Warren Buffett has said, “I choose to work with every single person that I work with. That ends up being the most important factor. I don't interact with people I don't like or admire. That's the key. It's like marrying.” In that spirit, ponder the following question:
- Do you want to be average?
If you answered yes, stop reading now, as nothing I have written will make sense. If you answered no, you're ready for the following challenge: Activating your Mission Personal Potential (MPP). Let me outline the challenge. My standard refrain regarding success with the affluent is that you must fully understand them. You need to know their biases, perceptions, need, wants and key motivators. Our most recent research project focused on understanding the psychological profile of the affluent, something I outlined in my recent book, The Affluent Handbook.
Our research uncovered four key motivators that impact affluent decision-making: personal health, family health, financial health and spiritual health.
Your MPP challenge involves another refrain: Experience it and you will understand it. The following three MPP steps for each key motivator are designed for this purpose.
Three MPP Steps:
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Take an honest assessment of your current state of health in each of the above four areas.
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Develop and execute an action plan for improving your health in each key area.
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Link your improvement in these areas to improving your rainmaking ability with affluent clients.
Personal Health
Step 1: Your doctor has been telling you that your blood pressure has been rising and that you need to lose weight.
Step 2: You start taking a 30-minute walk every morning, monitoring your sodium intake and stop eating fast foods.
Step 3: You schedule two intimate client events, including an organic cooking class at a local restaurant with rainmaker strategic intent (three clients and three friends).
Family Health
Step 1: You recognize that you've been making it too easy for your children to get what they want; you admit that they might be spoiled.
Step 2: You meet with your 15-year-old son to iron out an agreement: academic expectations, chore-work schedule, monthly car/insurance payments and driving privileges.
Step 3: You use your effort to un-spoil your son in order to segue into a better understanding of your affluent clients. From here you activate a “surprise and delight” campaign: sending small and thoughtful gifts for graduations, engagements, awards, etcetera.
Spiritual Health
Step 1: Assess the little things — whether it's attending regular religious services, helping the poor, reading spiritual material or engaging in acts of kindness.
Step 2: Commit to attending regular religious services, or spending one evening a week at your local soup kitchen preparing meals for the poor.
Step 3: Activate the law of attraction: Good people attract good people, even within the world of the affluent.
Financial Health
Step 1: Assess your current income relative to other top advisors.
Step 2: Set affluent client-acquisition goals linked to daily high-impact rainmaking activities complete with a reward for success.
Step 3: Uncover one new affluent prospect daily within your client's circle of influence, circle back to your client at a later date and ask to be introduced, and meet face-to-face with the affluent prospect and client.
In order to play with the affluent you need to be working towards your own personal affluence. That's financial health from the perspective of the affluent clients you covet.
This MPP challenge is a winning formula as long as you approach each key area with the mindset of a rainmaker. If so, not only will you improve in each area, you will enjoy a deeper understanding of the affluent, which will accelerate your ability to attract, serve and develop loyalty among your affluent clients.
Writer's BIO: Matt Oechsli is author of Building a Successful 21st Century Financial Practice: Attracting, Servicing & Retaining Affluent Clients. oechsli.com
