I never realized how much admiration I have for sixth-grade band teachers until the other night. A neighbor invited my wife and me to his son’s end-of-year, sixth-grade band concert at school. We went and were treated to songs about spring, patriotism, and school spirit. In between numbers, the teacher reminded us that the students in front of us were completing their first year as full-fledged musicians. Students at this school are allowed to participate in band for the first time as sixth graders. At the beginning of the school year, these students had no concept of playing together as a single unit, not to mention playing a single note, reading music, or even holding their instrument correctly.
My neighbors’ son, Calvin, plays the trombone, which is part of the “low brass” family of instruments. The band teacher pointed out that one challenge for novice low brass instrument players is learning to play chains of notes that are not the melodies of the songs. Low brass instruments typically play more harmonic notes that support the melody rather than be part of it. Trombonists don’t usually get the affirmation of “knowing” the song they are playing sounds “right” in the way that some of the musicians do whose notes create the melody.
Why do I have a newfound admiration for sixth-grade band teachers, and what in the world does a middle school band concert have to do with financial wellness?
I had the epiphany that the true genius of a sixth-grade band teacher comes from their ability to create order out of chaos. They take beginning drummers, flutists, and trombonists and help each create a plan that maximizes their own individual growth while at the same time allowing them to come together and play as one band. They provide guidance at a one-on-one level during a 45-minute class period but motivate each student to go home and practice the same piece of music over and over until mastery attainment. They meet each student where the child is and do not subscribe to a one-size-fits-all mentality.
Your current and future clients want an advisor who can create order out of financial chaos. They desire someone who can help them tailor a financial wellness plan that suits their individual needs based on experience, confidence, and budget. Beyond investments, taxes, mortgages, estate planning, or simply helping with budgeting and credit counseling, clients want industry experts who are solid communicators, behavioral scientists, financial mentors, motivational coaches, and overall wellness gurus. It’s one thing to say you possess these traits. It’s another to have the certification to back it up. Some of the greatest minds in wellness, finance, and consulting have collaborated to develop the Foundation for Financial Wellness’s Financial Wellness Professional Certification™.
Engaging in the Foundation’s certification training will unlock seven modules with a multitude of courses and chapters inside each. The modules cover topics like behavior change, counseling and coaching, facilitation, and education. Participants will also get access to the Foundation’s world-famous 5 Essentials for Financial Wellness™ curriculum. Upon completion of the program, an exam allows the practitioner the opportunity to show competency in all aspects of financial wellness. Pass the exam and receive a certification mark that will show both current and future clients that your practice goes beyond analyzing the market and making recommendations. You care about the overall wellbeing of everyone with whom you encounter. The certification program caters to the busy professional. Approximately 20 hours of coursework can be completed at a go-at-your-own pace prior to taking the certifying exam.
Once certified, you will join a community of like-minded wellness professionals and have access to world-class livestreams, videos, and curriculum curated by the Foundation for Financial Wellness. Annual continuing education requirements for certification renewal provides further opportunities to show your commitment to the wellness of your clients.
Help your clients make beautiful music while creating order out of financial chaos.
For more information and to enroll in the certification program, visit https://foundationforfinancialwellness.org/certified-financial-wellness-professional/. We are a not-for-profit entity, looking to make a difference in the world. Learn how to Handle Life (and money) Better.
When I played basketball back in high school, my coach frequently talked about two kinds of errors: errors of commission and errors of omission.
Errors of commission usually showed up in the box score and included things like committing a foul while going for a rebound, making a bad pass while trying to get the ball to an open teammate, and missing a shot while trying to beat the clock at the end of a quarter. Coach said that these kinds of errors were forgivable because they occurred while trying to make something positive happen.
Errors of omission on the other hand transpired as a result of not doing something. They rarely showed up in the box score and included things like not working hard during off-season conditioning, not going to bed at a decent hour the night before a game, not going for a rebound, not telling a teammate a screen is coming, and not being in proper defensive stance to stop an opponent from scoring. Errors of omission always made coach angry. During film sessions, coach rarely mentioned errors of commission, but he would rewind the tape over and over to show errors of omission and demand explanations. These errors occurred because of a lack of effort or awareness, and coach deemed them unforgivable.
