Speaker 1  00:08

This is the ultimate advisor podcast, the podcast for financial advisors who want to create a thriving, successful and scalable practice. Each week we'll uncover the ways that you can improve your referrals, your team, your marketing, and your business operations, helping you to level up your advising practice, bring in more assets, and to create the advising practice that you've dreamed of. You'll be joined by our hosts Bryan sweet, who is moving fast towards a billion dollars in assets under management, Brittany Anderson, the driving force for advisors looking to improve their operations and company culture, and Draye Redfern who can help you systematize and automate your practices marketing to effortlessly attract new clients. So what do you say? Let's jump in to another amazing episode of the ultimate advisor podcast. Hey there Draye Redfern here and really excited that you're here for another episode of the ultimate advisor podcast. Before we dive into this week's episode, on let you know of a couple changes that we're going to make over the next few weeks for the podcast. The first one being is that we're changing the format just a little bit. The first way that we're going to do that is every other week, you're going to get access to some of the exclusive content that other individuals have paid for to join the ultimate advisor platform, maybe they've attended a summit, one of our challenges, maybe they're in our mastermind or our accelerator program. We're gonna give you some tidbits of that content every other week for the next few months. And then a usual fashion the opposite week, every other week. On top of that, you're going to hear from Bryan, Brittany and myself in the normal foundational way that we've done things. So for this week, in particular, I'm going to lead it off with the presentation that I gave not that long ago, at a Genius Network meeting this meeting, in order to be a part of this mastermind group, you have to pay $25,000 a year. And that's actually where I met Bryan and Brittany. And so this was a talk that I gave at Genius Network a year to a few years ago, in which you can learn about how we turned 50 cents into several million dollars. So it's the power of direct mail, why direct mail is not dead. And hopefully you can take some tidbits from this talk this presentation that I gave and implement some of those into your financial advising practice. So without further ado, let's jump into another awesome episode of the ultimate advisor podcast.

Brittany Anderson  02:56

Welcome back as we dive headfirst into my favorite topic by far if you haven't caught this already, and that is on the topic of culture. So we are going to talk about in this session, why culture is key. last session, we talked about why consistency is key and why check ins are so vital for the training and development of your new second command, how that helps them to really be accountable, and how it helps them to be a true leader for your team. But we are going to shift on to the topic of culture because remember, that's what this is all about. When when you're bringing a new second in command, when you're bringing a new leader into your company, you have to make sure you have a strong culture so that they actually have a track record and feel like they can make the proper progress that you're expecting of them. So this whole entire program, if the main takeaway that you get is that your culture needs to be rock solid, before you can have success in bringing in a second in command, then that's a win. So that is the main thing that I want you to take away from this program. One of the key things that I want to stress, and that we've touched on very briefly in the hiring module, is that you can train on just about anything, tasks, you can train on different skill sets you can develop. But one thing that you can't train on, that not all the tools in the world are going to be able to help this person is to be a good person to be a good fit for your company. So I thought this next image really depicts kind of the core of of what a defined culture looks like. So what you're trying to make sure of is that as you're training this new second in command, as you are bringing them up to speed, getting them in doctrine into your culture, and really getting their feet on the ground. You want to make sure that you have shared values Because that is really the core of everything else, all the other stuff per se, will fall into place, if you can make sure that your culture is so defined, that you have shared values, that your entire team has shared values. And your new leader can help make sure these are consistently implemented and consistently demonstrated every single day. So what we're going to focus on in this particular session, are the keys to train on culture. So one of the first things that I really like to talk about is how you can emphasize your core values immediately. So you want them to understand what are the key things that basically give you the decision making capabilities that show how you treat your clients that show how you treat each other? What are those core values, so that they can learn and have those instilled literally from day one. The second point here is the constant check ins. So again, this was what the entire previous session was about, was to make sure that you can see where your new hire is excelling, and where they're struggling. The third key point here is having them read, I can't stress this particular component enough. And we'll go deeper on this here in just a couple minutes, where we talk about the importance of reading, and why it's not just busy work, why it's not just something to kind of fill their time because you can't think of anything else that they can possibly be doing. It's really about your culture, and you have to be selective on what it is that you're assigning so that it's effective time spent, and that they're getting the most out of the materials that you're providing. And then the fourth point here is to include culture training as a mandatory item in the first 90 days of employment. So this is where I see companies missed the bar so frequently, that in that first 90 days, right, where somebody is really getting comfortable, really understanding the systems, the procedures, the processes, essentially what you do as a company, so many companies miss out on training on culture, giving this new hire resources to help them understand why you're in business. Why do you do what you do? Why do you even serve the clientele that you serve? Why do you act as a team like you do? Like, what what is it that makes you tick and operate. So that's where this is so critical to the success of your new second command. So first, we'll go a little bit deeper on the core values component. Again, a