The Secrets to Winning as a Financial Advisor!

When Sameer Somal introduced me to Vern Hayden I knew I had to interview this man - a true role model in financial services. Actually he is a role model for every professional, in any industry, at any length of service. Vern Hayden is known for being a financial planning pioneer, an educator, an author, and even dubbed “Mr. Mutual Fund” by CNBC , but as you will see and hear in this interview, he’s so much more than that, from playing handball 3x a week to much, much more!

See the interview above!


In this discussion, Vern takes us on a journey through his almost 50 active years in sales and financial planning circles , and gives the details on his simple strategies that have stood the test of time and still apply today to earn trust, gain new clients and keep them for life. He shares his wisdom and philosophies on relationships, and offers a wealth of knowledge on building the strongest practice through the following subjects:

  • Character (building vs. revealing)
  • Finding a specialty/niche and developing all the skills necessary to serve the type of clientele associated with it
  • Adapting through progression & regression
  • Not fearing technology, but finding a deep appreciation for what it offers, and synthesizing human, face to face interaction with it
  • Cutting through the noise
  • Putting employees first, so that clients/customers win in the end
  • Vern’s undeniable passion for financial planning and the success of his clients, along with an incredibly positive attitude, terrific sense of humor and knack for simplifying content and subject matter for his clients has earned him the highest level of trust. His principles and ideals are what make the world of those around him a better place, and following them will surely do the same for yours.

    My team and I thoroughly enjoyed our time with Vern, and all that we learned about him, and look forward to reading his next book, once it is published… A handbook for clients to have higher level conversations with their advisors, planners and other sales professionals, “How Do I Know You Won’t Steal My Money?”