Working With Us
Are you ready to start your journey toward financial success?
What to know about working with us
We work with a lot of people who aren’t sure what to expect (or what they should expect) from a relationship with financial advisors. Here’s what you should know up front:
We’re fiduciaries. We put your financial interests above our own. Seems like a no-brainer, but we take it seriously and it needs to be said.
We aren’t product salespeople. We aren’t product salespeople. There are many excellent insurance agents and investment-only financial professionals, but our focus is on your plan and your entire financial picture. After that, some clients want help implementing recommendations. We help you implement most of them, and many can even be implemented through us — it’s your choice. For those we can’t, we have trusted professionals we can refer you to.
We have no crystal ball. In fact, there is none. We can’t predict what markets are going to do, so the strategies we recommend don’t involve timing.
It’s a two-way street. We ask that if you agree to work with us, you make your best effort to hold up your end of our agreement, including getting us information and documents on the times we mutually agree upon. We view ourselves as your teammates, and teams can’t work together unless everyone is doing their part.
We have no minimum required to invest. We believe planning is for everyone, no matter how many zeroes follow the comma in your net worth.
Ready to get started? Schedule a consultation with us here!
What does working with Providers & Families look like?
We begin every relationship with a conversation.
Even if you’re 100% sure you want to work with us, we like to speak face-to-face (or Zoom screen-to-screen) to make sure we’re the right team to help make your dreams a reality.
Usually, one meeting is enough to tell whether we’re the right fit. We want to learn about who you are: what’s important to you, what your goals are, and more.
Ready to go? Schedule a time to talk.
Planning Agreement
Before getting started, we ask each client to sign a planning agreement and make an initial payment. We’ll go over all of this in our first meeting and will answer any questions before you sign.
We Love Data!
Next, since we’re in finance, we need data. We’ll ask you to complete an intake questionnaire so we can understand your current financial situation and gather other necessary information about you.
Each client receives an invitation to our financial planning software, where you’ll be asked to link your financial accounts. This allows us to work more closely with our ongoing planning clients by providing a continuously updated and accurate snapshot of their financial situation. If you’re unable to link certain accounts, we’ll request a recent statement so we have the best available data.
There are also documents we’ll request that can’t be linked. You’ll have access to a secure portal to upload them. We prefer PDFs but can make other arrangements if needed.
Common documents we request include Social Security statements, two years of tax returns, pay stubs, and information on your workplace retirement and insurance benefits.
Dreams and Goals
We then schedule a face-to-face meeting to dive deeper into your goals and dreams. We ask that you be open and honest, even when questions feel uncomfortable or challenging (don’t worry — we’ll never ask you to share anything too personal).
This is arguably our most important meeting — we don’t take lightly the responsibility of getting to know you on a deeper level. Remember, your goals aren’t dollar signs. Dollar signs are simply what it takes to make your goals possible. You can expect fewer number-focused topics in this conversation.
Your goals aren’t dollar signs.
Dollar signs are just what it takes to make your goals happen.
Ready to start dreaming?
Schedule a consultation with us here!
Additional Info
Depending on where the conversation goes, we may ask you to provide us with additional information before our next meeting. This isn’t uncommon — new information often emerges throughout the planning process, or you may be asked a question you haven’t considered and need time to think about. Regardless, the behind-the-scenes work continues.
We take the culmination of the data you’ve provided, along with our conversations about your goals, and run scenarios and stress tests to determine whether you’re on track to meet your goals or if adjustments need to be made. There’s no right or wrong outcome here — just the facts and how we respond to them. Don’t let the fear of being off track freeze you into inaction — you can make your dreams come true, and we’re here to support you.
Don’t let the fear of being off track hold you back — you can make your dreams come true, and we’re here to support you.
Delivery Meeting
We present our findings, insights, and recommendations in your plan delivery meeting. Recommendations might include reviewing the coverage limits on your auto, home, and umbrella policies; updating your will; or adjusting your investment allocation to be more (or less) exposed to stocks. The possibilities are nearly endless and depend entirely on your goals and financial situation.
Action!
The work doesn’t stop there. It’s been said that a goal without a plan is just a dream. A plan without action steps isn’t worth much either.
It’s not unusual for multiple implementation recommendations to accompany the plan, so we begin working with you to prioritize which action steps are most important. Because it’s human nature to procrastinate, we believe in setting deadlines so a year doesn’t go by without meaningful progress.
It’s been said that a goal without a plan is just a dream. A plan without action steps isn’t worth much either.
Ongoing Check-Ins
From there, we move on to mutually agreed-upon check-ins and progress reviews. We like to meet with clients more frequently, especially during the first year of working together.
Ready to chat?
Our ask is that you are serious about financial planning – not necessarily with us,
but with the idea that you’re going to set out to accomplish this, because you can.