big mistake that we've seen time and time again, is that a new hire is brought on and the main person doing the training, whether it's the entrepreneur or somebody else in the in the team, depending upon what the position is, is they'll say, Okay, here's our handbook. Here's our mission for the company, here's our core values. Okay, go ahead and read these. And then just make sure you remember him because this is essentially what we do as a business. Okay, that's not good. You want to show them show this new hire, how you and your team live by your core values every single day. So for example, one that a core value that I've commonly seen, there's something that is around the term of client focused. So this can really spin and show like, Hey, we're so passionate about what we do, we are so service oriented, that we actually have a defined service standard standard for all of our clients to make sure that not only do we have their best interest at heart, but we're responding to them within a certain time period. And we stand by our commitments. So you can really go deep, and then it kind of spins into some of the other training that your second command needs in order to thrive anyway. So that helps them understand the different departments in your company. It helps them understand what the expectations are of the team. And it all ties back to the primary core values. So this is so important that you don't just talk about them, you actually show how they go into place every single day within your company. Hey, Brittany here, stopping and pausing for a moment to talk about something that we've had so many of you inquire about and that is our ultimate advisor, mastermind. Now, I'm going to start by saying if you are not a growth minded individual, if you are not somebody who's focused on taking your business to the next level, if you're not focused on engaging your team, and helping them to help you in turn, level up the business, the service model, how you provide that wow experience to clients. If those things are not your focus, just fast forward right now, because the ultimate advisor mastermind would not then be for you. However, if you are looking to take your business to the next level, if you want to experience exponential growth and feel supported along the way, if you want to start working smarter and not harder, if you want to help your team members to work within the God given talents that they were provided, and use those skill sets in the way they haven't yet to help support you and your business, to help them realize their biggest goals, their biggest dreams. If you want creative approaches to marketing, I know that can be an intimidating word. But we're not talking here about the fancy Facebook stuff, or, you know, the latest and greatest, but rather looking at how you can market what you do, how you can express how you're different, and how you can truly differentiate yourself in a crowded market space. If those are problems you're looking to solve, then you absolutely want to go check out ultimate advisor mastermind.com to learn more about how we can help you on your path and journey to growth. So this next thing, and this is just a recap of the last session is those pulse checks. So there's really a twofold purpose here. So number one, what we're going to talk about is, obviously you don't want to micromanage we talked about that in the last session, don't be that person that hovers and breathe down their neck, that doesn't feel good, it actually hinders growth, it hinders their ability to make decisions. And it actually hinders the whole goal that you have, inevitably. And that's to let yourself focus on the things that you most enjoy. That's why you hired this person in the first place. So just don't micromanage because you're hindering them, you're hindering yourself and you're hindering the company's growth. The second key point here is to be a support and to set the stage for what leadership looks like in your company. So we spent the last session talking about how you should be a support for these pulse checks for your new second command. But really, what you're trying to do is you're setting the stage of how they should behave with your team members. You want them to be doing the same thing for the team that you are for them, you want them to be a resource for your team, you want them to be able to help lead and help move things forward without being a micromanager themselves. So that's another dangerous trap that can be fallen into and this is that, you know, you've spent your time making sure that you don't micromanage, giving them freedom. But then you have to make sure that they operate in the same way, so that they are not micromanaging the team but rather being a leader and a support to them through those pulse checks. So that's truly the purpose behind and how it ties into the culture of your company. By having these pulse checks and making your team feel like they have somebody who's willing to hear them and support them as they're navigating their own path and making their own decisions within the company win for your clientele. So the next one that we'll get into is that whole big Hot Topic of reading assignments. So one of the biggest things that I can recommend is before I mean, let's let's rewind before you even are thinking about hiring somebody, before you've even thought about bringing that second in command, you should have books that support who you are, and what you do as a company. Now, don't panic, if you're already to the point where you have hired your second in command, and you're sitting here going, Oh my gosh, I completely messed up, I don't have this book list that you're talking about, I don't really know this is going to take me time, etc, and so forth. That's okay. So that's what we're actually providing to you was an additional value add through this program, I have drafted a list of different books that fall under different categories within your company. So this is just a quick screenshot, you actually have this as a downloadable tool. But this next one, it basically shows three of the many different categories on this list. So business development, efficiency, and client experience. So this all depends again, on who you are as a company and what your culture, what your core values are, what your mission is. So you have to kind of navigate and read through to see what's going to fit best for you and for your team. But what I've done is put together a sample of some great books that I've personally read, that have a major impact in some of the companies that I've worked with. So this is a really good comprehensive list for you to go through and kind of hand picked some of them that would be best suited for who you are. And again, when you're looking at giving somebody