As an independent financial adviser specialising in advice to women, I am often telephoned by a female who asks “Can we have a meeting?” “Can you help me with my finances?”
The short answer that I give is “no”. But before you think I’m horribly rude…. there’s as a longer answer.
The longer answer is “I’m not sure yet. I need to understand a bit more about your circumstances to see if this is something I can help with.”
I know that for many women, approaching a financial adviser can be very daunting.
A lot of women who come to me are going through divorce, feeling a lack of confidence and feeling horribly out of their depth.
At a time when they are emotionally at a very low ebb, getting to grips with finances can be daunting.
Since I specialise in this area, I recognise that in many ways women feeling anxious about their financial future do not necessarily need different advice to men. However, they may need a different approach. They may need some metaphorical (or maybe even actual) handholding. They need some comfort as well as hard facts.
The last thing I would want to do would be to encourage someone to come in for a meeting if I can’t be sure I’ll will be able to add value to them and help them resolve their issues.
For that reason, I’ll have a 30-minute telephone conversation to discuss their concerns and ask relevant questions so I can understand what it is they want to achieve.
In many instances after that meeting we will both want to arrange a face to face meeting to discuss things further. I’m quite happy to have that meeting at her house. In many ways I prefer that since I want to have the meeting where she is relaxed an able to talk openly about her concerns and what she would like her financial future to look like.
However, sometimes after the call we each decide it’s not appropriate to take things further. This may be because I’ve offered enough help and guidance during the call for her to know what she needs to do next.
Either way, each of us spending 30 minutes on the phone as a first option, is much better than arranging a face to face meeting as out first contact. It makes things so much easier for her. She may come away from the phone call knowing enough to then sort things on her own. If we are arranging a face to face meeting she knows enough about my approach to feel comfortable going into that meeting. It’s no longer as daunting as she had initially expected.
If this sounds like something that’s right for you, why not take advantage of my no obligation 30-minute clarity call?
If you would like to do this, please email me at [email protected] and we can get a date and time sorted.
I look forward to speaking with you.
