After reading the title of this blog you may be thinking, “Uh oh…here comes the sales pitch!”
Not really. It is amazing over the years how most of the people I come in contact with think that everyone else needs to see a financial coach except for them. The reality is that everyone can benefit from meeting with a financial coach. With that being said, what are the benefits you are missing out on?
The myth is that a financial coach is reserved for those that make very little money, are way behind on their bills, and are one wrong move from bankruptcy.
The reality is most of my clients make a solid income and are in need of someone showing them how they can take their financial plan to the next level (instead of spinning their wheels).
Benefits of Financial Coaching
- Building rewarding money habits
- Accountability
- Being on the same page with my spouse
- No sale of financial products (insurance and investments)
Building Rewarding Money Habits
I had a financial planner refer me one of their clients who were already doing “ok” with their finances. The client wasn’t quite sure why they needed to see me because they had no debt and a great income. However, they did trust their financial planner’s judgment and decided to go through financial coaching. Here’s what they had to say.
“With a good steady income and no debt, my wife and I felt we didn’t really need assistance with a budget. But we were wrong. We’d spent well over a year trying to “keep a closer eye” on our budget. We used Mint for the longest time and always got discouraged at the amount of time it took to import, sort and track. It was a part time job.
In our first month, we cut our grocery expenses by 35% just by paying more attention. We were amazed that we came in under our overall budget in our first month, all without any noticeable t effect on our quality of life. Every month we delayed, we were burning money as it easily paid for Justin’s affordable services the first month.”
Accountability
I will never forget going to lunch with a financial planner. This guy has no debt and is doing very well financially. During our conversation he mentioned that he had his own financial planner. I was stunned. I asked him, “Why do you have a financial planner?”
My thinking was that having a financial planner he will have to pay commissions to somebody, where he could have purchased his own investments and not had to worry about paying the commissions.
What he said next, I was not expecting. “The reason why I have a financial planner is because I am human and it is good to have someone hold me accountable so I do not get off track.”
He went on to say that after he paid off his house that he noticed that if he did not have someone else holding him accountable, he may not have made wise choices with money that used to go toward his house payment.
Being on the Same Page With My Spouse
Our last blog discussed the benefits of working together as a team. One of the biggest benefits of using a financial coach is for couples to get on the same page with their finances. Typically one spouse is a spender and one is a saver. Here is one husband’s struggle that was able to be turned in to a success because of working with a financial coach.
“I was a little skeptical when I was first introduced to Justin Bennett at Strong Tower Consulting. My first thought was… great, another financial advisor, what is he going to try and sell me and when is he going to want me to switch financial advisors? WOW was I wrong.
I was doing very well financially…I thought. I was making a good income and paying all my bills on time. Some months were tighter than others. When I would look at my financial situation at times I would be discouraged by how much money I was actually making and spending. The worst part was I was making more money but not saving more. The biggest thing that was bothering me is my wife and I were not on the same wave length on how to spend our money which caused stress in our lives. Justin taught my wife and I how to do a spending plan BEFORE we spent money every month.”
No Sale of Financial Products
Have you ever met with a financial professional and all they wanted to do was sell a product (investments or insurance)? There is nothing wrong with that, in fact we need it. But it is nice to have a financial professional that does not sell anything. Recently, during a 30 minute consultation, here is what one husband had to say.
“One of my biggest frustrations meeting with other financial advisors is they were really pushy and they were trying to get us to buy from them sooner rather than later. Towards the end of the thirty minute consultation with you I was waiting for the piece of paper to slide across the desk to sell me life insurance. It never came. It was so refreshing to have someone that truly wants to coach and mentor us and not push a product towards us.”
This is just a tip of the iceberg when it comes to all of the emails and Facebook comments we receive from individuals and couples that decided to work with a financial coach.
The myth is that financial coaching is for broke people. The truth is financial coaching is for those who want to win.
What has your experience been having someone hold you accountable (in any area of life)?
What is holding you back from meeting with a financial coach?