Structuring Your Day For Maximum Productivity

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Two things go into making our days productive – the first is what we do and the second is how we do it.

In recent conversations with advisors, a number have begun using a simple idea to dramatically increase the return they get on their day, by ensuring that they’re focusing on high return activities.The first thing to making your time in the office productive is being intentional, stepping back at the start of the week and asking what is the highest and best use of this week as a whole and each day within this week.

Tags: 20 Inutes, 20 minutes, Appointment, Calendar, Conversations, Decisions, Least Three Hours, Maximum Productivity, Monday Morning, Priorities, Prospects
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The impact of proactive client calls

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

At recent advisor roundtables across Canada, I’ve asked advisors how many proactive calls they make to clients in the average day.The most common response is one or two … and often the answer is zero.

Many advisors underestimate the impact of proactive calls on clients – a common complaint I get in conversations with investors is “The only time I talk to my advisor is when I call him … otherwise I would never hear from him.”

The reality is that you get much more credit for a telephone conversation when you initiate the call than if the client calls first – even if you have exactly the same conversation, clients feel much better if you made the call than if they did.

Tags: 30 Minutes, Anniversary, Appointment, Canada, Client Meetings, Conversations, Happy Birthday, Investors, Money Manager, Names, Proactive, Roundtables, Telephone Conversation, Time Off
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A proven formula for change

Wednesday, October 28th, 2009

Making meaningful changes in how we work is one of the hardest tasks we can attempt.

Change is possible however – recently I had a conversation with an advisor on a large team that had succeeded in implementing some significant new initiatives since the beginning of the year.

They key was time blocking, setting aside time each week for a major new undertaking and implementing a proven formula for change behind that commitment.

Recognize the obstacles to change
Change is an incredibly powerful force – it can word for you or against you. The trick is to harness it to work in your favour.

Tags: Accountability, Appointment, Attempt, Calendar, Change Priority, Colleagues, Favour, How To Organize Your Time, Initiative, Initiatives, Meaningful Changes, Momentum, Obstacles, Proven Formula, Success Breeds Success, Team Member, Time Block, Two Ways, Undertaking
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An alternative way to conduct client reviews

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Experienced advisors know there’s no substitute for face to face meetings to review portfolios, especially in times such as these.

In some instances, however, a client’s location or schedule make it impossible to meet face to face – in those cases, you need to look at an alternative method to conduct that review.Recently, I’ve talked to a number of advisors who are having good success with structured telephone meetings to conduct portfolio reviews.

To be successful, telephone reviews have to look and feel like a face to face review.

An appointment is set for the call, just as would be the case for a meeting.

Tags: Appointment, Email Clients, Face To Face, Good Success, Instances, Intimacy, Maximum Effectiveness, Meeting Agenda, Opportunity, Personal Dimension, Phone Meetings, Portfolio Reviews, Portfolios, Powerpoint Presentation, Supplement Reviews, Telephone Reviews, Video Interview, Web Conferencing Software, Webex
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Sales Activity Calculator

Tuesday, March 31st, 2009

Happy Birthday Laura!

Over the past month I have written about completing a Quarterly Review for yourself and a Quarterly Review for your team …

This is a segment from an e-mail that I sent to a client about the Sales Activity Calculator;

• What are your income goals for 2009?
• What income did you create from January – March 2009?
• What is your new goal from April – December 2009?
• Let’s say that your income goal for 2009 was $250,000.
• Let’s say that you created $50,000 in income from January – March 2009

Tags: Appointment, Appointments, Birthday Laura, Calculator, Conversations, E Mail, Happy Birthday, Income Goal, Income Goals, Learning Resources, Prospects, Sales Presentations, Segment, Six Months
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