
Becoming a client involves a couple of steps:
1. Initial phone conversation: What is the client looking for?
- Tax Planning
- Charitable Giving Strategy
- Investment Strategy
- Preparing for Retirement
2. In person meeting or virtual meeting:
- Asking and answering questions of each other to find out if we are a good fit for each other.
- Making sure we go fully in depth, even answering questions you may not know you had.
- Really getting to know financial goals and financial situation.
3. The client hiring us to fully create and implement the plan.
We try to capture the essence of a person’s financial picture, create their plan, lay out that plan, and then implement that plan. We also work to change and adjust the plan as things change. We see the plan as a living, breathing document and review it often.
A financial plan may include:
- Social Security Strategies
- Income Tax Optimization
- Insurance Planning
- Roth Conversion Planning
- A withdrawal strategy
- Medicare considerations
- Pension lump sum calculations
- Estate Planning
Financial Intimacy
John Dodd, Sr. Private Wealth Advisor in Ronald Blue Trust’s Nashville, TN office, joins Mike to discuss how someone’s philosophy of money affects their day to day financial decisions.
They discuss some ideas such as:
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- Money has gravity: the more you have, the more force it exerts on you.
- Money has power: it promises what it can’t deliver.
- Money makes us more of who we are: it reveals our hearts.
They also discuss this Financial Intimacy Assessment: a document that Ronald Blue Trust advisors use as they help counsel couples through some of their financial questions and issues. This document covers areas such as:
- Describe how your parents handled money and what impact that had on you.
- What is a financial value you want to and don’t want to emulate?
- What are the primary money messages your children are learning from you and your spouse?
- If you had an extra $50,000 this year, what would you do with it?
- If you had one money “do-over” in life, what would it be?
The Professional Athlete Division
Don Christensen, EVP of the Professional Athlete Division of Ronald Blue Trust, joins Mike to share his background and discuss the challenges specific to working with professional athletes:
- What are some differences between working with professional athletes versus people in other careers?
- Why is it important to have a trusted financial advisor, regardless of your career?
- What are some mistakes that professional athletes seem to make with their finances?
- How does the length of time an athlete’s career lasts come into play?
- What about endorsements?
- How do you counsel them on handling friends and family in financial areas?
- What are some of the more exciting or memorable experiences from working with athletes?
- How rewarding is it when the athletes follow your advice and are pleased with the results?
- What’s the hardest sport to deal with and why?
Best of Talking Money: How “Independent” is Your Independent Advisor
How “Independent” is your Independent financial adviser? Do they really have your best interest at heart?
Mike discusses the good and potentially bad of being an independent adviser; plus a review of the new Code of Ethics from the CFP® Board of Standards. He also looks at some questions you should not be afraid to ask your financial advisor–and questions you should be asking.
(original air date April 18, 2020)
Listen to the EpisodeIs That Financial Advisor Right for You?
After a quick recap of last week’s show and a brief discussion of private investments (private equity, private credit, real assets and hedge funds ), Mike discusses questions you should ask your financial advisor or any financial advisor you are thinking about hiring:
- What is their continuity plan? What happens to your money if something were to happen to that advisor?
- What designations (CFP® professional, CPA, CFA®, CRPC®, etc.) does the person have and what exactly do those letters mean?
- How is the advisor paid? How do you pay the fees? What are the fees?
- How well do they know taxes?
- What regulatory agencies are they under?
He also mentions a few external sources where you can check out advisor credentials.
Listen to the EpisodeSpecial Guest: Bart Bryant
Bart Bryant, professional golfer, joins Mike to discuss golf, the “behind the scenes” of the PGA Tour, and what it was like to have Tiger Woods be your runner up!
They also talk about things Bart has learned about money–from the importance of generosity to the value of having a like-minded financial advisor.
Video clip played at beginning of the episode can be viewed here.
Bart Bryant’s experiences may not be representative of the experience of other clients of Ronald Blue Trust. His experiences are also not indicative of future performance or success.
Listen to the EpisodeHow “Independent” is your Independent financial adviser?
How “Independent” is your Independent financial adviser? Mike discusses the good and potentially bad of being an independent adviser; plus a review of the new Code of Ethics from the CFP Board of Standards.
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