Blog Post for Forbes.com & Women Advisors Forum – by Vivian Groman

It’s February 14, Valentine’s Day. Before I leave the office to go home and celebrate with my loved ones, I find myself ruminating about other key relationships in my life. I look over at the chairs here in the office where so many clients have sat. Often they have shared deeply personal, private aspects of their lives during our work together.

Typically when clients get started with us, and we have a discussion about their goals and dreams, they tell us that they are interested in earning enough to retire or that they want to preserve their wealth for the future. What we generally don’t get initially, but must work towards, is the context behind those goals. Are they fear based? Driven by ambition? This context is often expressed eventually in a story.  As a financial advisor, I can do a better job for my clients when I understand their attitude towards money and investing and how that impacts their wealth. These stories are often unshared until a real relationship is established.

Building true closeness with my clients—or just about anyone for that matter—takes time.

It isn’t important for me to know everything about a client.  But it’s crucially important to know certain things like what emotions or experiences are motivators for how they view their wealth. 

Recently, for example, (more…)