My husband and I travel a lot and I have often joked that if I had a dollar for every time we were lost and he point blank refused to ask for directions, I could bankroll our next trip.Of course, this is a stereotype, but one “he just happened to fit.” Talking to other women who claim the same dynamic in their relationship made me wonder. What’s going on – are all men really like this?It turns out, many are. Men don’t like to ask for help (directions included) because they think it makes them appear less competent and manly. It may explain why men commit suicide twice as often as women. No doubt death by suicide is at the extreme end of the spectrum but asking for help is not the “flaw” men think it is. Yet so many, including advisors , are reluctant to admit they need help.We have interviewed hundreds of male financial advisors. Some have told us they found a process that works, one they have used for 10, 15, 20 years and their results are proof of their ability to be successful. “So why get help” they ask.It seems they missed the memo on the changes taking place in the financial advisory business. Clients are no longer “traditional” male investors like them. In fact, investors today are most likely to be women. Nevertheless, advisors continue their mantra, “I’m ok, I know what I’m doing”.The reality we found when we got to know them better, was that most admitted they were losing female clients and are not very successful in attracting new ones either. It turns out what they are doing isn’t working as well as it used to!! And unless they learn how to adapt to this new environment, their practice will suffer – sooner or later.Related: This Is Your Practice Without Women This is our challenge – can we help advisors who resist change – those reluctant to “ask for directions”? Yes. Yes, we can.We understand how advisors work and how they have traditionally done business. So we make it easy for them to adapt their current processes by helping them build change into what they’re already doing.For more information or to get a free learning session, contact www.strategymarketing.ca
