Financial Planners

Looking for a Career Change? The U.S. needs Financial Planners

Last week, I talked about the fear that financial planners have of being shoved out of our careers by robo-advisers.  This is kind of funny because the other gloom and doom projection for my industry is that we are woefully short of financial planners.

So, which is it?

Let’s take a look.

According to an article by Dan Butcher on January 4, 2016 on efinancialcareers.com, “U.S. advisers’ average age was close to 60 as of last year, with 43% more than 55-years-old and a mere 11% younger than 35, according to research firm Cerulli Associates. Meanwhile, consulting firm Moss Adams estimated that by 2022 the U.S. wealth management industry is likely to face a shortfall of at least 200,000 advisers.”

 

Sounds like a great place for young people to start career building.  But what kind of person makes a good financial adviser?

It’s not just number-crunching nerds like you may think.  Here are some characteristics that go a long way to making a good financial planner:

  • You like to work with people, not just stare at spreadsheets.
  • You are a good listener.
  • You are self-motivated – it takes work to find clients, after all.
  • You can use numbers (yes there is that element) to interpret trends and help clients make data- supported decisions.
  • You are good at verbal and written communication.

 

Financial planning is also a great second career.

I’ve seen people make the jump from teachers, counselors, and law firms.  You can go to www.cfpboard.net to find out more about getting a Certified Financial Planner designation and careers in financial advising.

 

More 4-year universities are incorporating the CFP program into their curriculum. When students graduate, they have passed the tests and are ready to get the 2-years’ experience required to use the CFP ® trademark.  Purdue, Louisiana State University (geaux Tigers!), Texas Tech, Kansas State, and Colorado State University are just a few of the schools offering CFP ® education along with business degrees.

Bottom line?

Jump on in the financial planning pool!  The water’s fine!

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