What do old high school basketball memories have to do with financial wellness? Let’s fast-forward to today. Are your clients’ and future clients’ current states of financial wellness caused due to errors of commission, errors of omission, or both? Let’s face it, if no one made any financial errors, everyone would be rich, and advisors would not be needed.
Errors of commission might include strategies that over or underweight stocks, bonds, or cash in portfolio balancing, selling a position too soon, and buying an asset based on chatter heard at a party. While sometimes costly, these errors are made while trying to make something positive happen. These are the kinds of errors that very likely will show up on your clients’ (and in turn your) box scores. Fortunately, with discipline, these kinds of errors can be improved upon.
What are some errors of omission that might not show up in the box score but cost your clients dearly? Some very common ones include not contributing to a company 401k plan up to the match percentage, not putting enough annual money into a 529 plan to earn your state’s full tax benefit, not paying down high-interest debt as quickly as possible, not investigating the loads placed on various funds, not investing at all due to fear of not knowing what to do, and not asking questions for fear of looking foolish. Notice that in the errors of omission in both the basketball and investing scenarios, I started each example with the word “not.” When the quarterly statement comes out, it will never show how much of a match could have been earned, tax deductions gained, fees and interest saved, hypothetical profit made, or questions answered.
Fear and lack of knowledge leads to paralysis, and this paralysis creates errors of omission. Your clients want a financial professional who can quell both fear and lack of knowledge. Beyond investments, taxes, mortgages, estate planning, or simply helping with budgeting and credit counseling, clients want industry experts who are solid communicators, behavioral scientists, financial mentors, motivational coaches, and overall wellness gurus. It’s one thing to say you possess these traits. It’s another to have the certification to back it up. Some of the greatest minds in wellness, finance, and consulting have collaborated to develop the Foundation for Financial Wellness’s Financial Wellness Professional Certification™ .
Engaging in the Foundation’s certification training will unlock seven modules with a multitude of courses and chapters inside each. The modules cover topics like behavior change, counseling and coaching, facilitation, and education. Participants will also get access to the Foundation’s world-famous 5 Essentials for Financial Wellness™ curriculum. Upon completion of the program, an exam allows the practitioner the opportunity to show competency in all aspects of financial wellness. Pass the exam and receive a certification mark that will show both current and future clients that your practice goes beyond analyzing the market and making recommendations. You care about the overall wellbeing of everyone with whom you encounter. The certification program caters to the busy professional. Approximately 20 hours of coursework can be completed at a go-at-your-own pace prior to taking the certifying exam.
Once certified, you will join a community of like-minded wellness professionals and have access to world-class livestreams, videos, and curriculum curated by the Foundation for Financial Wellness. Annual continuing education requirements for certification renewal provide further opportunities to show your commitment to the wellness of your clients.
Help your clients make the game-winning shot by helping them eliminate both errors of commission and omission.
For more information and to enroll in the certification program, visit https://foundationforfinancialwellness.org/certified-financial-wellness-professional/. We are a not-for-profit entity, looking to make a difference in the world. Learn how to Handle Life (and money) Better.
As a kid I remember turning the dial on our TV that received three stations. I was fascinated by weather and always tried to catch the forecasts on each channel. The graphics, satellite images, and radars were primitive by today’s standards. Frankly, I don’t remember much about any of the broadcasts, but I do remember that one channel had a meteorologist that had the “NWA Seal of Approval,” and another channel had one with the “AMS Seal of Approval.” Before each broadcast, an authoritative voice would say, “Stan had earned the AMS Seal of Approval” or “Bob had achieved the NWA Seal of Approval.” The poor third station’s weatherperson must not have been very good, because no authoritative voice told me about any seals of approval. It turns out that the certification processes to get seals of approval are quite extensive.
