Managing your money is an important job that requires a specific skill set, focus, and clear thinking. Many choose to bring in a professional like Michael Briese to manage their finances for a variety of reasons including a lack of time, expertise, or knowledge about the subject. This can be the best financial decision because a professional financial advisor can take on the responsibility of ensuring that good financial decisions are made.
When you hire a professional in addition to the obvious financial management skillset the person must have, there are also personality qualities the person should possess in order to do the best possible job for you. So when you are searching for a financial advisor, look for these qualities. The definition of a leader has changed considerably over the past two decades. Before he or she was the easy to spot person the stage or at the front of the troops surrounded by s small groups of confidantes, barking out orders to be followed to the letter. Today however, the leader is much more difficult to spot. He or she is just as likely to be sitting amongst the troops as standing in front of them and taking orders rather than giving them. With such a change, we need to reexamine the qualities that equate to a good leader:
Concern
The financial advisor should have a real concern for your well-being. This concern should go above their wanting to do a great job and should go to their wanting to see you and your family be successful. This means going the extra mile to make sure you are concerned fully about all issues of your finances and that you are making good decisions based on the data they provide. They should be forceful and insistent when they want you to make the best decision and not settle for a bad decision knowing it will run counter to your financial goals.
Honesty
An obvious quality that any financial advisor must possess is being honest about things. Honesty is the foundation upon which all good relationships are built and knowing that you can count on someone for their honesty allows you to feel comfortable and safe in the relationship. If you look the other way when it comes to someone’s honesty, you open the door to a myriad of potential problems because people who are not honest will usually possess other negative qualities. Knowing that someone is truthful about your money issues cannot be something everyone makes a priority.
Thoroughness
Reviewing finances with a goal of making them the most efficient takes a keen mind and great attention to detail. It also demands that someone commit fully to the process of getting all of the facts. This is time consuming and tedious, but it must be done to get the facts needed to make the best decisions. So the financial advisor must be thorough and conscientious at the job and prepared to take all of the needed steps no matter the time or resources required.