How Working with an Advisor can Improve your Confidence

Jackie is back this time with great music and big energy as she is joined by her partner in crime Jin Lee who is our in-house financial planner. It’s financial literacy month and they both will be sharing how they help improve our client’s confidence by educating them based on their unique situations. People tend to feel better when they know all about their money and what their financial future potentially looks like. If you are struggling with managing your finances and planning a future that’s financially secure, read on for all the tips and remember that a financial advisor can really help with the intricate details of planning a financial future that can lead to a better night sleep.

How do people build confidence and improve their financial circumstances?

Our clients have different financial goals, and the biggest challenge is usually how to strike a balance with short term and long-term goals. It can be daunting to figure it out alone especially when there are tradeoffs to be made. So how we come in is, we provide scenarios to help them get a better sense of how different choices may play out in the long run. So, for example we have clients who come to ask whether they can afford an expensive renovation now, and still be able to retire in 5 years. Ordinarily, they should be able to afford a renovation because they have good cashflow, but how will this short-term goal affect their long-term plans? We help clients in this situation dive into the details of the renovation costs, using different interest rates and see what is left over to save for retirement based on their lifestyle goals, based on inflation, and expected returns on savings etc. to see if they really want to go ahead.

In this situation we would also factor in scenarios where costing for that project becomes higher than anticipated because not many things end up going as planned especially in the current volatile market. This strategy now allows our client think ahead before making big financial commitments, they try to figure out what could potentially suffer if they decide to make a move forward.

Another big value we bring to our clients is helping them see the reality of their financial situation clearly and facilitate our clients to talk about money together as a neutral third party. An example was with a couple getting close to retirement, they both kept avoiding the money talk ahead of their retirement. We equip out clients with financial literacy and the tools they need to have that “money talk” with their partners about their financial future. We help them see the numbers, show them what their current situation is and the tools or action steps that they could take to become better financially. We find that these conversations help strengthen relationships amongst couples and helps them to get on the same page financially. Think about it like a financial therapy-we can help you to identify the financial challenges you are facing as a couple with no blame or shame and with practical steps you can take as a team to overcome them. There are more divorces when the economy is challenging, so figuring out finances as a couple has never been more important.

What are some other ways we can help our clients build confidence through these money conversations?

The work we do for our clients tend to bring them peace of mind during difficult times. They feel supported not just financially but in other areas of life where they could be having transitions, such as a new job, death in the family, new baby to name a few. We are always there to reassure them by showing them the big picture and offering actions steps they can take to improve their financial circumstances. Some other clients are worried about what their future would be financially, but we don’t just tell them that they are going to be ok, we show them a picture of what their future would look like even in the worst-case scenario. This brings a high level of satisfaction because they have pictured extreme scenarios and they are still going to be ok, so they have less reasons to panic.

Have you considered what your financial future looks like? do you feel confident about your current financial situation? If you can’t answer these for sure, then you need a financial planner to come in and iron out some of the details for you. We are happy to have a 30-minute conversation where we delve into a customized retirement plan for you. Please reach out to jody.euloth@askjackie.ca. Also, feel free to share your questions with us here or on our social platforms