The Enduring Advisory Firm

Chapter 2 What Business Are You In?

A former colleague of ours who moved on to a new role developing strategy at one of the UK’s leading wealth management firms introduced us to Simon Sinek’s book Start with Why.¹ His book proved to be a powerful catalyst to begin asking every advisor we meet about their why.

The query itself may remind us of the insistent and annoying strings of questions we hear from young kids, but forcing an answer gives clarity to our decisions. Too often in business, we hear people tell us what they do and how they do it. There is a heavy emphasis on the mechanics of what we do. But rarely do the answers touch us emotionally. Ultimately, we need to understand why we should care.

Imagine that your prospects, clients, employees, and vendors are asking the same questions about you. How would you respond?

This is your mission should you choose to accept it:

• Why do prospects come to your firm and why should clients stay?
• Why do employees join your firm and why should they stay?
• Why do you believe your business exists?

These questions prove very hard to answer for many. We have a tendency to respond with features and benefits. We emphasize what we do rather than who we are. We don’t talk about the communities we are connected to, but the solutions we provide. When you think about it, anytime we hear others prattle on about their business in a way that sounds remarkably familiar, our eyes glaze over. Almost every advisor’s website says something like, “We ...