Financial adviser or couples mediator?

When working with couples in your capacity as financial advisor, have you experienced those awkward moments when couples don’t agree? It’s not easy being piggy in the middle, but there are skills and strategies you can deploy to smooth a path towards alignment of views and plans.

Tempting though it is, couples’ differences should not be ignored, but rather brought into the open and dealt with constructively. Think of arguments as opportunities for dialogue, to air and hear different views in a productive way.

As a financial adviser, unless trained as a counsellor or therapist, you should not attempt to ‘fix’ relationships. BBut, in this step by step guide, you’ll see that there are a number of different skills you can apply as you take your couples through the stages of alignment, all designed to help them arrive, amicably, at an outcome that is agreeable to both parties.

Our coaching skills for financial planners one-day course is a training workshop designed to hone these coaching skills so you can navigate difficult conversations, and gain a deeper understanding of your clients’ needs. The model and techniques above are something we cover in more advanced training sessions to help financial advisers deal with more challenging meetings.

Planning a financial future together as a couple isn’t always easy, but you can certainly smooth the process with coaching and mediation skills that focus on getting the issues out in the open and dealt with positively. What starts off as a difficult conversation, can often develop into a thorough and frank exchange of views that bring about more clarity and you’ll find your clients are actually pleased, relieved and even happy by the end of the consultation.

This is better for them, and reflects well on you, helping you nurture stronger, long lasting client relationships.