a book to read, this is not just a fill their time. This is not just like, hey, I need a break from training. So go ahead and read for a while. That's not the purpose of this. What you're trying to do here is you're trying to help them understand the why Have your company and to understand the purpose of your business, right, you're trying to help them understand the reason behind why you do the things that you do. So a book can be so impactful, because it gives basically your your new second command and the rest of your team who should also have book assignments, a chance to have open discussions, to have book conversations, to be able to talk about what were the key takeaways that they got from the book, and how they can be implemented or improved within their company. Just because something reflects how you've built your business. Sometimes when you have a fresh pair of eyes on things, they might see something that you've overlooked. So books are an amazing tool to help a person understand the culture of your company, and why you do the things that you do. Culture training is just it's absolutely essential. In any company that I work with, it's a non negotiable, you want to ingrain this type of training into their schedules. So some examples here are you could do something as simple as maintaining a database of articles. So you might have articles that you stumble across, you know, an amazing article in a magazine, something you saw on a website, a blog that you read, just different things that really represent what your company is about. And then how it ties into who you are and what you do as a company. Same thing with podcasts, having a great list of podcasts that they can listen to, you know, if they're if they are somebody who works out, there's somebody who goes for walks, even just you know, they're it's important to schedule, just thinking time in your day. So that could be where within their calendar within their schedule, you tell them like, hey, out of each week, I want you to listen to two hours worth of podcasts or whatever that number is for you and for your team. But what you want to do is encourage them to continue to grow and learn and thrive. And to become so ingrained in the culture of your company, that they start to take ownership and treat that company like it's theirs. Also, having we talked about reading time built into their day to do short videos, I've seen this done before, where companies actually shoot kind of a video library that they use for training. So this person is new second, and command could sit and watch different videos that you've shot on different topics in the company. It could be on topics like client service, non negotiables, out of the handbook, it could be different case studies of things that you've seen happen, maybe some major challenges that your team has come across in the past, and then how you overcame them. Those are all great culture training tools. So that's something that I highly recommend is built into that first 90 days. Because then it becomes a habit, it becomes a part of who they are, and what their role is in your company. And remember, follow up in this is key. There's a big a word that can be so ugly at times that people don't like, but I'm absolutely in love with it. And if you can't guess what that word is, it's accountability. Right? So if somebody comes to you, and they say, you know, Jim, you need to be more accountable. That can be a negative connotative word, right? You can look at that as a perceived negative. Well, if somebody's telling me to be accountable, don't they think I already am like what makes me not accountable. I'd like to look at this board in a completely different regard by setting up a training culture, right? A culture in your team, where growth is basically a non negotiable, personal growth, personal development, diving into your culture, these things are so important. And what it does is it helps your team members to be accountable to what the expectations of the company are, and to who they are as people too. So remember, you've gone through quite a strenuous hiring process to get this person in this seat. So in order to ensure that they maintain that rightfit status, that they continue to be an amazing addition to your team, you want to emphasize why accountability is so important. And I liked this image, because it really represents all that accountability entails. You know, it's taking ownership of what you do, it's being proud of what you do of your work. It's being honest, it's being, you know, having having corrected values, making sure that your core values are aligned with the company's core values. It's being responsible, it's being diligent. So it's all those things that are so, so important to the success of your company. And remember, experience, it's a small portion. You don't need to have experience in order to thrive within a company culture. You just need the proper cultural training to make sure that you're the right fit there. And to make sure that that person is going to take your vision for the company, and bring it to fruition if you have a clearly defined culture For your new hire to live by and to follow, the rest of it can be trained. So don't get hung up on having them have this strong background or skill set that you've been looking for, it doesn't matter, you can train them on about any skill, you can't train them how to be a good person. So focus your training on how to get them ingrained into your company culture. That favorite word of mine, the one that we talk about in basically every module, it's going to keep popping up culture is key. So coming up next, we're going to go a little bit deeper, and talk about some of the tools that can actually help your new second command, live by the culture and to be that a word again, more accountable, or I should say even more accountable than they already are. So this next module is going to be absolutely essential. You don't want to miss it, you want to make sure that you get these tools down, and that you are ready to give your second command the tools that they need to thrive and to be an amazing leader in your company. So we'll see you in the next session where we focus on tools. Hey there, Brittany Anderson here. If you are loving what you're hearing on our ultimate advisor podcast, don't keep us a secret. Share us with other advisors that you think would benefit from the messages that you are hearing. The easiest way to do that is to simply send them to ultimate advisor podcast.com. And if you want to learn a few other ways that we could potentially serve you as an advisor, go check out ultimate advisor mastermind.com. As always, we are so happy to have you here with us as part of the ultimate advisor community and we look forward to a continued relationship