A few weeks back, I was watching the movie A Few Good Men. Kevin Bacon’s character reminds the jury that Dr. Stone is board certified in internal medicine, and that is why they should value his opinion. Yesterday, while driving home, I heard a radio commercial mention that every doctor in the practice was board certified. Because of this certification, they implied their clinic’s superiority over all others in the local area. Board certification for doctors is a near imperative. Certification tells patients, hospital systems, insurance companies, and colleagues that a doctor remains current in their practice. To get certified, a doctor must both complete a residency and pass a rigorous exam after the completion of medical school. To maintain certification, a doctor must remain current with updates in medical discoveries and technologies and periodically show proficiency in and improvements to their practice. While medical licensure is required to practice medicine, certification is a voluntary undertaking. The medical community holds the certification practice in such high regard that an estimated 90% of doctors in the United States have obtained board certification.
Some of you reading this article have earned your Certified Financial Planner certification. The day is coming when clients will expect financial wellness certification from their financial professionals as well. Beyond investments, taxes, mortgages, estate planning, or simply helping with budgeting and credit counseling, clients want industry experts who are solid communicators, behavioral scientists, financial mentors, motivational coaches, and overall wellness gurus. It’s one thing to say you possess these traits. It’s another to have the certification to back it up. Some of the greatest wellness practitioners have collaborated to develop the Foundation for Financial Wellness’s Financial Wellness Professional Certification Program.
Seeking Foundation certification in financial wellness will unlock seven modules with a multitude of courses and chapters inside each. The modules cover topics like behavior change, counseling and coaching, facilitation, and education. Participants will also get access to the Foundation’s world-famous 5 Essentials for Financial Wellness curriculum. Upon completion of the program, an exam allows the practitioner the opportunity to show competency in all aspects of financial wellness. Pass the exam and receive a certification mark that will show both current and future clients that your practice goes beyond analyzing the market and making recommendations. You care about the overall wellbeing of everyone with whom you encounter. The certification program caters to the busy professional. Approximately 20 hours of coursework can be completed at a go-at-your-own pace prior to taking the certifying exam.
Once certified, you will join a community of like-minded wellness professionals and have access to world-class livestreams, videos, and curriculum curated by the Foundation for Financial Wellness. Annual continuing education requirements for certification renewal provides further opportunities to show your commitment to the wellness of your clients.
Whether forecasting the weather, performing open-heart surgery, or motivating a client to make important financial improvements, certification matters.
For more information and to enroll in the certification program, visit https://foundationforfinancialwellness.org/certified-financial-wellness-professional/. We are a not-for-profit entity, looking to make a difference. Learn how to Handle Life (and money) Better.
As I’ve grown older, I’ve learned many lessons from both my own life and observing the behaviors of others. It’s hard to function on two hours of sleep. Drinking alcohol to excess will lead to regrettable behaviors, not to mention a massive headache the next morning. A constant diet of fast food will lead to weight gain and other issues that will leave a doctor frowning during a physical examination.
Your employees know about each of the lessons I’ve described. Even though most people know about the adverse results, they continue the behaviors that lead to them. Why is this?
Did you know that the American Psychological Association’s survey on stress determined that 72% of American adults are stressed about money at least some of the time, and 26% are stressed about money most or all of the time? To further this point, a separate report found that 60% of American workers’ distress over financial issues impacts their ability to focus at work and has caused 1 in 3 to miss or be late for work because of their financial situation. These are your employees and your company’s efficiency at stake.
What is causing all of this financial stress? Much of it is rooted in negative thoughts about money and finances. Where did these negative thoughts originate? For many, it comes from childhood. Behavioral scientists refer to these beliefs as “scripts, tapes, or records,” and the majority them were given to us by authoritative figures early in life. Parents, teachers, and other trusted adults complain negatively about financial situations and pass along that paradigm to the next generation.
If Dad couldn’t pay the gas bill and grumbled, you probably formed a negative connotation with bill paying at an early age. If Grandma constantly talked about how impossible it was to deal with financial “stuff,” you may have had it ingrained that dealing with financial “stuff” was too hard and avoided it.
Scientists estimate that the average person has between 50,000 and 60,000 thoughts a day.
Science has also learned that unfortunately 70-85% of these thoughts are negative. Since many people think about finances often, that accounts for many negative thoughts about money each day. Talk about a self-fulfilling prophesy!
The answer to the question posed at the beginning of this post (Why is this?) has much to do with negativity in thoughts and actions. It’s time for a change. Financial wellness isn’t just about education, it’s about taking action. Sometimes that action is simply making a decision. That first decision should be choosing to think positively about money. This choice will then lead to other healthier financial behaviors.
At the Foundation for Financial Wellness, we know that everyone’s knowledge and comfort level with investing is different, so we’ve created tools to be flexible and guide your employees into the areas that they need the most. Our Five Essentials Program starts at the beginning, complete with behaviors and psychology, and leads the user down the path to intentionally creating an investing plan that will lead to sustainable retirement and a lasting legacy.
If your company wants to take action and learn more about educational programs, certifications, or coaching for you and your employees, contact us at www.foundationforfinancialwellness.org. We are a not-for-profit entity simply looking to make a difference. Learn how to Handle Life (and your money) Better.
Many people confuse financial wellness and financial education. Though they sound very similar, financial education is merely a subset of financial wellness. Financial wellness consists not only of financial knowledge (education) but also of healthy behaviors and empowering beliefs. Some of your employees have the head or book knowledge required to be financially well but lack the behaviors and beliefs to make it a reality. Others lack the knowledge necessary to take action to create lasting financial health that is one pillar of a fulfilling life.
The term “wellness” did not enter the English lexicon until 1957. Dictionary.com defines it as “the quality or state of being healthy in body and mind, especially as the result of deliberate effort.” As with other kinds of wellness, like physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual, financial wellness does not happen by accident. It requires sustained effort over a lifetime.
Imagine that you have an employee named Brenda. Brenda is a sedentary person who one day wakes up and desires to complete a marathon. She knows a marathon is 26.2 miles and that she must train to complete the distance. Unfortunately, this knowledge alone will not make it happen. She must take the HUGE first step of getting off of the couch. She must then take deliberate action every day to achieve her goal. At first, completing one mile creates a cause for celebration. After first going a mile, two becomes her natural next target. Over time, Brenda can complete a 5k and a half-marathon. As her success increases, she develops the behaviors and beliefs that enable her to make an attempt at the marathon length. She might succeed on the first attempt, or she might have to try multiple times to complete the 26.2-mile distance. She could achieve the target, celebrate, and vow to do it again even faster the next time. Not only does reaching the goal of running a marathon require running regularly over increasing distances, it also requires discipline in other areas of life. Moving from a sedentary lifestyle to one of a marathoner requires Brenda to get additional sleep, eat well, and sacrifice leisure time to get in necessary training.
Moving from a state of financial sedentariness to financial wellness requires the HUGE first step off of the figurative couch. It then demands deliberate activity and discipline in other areas of life. If Brenda is not financially well, but plans to continue spending beyond her means, she will remain on the financial couch. Beyond budgeting, financial wellness requires Brenda (and all of your employees) to evaluate her life and align her values with a plan that allows her to become financially healthy as a result of deliberate effort.
At the Foundation for Financial Wellness, we know that everyone’s knowledge and comfort level with investing is different, so we’ve created tools to be flexible and guide your employees into the areas that they need the most. Our Five Essentials Program starts at the beginning, complete with behaviors and psychology, and leads the user down the path to intentionally creating an investing plan that will lead to sustainable retirement and a lasting legacy.
If your company wants to take action and learn more about educational programs, certifications, or coaching for you and your employees, contact us at www.foundationforfinancialwellness.org. We are a not-for-profit entity simply looking to make a difference. Learn how to Handle Life (and your money) Better.